I want to greet you with these words. Life in freedom.
Jesus came to the synagogue in Nazareth and the first words the Word Incarnate read from God's word were: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He anointed Me to preach the Gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set free those who are down-trodden, to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord." This was what He came for. To give freedom to those who don't have it, don't know they don't have it, and don't think they need it. And after He left — to Calvary, then down and up— and until He will come down again, we have "The Spirit of the Lord". And where He is, there is still this freedom (liberty)* (Luke 4:18).
Since 1960 and on in this country they sang songs: "Cuba, my love!" Cuba was called the Isle of Freedom. We really thought it was. Some time ago we found Cuba's freedom was (and still is) "release* to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine" (Jer.34:17). But there are isles of freedom under the sun, under the skies from which hurricanes, tornados and bombs can come. Like when the flood had subsided, there appeared tiny isles of dry land, where Noah's dove could find rest, the same way when sin abounded, there appeared tiny isles of land, dry from sin, genuine isles of freedom — first in Jerusalem, then in Judea and so on.
One day there will be one huge Isle of Freedom — Heavenly Jerusalem. But until that we can find rest on the isles of freedom scattered around in the ocean of sin. Look for the Dove — the Holy Spirit. Where He is, there is freedom. He may be in your bedroom, your study or on a bus. He is in you and with you always. But one of the places the Holy Spirit abounds, or, rather, should abound is the church. It's not a jail, where severe jailers (pastors, elders or deacons) intently look for every transgression of yours, every little broken rule. It's a genuine Isle of Freedom. Breathe this freedom, bathe in it.
Yuri Smirnov