Many people consider Christianity - and others have made it seem like a prison. As a series of rules and rites that someone has to follow. Fortunately, this opinion is far from the true one. Jesus Christ did not come to put our lives under the yoke of rules and orders, but to free us from them and from sin. As the Word says in Colossians 2: 13-15:
Colossians 2: 13-15
"And to you, being dead in sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, He gave you life together with Him, forgiving all your sins, canceling the decree that was against us, which was contrary to us, taking it out of the way and nailing it to the cross, and stripping the principalities and powers, he exhibited them publicly, triumphing over them on the cross. "
What happened on the cross was not a humiliation but a triumph. In it, our redeemer triumphed against the principalities, powers and rulers of the darkness of this world, (John 12:31), the devil. In it, He erased the writing of the ordinances, all the "do's and don'ts" that were against us. And Pablo explains it more ahead:
Colossians 2:16:23
"Therefore, let no one judge you in food or drink, or in terms of feast days, new moon or sabbaths, all of which is a shadow of what is to come; but the body is of Christ. No one deprives you of your reward, affecting humility and worship of the angels, meddling in what you have not seen, vainly swollen by your own carnal mind, and not holding on to the Head, by virtue of whom the whole body, nourishing and uniting by the joints and ligaments, grows with the growth that God gives. For if you have died with Christ in regard to the rudiments of the world, why, as if you lived in the world, do you submit to such precepts as: Do not drive, or like, or even touch (in accordance with the commandments and doctrines of men ), things that are all destroyed with the use? Such things do have a certain reputation for wisdom in voluntary worship, in humility and in hard treatment of the body; but they have no value against the appetites of the flesh. "
Is there someone who criticizes you for parties, food and rites? Have you probably concluded from what others have told you that Christianity is a series of orders, rules and rituals? Do you probably think that to be a good Christian you have to do this or that every Wednesday and Friday and this or that every Sunday? If you have heard or believed things like these, let me tell you that they are nothing more than orders and doctrines of man. Nobody has the right to judge you for food, parties or something similar. Nobody has the right to tell you that you are not a good Christian because you did not keep this or that abstinence from food or this or that ritual. All these "are a shadow of what is to come." All of those were part of what Christ erased with His triumph on the cross. He freed us from all that and from sin. Do you still feel condemnation for this or that which happened sometime in the past? If it was committed when you were not a Christian or if it happened while you were a Christian but if you have confessed it to God, HE HAS FORGIVEN AND FORGOT YOU. DO NOT REMEMBER WHAT GOD HAS FORGOTTEN. Of course you have to learn your lesson, but you do not remember as if it had never been cleaned, as if the Blood of Christ had never been shed for you. His blood has cleansed you of that and washed you from all sin. As 1 John 1: 7 says:
1 John 1: 7
"More if we walk in light, as he is in light, we have communion among us, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin."
And also Colossians 1:14
"In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins"
Do you feel weak? Do you feel that your flesh is very strong? Do you want to say as Pablo ?:
Romans 7: 24-25
"Wretched me! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thank you I give to God, through Jesus Christ our Lord. So, I myself with my mind serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin. "
"Who will deliver me from this body of death?" Paul asks, to immediately give the answer:
Romans 8: 1-2
"Now therefore, there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. Because the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has freed me from the law of sin and death. "
