WHO ARE YOU, A SON OR A SLAVE?

Romans 1:1: This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News. (NLT)

Romans 6:16: Do you not realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living. (NLT)

Romans 6:18: Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living. (NLT)

Romans 6:22: But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves to God. (NLT)

FREE WILL: THE GATEWAY TO SLAVERY

When you remember that you have free will to do whatever you desire, you would not want to let go of that power of decision given to you by God.

If, in whatever you do, you intend to please God and not yourself, then why not free yourself from free will and replace it with only God’s will? If you pray always that God’s will be done in your life, and admit that His will is the ultimate essence of existence, why not relinquish the free will that enables you to choose between God’s, your own, or Satan’s, so as to always do His (God’s) will, and please Him at all times?

The only way to seal our sonship in God is by admitting that we are slaves to Him. If you do not want to live for self and allow your will to take control over you at all times, then admit to being a servant or slave of God.

We should count ourselves most fortunate to be servants or slaves of Christ Jesus. For this means, in effect, that we are free from the influence of the forces of this world, and bound only to worship Him (God). Worshiping God in this context encompasses all aspects of living.

A GLANCE AT THE LIFE OF SOLOMON THE GREAT

Solomon knew so much, or so we thought. He is revered for his unmatched wisdom, which made his book, Proverbs, an invaluable work in the Bible. But if we take a closer look at the life of this great mind, we might notice that Solomon wasn't as successful as many would believe.

Judging by his last work, *Ecclesiastes*, one can tell that Solomon wasn't satisfied or fulfilled with his experiences in his younger years. What does that leave us with? It’s my belief that no matter how much wisdom one has, it amounts to nothing if one does not have Christ Jesus.

After reading *Ecclesiastes*, I feel the title should not have been *Ecclesiastes*, but rather *Lamentations of the Supposed Wisest Man*.

Solomon had wives and concubines beyond human imagination, yet how many offspring did he have? There's a verse in his last work that I affectionately refer to as "Lamentations of the Supposed Wisest Man Ever Lived" that I love so much. The verse is Ecclesiastes 9:11 (KJV):

"I returned, and saw under the sun, that the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, neither yet bread to the wise, nor yet riches to men of understanding, nor yet favor to men of skill; but time and chance happeneth to them all."

Considering life and its accompanying vanities, Solomon ultimately gave it all up to God, acknowledging that it is all a matter of “time and chance.”

I pray that God gives us the ability to understand the secrets of life.