Latest / Faith by annm2705 / 791. The Bible condones Slavery????
Transcript
- 0:00We're taking a moment to break from the book of Jeremiah and to
- 0:05address something that is actually written out on a
- 0:10website that I have. So if you want to go to the
- 0:13website, you can click on links in the website to get to a lot
- 0:19of scripture. And I'm not going to read from
- 0:22every scripture, but there's there's just a ton of resources.
- 0:25So if you want more in depth information about the subject,
- 0:30please visit the website, which is www.periodannm2705.com and
- 0:43you can find it with all the links.
- 0:45So this subject, it's called the title of the the podcast for
- 0:54today is the Bible Condones Slavery.
- 0:58So this statement, not a question came up recently in a
- 1:02Bible study. And my first response was it
- 1:06talks about slavery, yes, but it doesn't condone slavery.
- 1:10And after a couple of exchange of comments about this, it was
- 1:13decided that we would meet again and bring verses from Scripture
- 1:18to support the statements we are making.
- 1:21So then when I look this up, I was surprised to find something
- 1:25I didn't expect or recall from the Bible.
- 1:29So this is what it says in Leviticus chapter 25, verse 44.
- 1:35Your male and female slaves are to come from nations around you.
- 1:41From them, you may buy slaves. Well, before anyone gets excited
- 1:48about this proof, you know that the Bible condones slavery.
- 1:52Let's take a deeper dive into Scripture.
- 1:55These are the kinds of one line 1 liners that are often used out
- 2:01of context and misapplied to support something that is not
- 2:06true and does not represent God. I've been studying the Bible for
- 2:11the past six years on a regular basis and just hearing that
- 2:15first statement that the Bible condones slavery, I knew this
- 2:19didn't represent the true God that I've come to know or whom
- 2:24I've come to know through reading scripture.
- 2:26Because God is love. And the link to that is found in
- 2:31first John chapter 4, verse 8. God removes the bondage of
- 2:37slavery. In the website, I have a link of
- 2:41all the places where you can see the scripture that supports that
- 2:44statement, God gives freedom. There's also a link for all the
- 2:50places where it talks about the freedom that God provides.
- 2:54So how do we explain this statement found in Leviticus in
- 2:58a truthful way, Not just like, you know, stating our own
- 3:03thoughts on the matter, but how do we, you know, really explain
- 3:07this or or reconcile this with what you know, that was my task.
- 3:11Like, how can I reconcile this? Because it clearly states
- 3:15something, but it conflicts with what I've read about about God,
- 3:22what I know about God. And so how can this be
- 3:26addressed? So let's start with searching
- 3:30the word to see all the verses containing this word in Hebrew,
- 3:34because Hebrew was the original version of the Old Testament.
- 3:38So right away I noticed something.
- 3:40The word for slave is ived ebed and I have a link on the website
- 3:48to that from Scripture. But this word also means
- 3:53servant. So now the word choice depends
- 3:57on the translator. And this gets more interesting
- 4:01in the Kim's. In the King James Version, slave
- 4:05is referenced 33 times, but in the New International Version,
- 4:12which was produced later, slave is used 94 times.
- 4:18So we've tripled the number of times that the word slave is
- 4:21used. At first it was used 33 times,
- 4:23then it's used 94 times. Then if you go into the 1995 N
- 4:29American Standard Bible version, it occurs 101 times.
- 4:35Another increase, and in 2020, the North American Standard
- 4:41Bible version, it occurs 180 times.
- 4:47So we went from 33 times in the first version, the new King
- 4:53James Version, to 180 times. And I didn't check every single
- 4:58Bible version because I don't know if there's even more.
- 5:01But these are, you know, reliable sources that people
- 5:04use. And so I'm seeing something
- 5:07here. How can this be?
- 5:09Why is that? Are you seeing a trend over
- 5:13time, such as the number of times that slave gets used
- 5:17increases from 33 times to 180 times?
- 5:23So slave and servant have different meanings.
- 5:26And here's the distinction from Google.
- 5:30The main difference is that slaves are considered property
- 5:34and are forced to work without freedom or rights, while
- 5:38servants are employees who are compensated and retain personal
- 5:43rights, including the ability to quit.
- 5:45Slaves are owned, have no choice in their labor, and their
- 5:50condition is typically for life, whereas servants have a contract
- 5:55and are free to leave their employment.
- 5:58Using this distinction, servants are employees and slaves are
- 6:02considered property. Let's keep exploring this.
- 6:05The Bible says more about property, so this needs to be
- 6:09discussed. In Leviticus 25 verses 45
- 6:13through 46, it says you may also buy some of the temporary
- 6:19residents living among you and members of their clans born in
- 6:24your country, and they will become your property.
