Word of God Speak – How can we find Freedom?
Can you believe this is the 6th week since I started Word of God Speak? We have looked at 6 different verses – prayed, studied, memorized and hopefully put them into our hearts.
Week One – Luke 11:28
Week Two – Hebrews 4:12
Week Three – Isaiah 40:8
Week Four – 2 Corinthians 4:17-18
Last week we looked at 1 Peter 1:8-9. Can I Catch the Spirit and Run for the Goal?
Here is my attempt at memory work without prompts for 1 Peter 1:8-9.
Though
weyou have not seen Him,weyou love Him; and even thoughweyou do not see Him NOW,weyou believe in Him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, forweyou are receiving the goal ofouryour faith, the salvation ofouryour souls.
As you can see I need to remember “you” and the word NOW. But otherwise I am getting the grasp of it.
On to today’s verse:
S – Say the Scripture out loud:
Today we are looking at 2 Corinthians 3:17
Now the Lord is Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
And a quick look at The Message:
And when God is personally present, a living Spirit, that old, constricting legislation is recognized as obsolete. We’re free of it! All of us! Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face.
I – Interpretations, footnotes, history:
Paul has been discussing the old covenant versus the new covenant in Christ. The old covenant relied on rules; the new covenant relies on the heart.
Look at 2 Corinthians 3:3-6 HCSB
It is clear that you are Christ’s letter, produced by us, not written with ink but with the Spirit of the living God—not on stone tablets but on tablets that are hearts of flesh.
We have this kind of confidence toward God through Christ. It is not that we are competent in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our competence is from God. He has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant,not of the letter, but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit produces life.
In my study Bible NIV, it says that the old covenant was temporary and inadequate and the new covenant was permanent and effective.
John 8:32 says:
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.
M – Make a list of thoughts, ideas, questions:
Freedom! I love the praise songs about the freedom in Christ. It reminded me of one of my favourite songs from Canada.
Robin Mark singing Take us to the River – The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon us.
It is such a privilege to be in Christ and be FREE. There is nothing holding us back from doing His Will except us. We are our own problem. Each of us has something that could hold us back. But we are in a community where we can help each other.
I remember the shampoo commercial that says you tell one friend and she tells one friend and you can see the multiplication factor.
Let’s be a community that helps one another. Let’s back each other as much as we can through every method we can use.
All tides rise when we see a believer making this world a better place with their gifts. – Lysa Terkeurst.
P – Prayer: Take time to listen to what God says after pouring out your thoughts and questions
When you do this part – please take time to listen to God. Stop thinking, planning. Let your mind rest on Jesus. Focus on Him.
L – Life Application – What did I learn from this quiet time with God?
This past week and during this quiet time of reflection God spoke to me about something I had read about in Facebook about wearing a dress in December. It is a unique initiative to bring awareness of the huge problem of human trafficking in this world. As I prayed I thought of the freedom of Christ and those others who have gone before us to banish slavery.
I wrote about how I wanted to get involved and wear a dress.in December. I now have a fundraising page at Ratanak International Janis Cox.
And I have started a promotion for giving $5.00 of every Tadeo Turtle book sold, to Ratanak International who works with victims of sex trafficking in Cambodia.
There is a small town near our small town of Haliburton called Wilberforce. It is named after William Wilberforce, who had an integral part in helping to pull down the chains of slavery.
I saw revival. I felt revival. I sensed revival.
Yes let’s look to the UNSEEN.
Let’s find INEXPRESSIBLE and GLORIOUS joy.
Let’s shine so others will question us to learn why we feel such joy.
E – Exit with a prayer
Heavenly Father, thanks for Your Presence with us and in us. Thanks for Your Word that says we can have the Spirit of God in us and be in freedom. Help us to “shine with the brightness of [your] face.” In Jesus’ name. Amen
Tweetable:
Freedom reigns in Christ. Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom. (click to Tweet)
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This is the third time this week I’ve heard about the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. Do you think God is trying to underscore something with me?! Thank you for sharing, Janis!
Carrie,
To top it off guess what the sermon was about today? – The Holy Spirit. I love the song Holy Spirit you are welcome here.. I must look that one up. I do believe we are in for a wonderful time of revival. Let’s continue to pray and watch God work wonders!
Blessings,
Janis
Thanks for your insights on this powerful verse, Janis. It’s always a pleasure to visit and thanks for the linkup, my friend! Btw, I remember that commercial! I guess that makes us rather old! haha!
Hi Beth,
I loved this verse. It might end up being my favourite – even if every time I say it I change a few words. And yes that commercial does age us but that’s okay. We learned a lot thus far, didn’t we?
Blessings,
Janis
Thank you for your beautiful pictures. I enjoy your art every week. I would love for you to share that with my readers at the new Blog Party I started up at Seeking God. It is called Sitting Among Friends and it posts every Wednesday. http://youresewtrendy.blogspot.com
Jaime,
Thank you for your kind words. I think God is pushing me towards more and more art. I shared at Seeking God. So happy that our God brought us together.
Blessings,
Janis
What a great verse for untying the knots of “shoulds” and lists and expectations during this season in which our hearts long to focus on Christ. Come to think of it, isn’t the work of the Holy Spirit to point us to the Son?
Blessed Saturday, Janis!
Agreed Michele,
If we stop and take time to listen we can follow what Jesus wants us to do.
Blessings,
Janis
Beautiful words and art, Janis.
Thanks so much Tracy. I am enjoying thinking and praying about what the verse means to me.
Blessings,
Janis