So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. – John 8:36

When Jesus made this statement, there was an intense dispute over His divinity. The religious leaders at the time found that His followers were growing exponentially on the daily basis and wanted to discredit Him at all cost. In response, He pointed out the evil in their hearts and called them out on it, submitting to them that even though they were descendants of Abraham, they are no longer part of the promise if they continued to harbor hatred for Him. He pointed it out to them that they were slaves to sin and needed saving. Just like the gentiles and everyone else who was yet to believe in Jesus.

Clearly, the Jewish higher-ups had misunderstood the idea of being heirs to the promise by virtue of being descendants of Abraham, thinking to themselves that they were free and immune to bondage. Their failure to accept that they needed saving would prove to be detrimental after the demise of Jesus. To those who believed, Christ set them free from sin, infirmity, negative cycles and bondages – like the crippled woman Jesus saved in Luke 13.

It’s simple to assume we are in the right standing with Christ because we attend church every Sunday, or serve as a leader. The above passage puts all of that into question. You are not free if you’ve not fully accepted Christ as your Lord and personal savior and have a relationship with Him. We should be wise and follow the Bible’s command to “examine yourselves to see if your faith is genuine. Test yourselves.” Only then can we be able to decipher that we have been freed indeed.