Freedom to Live As a True Child of God
by Margaret Silvester
I recently asked a group of women on what subject they would next like teaching. When someone in the room mentioned “Freedom from anxiety” every hand was raised. Prolonged anxiety is possibly the thief which robs us of the freedom to live as true children of God. The freedom I’m talking about in this seed is the freedom Jesus spoke about to those who truly believed in Him and lived as His disciples: “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32). There is a big difference in knowing the truth and experiencing it. Knowledge is in the head. Experience is deep in the heart, as is dedicated discipleship.
Freedom and true security come from the assurance that we are truly loved by God and we in turn, by His grace, can say that we return that love. Freedom and security fill our lives when we live day by day with Jesus for the purposes of His kingdom and not for ourselves. Our circumstances often change and can be difficult at times. Jesus never changes nor does He fail. True confidence and trust are found in Him alone. Jesus promised, ‘Peace I leave with you, my peace I give you. I do not give as the world gives. Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid’ (John 16:32).
We all have times of sunshine and shadow; times of joy and of sorrow; times of turmoil and rest; times of strength and weakness; times of fulfilment and times of being set aside; times when we long for God’s presence; and times when He is closer than the closest friend. None of us will escape hard times, but Jesus promises His disciples peace that is independent of circumstances. Like all His gifts, His promise is to be received. We are never alone, because He has promised He will never leave us nor forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).
To live as a true child of God we must love Him. He must be first in our lives. A religious leader once approached Jesus and asked Him what the greatest commandment was. Jesus replied “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment (Matthew 22:37-38). The first and greatest commandment quoted by Jesus appears around seventeen times in the Bible. It is extremely important that we know the true God as revealed in Jesus, and not one of our imagination. Jesus said, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father’ (John 14:9).
To live as a true child of God, Jesus must be crowned as Lord. This means I must let go of the control of my life and surrender to Him – my body, mind, emotions, will, all that I am and have. We may heartily sing, ‘All to Jesus I surrender, all to Him I freely give, I will ever love and trust Him, in His presence daily live. I surrender all, I surrender all, all to thee my blessed master, I surrender all.’ Many of us have sung these words countless times, but living in their reality may be different. The word surrender may be understood as a sign of weakness, and yet there is no more secure place to live than in daily surrender to the One who is utterly faithful, unchanging, and steadfast.
A surrendered life leads to a life of obedience. Jesus said, “If you love me, you will obey my commandments. I will ask the Father and He will give you another helper who will be with you for ever. That helper is the Spirit of truth” (John 14:15-17). To obey Jesus brings us great joy, even when we don’t understand His ways. It is called ‘uncompromised obedience.’ For every single one of us this is genuine proof that we truly love Jesus and He is number one in our heart.
Margaret Silvester had a career as a teacher prior to being called into full time Christian Ministry with her husband, David, in 1986. They were involved in establishing a Healing Ministry in the local church and Margaret has a passion to see lost and wounded people found and restored. She and her husband joined the Ellel Ministries teaching and ministry team in 2000 after a clear call from God. Margaret`s book "Stepping Stones to the Father Heart of God" has recently been published.
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