As we continue to study on our freedom in Christ, our Bible Journaling comes from John 8:32, “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (KJV) Most of us usually have a poor image of ourselves. We have believed the lie that comes from the enemy that we are unlovely, we are incapable of doing what God has called us to do, we can’t possibly be a child of God because we are imperfect and we sin, on and on it goes.
But God tells us something different. Our verse says that we are to know the truth. Some may ask, “What is truth?” or “Who’s truth?” John 14:6 tells us, “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.’” (NASB) The only truth is Jesus Christ, and truth comes from Him! The Bible says that Satan is a liar, in fact, the Bible calls him “the father of lies.” (John 8:44) Therefore, anything he has to say to us is a lie! That verse also says that “there is no truth in him.” (NASB) The enemy loves to whisper his lies to us in order to cause us to fall, and then when we do fall, he condemns us for falling after we have believed his lies. That is his trap. Only truth comes from God!
So, how do we counteract the enemy and his lies. We believe the truth of God’s Word and what He says to us. We believe God’s Word about who we are in Him. By turning to Jesus, reading the Bible and believing in our heart what it says to us, we then embrace truth and knowing that truth will set us free from the bondage that Satan would have us be under. We can break chains of bondage by believing God’s report instead of the enemy’s lies.
Unfortunately, for some, it is very difficult, especially if they were raised in a household where they could do nothing right, were constantly being criticized, called worthless, and degraded with every breath they breathed. After living a lifetime of constant attack, the mind tends to believe what it hears, and sometimes it takes a lifetime to counteract what it has always heard and believed. Filling our minds with the truth of God’s Word is the remedy for a life of poor self-image. We can take what God says about us to heart, hide it deep inside, meditate on it, and allow it to radically change our minds and our thinking.
I Peter 2:9 tells us that we ”are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession.” (NLT) I John 3:1 tells us that we are God’s children. Jeremiah 29:11 tells us that God has thoughts and plans for us, “For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.’” (NASB) Isaiah 49: 16 tells us, “”Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; Your walls are continually before Me.” (NASB) Isaiah 43:4 says, “…you are precious in My sight, …you are honored and I love you…” (NASB)
Now, if God calls us precious, if He says we are chosen, if He calls us His children, if He thinks about and plans for us, if He has our names inscribed on the palms of His hands and is continually listening to our prayers, don’t you think that means we are worthy? Don’t you think that means we are able to do and be what He calls us to do and be? We must stop believing the lies of the enemy and walk in God’s truth and freedom. It is time to allow the truth of God’s Word to makes us free.
donnasmusings 