10 On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, 11 and a woman was there who had been crippled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten up at all. 12 When Jesus saw her, he called her forward and said to her, "Woman, you are set free from your infirmity." 13 Then he put his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God.
Believer, Jesus came to release from bondage those who are imprisoned by their infirmities. The word translated “infirmity” is from the Greek word “Astheneia” meaning: “Without strength, powerless; used of physical weakness and spiritual or moral weakness – infirmities of the soul; a limited position. Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible New Testament Lexical Aids. Do we have any “infirmities of the soul” holding us captive which we greatly desire freedom from? Are we bound to anger, rage, malice, slander or filthy language? Do we have a problem with greed or excessive abuses of any type? Do we have “secret” sins that we do not want anyone to know about? Jesus wants us to know that we no longer have to wallow in sin; He came to set us free. His job description in Isaiah plainly tells us:
1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, Isaiah 61:1 (NIV)
Indeed, this was the passage that Jesus Himself read from the scroll at the synagogue in Nazareth. We are told in Luke:
18 "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." 20 Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down. The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him, 21 and he began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." Luke 4:18-21 (NIV)
Amazing! Wouldn’t you have loved to have been there? What could those people have been thinking? He was giving them a heads up to His mission. On this side of the cross we can know for certain that Jesus came and died to set us free. We no longer have to be encumbered with the sins of this world. If the Son has set us free, then we are free indeed (John 8:36)!
1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Gal 5:1 (NIV)
The above verse tells me that we can fall back again into slavery to sin just as a clean sow will go back to wallowing in the mud! Believer, may it never be! As Paul so poignantly shows us in these verses from Romans:
4 Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance? Romans 2:4 (NIV)
1 What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer? Romans 6:1-2 (NIV)
11 In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. 13 Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. 14 For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace. Romans 6:11-14 (NIV)
What we are discussing here is habitual, debilitating, life taking, joy and peace pillaging, relationship destroying and purposeless reigning sin in one’s life. Does not sound too profitable does it? It certainly should make one want to reassess the value of their actions!
“We Christians should dare to be different! Jesus’ disciples influenced thousands to embrace the Christian faith because they out-thought, out-lived, and out-loved their neighbors.” Billy Graham
Great...ok, so how do we go about appropriating this magnificent truth into our lives? I am glad you asked (or I asked!!). The Bible gives us the following instructions to keep from falling back into sin. Remember one never falls into holiness only into sin – holiness must be a pursuit:
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Eph 6:10-18 (NIV)