by Dr. Judy Stack
Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean by saying, ‘You will be made free’?”
Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not have a permanent place in the household; the son has a place there forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are descendants of Abraham; yet you look for an opportunity to kill me, because there is no place in you for my word. I declare what I have seen in the Father’s presence; as for you, you should do what you have heard from the Father.”
They answered him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing what Abraham did, but now you are trying to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. You are indeed doing what your father does.” They said to him, “We are not illegitimate children; we have one father, God himself.” Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now I am here. I did not come on my own, but he sent me.”
John 8:31–42
What kind of freedom do you need? Where do you find yourself stuck in patterns you can’t seem to break on your own? Because of the messages of the culture around us, we often equate freedom with being able to do what we want.
But this misses the deeper spiritual reality of enslavement to selfishness that often underlies such freedom. The freedom to set aside our own desires, to serve those around us lovingly and joyously often eludes us. We find ourselves entrapped in our anxiety and need to control, enslaved by fears and the effects of wounds that drive us to build protections rather than risk connection and vulnerability.
We can be set free to live in our higher callings only through the truth—the truth of who we are, both broken and amazingly gifted, and the truth of God’s love and care for us made visible in the person of Jesus.
Common Milkweed – Asclepias syriaca
These photographs, shared each day during Lent, capture the beauty of plants native to the Upper Midwest. As we spend time in Lenten reflection, these images of new life can remind us daily of our calling to be caretakers of God’s Creation.
Photo by Jo Anna Hebberger
