God Where are you?

Last time, we followed the journey from Prison to Presence, discovering that Jesus is our ultimate destination. This week, we look closer at the walls that keep us back and the light that leads us home.

THE STONE WALLS OF THE OLD NATURE

Every one of us was born inside a prison we didn’t build. These are the heavy stone walls of the Outer Prison—the fallen world. Because of the inheritance of sin passed down from Adam, we began our lives as legal captives, separated from God by a nature that could not please Him. As Romans 5:12 tells us, sin entered the world through one man, and death spread to all because all sinned. We weren't just struggling or having a hard time; we were, as Ephesians 2:3 describes, "by nature children of wrath." This was a state of being that began at our very conception, a spiritual inheritance of separation and captivity.

THE KNOCK AT THE WINDOW

Though the walls are thick, they are not silent. Jesus stands at the window, the only One with the Key to the stone gates. He stands and knocks, as promised in Revelation 3:20, offering to come in and dine with anyone who hears His voice. When we answer that knock, a legal exchange occurs. The "Old Prisoner" is executed, and a "New Daughter" is born. As 2 Corinthians 5:17 promises, the old things have passed away and all things have become new. In a moment of grace, the outer door is unlocked.

THE CAGE BEHIND THE RIBS

Yet, many daughters of the King find themselves still feeling like captives. This is the Inner Prison. In our hearts, behind the cage of our own ribs, we often hide the shame and secrets of "old things" that were legally finished but still feel very present. We cry out with the apostle Paul in Romans 7:24, "O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" Even with the outer door wide open, our hearts remain locked in a cage of the past, keeping us from the freedom we were bought for.

COOPERATING WITH THE SPIRIT

Freedom requires us to act on our faith and cooperate with the Spirit of Truth to open that inner cage. First, we must engage in the Act of Asking, inviting the Father to give us a spirit of wisdom and revelation so the eyes of our understanding can be enlightened. Next comes the Act of Exposure, where we bring the secrets hidden behind the ribs into the light. According to 1 John 1:9, when we confess, He is faithful to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

We then move into the Act of Focus, wherewe intentionally stop staring at the stone walls of our past and instead fix our eyes on the Light in the window, renewing our minds as taught in Romans 12:2. Finally, we walk in the Act of Obedience. We stop identifying as "ex-cons" or "sinners" and start acting as if what God says is true. When the Spirit reveals we are loved, we step forward in our true identity as Daughters of the King.