Thursday, April 7, 2016

Amazing Grace

Submitted by David Miller
He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom and broke away their chains” (Psalm 107:14).
Chris Tomlin has a wonderful song called “Amazing Grace” -
“My chains are gone. I’ve been set free.
My God, my Savior has ransomed me.
And like a flood, his mercy reigns.
Unending love. Amazing grace.”
We listen to it often, so much so that I think we each can sing it from memory but do we get the point of the song?  It took me awhile to recognize the deep impact that the song actually carries.  What are the chains that bind you?  In order to be set free from our chains, we must first identify just what it is that is keeping us imprisoned. What is holding us back? What have we allowed to be a chain in our lives for so long now that we barely even recognize it?
It’s odd, actually, because we get so used to the way we have always been, that we cling to the things that are holding us back from experiencing all that God truly wants to give us.  Excuses such as, “You know how I am, I just have a bad temper,” or “I’m just depressed” or “I lack self-confidence” or “I’m too shy.” All of these things can be true about us, but using them as an excuse to keep from trying something new means that we are embracing the very chains that keep us entrapped.
The beauty of it is that once we identify our chains, we are free to leave them at the cross of Christ. Perhaps we have asked Christ to set us free but the reality is that maybe we are too scared to let the chains go ourselves because we are accustomed to being bound by the chains to the point that they are now a crutch.  An excuse?
It is not easy to admit our weaknesses. But I have learned through the years that if I honestly lay these things out on the table in front of Christ, then Satan has one less weapon to use on me. He cannot handle the truth, nor can he make me feel guilty for something I left at the altar long ago.
Because of the blood of Jesus, we are free. You do not have to be a prisoner to the chains any longer.  Christ did not extend His love to you so that you have to continue in the bondage of the chains of addiction, doubt, worry, bad habits, tempers, insecurities, etc.  He does not want you to hang on to the chains any longer, either. He came to give you life and give it to you more abundantly. John 10:10 (NASB) 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and [a]have it abundantly.
Satan will do everything he can to destroy your witness and kill your joy.  He will manipulate the truth, make you think that you are unworthy of grace and deny you the freedom you can experience in Christ.  But look at the promise we get from Jesus, John 8: (NASB) So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.

Christ can break the chains that bind you once and for all.  Take them to the altar and leave them there. Christ can and will set you free from all that binds you.  You have to make the first step, you have to let go.  He stands ready to set you free, with finality. 

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