“Chains fall. Fear bow. Here, now. Jesus, You change everything.” -Passion (“Holy Ground”)

Luke 4:18

I once heard someone say that Jesus was doomed from the creation of Adam because there was no way that man, in his own human power, would have been able to stay in perfect alignment with God. With the fall of man, we were also essentially doomed because there was no amount of atonement and sacrifice that we could do for ourselves to make us in right standing with the Father. The priests in the Old Testament were constantly engaging in rituals for purification, sacrifice, and release; man was always messing up, and the priests were always sacrificing offerings to cover up the mess.

The baby boy born in Bethlehem changed everything. His descent into our world was going to release mankind from the captivity of burnt offerings and lamb’s blood. He was to set us free from our sins and blot them out forever. Everything that ailed us was to be rectified with His coming. In Luke 4:18, Jesus went into the temple and read the prophetic word of Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he had anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.” Once Jesus was finished reading, He told them people there that “This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears” (v. 21.) He literally changed everything.

Being bound physically is something that we all unconsciously resist. No one likes handcuffs or shackles, and even babies detest car seat restraints. The reality is we all yearn for freedom, for liberation, and to be loosened from anything that binds us. When Jesus came on the scene, the need to be bound to ritualistic sacrifices for the atonement of our sins was no longer necessary. He shed His blood once and that was enough to cover the sins of all mankind forever. From the crown of His head to the bottom of His feet, His broken body took the brunt of God’s wrath so that we didn’t have to. His death tore the veil, allowing us access to God so we don’t have to go through priests. Jesus changed everything.

I’ve spent a great deal of time in my life waiting: waiting for change, waiting for prayers to be answered, waiting for dreams to be fulfilled. But there is one thing I do not have to wait for and that is liberation and freedom in Christ. All I have to do is seek Him and believe that He is for me. All I have to do is ask and believe that He will fulfill what He said. I don’t have to be captive and I don’t have to be chained. With the coming of Jesus, His death, and His resurrection, He changed my circumstances and how I can live. He changed everything.

Prayer for Release: Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your Son and changing the trajectory of my life forever. Thank You for that I have access to You and all that You have for me through Your son’s sacrifice. I am not captive to fear and bondage.