- 6:28You can bequeath them to your children as inherited property
- 6:32and can make them slaves for life, but you must not rule over
- 6:37your fellow Israelites ruthlessly in Leviticus.
- 6:42You know 25 which I already mentioned.
- 6:46So there are laws given by God to Moses at these.
- 6:53What we just talked about are actually laws given by God to
- 6:58Moses at Mount Sinai. God has a purpose in what He
- 7:02says, and sometimes we don't understand with our limited
- 7:06capacity and knowledge, but we know this about God.
- 7:11He acts without favoritism, so He's not going to.
- 7:17Even though He chose the Israelites, it doesn't mean the
- 7:20Israelites are His favorite. He loves all of mankind.
- 7:25So, and again, if you go to the website, I have a link for the
- 7:29scripture where it talks about God not having showing
- 7:33favoritism. He treats all, He's the God of
- 7:36justice. He treats everyone the same.
- 7:39So there is something more to understand here.
- 7:41If God doesn't have favorites and He doesn't, then why does He
- 7:45allow Israel to have foreign or other nations as servants or
- 7:49slaves and identified as property?
- 7:52Well, one of the things that he said about the Israelites,
- 7:55because the Israelites are my, meaning God's servants whom I
- 7:59brought out of Egypt, they must not be sold as slaves.
- 8:03That's in Leviticus chapter 25, verse 42.
- 8:07God reacts the same way about His land.
- 8:09This land must not be sold permanently because the land is
- 8:14mine. It's God's and you reside in my
- 8:17land as foreigners and strangers throughout the land that you
- 8:23hold as a possession. Now he's talking to Israel here.
- 8:26You must provide for the redemption of the land and
- 8:30that's found in Leviticus chapter 25 verses 24 through 25.
- 8:35Now think about this law too. A foreigner can buy an
- 8:39Israelite. Now this is something that you
- 8:43know, that's what God was saying to the other Israelites that you
- 8:47don't get to buy them because I brought them out of slavery.
- 8:50But look at a foreigner can buy an Israelite.
- 8:53So again, this is showing that God doesn't have favoritism
- 8:56because He's allowing or this is part of it.
- 9:00Listen to what it says. If a foreigner residing among
- 9:03you becomes rich, and any of your fellow Israelites become
- 9:08poor and sell themselves to the foreigner or to a member of the
- 9:16foreigner's clan, they retain the right of redemption.
- 9:20After they have sold themselves, one of their relatives may
- 9:25redeem them. An uncle or a cousin or any
- 9:28blood relative in their clan may redeem them, or if they prosper,
- 9:33they may redeem themselves. They and their buyer are to
- 9:38count the time from the year they sold themselves up to the
- 9:42year of Jubilee. The price for their release is
- 9:46to be based on the rate paid to a hired worker for that number
- 9:51of years. If many years remain, they must
- 9:55pay for their pay for their redemption a larger share of the
- 10:00price paid for them. If only a few years remain until
- 10:04the year of Jubilee, they are to compute that and pay for their
- 10:09redemption accordingly. They are to be treated as
- 10:13workers hired from year to year. You must see to it that those to
- 10:19whom they owe service do not rule over them ruthlessly.
- 10:25Even if someone is not redeemed in any of these ways, they and
- 10:29their children are to be released in the year of Jubilee.
- 10:34That's the 50th year because God did everything on, you know,
- 10:37sevens. So seven weeks times 7 years
- 10:42were 49 years. And then that next year was the
- 10:4650th year and that next year was the year of Jubilee.
- 10:50And it just repeated over and over again on the calendar.
- 10:54And he says, for the Israelites belong to me as servants.
- 11:00They are my servants whom I brought out of Egypt.
- 11:04I am the Lord your God. So God, that's what he did.
- 11:09He chose Israel, He made a promise, he made a commitment
- 11:13and he's that's, that's it. He says Israel belongs to him,
- 11:19just like the land, just like he claimed Jerusalem.
- 11:22So God chose Israel. And again, I have scriptural
- 11:26links for each one of these statements.
- 11:28God chose Israel, God is faithful to his covenants.
- 11:32God does not break a covenant. God established the laws and God
- 11:39is just. So those are all truths about
- 11:43God in the Bible. Slave isn't the same as what
- 11:50America understands and experienced with slavery.
- 11:55In the Bible. A slave willingly sold
- 11:59themselves to their quote master.
- 12:02They were not forced to do this. The Bible explicitly describes
- 12:07this and it it it says this statement in Deuteronomy chapter
- 12:1124 verse 7. If someone is caught kidnapping,
- 12:16which is considered stealing a fellow Israelite and treating or
- 12:20selling them as a slave, the kidnapper must die.
- 12:25You must purge the evil from among you.
