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Daily Devotionals
Truths to Live By - One Day at a Time
“Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
People often quote this verse, forgetting that it is part of a conditional promise. The previous verse says, “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed.” Then follows the promise, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” In other words, the liberating power of the truth depends on our continuing in His Word.
It is not enough just to know the truth in an intellectual sense. We must obey it and practice it. As we live by the precepts of the Bible, we are freed from innumerable evils.
As soon as we obey the Gospel call, we are freed from guilt and condemnation and introduced into the liberty of the sons of God.
Then we are freed from sin as master. It no longer holds the upper hand in our lives.
We are free from the law. Not that we become lawless, but we are now enlawed to Christ. We are henceforth motivated to holiness by love to the Savior rather than by the fear of punishment.
We enjoy freedom from fear because perfect love casts out fear. God is now our loving heavenly Father, not a stern Judge.
We are free from the bondage of Satan. He no longer leads us about at will.
We are freed from sexual immorality, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
We are free from false teaching. God’s Word is truth, and the Holy Spirit leads His people into all truth, and teaches them to discern truth from error. Those who continue in His Word are freed from superstition and from the dominion of evil spirits. What an emancipation this is—to be set free from the power of demonic forces!
We are freed from the fear of death. No longer the king of terrors, death ushers the soul into the presence of the Lord. To die is gain.
We are freed from enslaving habits, from the love of money and from hopelessness and despair. Henceforth the language of our heart is:
Low at Thy feet, Lord Jesus; this is the place for me;
There I have learned sweet lessons, truth that has set me free.
Free from myself, Lord Jesus, free from the ways of men;
Chains of thought that once bound me never will hind again.
'Truths to Live By - One Day at a Time' Copyright 2007 © William MacDonald. 'Truths to Live By - One Day at a Time' articles may be reproduced in whole under the following provisions: 1) You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. You may not use the material for commercial purposes. If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material.
