The Alpha of Entanglement

UV 3016/10000 The Alpha of Avoiding Entanglement
Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage
Galatians 5 v 1

Whom Jesus has set free is free indeed but we must endeavour to avoid entanglement again with the world and the yoke of bondage or slavery to sin and death such entanglement entails. We are to do our best not to mix with the world even as soldiers who are recruited by the army maintain a strict code of conduct and discipline so that they do not get entangled in civilian affairs. The enemy of our souls is always waiting to have us entangled again in folly, sin and shame. He wants to weigh us down with the burden of guilt and fear. He sends his spies to see how we can be entangled again. This is the reason that scripture asks us to be vigilant and keep our two spiritual eyes- prayer and the word –open all the time so that we can spot our adversary who is sometimes like a roaring lion attacking us openly while most of the time, he is a subtle serpent lying in wait to coil around us and entangle our feet in his snares. The adversary knows the chinks in our armour or the weaknesses and lusts of our hearts and will try to exploit it in our weak moments when we are not able to take a firm stand against him or we do not recognize that he is leading us into a compromise of our beliefs and principles of faith.

Apart from keeping our two spiritual eyes open and alert, we need to take a firm stand of faith against the viles and traps of the enemy. Applying the word to our daily situations and to guide our thinking and actions or reactions will impart the spiritual wisdom that we need to overcome such enticement and deception. If something weighs heavily on our minds and hearts, it is a sign of bondage and we need to seek the help of the Holy Spirit to emerge from such bondage. If some tradition or honoured custom substitutes for the Word or for the Lord Himself, it could lead to such entanglement and bondage. For instance, the bronzen serpent or Nehusthan that Moses made on being directed by Jehovah to deliver the Israelites from death by snake bite became over time a source or yoke of bondage instead of freeing them when people started worshipping it. We are to avoid the Nehusthans of our lives- accepting something as an article of faith and salvation in place of Jesus.

Our false beliefs, our practices based on such false beliefs can lead to our ensnarement and entanglement. Therefore, we need to take an unequivocal stand against such untruths and be firm about our belief in the sufficiency of the saving power of our faith in Jesus. The yoke or the burden and responsibility that Jesus gives us is so light that we hardly sense it. Instead, we are to enjoy the freedom or liberty we have through our faith in Jesus from the requirements of man-made religion and traditions. We should not allow ourselves to be manipulated and led into false doctrines like hyper grace and the like.