- 12:29Now this is believe Moses talking to the Israelites and
- 12:36I'll have to double check that to see, but this is directed to
- 12:39the Israelites. I know that.
- 12:41So the kidnapping, that is not part of this slavery, that's
- 12:47considered stealing. And again, God doesn't
- 12:49contradict His word. When we see contradictions, it's
- 12:53because we are not understanding.
- 12:54So that means we have to dive deeper into the meaning behind
- 12:58the words and contextually and historically and culturally.
- 13:04So kidnapping is stealing and stealing is evil.
- 13:09It's a, you know, it's, it breaks one of the 10
- 13:11commandments that God gave. The way the Bible describes this
- 13:14process is that a person who is poor can willingly sell
- 13:20themselves as a servant. If they are Hebrew, they would
- 13:24be released from their obligation after the 6th year.
- 13:28And this has interesting prophetic significance, by the
- 13:31way, but I'm not going to get into it.
- 13:34When a foreigner buys an Israelite.
- 13:37So see, the foreigner can buy the Israelite too.
- 13:40One of their one of their relatives may redeem them.
- 13:44Now Jesus is the kinsman Redeemer.
- 13:48Do you think maybe God had this plan all along and this is how
- 13:51it was kind of unfolding? He's setting out these laws and
- 13:54he knows exactly how he's going to redeem people.
- 13:58That's what I think. Because God is outside of time
- 14:02and this was God's plan so He set these laws.
- 14:05When a foreigner buys an Israelite, one of their
- 14:09relatives, AKA Jesus from the tribe of Judah may redeem them.
- 14:16Jesus is the kinsman Redeemer. OK, then back to scripture.
- 14:21Or if they prosper, they can pay the price and redeem themselves.
- 14:26Think about this, think about this is a person who sold his or
- 14:32herself may prosper. So do we think of a slave in in
- 14:38the American sense prospering and becoming successful where
- 14:42they can redeem themselves, they can earn enough money to just
- 14:46pay the debt. See, this is the reason why we
- 14:50can't apply this, is that in these times, in Hebrew culture,
- 14:55the reason people sold themselves as slaves is because
- 14:57they didn't have any money. They couldn't pay.
- 15:00They needed something. And so all they had was their
- 15:03own self. So they sold themself for
- 15:06service so that they could get things like a shelter, food,
- 15:10water, all those things, a place to live.
- 15:14So this was something that God allowed, but it's not the same
- 15:18thing. That is what happened in
- 15:20American history. So does this Does this sound
- 15:24like slavery that America had in history?
- 15:26It's not from what I heard. So here's what you know about
- 15:31slaves in in America. Slaves were kidnapped in America
- 15:36in two ways. The transatlantic slave trade,
- 15:39which forcibly brought millions of kidnapped Africans to the
- 15:43Americans, and domestic kidnapping, which targeted free
- 15:46black people and escaped slaves within the United States.
- 15:50Both meth methods involved abduction, coercion and trickery
- 15:57to force people into a life of enslavement and were central to
- 16:02the institution of slavery in the Americas.
- 16:06So I believe we are foolish or ignorant when we apply American
- 16:12cultural understanding and application to something that
- 16:17existed thousands of years before America did and was
- 16:22geographically located in the Middle East.
- 16:25It truly doesn't make sense and isn't applicable nor the same
- 16:30the way I understand and see it referenced in the Bible.
- 16:36As I studied this further, something surprising happened.
- 16:39Again, I recognize the prophetic symbolic beauty in the final
- 16:45redemption that Jesus did for all of us.
- 16:49The more I study God's Word, the more I see His love.
- 16:53I see literal events recorded in biblical history that had
- 16:58symbolic prophetic implications. I'll give you an example.
- 17:03You can read it in Exodus chapter 12, verses 43 through 51
- 17:09for the literal event. Now if you want to read the
- 17:12literal event first, now I'll tell you the prophetic
- 17:15symbology. I see the Passover.
- 17:19This event was part of the freedom from slavery in Egypt
- 17:24for the Israelites. Those who prepare as directed by
- 17:28God were passed over by the Angel of death and their first
- 17:33born did not die. This was one of the plagues that
- 17:37came upon Egypt before Egypt agreed to release the Israelites
- 17:42so they could worship their God, the one and only true God.
- 17:46Some of the significant details of the Passover meal.
- 17:50A lamb was sacrificed symbolically in the Bible.
- 17:54Jesus is the lamb. He died on the cross for
- 17:58atonement of all sin for all people.
- 18:02The blood of the sacrificed lamb during what is now recognized as
- 18:07Passover was placed on the door frame.
- 18:10This is why the Angel quote passed over them.
- 18:16They had a sign of protection obtained through the blood of
- 18:21the Lamb. Similar for us today.
