Freedom to the Prisoners

Freedom to the Prisoners

…The Lord gives freedom to the prisoners.

Psalm 146:7

The human condition is a desperate one. Whereas erstwhile saviors cry up the human ability to raise itself up by its own bootstraps, the fact is that it shows itself again and again to be utterly incapable of resolving the real problems which are endemic to humanity. God alone has the Power, Wisdom and Grace to effect real change. Psalm 146 lists a number of circumstances which describe the plight of humanity. It also points us to God and what He does to address those conditions. Our text for today declares, ‘The Lord gives freedom to the prisoners.’ We find abundant illustrations of this in the Life and Ministry of Christ. Behold, the prisoners whom He set at liberty. The young couple at the marriage feast of Cana were prisoners to their poverty. Christ turned water into wine, and thus liberated them. The woman at the well was a prisoner of her passions and her prejudices. Christ spoke with her, revealed Himself to her as the Messiah, and liberated her from the chains of her past. Christ liberated the Maniac of Gadara from the bondage of his demonic tormentors. He liberated the son of the widow of Nain, Jairus’ daughter, and Lazarus from being prisoners of death. We could multiply illustration after illustration to further prove what is already plain. Christ gives freedom to those who are in bondage to all sorts of imprisoning things. Today, let us take opportunity to magnify this Liberating Christ. ‘If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.’

O, Christ, our Shield and our Defender,
You set us free from all that does enslave us.
Because of all the things You do,
we are now a free people and shall never again be enslaved.

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning