Yes, Jesus died to set you free from slavery! He rescued you from all fear of death!
Did you know that fear of death leads to slavery to sin, the flesh, and Satan? Fear of death can make us want to run and hide, gorge ourselves with food, hide in sexual impurity, or drown out the thought of future death with alcohol. This is slavery that flows from fear!
But when you look at the cross, you see the death of death in the death of Christ. Death is like a killer bee that can only sting once and then die, and when Jesus was on the cross, death stung Him and then died. It can no longer sting you because you died and rose again in Jesus! “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:55-57 NIV).
No believer should ever fear death, for Jesus killed it for us! We will truly live forever because Jesus shed His blood and died, destroying Satan and the power of death! He set us free from fear of death, and this has a specific application to our previous slavery to sin. We are released and set free! Thank you, Jesus!
Question 4. According to Hebrews 2:17 NIV, why did Jesus take on a body like ours?
Hebrews 2:17 communicates clearly that Jesus took on a body like ours to be our High Priest, the function of the High Priest being to make atonement for sin.
If you think deeply about this, it will lead you to wash at the cross. See Jesus there dying in your place, atoning for your every wrong, making amends to God for your entire life of sin. God, who knows you better than you know yourself, has given Jesus to be the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). He did this to remove your sin from you and to make you spotless and clean!
And so the death of Jesus Christ frees you from the fear of death by showing you that the penalty of your sins was fully paid. The wages of sin is death, and while you and I did the work of sinning Jesus received the wages of death. You do not receive those wages; instead, you receive the free gift of eternal life.
When you look at the cross and see Jesus shedding His blood, understand that He is atoning for your sin through His sacrifice of love for you. See your former years of gluttony and laziness all washed away in Jesus’ blood! See your unbelief, rebellion, and the indulgence of your flesh, all atoned for! He sacrificed His body to make this atonement. Let this wash you and renew your faith!
Don’t be like the fools who “mock at making amends for sin” (Proverbs 14:9), but rather embrace the truth and rejoice in it! Wash in it and be clean! Washing at the cross will keep you from slavery to sin and fear of death!
Finally, this understanding of the cross affects us even when we are tempted.
Question 5. According to Hebrews 2:18 NIV, what are we to discover about temptation when we look to the cross?
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