- 18:24We are protected by the blood of the Lamb Jesus and will overcome
- 18:30death, have eternal life through him.
- 18:34Jesus was literally crucified during the Passover holiday.
- 18:40All the symbolism from the early BC scripture foretells of Jesus
- 18:46and his rescue of all mankind from slavery in a future literal
- 18:54and spiritual fulfillment. Notice also in verse 46 from
- 19:00Exodus 12 quote Do not break any bones.
- 19:04Jesus's bones on the cross were not broken.
- 19:07This is confirmed in John chapter 19 verse 36.
- 19:11Again I have the link on the website.
- 19:13So these events were literal but they were also symbolic and
- 19:18prophetic of what was and is to come as far as the final
- 19:23redemption. Notice also the quote slave
- 19:29quote you have bought is allowed to eat the pastor meal after he
- 19:35is circumcised. Literal and symbolic.
- 19:39Because God is looking for a circumcised heart, A person who
- 19:43desires him, who loves him back, a person devoted to him, A
- 19:49person who recognizes his goodness, his love, and wants to
- 19:53belong to his family, God's family, the slave.
- 20:00Is now family. Foreigners get to do this to
- 20:05participate in Passover as long as they are circumcised.
- 20:09Circumcision is literal and symbolic of the covenant between
- 20:14God and people who want to be Quote family, and I have a link
- 20:20to all the scripture that supports that.
- 20:23As time went on, God revealed that it's not the flesh
- 20:26circumcision that he truly wants, but the metaphor of a
- 20:30person's circumcised heart in undivided love towards God.
- 20:37A circumcised heart means to have a heart that is inwardly
- 20:40clean and devoted to God, removing stubbornness and sin to
- 20:45become truly faithful. It's a spiritual concept that
- 20:50contrast with the physical circumcision ceremony,
- 20:54symbolizing an internal transformation rather than an
- 20:58external ritual. This interchange involves
- 21:03humility, faith, and a willingness to obey God
- 21:08completely. Let's talk more about racism for
- 21:13a moment. This is another significant fact
- 21:16I observed in the Bible. There is no racism.
- 21:20There are God's people and foreigners who worship other
- 21:25gods, but race is never mentioned.
- 21:29This again is spiritual warfare in my thoughts.
- 21:33The enemy seeks to defied, divide and destroy us by miss
- 21:38applying misquoting scripture. The enemy knows a Kingdom
- 21:44divided cannot stand. That's a verse from scripture
- 21:47and I have the link on the website.
- 21:49The thief or the enemy comes only to steal and kill and
- 21:56destroy. I Jesus have come that they may
- 22:02have life and have it to the full.
- 22:06You can find that in John chapter 10 verse 10.
- 22:09And be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy, the devil prowls
- 22:15around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
- 22:21That's in first Peter chapter 5 verse 8.
- 22:27Let's talk more about slave and servant because this part will
- 22:30speak to all of us despite our our cultural heritage, using the
- 22:36NIV version, the word NIV version for the word and
- 22:42searching the word Ived again, there are 803 times this Hebrew
- 22:48word is used in the Old Testament.
- 22:51Next, let's look at slave in the New Testament or Greek used 31
- 22:58times in the New Testament NIV version.
- 23:01And there's a link to all of that.
- 23:03And those are all worth reading as all Scripture is worth
- 23:06reading because all scripture is God breathed and is useful for
- 23:10teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness so
- 23:15that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every
- 23:19good work. That's found in Second Timothy
- 23:22chapter 3, verses 16 and 17. Now let's look deeper at the
- 23:26word slave in Greek doulos. This has the same description or
- 23:32definition as Ived in the Old Testament, and it's referenced
- 23:37126 times in the MGNT Greek, and there's a link for that.
- 23:43So you can see all 126 times the same word is used.
- 23:49Read these two because this is how we gain spiritual insight
- 23:52into the words of Scripture. All of us, if we call ourselves
- 23:57a Christian or doulos, to the Master, Christ, the Messiah,
- 24:03Jesus, Jesus is King. We are servants or doulos.
- 24:08That's where that humbling comes in, because we are not the
- 24:11greater Jesus is and we humble ourselves.
- 24:16True Christians hope to hear this from Jesus when he returns.
- 24:20His master replied, well done, good and faithful servant.
- 24:25You have been faithful with a few things.
- 24:28I will put you in charge of many things.
- 24:30Come and share your master's happiness.
- 24:36And that's found in Matthew chapter 25 verse 21.
- 24:39So master would imply that we are what a servant or if you
- 24:45want to call it a slave if we've been purchased.
- 24:48So it seems like that's the distinguishing factor is whether
- 24:51or not somebody paid for you. Well, actually, even if you're a
- 24:57servant, you're getting paid for your time.
