For those who are not familiar with an Anglican Service there are four Scriptures that are read before the Message. The Scriptures assigned for today are: Genesis 22:1-14, Psalm 89: 1-18; Romans 6:12-23 and Matthew 10: 40-42.
I'm not sure ... who shared this story ... but it says a lot ... about mankind:
When my oldest son was about three years old, ... I was outside doing some yard work one afternoon.
I took Kevin outside to play ... while I trimmed the hedges.
Holding his hand, ... I knelt down beside him ... so that we could look at each other ... face to face.
Slowly ... and carefully I said, ... "Now, Kevin, ... you can play here in our front yard.
You can go next door ... and play in your friend's front yard.
You can ride your Big Wheel ... up and down the driveway.
You can go in the back yard ... and play with the dog ... or play on your swing.
You can go back inside ... and watch television.
Or ... You can stay here .... and watch me trim the hedges.
These are all the things you have my permission to do.
But you can NOT go ... out into the street.
It is very dangerous there.
You cannot play in the street.
Do you understand what I'm saying?"
And 3-year-old Kevin nodded his head... and said "Yes, Daddy".
I let go of his hand ... and he ran straight to the curb, ... put one foot in the street; And then turned his head toward me and smiled, ... as if to say, ... "Foolish mortal!"
Why ... Why after understanding all the freedoms his father had allowed him ... would he deliberately go out to the One place ... his dad had told him ... not to go?
He did it ... because that is the nature ... of man.
We want to be FREE ... to do things ... "our way"
We want to be FREE ... to live by ... our own rules
We want to be FREE ... to make our own decisions ... about what is right ... and what is wrong.
The reality is ... that the rejection of doing what we are told by others ... lies at the very heart ... of man's conflict ... with God ... our heavenly Father.
God created us ... and loves us.
God wants to guide us ... He wants to keep us safe He wants to ... shower us with blessings.
God told the nation of Israel .... "I know the plans I have for you, ... plans to prosper you ... and not to harm you, ... plans to give you hope ... and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11
God has so much in store for His children.
Yet man ... too often ... looks at the Heavenly Father ... knowing all the promises and blessings ... yet all they see ... are the restrictions that God warns us to avoid.
Restrictions ... that are meant for our good, ... restrictions to keep us from harm.
We so often look Beyond the freedom ... and the promises God offers us ... and we seem to focus on the restrictions... that are truly ... for our own good.
To get God's best, ... we need to let go ... to trust God.
To let go ... and let God.
To let God, ... have authority ... To have Lordship ...over our lives.
And that yielding of our lives will free us: Hear God's Word: BIBLE " ... Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, .... "If you abide in my word, ... you are my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." END (John 8:31-32)
That irritated the crowd, ... for they felt ... that they did not need to be set free ... and they responded: "We are Abraham's descendants ... and have never been slaves of anyone..." (John 8:33)
Jesus replies: ... "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins ... is a slave to sin." (John 8:34)
And our text from Romans proclaims that same truth: Hear God's Word. BIBLE Do you not know ... that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, ... you are slaves ... of the one whom you obey, ... either of sin, ... which leads to death, ... or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God ... that you, having once been slaves of sin, ... have become obedient from the heart to the form of teaching to which you were entrusted, 18 and that you, having been set free from sin, ... have become ... slaves of righteousness. END Romans 6:16-18
Beloved ... Everyone is a slave to something...
* You are either a slave to sin ... Not under the freedom and authority of God
* Or you are a slave to God ... and set free from sin.
*There are no other options open to mankind.
You are a slave to sin or you are a slave to God.
The Opposite of being a slave to God ... is Not a freedom ... to be in charge of your own life.
Though Satan would like to deceive us to thinking so.
The Eternal Truth is ... If you Free yourself from God ... If you reject obeying God, ... you become ... a Slave ... to sin.
You can fight it, ... you can reject it ... but you cannot escape it ... For it is an eternal truth.
If you are not a slave to God, you are a slave to sin.
Now the question is this: Why?
Why would rejecting God ... and His authority in my life ... enslave me?
Well ... I am glad you asked.
Maybe this will be helpful.
It is much like saying ... if there is no light in a room ... you will be standing ... in darkness.
Or if you have no heat in your house in the dead of winter... you are going to get cold.
If you do not have God's freedom and protection ...in your life ... you will be a slave to sin.
Someone once commented to an elderly pastor; ... a phrase that you too may have once heard: ... "God's is just a crutch."
Meaning anyone who believes in God ... is not strong enough ... to stand on their own.
The preacher startled the skeptic by replying:
"Yes, God is a crutch... but who isn't ... limping."
Beloved ... We live in a broken world.
