Week 3, Day 15 - Who Will Make Me Free?

"I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment."  Exodus 6:6

REFLECT

Jubilee means redemption. Let that word turn around and around in your mind this week. Redemption means to be freed by someone able to purchase your freedom. This is what God has done for us. He goes way beyond a simple declaration of freedom by making it happen, by making it a reality. So if you need freedom from guilt, from shame, from an obsession, from addiction, from control - whatever you need freedom from - God has made it a reality and communicates through metaphor that He has bought us out of bondage. It's truly a mystery but nevertheless true.

Picture yourself back in 1800 in the Deep South. Many a slave stood on an auction block hearing bids cast about, determining who would be his or her next owner. Imagine that - standing in humiliation and degradation. Being evaluated on how strong your muscles were and how much toil someone could get out of you. Now imagine a mysterious bidder at the back of the crowd who keeps raising the price. You get the sense that this buyer will not be outbid. There is no price too high for this bidder to put forward. And in a battle of wills, a malevolent and resentful bidder (a Dark Lord doing his best to snatch and abuse you) only causes the good man at the back to offer more and more. And the good man wins. He has more resources than anyone else can put forth.

And then your new owner does this remarkable thing. He takes you into his household not as a slave, but as a son or daughter. He provides your food, clothing, shelter, and even makes you a legal heir. This is how the Bible describes God as redeemer. It's a motif throughout the entire Bible. His name is Lord Almighty and what he does is redeem. We are freed by someone able to purchase our freedom. "Our Redeemer - the Lord Almighty is His name - is the Holy One of Israel" Isaiah 47:4

MAKE IT REAL

List two things you are grateful for that God has freed you from. This could be past shame, an addiction, an oppressive relationship, an obsessive need to be in control, fear, etc. Pray out loud, "Thank you, Lord, for freeing me from..."

Day 16