- 25:00But if you're considered property.
- 25:03And so this is this is kind of interesting.
- 25:05OK, so we all need to remember this.
- 25:08Jesus replied very truly. I tell you, everyone who sins is
- 25:15a slave to sin. That's found in John chapter 8
- 25:21verse 34. So think about that.
- 25:24I mean, how many of us sin? All of us.
- 25:28So that means that when we are in our sin, well before we have
- 25:33the Holy Spirit, we are a slave to sin.
- 25:39Everyone is a slave to sin. So that's where I was getting to
- 25:43the point where we all have to realize we all have to humble
- 25:46ourselves. We are all slaves.
- 25:49Doesn't matter on race, doesn't matter anything.
- 25:53We think we are in charge of things, but we're not.
- 25:57That's like a big joke. Like people want to people to
- 26:00believe that they're getting power and they're in charge of
- 26:02all this. If when you read the Bible and
- 26:04you start seeing how God puts people in power and he takes
- 26:06them out of power and he destroys mighty kings and he'll,
- 26:10you know, there's like this one person that nobody thinks can do
- 26:13anything and he'll do some miracle where they succeed over
- 26:19their enemies unexpectedly. Like we're, we're just like not
- 26:23paying attention to God's, God's his sovereignty over everything,
- 26:29like he's in charge. We are we no matter what
- 26:33control, no matter what elevation we get to in life, God
- 26:38is over us. God is over everything.
- 26:41And that is really humbling for people who have attained a
- 26:44certain level of power. There is someone more powerful
- 26:48than every human being, and that is God.
- 26:52And so it is very humbling. And as we get into what some of
- 26:57the followers of Jesus said, we will also see how much this, if
- 27:04we want to call it a slaver servant, how much this really
- 27:08applies to all of us. So first of all, it applies to
- 27:11all of us because we've all sinned.
- 27:13So we are a slave to sin. Pay attention to the next
- 27:16verses. Now a slave has no permanent
- 27:20place in the family like God's family, but a son belongs to it
- 27:27forever. So if the Son Jesus sets you
- 27:32free, you will be free indeed. And then being set free.
- 27:38Let's read what Peter says about being set free.
- 27:43And this is starting in Acts chapter 2, verses 14.
- 27:47And I'm going to read through the end of it too, because this
- 27:52is important. So then Peter stood up with the
- 27:5711, raised his voice to the crowd.
- 28:00Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me
- 28:04explain this to you. Listen carefully to what I have
- 28:08to say, to what I say. These people are not drunk as
- 28:12you suppose. It's only 9 in the morning.
- 28:14No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel in the last
- 28:19days. God says I will put out my
- 28:22spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will
- 28:25prophecy. Your young men will see visions.
- 28:28Your old men will dream dreams. Even on My servants, both men
- 28:34and women, I will pour out My spirit in those days, and they
- 28:40will prophecy. I will show wonders in the
- 28:43heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and
- 28:48billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to
- 28:51darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great
- 28:55and glorious day of the Lord, and everyone who calls on the
- 29:00name of the Lord will be saved. Fellow Israelites, listen to
- 29:06this. Jesus of Nazareth was a man
- 29:10accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs,
- 29:15which God did among you through Him as you know your as you
- 29:21yourselves know. This man was handed over to you
- 29:25by God's deliberate plan and foreknowledge, and you, with the
- 29:31help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the
- 29:35cross. But God raised him from the
- 29:39dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was
- 29:44impossible for death to keep its hold on him.
- 29:49David said about him. I saw the Lord always before me.
- 29:54Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
- 29:59Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices.
- 30:02My body also will rest in hope, because you will not abandon me
- 30:07to the realm of the dead. You will not let your Holy One
- 30:10see decay. You have made known to me the
- 30:14paths of life. You will fill me with joy in
- 30:19your presence. Fellow Israelites, I can tell
- 30:22you confidently that the patriarch David died and was
- 30:26buried, and his tomb is here to this day.
- 30:31But he was a prophet, and he knew that God had promised him
- 30:35on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his
- 30:39throne, seeing what was to come. He spoke of the resurrection of
- 30:44the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the
- 30:48dead, nor did his body see decay.
- 30:52God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses
- 30:58of it. Exalted to the right hand of
- 31:02God, He has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit
- 31:08and has poured out what you now see and hear.
- 31:13For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, the
- 31:18Lord, the Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I
- 31:25make your enemies a footstool for your feet.
- 31:29And that's found in Psalm 110, verse one.
- 31:33Therefore, let all Israel be assured of this.
- 31:37God has made this Jesus whom you crucified, both Lord and
- 31:43Messiah. When the people heard this, they
- 31:46were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the apostles.
