Here’s a *News Flash* for all those who may have not read the rest of the ‘memo’: God did not just send Jesus to pay off our ‘debt of sin’ by forgiving us of our sins; He came to set all men free from sin where they could actually ‘go and sin no more’ (John 5:14; 8:11; 1 John 5:18).

I mean really…what’s the point in sending a plumber and clean-up crew to remove all the standing sewage that has spilled into your yard…if the broken pipe that lead to the stinking mess is not repaired? Yeah…go read that one more time, aloud.

That passage in John’s gospel that ‘sparked’ these blog posts nearly five years ago is quite an indictment made by Jesus: “I tell you most assuredly: whoever commits sin is a slave to sin” (8:34). That’s the same passage where He was promising those in His audience that they could know the truth and the truth would set them free (32). And what was the first thing out of the mouths/hearts of those who heard this? “Oh…we’ve never been in bondage to anyone, so how can you say we will be made free?” (33).

Friends…if a person truly believes they are ‘no longer slaves to sin’ (Rom. 6:17-18, 20,22), then why do they continue to sin, which most sincere believers continue to do, by their own admission …and on a ‘daily’ basis? Are they (you) sinning ‘willfully’ then? (Heb. 10:26). And if you read that verse, you might underline and then ask yourself…what ‘truth’ is he referring to there, that line about ‘after we have received the knowledge of the truth’? Now go back and read John 8:32-36 one more time.

Let’s be clear: Jesus was not some heavenly salesman who came to earth in order to pitch some holy product to mankind. But we all probably know by now that a good salesperson can be quite effective in selling their product if they can adequately show you a viable ‘need’ you have before they offer the very product that will satisfy that need, yes?

Jesus did come to offer us ‘life’, as in ‘eternal life’; and for the record…’eternal life’ is more about ‘knowing Him’ and not just some heavenly resort you get to visit after you die. (John 17:3; 5:39-40; 10:10). Granted…most people will look in a mirror, check their pulse and ‘think they are alive’, or already ‘living’. And yet, how blinded we all were not recognizing our 'condition', and that it was our sins that had brought death and separation from God (Eph. 2:1; Isa. 59:2; Rom. 6:23).

To illustrate how we can be so blind to this truth, I am reminded of a statement some lady made a few years ago after reading one of my messages where I was going over what transpired back in the Garden of Eden. God told Adam that in the day they ate off that one tree…they would ‘surely die’ (Gen. 2:17). Then we read where they ‘both ate’ and their ‘eyes were opened (Gen. 3:6-7). And this particular reader’s assessment of that whole scene that played out in the early days of man’s existence? “Clearly…Adam and Eve did not ‘die’”. So there you go.

There is a moving scene recorded in John 4, where Jesus goes out of His way so He can meet up with a Samaritan woman who was drawing water in the heat of the day. Call it a ‘divine appointment’, but the ensuing conversation is a master class in how one can lovingly and effectively share the gospel with people who are hurting, and in need of a Savior. Meet them first and become acquainted with their pressing needs. Jesus offers her ‘living water’ where she might not ever thirst again (4:7-14).

She ‘bites’ and inquires for more info, and that is when Jesus lovingly and tenderly shifts the conversation towards her current ‘situation’…five failed marriages and now living with a man to whom she is not married to (15-18). You can read the outcome of that story on your own, but please note where many others came to know Christ because of that one interaction (39-42).

We call these life transformations a ‘conversion’, where true repentance has taken place, and then the Spirit of God brings genuine refreshing and renewal to our heart/spirit (Acts 3:19). This is the ‘beginning’ of salvation, where one is set free as they begin to ‘follow Jesus’, as opposed to just planting a flag in the ground... 'professing their faith publicly'. Did you read yesterday’s message?

And this is where I believe so many sincere believers…’babes in Christ’… get sidetracked …and end up remaining ‘carnal’ (1 Cor. 3:1-3). Remaining ‘carnal’ and continuing to ‘live according to the flesh’…is NOT…a good thing, nor a good place to be/remain. If one continues to ‘live according to the flesh nature’…they will die (Rom. 8:13). To remain ‘carnally minded’ is to remain ‘hostile towards God, unable to submit to His law and never able to please Him’ (Rom. 8:7-8).

But IF…IF…IF...one ‘continues in the faith’ (Col. 1:23)…then the real work of salvation begins to take place -deliverance from the very thing that has kept us bound in sin: our carnal/sinful flesh nature. Can I just tell you now that this ‘process’ won’t take place in the limelight of church ministry. Getting people ‘plugged in’ right away by putting them on church platforms to sing and play, or to go on mission trips, etc.…is not how one learns to follow Jesus. Now that is not to say that God can’t ‘use’ you in those early days to be a 'witness'...sharing what brought you to Jesus, but even Paul…after his brief ‘testimony tour’ following his conversion…eventually drops off the radar for nearly a decade before he pops back up on the church radars.

If you’ve ever seen that older movie, The Karate Kid, you’ll recall the ‘process’ young Daniel-son goes through with his mentor, Mr. Miyagi, where he can learn to defend himself from the local bullies. And it begins with the less-than-glamorous job of waxing cars and painting houses. ‘Wax on, Wax off’…anyone? :- ). And the emphasis here is on the word ‘process’.

First…we must ‘turn’ (repent) and are baptized (Rom. 6:1-7)…then we begin to ‘follow’ Him. Care to guess where and what this ‘leading’ begins with? Can I just tell you it won’t be ‘public ministry’? After we first ‘come to Him’ (with our whole heart – John 5:40)…we begin the process of ‘becoming a child of God’ (John 1:12) and let it be known that ‘following the leading of His Spirit…is NOT an option. (Romans 8:14). And this ‘leading’ will involve a cross that we too…must bear (Luke 9:23; Mark 10:21).

Why a cross, you might be asking? Didn’t Jesus already go to the cross and die…so that we might live? Yep…He sure did; He went to ‘His’ cross; did you miss that class on how we too must take up our cross…and ‘die’? How else to you think any good fruit will come forth in our lives, unless we too ‘die’ to self? (John 12:24). Hmmm, all of a sudden…this ‘wax on, wax off’ begins to lose its appeal…if we love this carnal nature more. Friends…there are not shortcuts. Join me tomorrow? (Rom. 8:13)