"When you were a slave to sin, ... you were outside the control and protection of ... righteousness."
"But for those in Christ ... you have been set free from sin ... and become ... slaves to God."
So ... What does it mean to be a slave to God?
It does not mean ... to be just a servant or bond servant ... or even a devote follower.
The word in the Greek translated in this passage is doulos, ... which means to "bind" a person to another ... as a slave ... nothing more and nothing less. ...... A slave!
Keep in mind ... that this level of submission ... is not the tyrannical concept ... most of us harbor ... in our minds.
Rather, ... it is freedom!
It allows us to be free, ... and to have the best of God ... His best ... flowing in and out of us.
It is a safe harbor ... keeping us protected ... from the wages of sin.
To protect us from the storms of wrong actions and bad choices.
God offers far more ... than the other master.
God offers far more than that which ... the Devil offers mankind.
The state of doulos, ... is not just a status of servitude; it is a total submission of our life ... to God's will.
Here comes the relief ... here comes the good news to those ... who gasp ... at this concept ... of being a slave.
Beloved this doulos relationship ... is hinged to God ... to God's love and God's mercy!
You only have two choices ... and in either case ...you are bound ... as a slave.
Either you will be a "slave" ... bound to Satan ... or a slave ... bound to Christ.
And we know ... that Jesus is the loving Master ... He is the loving Shepherd ...who deeply loves you ... and who has a great purpose for you.
One master Satan ... has us bound by the chains of sedition, iniquity, gilt and subjection.
The other Master ... Jesus ... gently leads us ... to His great pasture ... beside ... the still waters.
Without Jesus, ... there is no forgiveness.
Without Christ ... There is no forgiveness of Sin!
And those without Christ ... are reduced to playing a game ... of balancing out the sins of their past ... with whatever good deeds and actions ... they can accomplish.
But good works do not make you holy ... good actions do not make you righteous.
For all have sinned ... and fallen short of ... the glory of God.
In ancient Rome, ... they had developed a particularly horrible way ... to deal with some murderers.
They would take the murderer and tie him face to face with his victim, and he would live bound to the rotting corpse of his victim ... until he himself ... had died.
Without forgiveness of sin, ... there is no way for mortal man ... to escape being face to face ... with the torment ... of their sinful past.
Only through Christ... can we escape ... that horrible curse.
Only trough Christ can we escape ... enslavement to sin. (Long Pause)
The evangelist D. L. Moody was invited to preach, one Sunday morning ... and was warned that some of the congregation ... usually left before the end of the sermon.
So ... When Moody rose to begin his Message, ... he announced, ... "I am going to speak to two classes of people this morning: ... first to the sinners, ... and then to the saints."
He proceeded to address the "sinners" for a good period of time, ... then said they could leave.
And For once ... the local pastor shared ... every member of the congregation ... stayed to the end of the sermon.
Are you a slave to sin ... or are you a slave to God?
When a slave was passed in ownership from one master to another .... the old Masters authority ...came to an end.
You were no longer under the authority of the previous master.
Once says Paul ... you were slaves ... to sin.
Sin was your old master ... and you had limited power ... to say No.
Paul goes on to say:
But now you have passed from the service of sin ...into the service of God. (Long Pause)
Being a slave to Jesus Christ ... is beyond any kind of slavery ... that anyone has ever known.
For He adopts us ... into His family, ... calls us joint-heirs, ... opens heaven's doors ... where we shall live ... for all eternity.
Who wouldn't want to be a slave ... for such a master?
Beloved we have a choice:
You can choose to serve the old master of your life ... Sin ... and reap the wages.
Or you can serve the living God ... as the Master of your soul.
Beloved ... Do not be a foolish mortal.
We cannot decide ... whether or not we will live or die; ... we can only decide who we will serve .... and what we will die for.
So, ... who do you choose to serve ... this day.
It is my prayer ... that you will proclaim as Joshua did:
"As for me and my house... we will serve ... the Lord." (Joshua 24:15)
Amen and Amen!
Help: I retired in November 2017 and am attempting to supplement my income by sharing on Sermoncentral. If this Message has been helpful to you, please consider a nominal donation: Send to The Rev. Jeff Smead 11725 Regent Park Drive Chardon Ohio 44024. (Write on the Memo line - Pastor Smead). Blessed To Be A Blessing.
The beginning of this Message is based on a Sermon by Jeff Strite titled "Slave or Free" and I commend it to you.
Dear Reader: So I can better help you, if this Message was not helpful and you rated it low, Please let me know what it lacked or why it was not helpful. You can search by contributor Smead" (Constructive Criticism is very helpful) and contact me there. Blessings In Christ Jeff