- 31:51Brothers, what shall we do now? This is important for all of us
- 31:55because it applies. The same applies to us.
- 31:58It hasn't changed. Salvation has not changed, so
- 32:02Peter is going to address salvation right now.
- 32:05So everyone who has a question about salvation, this is a good
- 32:09time to listen. Peter replied.
- 32:13Repent and be baptized, everyone of you, in the name of Jesus
- 32:18Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive
- 32:25the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your
- 32:32children and for all who are far off, for all whom the Lord our
- 32:39God will call. With many other words He warned
- 32:42them and He pleaded with them. Save yourselves from this
- 32:46corrupt generation. Those who accepted His message
- 32:51were baptized and about 3000 were added to their number that
- 32:56day. And then it goes on.
- 33:00They they devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to
- 33:03fellowship, to the breaking of the bread, and to prayer.
- 33:07Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs
- 33:10performed by the apostles. That's the Holy Spirit's power
- 33:15coming through the apostles. All the believers were together
- 33:19and had everything in common. They sold property and
- 33:22possession to give to anyone who had need.
- 33:25Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts.
- 33:30They broke bread in their homes and ate together with sincere
- 33:35hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the
- 33:40people. And the Lord added to their
- 33:42number daily those who were being saved.
- 33:46There was a huge move of the Holy Spirit in that time and I
- 33:51think it's actually continuing today.
- 33:53So now Paul, so that was Peter, what he said about being set
- 33:58free from Jesus by Jesus, not from Jesus, but by Jesus.
- 34:02Paul also explains this in Romans chapter 6.
- 34:07So let's reflect on this too, because this is our salvation
- 34:11and our freedom and this is really important as well.
- 34:16So Romans chapter 6, what shall we say then?
- 34:20Shall we go on? Shall we go on sinning so that
- 34:24grace may increase? By no means.
- 34:28We are those who have died to sin.
- 34:32Like when you get baptized, that's what it's symbolically
- 34:34what you're doing. You're, you're going underwater
- 34:37and that's supposed to be like a death.
- 34:39That's symbolic of a death to sin.
- 34:42And then you're rising up a new creation.
- 34:46So back to Scripture, how can we live in it any longer?
- 34:49Because we've died to sin. How can we live in it any
- 34:51longer? Or don't you know that all of us
- 34:54who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his
- 35:00death? We were therefore buried with
- 35:04him through baptism into death in order that just as Greek
- 35:09Jesus, just as Christ, was raised from the dead through the
- 35:14glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.
- 35:18Like Jesus said, we must be born again.
- 35:21We must be a new creation. This is what it's talking about.
- 35:26For if we have been united with him in a death like this, we
- 35:31will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like
- 35:36this. So when we say death to sin, and
- 35:41we are, we mean it. We want to get it out of our
- 35:43life that it's a, it's a, it's a, you know, it's a painful
- 35:48process to remove sin from your life, but the Holy Spirit helps.
- 35:52OK. So for we know that our old self
- 35:56was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin.
- 36:01Remember how it said that we were a slave to sin might be
- 36:04done away with? That we should no longer be
- 36:07slaves to sin because anyone who has died has been set free from
- 36:15sin. Now if we died with Christ, we
- 36:19believe that we will also live with him.
- 36:23For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead through
- 36:28the power of the Holy Spirit. I just added that part because
- 36:30that's what, you know, was God's Spirit that raised him from the
- 36:33dead. He cannot die again.
- 36:35Death no longer has mastery over him.
- 36:39So once people are raised to God's presence of God and
- 36:46receive their perfect immortal, I guess the other immortal
- 36:51bodies, we will never. It's immortal, yeah, we won't
- 36:55die again. So.
- 36:56And that's what happens when Jesus returns.
- 37:00So the death he died, he died to sin once and for all, but the
- 37:03life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count
- 37:07yourselves dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.
- 37:14Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you
- 37:21obey its evil desires. So this is saying again, don't
- 37:25get entrapped by sin. You got freed from it, Don't let
- 37:29it rule you. Don't become a slave to sin once
- 37:33again. Do not offer any part of
- 37:36yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer
- 37:42yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to
- 37:47life and offer every part of yourself to Him as an instrument
- 37:51of righteousness. So if we really comprehend what
- 37:55God is doing for us when He gives us the Holy Spirit that
- 37:59he's letting us become a child of His and letting us enter into
- 38:03the Kingdom of God, the future Kingdom of God, then we're going
- 38:09to want to thank God for that. We don't want to be weighted
- 38:13down or in slavery to sin. Don't you want to serve God
- 38:20rather than serve sin? There's a quote in scripture
- 38:24that says something. You know 1 cannot serve 2
- 38:26masters. You will hate one and love the
- 38:28other. So you cannot serve sin and you
- 38:31cannot serve God at the same time.
