1 00:00:02,730 --> 00:00:06,730 Speaker 1: Life Audio. For more resources to help you in your 2 00:00:06,790 --> 00:00:13,510 Speaker 1: walk with Christ, please visit us at BibleStudyHeadquarters.com. You're listening 3 00:00:13,570 --> 00:00:18,130 Speaker 1: to Daily Devotions with Pastor John. I'm John Stonge, and 4 00:00:18,170 --> 00:00:22,700 Speaker 1: today's devotion is inspired by 1 Peter 2, verse 16, 5 00:00:22,700 --> 00:00:27,500 Speaker 1: which says, Live as people who are free, not using 6 00:00:27,540 --> 00:00:30,780 Speaker 1: your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as 7 00:00:30,940 --> 00:00:37,519 Speaker 1: servants of God. Freedom is a genuine gift that we 8 00:00:37,620 --> 00:00:42,769 Speaker 1: receive through Jesus Christ. Before knowing Jesus, we were not free. 9 00:00:43,310 --> 00:00:45,890 Speaker 1: But upon coming to know Him by faith, we were 10 00:00:45,990 --> 00:00:49,750 Speaker 1: set free from our bondage to sin, Satan, and death. 11 00:00:51,190 --> 00:00:54,650 Speaker 1: Freedom is a very misunderstood concept, even among those who 12 00:00:54,690 --> 00:00:58,450 Speaker 1: have been set free by Jesus. In many cases, the 13 00:00:58,530 --> 00:01:01,660 Speaker 1: concept of freedom is treated like it's the ability to 14 00:01:01,730 --> 00:01:06,090 Speaker 1: do whatever we want, whenever we want. regardless of the consequences. 15 00:01:06,770 --> 00:01:08,950 Speaker 1: But that's not the kind of freedom we've been granted 16 00:01:09,010 --> 00:01:13,830 Speaker 1: through Christ. Jesus has set us free from sin, not 17 00:01:13,890 --> 00:01:16,830 Speaker 1: so we can continue to indulge in it, but so 18 00:01:16,970 --> 00:01:19,610 Speaker 1: we don't need to be held back by it any longer. 19 00:01:20,709 --> 00:01:23,319 Speaker 1: Jesus has opened our eyes to begin to see what 20 00:01:23,380 --> 00:01:26,160 Speaker 1: matters to Him, and to learn how to value what 21 00:01:26,280 --> 00:01:30,160 Speaker 1: He is concerned with. It's not His will for us 22 00:01:30,319 --> 00:01:33,040 Speaker 1: to live as if we are still in the spiritual 23 00:01:33,100 --> 00:01:37,100 Speaker 1: blindness that we once walked in. The freedom we have 24 00:01:37,140 --> 00:01:40,040 Speaker 1: been granted by Jesus is the kind of freedom that 25 00:01:40,100 --> 00:01:44,610 Speaker 1: is lived out in heartfelt service toward God. It's the 26 00:01:44,640 --> 00:01:47,570 Speaker 1: freedom to live our lives differently than we once did. 27 00:01:48,670 --> 00:01:50,910 Speaker 1: We have been granted the blessing of being able to 28 00:01:51,070 --> 00:01:54,690 Speaker 1: use the days we've been given to glorify and serve 29 00:01:54,750 --> 00:01:58,090 Speaker 1: our Creator, instead of living as if our primary desire 30 00:01:58,110 --> 00:02:01,810 Speaker 1: was is to serve the selfish desires of the sin nature. 31 00:02:03,910 --> 00:02:08,910 Speaker 1: Let's pray. Lord, we thank you for your word. And 32 00:02:08,930 --> 00:02:10,570 Speaker 1: we thank you for the privilege that it is to 33 00:02:10,620 --> 00:02:13,120 Speaker 1: be able to read this portion of Scripture together today 34 00:02:13,190 --> 00:02:16,179 Speaker 1: from the book of 1 Peter. And Lord, it's a 35 00:02:16,220 --> 00:02:19,059 Speaker 1: wonderful encouragement to be able to read what you communicated 36 00:02:19,139 --> 00:02:22,079 Speaker 1: through Peter, as we're told to live as people who 37 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:24,940 Speaker 1: are free. And we're grateful that you show us what 38 00:02:24,960 --> 00:02:27,710 Speaker 1: that freedom looks like. We're not free to do whatever 39 00:02:27,750 --> 00:02:30,630 Speaker 1: we feel like. We're not free to indulge in the 40 00:02:30,740 --> 00:02:34,679 Speaker 1: passions of our old nature. You tell us specifically not 41 00:02:34,720 --> 00:02:38,100 Speaker 1: to use our freedom as a cover-up for evil. But rather, 42 00:02:38,160 --> 00:02:40,260 Speaker 1: what you've done is you've set us free from our 43 00:02:40,340 --> 00:02:43,460 Speaker 1: bondage to sin. You've set us free from our bondage 44 00:02:43,520 --> 00:02:47,060 Speaker 1: to Satan and our bondage to death. We're not bound 45 00:02:47,090 --> 00:02:50,410 Speaker 1: to these things any longer. You've set us free so 46 00:02:50,450 --> 00:02:54,400 Speaker 1: that we could be your servants. We serve you, we 47 00:02:54,480 --> 00:02:57,579 Speaker 1: serve one another, we glorify your name in every context 48 00:02:57,900 --> 00:03:01,100 Speaker 1: that you place us in, and we enjoy the process 49 00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:03,780 Speaker 1: of doing so because we know that there's a greater 50 00:03:04,020 --> 00:03:07,950 Speaker 1: eternal purpose behind it. Lord, we know that at one 51 00:03:08,010 --> 00:03:11,250 Speaker 1: point in our life we probably misunderstood the concept of freedom, 52 00:03:11,630 --> 00:03:13,210 Speaker 1: and we also know that there are many people who 53 00:03:13,270 --> 00:03:16,570 Speaker 1: profess to be believers in your Son who still misunderstand 54 00:03:16,610 --> 00:03:19,510 Speaker 1: that concept as well. Many people treat it like it's 55 00:03:19,550 --> 00:03:21,990 Speaker 1: the ability to do whatever they want, whenever they want, 56 00:03:22,419 --> 00:03:25,500 Speaker 1: regardless of the consequences, but again, in a portion of 57 00:03:25,560 --> 00:03:28,370 Speaker 1: Scripture like this, you show us that the kind of 58 00:03:28,430 --> 00:03:31,930 Speaker 1: freedom you've granted us through your Son, Jesus Christ, is 59 00:03:31,970 --> 00:03:36,270 Speaker 1: not freedom to sin, it's freedom from sin. So we 60 00:03:36,330 --> 00:03:38,670 Speaker 1: pray that by your grace, we would not go back 61 00:03:38,770 --> 00:03:41,810 Speaker 1: to the life that you've already freed us from. We 62 00:03:41,850 --> 00:03:44,380 Speaker 1: were walking away from you, but now you've drawn us 63 00:03:44,640 --> 00:03:47,040 Speaker 1: unto you, and we pray that by your grace, we 64 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:51,690 Speaker 1: would continue to walk with you daily. serving you, honoring you, 65 00:03:51,930 --> 00:03:54,990 Speaker 1: glorifying your name, and building up others in our lives 66 00:03:55,230 --> 00:03:59,270 Speaker 1: for your glory. Thank you, Lord, for these reminders today. 67 00:03:59,630 --> 00:04:02,560 Speaker 1: And thank you for your presence with us in all contexts. 68 00:04:03,160 --> 00:04:07,300 Speaker 1: And we pray this all in Jesus' name. Amen.