Formula for Freedom

“Then he (Jesus) said, ‘Here I am, I have come to do your will.’” Heb 10:9         

We have now progressed toward Easter such that Calvary is within sight. The memories of the tears and anguish of the way of the Cross are tangibly before us. Yet the irony is that the cruel Roman tool for execution where our Savior hung has become the fulcrum for freedom for those who embrace it. Let me unpack that a little as it is not too obvious. As we contemplate Jesus, nailed and pinned to the wooden frame of the cross, we actually are beholding a man detached from the greatest allurements of this world. All around us people are clambering for wealth, pleasure, power and honor. On the cross Jesus hangs detached from these worldly enticements. How? There on the cross He was stripped naked, undergoing incredible physical and emotional pain, confined to Golgotha, and mocked and ridiculed his life stands in direct opposition to what the world would argue is the “good life”.

Now, out here in Nebraska many people may not be overly enticed by wealth, pleasure or power but this subject of honor is much more alluring. Worldly honor translates to the over concern for the approval of others. Many will select their careers, friendships, hobbies and purchases with an eye to being noticed and respected. Thomas Aquinas insightfully stated that if you want happiness despise what Jesus despised and love what He loved on the cross. As I have already pointed out, Jesus detached himself or despised the four great worldly pursuits that typically lead a person away from God and showed us the real way to freedom.

On the cross Christ embraced the will of the Father as His supreme passion. Jesus never gave up on the mission. There is one thing about a man carrying a cross to the place of execution – He is not coming back. The key to a prayer life of power is this single hearted desire to do the Father’s will, detached from the world, and to persevere even in tremendous suffering. It is in suffering that we are unusually close to Christ. The cross is the emblem of freedom and in it is a picture of right-placed joy.