The greatest fulfillment, happiness, and peace that we will ever experience as Christians comes from knowing the freedom we have in Christ. What we believe about ourselves and about God makes a big difference in the way we live. So let me ask you: How free are you today? Do you realize the inheritance that is yours in Christ? In Him we have been set free from:

• THE CONDEMNATION OF SIN—DEATH!
  For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
  
  
• THE POWER OF SATAN!
  The Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. (1 John 3:8)
  
  
• THE CONTROL OF OUR SINFUL NATURE!
  Reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:11)
  
  
• THE PRESSURE TO CONFORM TO THE WORLD!
  He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. (1 John 4:4)

Do you understand the power that is already in you—the power to overcome that smoking habit, get a handle on your temper, or to break off that ungodly relationship? Do you realize that you have already been totally set free? Power and freedom are yours in Christ today! That is the truth of who you are in Him. The question is: Do you know and are you walking in it?

Some friends told me once about something unexpected that happened when they were housebreaking a little puppy. In order to train him, they first kept him confined in a small, fenced-off area. Once he was fully housebroken, however, they removed the bars that had kept him from roaming freely about, and gave the puppy complete access to the whole house. The funny thing was that the little puppy would not leave that one small area. Even though the bars were gone, his freedom was still restricted. They did everything to try and coax him into the rest of the house, but he would not venture beyond the area where they had first kept him. Freedom was his, yet he was still in bondage.

Many Christians are living like this little puppy. Jesus has opened the prison door, yet they remain confined and afraid to venture out into the freedom that His life has wrought for them. The Holy Spirit within is the One who is coaxing us, each day, to step into the newness of life we have in Christ. He desires for us to take full possession of all that we have been given. There is no reason why we should remain imprisoned and shackled to sin any longer: Jesus has set the captives free!