- 38:34You're either one or the other. So it says for sins shall no
- 38:39longer be your master because you are not under the law, but
- 38:42under grace. And the a recent, a few recent
- 38:47studies that I've had about grace have been wonderful
- 38:50because grace is, is essentially the power of the Holy Spirit.
- 38:56It's a gift from God, but it's the power of the Holy Spirit to
- 39:00overcome sin. So when we are under the power
- 39:04of the Holy Spirit, we are not under the law, because the Holy
- 39:08Spirit will give us power to overcome.
- 39:11What then? Shall we sin because we are not
- 39:13under the law, but under grace? By no means do you know that
- 39:19when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you
- 39:22are slaves to the one you obey, whether you are slaves to sin,
- 39:28which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to
- 39:33righteousness. But thanks be to God that though
- 39:36you used to be slaves to sin, you have become, you have come
- 39:42to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now
- 39:47claimed your allegiance. You've been set free from sin
- 39:52and he and have become slaves to righteousness.
- 39:56So it sounds like we, we just don't ever get out of the
- 39:59position of slavery. We're a slave to something.
- 40:02We're either a slave to goodness or a slave to evil.
- 40:05So I'm using it as an example from everyday life because of
- 40:08your human limitations. Just as you used to offer
- 40:11yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever increasing
- 40:16wickedness, so now offer your yourselves as slaves to
- 40:22righteousness leading to holiness.
- 40:26When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of
- 40:32righteousness. So here's where free will you
- 40:37see it evidenced. When you were slaves to sin, you
- 40:40were free from the control of righteousness.
- 40:43So when we don't, when we're a slave to sin and we don't make
- 40:47that choice to become a slave, if you want to call it or a
- 40:51servant, I'd rather call it to the Holy Spirit.
- 40:56Then we're free like there's we're free from the control.
- 41:00We don't have that self-control. We are slaves to sin.
- 41:04But when we receive the Holy Spirit, one of the fruits of the
- 41:08Spirit is self-control. So when we are still in sin, we
- 41:15don't have self-control like that.
- 41:17When we have the Holy Spirit, we can have self-control because
- 41:22the Holy Spirit is the more powerful Spirit.
- 41:26It's a choice. It's a free will choice that we
- 41:28get to make. Who do we want to be controlled
- 41:30by? So what benefit did you reap at
- 41:33the time from the things you are now ashamed of?
- 41:37Those things result in death. So when we're right in the
- 41:40middle of sin, we there are certain things that we're
- 41:44ashamed of, but they don't bring anything good to us.
- 41:48All they bring is death. But now that you have been set
- 41:52free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you
- 41:58reap leads to holiness and the result is eternal life.
- 42:04For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal
- 42:11life in Christ Jesus our Lord. So we get, if we're gonna like
- 42:17get paid something and we get paid for our sin, that payment
- 42:22is death. That's what we get for sinning.
- 42:26But the gift, the free gift from God is eternal life.
- 42:31It's just a choice that we make, a decision that we make with the
- 42:37help of God. Things in our life change.
- 42:40So we were bought by a price. So I referenced First
- 42:46Corinthians 723, so I'm going to read that too.
- 42:51You were bought at a price. Do not become slaves of human
- 42:56beings, brothers and sisters. Each person as responsible to
- 43:00God should remain in the situation they were when God
- 43:03called them in. So let's see, the next part of
- 43:11it is when we became or when we become a child of God.
- 43:19So you are no longer a slave, but God's child.
- 43:23So God doesn't call us slaves to him, He calls us his children.
- 43:28And since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.
- 43:33So Galatians chapter 4, that's what we're going to read.
- 43:39So this is this is really kind of beautiful of about this.
- 43:47I mean, it's such a good thing to read Galatians.
- 43:48Let's start at chapter or chapter 4, verse one.
- 43:54What I am saying is that as long as an heir is underage, he is no
- 44:01different from a slave. Although he owns the whole
- 44:05estate. The heir, the heir is subject to
- 44:10guardians and trustees until the time set by his father.
- 44:17This is interesting and interesting to think about.
- 44:21So if this means what I think it means, God has a time when he
- 44:27calls people and some people may be young, some people may be
- 44:33older and but God sets that point that until then we are
- 44:40subject to guardians and trustees.
- 44:42There are people who probably spiritual beings that watch over
- 44:45us. And until the time is set by the
- 44:48Father, there's a time where God the Father and this could mean
- 44:52humanly also. But again, as we see, there are
- 44:56literal and symbolic or metaphorical truths that are
- 45:03found in the same scripture. So there's a time set by his
- 45:08Father. Also, when we were underage, we
- 45:11were in slavery under the elemental spiritual forces of
- 45:17the world. Think about that.
