Easter

Do you ever find yourself doing bad things that you don’t want to do and not doing good things that you want to do? If so, you’re not alone. The apostle Paul had this dilemma too (Romans 7:19). Perhaps this shows that our hearts are held hostage by sin.

As we come around the cross this Easter and reflect upon the death and resurrection of Jesus, it’s important to consider the magnitude of what this event has achieved for us. Peter, one of Jesus’ closest disciples, writes; “knowing that you were ransomed for the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.” (1 Peter 1:18-19)

The reason we’re held hostage by sin is because we have inherited our futile ways from our forefathers. In other words, our sinful nature and propensity to not do what we want to do and to do the things we don’t want to do is a grand-scale hereditary matter, dating back to the garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. If only they had left that fruit alone!

The good news is, for those who find faith in Jesus we now understand that His brutal death on the cross and His beautiful resurrection from the dead serve as proof-of-purchase that He has ransomed us from these futile ways and the sin that so easily entangles us.

May we never fail to see the height, width and depth of God’s love that has undertaken the greatest hostage negotiation of all time, our sin in place of His perfection.

It’s for freedom that Christ has set us free. Let’s live free, as God intended.