Live as a slave???

“We live as slaves – whether we admit it or not.”

- Dr. Moonjang Lee

I never thought of myself as a slave. Born and raised in the “land of the free,” I always disdained the idea of slavery. I was taught to be free and independent, beholden to no one. So the blunt statement that we live as slaves hits my worldview like a rock hits the windshield of a car traveling down the highway at a high speed. That rock has cracked my perspective, and the crack is spreading to such an extent that my entire view of my relationship to God is shifting radically. I have considered the idea of choosing to be a “bondservant” to Christ and always thought, “wouldn’t it be great to be able to surrender myself that completely!” But I looked at this choice as being between acting as a “free agent” or serving as “Christ’s bondservant.” I saw this surrender as giving up my freedom for Christ. However, if I am already a slave, then do I really have any freedom to sacrifice?

If I am not a slave to Christ, then who is my master? My flesh. Is it possible that what I have always viewed as “freedom” is in reality slavery to my flesh? This shift in perspective is significant because it allows me to understand more fully what Jesus asks of me when He tells me to deny myself and take up my cross daily and follow Him. (Luke 9:23) I can choose to live for my flesh and go after the things of the world, or I can choose to deny my flesh and bow down and acknowledge Christ as my Master, pledging my loyalty and service to Him. I can continue to view Christ as the Lord who asks me to sacrifice my freedom for His Kingdom, or I can choose to see Christ as the One who rescues me from the dark life of being a slave to this world and offers me the opportunity to be transformed into His likeness and the honor of doing His work during the short time I am here on the earth. I can choose to give myself fully to Christ and allow His Spirit to see through my eyes, hear through my ears, smell through my nose, and sing praises to God through my mouth!

So the questions I must ask myself are these: Do I love my flesh more than I love Jesus? Am I willing to trust Christ so completely that I will truly surrender myself to Him and gain all He has promised? If I believe Christ with my whole heart, I will trust Him with my whole heart…and I will gladly be His slave.

Dear Jesus, rescue me from the bondage of my flesh.