"Forgiven Freedom"

Exodus 9:1 - Then the LORD said to Moses, "Go in to Pharaoh and say to him, 'Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, Let My people go, that they may serve Me.'

The late Charlton Heston became widely known during his life for several reasons. In his later years, he became well known for his support of the Second Amendment to the United States Bill of Rights as the president of the National Rifle Association. For me, however, he is best remembered for his immortalized support of the First Amendment when he played Moses in The Ten Commandments. With the wind in his long beard and his staff in hand, his deep voice boomed to Pharaoh the words of the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, "Let My people go, that they may serve Me."

Of course, the enslaved Hebrews did not have the First Amendment to protect their right to the free exercise of their religion, but we do. It came at a terrible price and is preserved still by the lives of our servicemen and women who keep us safe both at home and abroad. Freedom always comes at a price to someone.

As Americans, it is easy to forget the simple freedoms we enjoy when our generation silences the offensive realities of life, and the next generation sleeps through its history classes. As Christians, it's easy to forget the forgiveness that was won for us as our generation slips out the Church's back door, and the next generation neglects to even approach her door. How thankful we can be that Christ has come to set us free from the bondage of sin and death.

Freedom and forgiveness have come at a price-maybe not to you-but certainly to our crucified Lord. This Lenten season,Today, let us recall the supreme price He paid for our forgiveness and the liberation we have from sin's damnation on account of what Christ Jesus has done for us. Today, we are free, and we pray the coming generations remain free to serve the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

THE PRAYER: Gracious Lord, preserve the freedom we have to worship You and remind us of the gifts You give to us daily. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

"Miracle Soap"

Jeremiah 2:22 - Though you wash yourself with lye and use much soap, the stain of your guilt is still before me, declares the Lord GO

In our highly technological society, a solution to a problem as small as a stain is certainly available for a price. Armed with an array of detergents and stain-removing agents, anyone is a fair match for a difficult stain. That is, if all of the snazzy before-and-after demonstrations of the infomercials are to be believed.

But the stain of sin is not like any fabric stain. It is not humanly possible to remove it. As Jeremiah reminds his hearers, there is not a soap available-organic or mineral-that can wash away the ingrained blemish of our sin. Scrubbing will do no good: the stain is impervious to our efforts. It would take an act of God to make us clean again.

And yet, an act of God is what Christ gave us on the cross. Ironically, the blood He poured out for us on Calvary has become the miracle soap that makes us spotlessly clean. Blood, a stain-causing substance, has become a cleaning agent. The before-and-after picture looks something like this: "Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD: "though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool" (Isaiah 1:18).

By Jesus' blood, you are perfectly, spotlessly clean and fit for His eternal Kingdom. By the work of the Spirit He has given you, you can live a life of hope and expectation of an eternity of perfectly clean garments, praising God eternally for the miracle soap of Jesus' blood.

THE PRAYER: Precious Savior, You spilled Your guiltless blood so that I could be clean; enable me by the power of Your Spirit to live a clean life before You and to show those around me the value of Your sacrifice. Amen.