“But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:22-23 NIV

Our verse for today comes from a letter that Paul wrote to the Christian church in Rome. Paul tells them, and us, that once we become Christians, followers of Jesus, we are set free. We are free in Jesus. Freedom is being able to make our own choices. We are free from choosing sin (and death). We freely follow Jesus and have eternal life in heaven after we die.

With Jesus, we know that our sins are forgiven when we are sorry and ask for forgiveness. Does that mean we are free to  do all the bad things (sins) we want?  No, it means we are free to be like Jesus. We are free to choose to be kind and generous and love others, just like Jesus did. We are free to choose to love others, just like Jesus did. With Jesus we can be free to live our best life as He guides us on our way.

We are free in Jesus.

We are free from guilt and shame because Jesus forgives us.

We are free from fear because Jesus is always with us.

We are free from death because we will live forever with Jesus in heaven.

We are free to worship because Jesus saves us and we are children of God.

We are free to be different than the world because Jesus lives in us.

We are free to love and laugh and live our lives as Jesus lights our path.

We are free in Jesus.

This week, and every week, be free in Jesus. Choose to be like Jesus; be kind, gentle, loving, forgiving, caring and joyful. Is there someone you can be kind to or share Jesus with? Talk with your parents and they can help you decide. Then freely choose to help someone. Freely choose to be like Jesus. And freely choose to let others see Jesus in you as you live free in Jesus.

Blessings and freedom in Jesus!