Get out of prison

I remember seeing a video a few years ago of the testimony of a man in prison for committing a murder, who had just received the Lord Jesus Christ as his Saviour.  And while I do not remember all the details of his story, I remember very clearly his absolute exuberance as he repeated over and over again:  There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus!  There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus! Over and over again!

This is of course the well-known Rom 8:1 “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.”

What is condemnation?  It means a very strong disapproval, or censure, or blame, and also condemnation to a punishment; being sentenced in other words.

This man, who had faced supreme condemnation from all who knew him, and certainly mostly from himself, had been condemned to a very severe sentence in prison, but was now set free from the burden of that guilt that had been hanging over him for so long.

Before we met Jesus, we could not escape God’s condemnation and sure judgement.  But now we can have confidence and peace knowing that Jesus has taken all the guilt and condemnation and punishment that should have rightfully been ours, upon Himself, so that we can be set free from it.

Imagine you standing in a court room, guilty as anything, the evidence against you piled up like a huge mountain in front of the judge, and the judge handing down his sentence: Not Guilty!

Are you putting yourself on trial for something that you did in your past?  Are you currently in a prison of your own making, maybe even giving yourself a life sentence for doing something wrong way back in the history of your life?

Then take the key to freedom from Jesus’ hand, my friend!  You can be free today, in this very instant!  Know that He has already paid the price for your freedom on the cross at Calvary; repent sincerely for that which was done, or not done; most importantly – forgive yourself; and then leave that guilt and condemnation at the foot of the cross with Jesus; walk away a free man or woman!  Free for ever!

Come on, what’s stopping you – do it now!

1 February 2022

©2022 Copyright All rights reserved P. Koegelenberg

Reverence and awe

 There is a trap we as modern Christians easily fall into.  It is the trap of not believing with our whole being that God is as all-powerful and mighty as indeed He is!  Oh, we say we believe that, but deep down…we often don’t.

We have somehow grown into a shallow familiarity in our dealings with our God:  we see Him as Abba Father, which He certainly is, but then we often tend to interact with Him according to the example that our own fathers modelled for us, not to mention the influence of the skewed picture of fatherhood that society has portrayed for us. 

In these modern times it has become very difficult indeed to see our Heavenly Father in His full role of fatherhood, which encompasses not only love, provision, protection, mercy and  loving-kindness, but also justice and righteousness, and a hatred of sin in all its forms.

Let me show you what the effect of being in God’s presence and seeing Him in a vision, was on people in biblical times.

Dan 10:5,7,8  “I looked up and saw a man dressed in linen clothing, with a belt of pure gold around his waist.  7  Only I, Daniel, saw this vision. The men with me saw nothing, but they were suddenly terrified and ran away to hide. 8  So I was left there all alone to see this amazing vision. My strength left me, my face grew deathly pale, and I felt very weak.”

Rev 1:17 “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. But he laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid! I am the First and the Last.”

Ez 1:28  “All around him was a glowing halo, like a rainbow shining in the clouds on a rainy day. This is what the glory of the LORD looked like to me. When I saw it, I fell face down on the ground, and I heard someone’s voice speaking to me.”

Acts 9:4, 7 “He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?”  7 The men who were traveling with him [were terrified and] stood speechless, hearing the voice but seeing no one.”

That is what reverence and awe looks like. 

So my friend, when you are in that space of doubting God’s ability, not fully trusting Him to keep His promises to you:  Go into your prayer closet, fall down on your face or kneel down in deep reverence, keep humbling yourself until you become aware of Who God really is. Day by day. Even if it takes a week, a month,  and longer.  Come to the understanding that He is the all-powerful Creator of everything, magnificent in all His Being, supreme in His Majesty.

And then, from that position of humbleness, say, “Abba!  Father!”

 

 

31 January 2022

©2022 Copyright All rights reserved P. Koegelenberg

Slaves to sin

Have you thought about slaves recently?  If so, you probably had an image from some or other movie come into your mind, because slaves are not normally part of our modern lives anymore!

Essentially, a slave is someone who has a master, to whom he must be obedient at all times.  He has no choice in the matter – when his master says: Jump!  He jumps….  He does not have the privilege of denying the command.

Which brings us to Romans 6:6, where Paul talks about slaves.  It reads “We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin.” 

Before we knew Jesus, we were slaves to sin.  We sinned because sin was our master, it commanded us to follow the sinful urges jumping up from inside our sinful natures.

But no more!  That very same old sinful nature was crucified with Christ, and is now deader than a doornail!  Sin immediately lost its power over our lives.

Does that mean that we no longer sin after becoming a Christian?  Of course not!  It means that we now get to choose whether we will sin or not.  Yes, you heard right.  When you sin now, it is because you choose to do it.  Not because a sin slave master cracked his whip over you and you had to obey.

Remember this image, my friend, when you next feel so powerless because there is some or other sin in your life which you feel is overwhelming you.  See your old sinful self on the cross with Jesus, breathing out his last.  Then see the new you rising up, facing that sin slave master squarely in the eyes, and saying a resounding, NO!

And simply walk away from the temptation.  In 1 Corinthians 10:13 we have such good news about temptations.  God promises in that verse firstly that “The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. (so you are not being singled out for extra punishment), secondly, And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. (He made sure you would be able to counter this temptation, it is not beyond your abilities or strength). And also When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” (as you walk away, start looking for that way out!  The telephone may start ringing, for instance, giving you an excuse to disengage with the temptation. God is such a practical, hands-on God!)

And the more you stand up against that old sin slave master, the better you are going to get at it!

Hallelujah! Praise God! Jesus set us free indeed!

 

31 January 2022

©2022 Copyright All rights reserved P. Koegelenberg