By Ken Murrell Depew Church of Christ
Shipwrecked, eleven men faced the brutal Sahara Desert. Every day is scorching, inescapable sun; no shade, water, and little food. Within hours, Captain Riley and his crew were taken captive by vicious slave traders.
Would they ever again enjoy freedom? Would they survive? Would they ever again see their families?
If you were facing this desperate situation, how would you handle it? Where would you go to escape?
In this eighteenth-century nightmare, Captain Riley and his crew became slaves.
The Bible tells us that we are each under slavery to someone: “”And He was teaching in one of the synagogues…a woman who for eighteen years had had a sickness caused by a spirit…bent double, and could not straighten up…Jesus… called…“Woman, you are freed from your sickness.” And…immediately she was… glorifying God. But the synagogue official, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath…saying to the crowd…“There are six days in which work should be done; so come during them and get healed...” But the Lord answered…“ You hypocrites… each of you on the Sabbath unties his ox or his donkey… lead him away to water…And this woman… whom Satan has bound for eighteen long years, should she not have been released from her bond on the Sabbath day?”…His opponents were…humiliated” (Luke13:10-17).
”The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all…with gentleness correcting those…in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth…that they may…escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.“ (2 Timothy 2:24-26) “No one can serve two masters… he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.“ (Matthew 6:24).
Being tied to the pleasures in the world, more than to the joys in Christ, makes you a slave to this world, and possibly God’s enemy. Jesus wants you to become His ‘slave.’ But it’s your choice!
”You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God“ James 4:4). James here says that holding onto this world means letting go of God.That’s very serious! Jesus died on the cross to free you from slavery to this world. You may live in this world, but as a disciple of Jesus, you aren’t of the world ( John 17).
Please read all about this in your own Bible. You will learn how to escape - or avoid slavery to the world.