- 45:19Before we come to an awareness of God, we are in slavery.
- 45:25Every single one of us is in slavery, and we are considered
- 45:30underage at a certain point until God determines that we are
- 45:35no longer underage. But this is what it's the
- 45:40Scripture is telling me. But when the set time had fully
- 45:45come, you know, God's appointed time, God sent his Son born of a
- 45:50woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law that
- 45:58we might receive adoption to sonship.
- 46:03So the act of Jesus dying on not the ACT the the event, if you
- 46:09want to call it that, the what happened when Jesus died on the
- 46:11cross is that he provided a way for us to be considered sons and
- 46:20daughters. Then it goes on to say in verse
- 46:236, because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his son into
- 46:31our hearts, the Spirit who calls out ABBA or father.
- 46:37Since you are no longer a slave, but God's child, and since you
- 46:42are his child, God has made you also an heir.
- 46:47So if we have the Holy Spirit, we are a child of God.
- 46:52So I just thought that was beautiful and an important to
- 46:59know too. So remember this too how Jesus
- 47:03came to serve. He came as a servant.
- 47:07So we can see this also in Philippians chapter 2 and I did
- 47:12not put that link in here. Let me get there, Philippians
- 47:18chapter 2. This is about Jesus, who, let's
- 47:27see, in your relationships with one another, have the same
- 47:30mindset as Christ Jesus. And this is talking about Jesus
- 47:34now, who, being in the very nature God, did not consider
- 47:39equality with God something to be used to his own advantage.
- 47:44Rather, He made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a
- 47:49servant being made in human likeness and being found in
- 47:55appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to
- 48:01death, even death on a cross. Therefore God exalted him to the
- 48:08highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,
- 48:13that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on
- 48:20earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that
- 48:24Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father.
- 48:32So Jesus came as a servant and as a servant we are no greater,
- 48:38greater than the Master who is God.
- 48:41Our call is to live as free people, but not but do not use
- 48:47your freedom as a cover up for evil.
- 48:51Live as God's slaves. And that's found in first Peter,
- 48:59first Peter chapter, chapter 2. And it says show proper respect
- 49:07to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the
- 49:13emperor. So then let's see, in reality,
- 49:21we all have the choice. Do we want to remain a slave to
- 49:26sin or will we humble ourselves, You know, just like Jesus did,
- 49:33and choose to be that slave or servant, whatever you want to
- 49:36call it, with the promise of being called a son or daughter
- 49:42of God and heir in God's future Kingdom.
- 49:47God is love. Read and remember all the
- 49:50scripture linked to this article.
- 49:52Remember who God has called us to be.
- 49:55God wants us in His family, but He doesn't force us.
- 50:00Just like the servant slash slave eved in the Old Testament
- 50:07will we sell ourselves to God and serve him so that we become
- 50:13a part of his family in eternity?
- 50:16That's a question for all of us. For you know that God paid a
- 50:20ransom. He bought us.
- 50:23He paid the ransom. Jesus death on the cross was the
- 50:26payment to save you from the empty life you inherited from
- 50:30your ancestor ancestors Adam and Eve essentially.
- 50:35And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver.
- 50:41It was Jesus's life on the cross that was the payment.
- 50:46And here's the in first Peter 1/8 for you know, and this is
- 50:54verse 18 for you know that God paid a ransom to save you from
- 51:01the empty life you inherited from your ancestors.
- 51:03And the ransom was not mere silver, mere gold or silver.
- 51:08It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless
- 51:14Lamb of God. God chose Him as your ransom
- 51:18long before the world began, but He has now revealed Him to you
- 51:24in these last days. This is Peter talking through
- 51:29Christ. You have come to trust in God,
- 51:32and you have placed your faith and hope in God because He
- 51:35raised Christ from the dead and gave Him great glory.
- 51:39You were cleansed from your sins when you obeyed the truth, so
- 51:46now you must show sincere love to each other as brothers and
- 51:50sisters. Love each other deeply with all
- 51:54your heart, for you have been born again, not to a life that
- 51:59will quickly end. Your new life will last forever
- 52:03because it comes from the eternal living Word of God.
- 52:09As the Scriptures say, people are like grass.
- 52:11Their beauty is like a flower in the field, the grass Withers and
- 52:15the flower fades, but the Word of the Lord remains forever and
- 52:21the Word is the good news that was preached to you.
- 52:28Remember who God is as revealed through scripture and remember
- 52:34who God created you to be His child and loved by Him.
- 52:41If you found this helpful, please share this with others.
- 52:44We don't want misrepresented scripture keeping people from
- 52:48knowing God, loving Him and their inheritance as a child of
- 52:53God. Thank you.