Freedom Will Cost You a Hand and an Eye
Maintaining freedom from sin will cost you a big price. It is very expensive to keep the freedom Jesus purchased for us on the cross with His blood. We didn't pay anything to receive our salvation, it is free, but to keep our faith will cost us everything. The kingdom of God is not cheap. There is a cost to follow Jesus, "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple" (Luke 14:26).
In 1999, during the civil war in Sierra Leone, a 12-year-old girl named Mariatu Kamara lost both her hands. Kamara was living in a small village with her aunt and uncle during the war. The fighting was far from their village, so they didn't worry about any attacks. Then one day, child soldiers not much older than her terrorized the village and abducted the young girl. This was a dark moment in her life. They cut off both her hands to prevent her from voting. A few hours later Kamara woke up bleeding out among a sea of dead bodies.
Kamara started walking with the little strength that remained until she reached another village. There a man offered her a mango, and that was the defining moment in her life. She choose to take the mango with her bleeding limbs, and a ray of hope shone on her. This gave her encouragement and strength to continue on. She ended up moving to Canada and to help traumatized patients recover from the impacts of war. Later she wrote a book called A Bite of Mango. You can read the short summary of her story in this article. Kamara paid with her hands but got to keep her life. It was a painfully dreadful process, but now she gets to reach out to others with hope in their struggling hours.
Jesus taught in the sermon on the mount, "If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away.... And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell" (Matthew 5:29-30). Jesus was being deliberate with His instructions. The cost of overcoming sin is as costly as cutting off a hand or plucking out an eye. The pain of carving addiction out of our life can be gut-wrenching, but it provides a good return on investment.
If there is a sin that drives you weary, and you'd like to get rid of it, but are not willing to pay the price then that sin will crush you. Unless we have conviction, and such an eagerness to turn from sin that it will stir us within, we will not have victory for long. The desire in our hearts must be so compelling, that by comparison, we would be willing to cut off our hand, then we are ready for Jesus to set us free indeed.
Salvation, heaven, mercy, and forgiveness are all offered to us at no cost. These things are a gift from God, not something we can earn. If we truly desire not just a touch from Jesus, but a deep relationship with God it will cost us extreme pain, agony, betrayal from friends and family, hardships, suffering, sleepless nights, and denying sin in such a way that it will resemble amputating an arm in the natural.
Walking out the call of God cost John the Baptist his head. Paul was stoned, beaten, humiliated, and then was also killed for his faith. Rumor has it that Isaiah the prophet was was sawed in half. Jeremiah was taken against his will to Egypt and killed there. Ruth left her family to live in a foreign land. Daniel lived in an unknown land as a captive, his desires were stripped from him. We know obedience to the Father cost Jesus His life. There is a similarity among these heroes. They were all great men and women of God. We cannot deny the fact that these names ring loudly throughout history and even today. They accomplished so much for the Lord, because "they did not love their lives to the death" (Rev. 12:11).
Historically, many rulers and emperors would gouge out the eyes in a form of punishment. In medieval Europe, William the Conqueror used blinding as a punishment equal to death. Samson from the Bible was also a historic figure. He was gifted with supernatural physical strength from God. Though Samson was physically strong, he was weak to lust. He disregarded his parents and rebelled against the law of Israel by befriending Delilah the Philistine. After entertaining his passions, Samson revealed his secret to her, not knowing she was working with his enemies. When he fell asleep she cut off his hair and his physical strength vanished. The Philistines captured Samson, plucked out his eyes, and enslaved him. The moral of the story? Lust will either blind us, or we shall become blind to lust. Pluck out lusts with passion, or lust will pluck you out from God's will.
We cannot face temptation alone. We need God's strength, for His grace is sufficient for all trials. Grace is activated when we lean on the power of the Holy Spirit. If you still think you can stand up to ungodliness and lusts then reconsider your ways. We must be 0, and Jesus be 100. We must become nothing and Jesus to be everything. Slaughter your pride. Otherwise, another fall is coming shortly in our path. Only by His grace can we nail the evil desires to His cross. Without grace we have failed, His grace succeeds on our behalf through Christ. Ask the Holy Spirit for this gift of grace and power right now. He will fill you and guide you in your next steps.
How big of a price are you willing to pay to maintain freedom? If you pay a little, you receive a small reward, if you pay big then you receive a large reward. The biggest sacrifices reap the greatest rewards. The greatest rewards provide the most joy. The way to be happy and satisfied in life is to give the most. If you study, seek, desire, and find ways to please God, then you will be blessed (which translates to be happy, rich, or blessed).
Are you willing to deny sin, and live for God? "Count yourselves dead to sin," (Rom. 6:11) translates that you don't even have a choice on how you want to live, God decides for you. The Bible is a radical book, and unless you become a radical Christian you will always be defeated by sin, by the world, and by the devil. It's time to lift the bar to its full potential. No more lukewarm Christianity. "Whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?" (Mark 8:36).
In conclusion, we must be willing to lay down everything on the line if we shall continue in victory over sin. Sin is missing the mark, and God created us for His greatness. When we desire to be honored by Christ then we must forsake our little games with the devil and wage war on his demons, our private lusts, and on the sinful nature. Let us rise up in victory. Do not be afraid of paying a hefty price to walk in freedom. The price is worth it, and the tradeoff is amazing even if it feels like it costs your hand and your eye. In the end, you’ll forget what you paid. Are you willing to buy in?
