The definition of deliverance is to rescue or set free from something. It could be something internally, such as an addiction that is harmful to the body. It may be deliverance from a relationship that is like a poison to the soul, a political leader that dictates our actions, or a war-torn country that is not safe. There are many things that we can be delivered from, but all of those I mentioned are things that will not last forever. They are temporary compared to eternity. They can destroy the body but not the soul. The greatest deliverance is the rescue we receive when Jesus Christ frees our souls from the penalty and power of sin.
When we were born, we inherited a sinful nature from our ancestral father Adam. In Romans 5:12, Paul teaches us that sin entered through Adam and it is passed on to every person. “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:” Because sin cannot enter Heaven or be in God’s presence, our loving Father made a plan from before time to deliver us from the penalty of sin. The penalty is death in hell, not death as we know it, because this body that will spend eternity in hell will never burn up, but will suffer forever. When we accept Jesus as our Savior, we are accepting the payment that He made for our sins. The only payment that God will accept because He was the only perfect man. His sacrificial death delivers us from the penalty of our sins. We do not have to worry about hell as our eternal home when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. He becomes our Master and as long as we follow Him, we will be joint heirs with Him one day. His Spirit bears witness with our spirit and all that is His becomes ours.
Romans 8:16-17 “The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.”
When we are delivered from the penalty of sin we are also delivered from the power of sin. No longer can sin control us. It is not because we became some form of a superman or woman. It is because we have someone greater than ourselves to fight for us. In I John 4:4 we see that God who dwells within us by the power of the Holy Spirit is greater than the powers of the one who lives in this world. Satan is the prince of the air, but he is no match for God. We have an indwelling Spirit who gives us life in Romans 8:11. This Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead infuses us with new life. In Romans 8:26 this Spirit that dwells within us gives us power in our weakness. When we do not know what to pray, He prays for us. He knows our feelings and understands us. He supports those intense emotions that are so deep we cannot express them with words.
I John 4:4 “Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.”
Romans 8:11 “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.”
Romans 8:26-27 “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.”
We are free from the power of sin. Free! Do you understand how it feels to be free? While I still have the sinful nature that I was born with I can live above all the slavery that held my soul for years. Before Christ entered my heart I was controlled by my own passions and self-preservation. I was a sinner controlled by sin. Now I have the Holy Spirit to give me victory! We should not live as though we have a hum-ho life just hanging on by a thread to keep from giving in to temptations. God does not just loosen those chains of sin; He breaks them away from us. We need to glory in His power that supplies our deliverance. We should have exuberant joy that overflows when we live by the truth of our victory in Christ. John said it best in John 8:36 “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” We have been delivered!
Romans 6:17-18 “But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.”
