Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1

Back in the days of the Roman empire, a condemned person was stripped of all rights and privileges. Their future was devoid of hope, as if they were the living dead. Paul, a follower of Jesus who wrote much of the New Testament, referenced that scenario when he explained that there is no condemnation for people who surrender their lives to Jesus Christ (Romans 8:1). When it comes to hopelessness and death, we are free! Our pasts fall away, and we are given a renewed future.

Here’s why: when God gave His law in the Old Testament, it was a standard none of us could obey perfectly.  God’s law was like a mirror reflecting our inability to obey Him, pointing toward our need for a Savior. Even the best of us couldn’t live out God’s perfect law.  Then Jesus came and was punished instead of us, paying our debt and freeing us from condemnation under the law of the Old Testament.

Free from condemnation, the follower of Jesus is freed from the shame of his or her sins and is no longer guilty before God. But there’s more:  we are also given rights and privileges and the presence of the Holy Spirit as we head out of prison!  We are children and heirs of God, sharing with Christ all the joys and freedoms of that inheritance (Romans 8:14-17). If you have been living as if you’re imprisoned, accept your freedom and run out of that cage of condemnation today!

Resource reading: Romans 8:1-39