The Joy of Freedom

Rev. Dr. Abe Smith | Click/tap here to view the Sermon Reflection Guide. In Hebrews 12, we are invited to “throw off everything that hinders” and “run with perseverance the race marked out for us,” keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus. That’s a powerful image because most of us know what it feels like to carry things we were never meant to carry: brokenness, regret, disconnection, wrongdoing, pride, or the weight of trying to hold life together on our own. The good news of the Gospel is that Christ meets us with grace, forgiveness, and unconditional love. When we receive that grace, we discover a joy that is deeper than happiness and stronger than our circumstances. Christ lived and died so that we could know the joy of reconciliation, forgiveness, love, and the joy of freedom.  Jesus does not simply call us to run harder; he invites us to lay down what binds us and receive the life only he can give.