God had given His eternal word to the first earthly representatives of the human race! Satan's head would be crushed under the heel of Him who was to be born of a virgin. (Gen. 3:15) At precisely the right time in Gods calendar Jesus was sent from the heart of God to purchase freedom for the human race! (Gal. 4:4,5) This freedom would not come cheap! Jesus would be required to pay the ultimate! He would offer up His life as the supreme sacrifice for sin. This He did when He hung on that torturous Roman cross. Rom. 8:3 says, God destroyed sins control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins.

The last words of Jesus on the cross, shattered the darkness with the fresh new hope of eternal life. When Jesus said "It is finished" it not only meant He had completed His Heavenly assignment it also meant the end of sin's dominion over humanity! All that Adam had lost through disobedience Jesus had recovered through obedience. The proof of Christ's accomplishments over sin, death and hell is verified by His victorious resurrection!

Sin Has No More Power Over Us:
So where does all this leave you and I in our generation! Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. That must mean He doesn't change! What was on His heart as He suffered, bled and died so many years ago has not changed. He died to set us free from the power of sin! If we are not living in this blood bought liberty then we have not yet fully embraced our salvation. Jesus died once to defeat sin! (Rom.6:10)

Rom. 6:6,7 tells us, "Our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of SIN." This is powerful! Jesus said that when we come into the revelation of truth then we are set free! When we understand that when Christ died our old sin nature died with Him then we will experience a freedom powerful enough to face temptation right in the face and say, "NO, you have no power over me. Jesus broke your power and I now live in His blood bought freedom."

Rom. 6:14 says, sin will not be our master! This truth is really clarified in Ps. 124:7 - We escaped like a bird from the hunters trap.The trap is broken, and we are free! A few points of interest!

1) We have escaped
2) The trap (sin) is broken (This is an important point) Sin no longer has the power
to keep us bound!
3) We're as FREE as a bird

The hunter (the devil) is still around! The hunter, still hunts, (1 P. 5:8) yet we are free from fear because we understand the blood of Jesus has broken the trap. We're free to say, "NO" to temptation just as Jesus did.

Rom. 8:3,4 - …God destroyed sins control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the requirement of the law would be fully accomplished by us who no longer follow our sinful nature BUT instead follow the Spirit. The significance in this verse is our redemptive ability to CHOOSE to not sin. Prior to salvation we were bound and enslaved by the power of sin. Sin was inherent with our Adamic sin nature. People with Christ sin because they are sinners. We're all born that way! Its called human nature! Sinners simply do what comes natural to them! They sin and are powerless in and by them selves to change that nature. This is where Jesus comes into the picture! He has done for us what we could never do for our selves. He came and with His shed blood He paid for our freedom and broke the power of sin.

As "Born Again Believers" learn that the hunters trap has been broken and that they have been given the power to choose Gods way then there are great shouts of joy and victory. Then we been to realize and experience the full salvation Jesus purchased for us.

True Love Responds In Obedience:
Twice during Jesus' relatively short time on earth, He received audible conformation from the Heavenly Father that He was pleased with His Son! Once in the Jordan River (Lk. 3:22), and then again, on the Mount of Transfiguration (Mt. 17:5)! Jesus lived with a constant and consistent passion for His heavenly Father. This is made very evident through His statement in Jn. 4:34 - Then Jesus explained: "My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work."

What proof is there that Jesus loved the Father? He was a doer of Gods will. He obeyed the Word! This strict obedience lead Jesus right to the cross. He had purposed to remain, obedient even if it meant dying on a cruel Roman cross. As Ph. 2:8, 9 says, "this obedience resulted in His resurrection"! "And in human form he obediently humbled himself even further by dying a criminals death on a cross. Because of this, God raised him up to the heights of heaven and gave him a name that is above every other name".

Manifesting love for God in a way that is meaningful to Him is not sophisticated or complicated. It's very basic! Obedience!

Jn. 14:15 - If you love me, obey my commandments.
Jn. 14:21 - Those who obey my commandments are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them, and will love them. And I will reveal myself to each one of them.
Jn. 15:10 - When you obey me, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father and remain in his love.
Jn. 15:14 - You are my friends if you obey me.
1Jn. 2:5 - But those who obey God's word really do love him. That is the way to know whether or not we live in him.

Obedience under New Covenant relationship with Christ is not always understood very clearly. It seems that on the one extreme anything goes, it's doesn't really matter how we live its all under the blood and covered by the grace of God. On the other extreme it's nothing more than "Old Covenant" legalism!

Obviously there must be a great difference between old and new covenant otherwise Jesus died for nothing. The "Old Covenant" was good in its divine purpose and function. Two basic things it did! One it gave knowledge and instruction and the ways of God. Secondly it proved to God's people that they needed much more than just being told what to do. It clearly revealed that humanity lacks the power to live pleasing to God. When it comes to living in obedience to the Word of God good intentions are not enough, follow through is required. Like James says in Jms. 1:22 We must be doers of the Word and not just hearers. "And remember, it is a message to obey, not just to listen to. If you don't obey, you are only fooling yourself." Is there any greater deception that self-deception?

Jesus' Resident Power is Always Available:
What hope do we have? What makes us any difference than many well, intentioned, Old Testament believers? Jesus does make the difference! Col. 1:27 makes one of the clearest distinctions between the old and the new covenants. "For this is the secret: Christ lives in you, and this is your assurance that you will share in his glory." Israel did not take possession of Canaan through, their own strength. It was God who did it for them! The same is true for Gods people in New Covenant! We need Jesus' power in us to produce the follow through that results in obedience to Gods Word. The exciting thing is, God wants us to succeed. Hes for us and has made provision for us to please Him. Ph. 2:13 says, "For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him."

What an awesome God we serve! He loved us enough to not only provide us with a Savior that would come and die to pay the penalty for our sin but also One who would rise from the dead and come and live within us energizing us with His life so that we could live pleasing to God.

The choice is ours. Prior to salvation we lacked the power of choice. We were completely dominated by sin and under the authority of the powers of darkness. But now we are born of God! We have Jesus alive in our hearts by the Holy Spirit and we can now choose to live for God. The Jesus Life can be lived and expressed through His people. The power to do it is God and that power is in the Believer.

Prayer Suggestion: Father I come to you in the name of Jesus! I want to desire obedience at all cost. Help me to always turn to Jesus for the strength to do your will. Make me courageous in true holy living for your honor in this spiritually dark generation. In Jesus name! Amen