“All of you, slave and free both, were once held hostage in a sinful society. Then a huge sum was paid out for your ransom. So please don’t out of old habit, slip back into being or doing what everyone else tells you.” I Corinthians 7:22-23 The Message
The Apostle Paul is writing to Christ-followers. He makes three very important points in this brief passage from the Bible. First, he clarifies the fact that everyone—no one excluded—has been held hostage in a sinful society. I like the image this conveys. A society is a gathering of people; in this case of sinful people. Sinful people do what they want, when they want, without regard to obeying God or caring about others. This describes life apart from a close personal relationship with the godhead. It is a life filled with empty pleasures that last for a moment while leaving an empty void deep within.
Secondly, the apostle points out that a huge sum was paid out in order to ransom you (the whole of humanity). There is a song I recall singing in the matrix, (also called religion) that went something like this: I will never know how much it costs to see my sins on that cross. Can you imagine the price Jesus paid, the suffering he endured in order to allow humanity the opportunity to, once again, walk with God?
It would be one thing to endure such cruelty in order for everyone to return to his or her original purpose, but his sacrifice only brought the opportunity for everyone to return. Imagine how much it must hurt when men, women, boys, and girls purposely choose to remain in the sinful society? Think for a moment how you might feel after paying such a huge price.
Thirdly, the Apostle Paul chooses his words carefully to paint another picture. He encourages humanity not to allow “old habits” to be a vessel to slip back into that sinful society. In another place, he encourages Christ-followers to honor God in both body and spirit. This is part of what a close personal relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit is about.
Such a relationship allows you to walk away from the old habits that kept you in the sinful society. Such a relationship gives you the strength to say no, resisting the temptations of those habits while providing you comfort when you slip and fall. The sacrificial blood of God the Son (Jesus) provides forgiveness of such shortcomings. In this sense, it is a “sin forgiven” society.
This part of my journey has begun opening my eyes to deeper things of life as a Christ-follower. I am beginning to see how shallow the sinful life, as well as the religious life, is. The focus of life on earth is to prepare for eternity. This is huge in that it involves your personal preparation as well as the preparation of those in your world.
Jesus taught the disciples before sending them out to teach others. Today, the Holy Spirit teaches the Christ-follower what Jesus taught while coming alongside enabling us to succeed. I am calling this a close personal relationship with the godhead.