NO MORE, YOKES!

 TAKE YOUR YOKES BACK, OFF,

MANY OF YOU JESUS HAVE REMOVED SIN FROM YOUR LIVES, AND YET SO MANY OF YOU HAVE PUT ON THE YOKES OF RELIGIONS AND DENOMINATIONS:

As a man of God and one of His many spiritual heavenly Kingdom sons in the Lord Jesus Christ, you all will know and many of you have already found out, that I'm not like all the rest, Because my Jesus and Lord were not like all the rest! Apostle Senior Apostle & Messenger, Elder James R Winfree Sr.

In Galatians 5:1–15, the Apostle Paul discusses the nature of Christ Believers freedom, beginning with an admonition to “stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage” (Galatians 5:1, ). Elder Paul contends that Jesus Christ came to set Believers free from a burdensome, legalistic existence as slaves to the Old Testament Laws and Commandments. Therefore, Christ's Followers must ensure that they stay free and not get bound up again under a yoke of bondage to the Hebrew's Old laws and commandments.

A yoke is a curved bar made from wood or metal that harnesses together two or more draft animals to work more effectively as a team. Yokes were also placed around the necks of people like shackles to secure prisoners in place. Thus, wearing a yoke often speaks of slavery and hardship in the Bible (Deuteronomy 28:48;) ( 1 Kings 12:4; ) (Jeremiah 27:8;) ( 1 Timothy 6:1), and removing or breaking a yoke represents freedom (Leviticus 26:13;) ( Isaiah 58:6). The references to being “entangled again” or “burdened again” suggest being weighed down again under a heavy load.

When Apostle Paul said, “Do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage” or “Do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery”, he was rebuking Christians for their tendency to turn back to legalism, which is the opposite of Christ Believers freedom. One bible teacher elaborates, “The Christ Believers freedom he Apostle Paul describes is freedom of conscience, freedom from the tyranny of the Old Jewish laws and commandments, the dreadful struggle to keep the commandments and laws, to win the favor of God. It is the freedom of acceptance with God and of access to God through Christ. . . .

In other words, we are to enjoy the glorious freedom of conscience which Christ has brought us by His forgiveness. We must not lapse into the idea that we must win our acceptance with God by our obedience”.

Teacher Paul depicts our former way of life before salvation as slavery to the law. Wearing a yoke of bondage is a fitting metaphor for this slavery because an animal (or person) bound by a yoke must obey its master. Under the Old Testament covenant, the Jews labored under the commandments and laws in an attempt to be justified or made right before God (Romans 2:13). But under the New Covenant, God’s grace confirmed by the blood of Jesus Christ gives us freedom from slavery to the law and release from sin and death (Galatians 4:24–31).

Jewish false teachers had infiltrated the Galatian Churches, demanding that Gentiles be circumcised (Galatians 2:3–5). The same thing had happened in Antioch of Syria, where Judiazers taught, “Unless you are circumcised as required by the law of Moses, you cannot be saved” (Acts 15:1, ). These legalistic Jews were trying to make God's spiritual Kingdom sons and daughters return to a yoke of bondage by requiring them to observe the Old Testament commandments rules, laws, and ceremonies, especially circumcision.

Apostle Paul stood unyielding against these false teachers because the truth of the gospel of grace was at stake: “Listen! I, Apostle Paul, tell you this: If you are counting on circumcision to make you right with God, then Christ will be of no benefit to you. I’ll repeat it. If you are trying to find favor with God by being circumcised, you must obey every regulation in the whole law of Moses and obey every commandment.

For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the commandments, and laws, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s Grace. But we who live by the Spirit eagerly wait to receive by faith the righteousness God has promised to us. For when we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love” (Galatians 5:2–6, ).

Apostle Paul contended that under the New Covenant, both Jews and Gentiles are accepted into God’s family by faith alone in Jesus Christ (Romans 3:21–22;) ( Ephesians 2:8). Before salvation, Jews lived under a yoke of bondage to the commandments and old laws (Galatians 4:3), burdened by a guilty conscience (Titus 1:15), imprisoned by demands we could not keep (Acts 15:10), and held captive by the fear of punishment because of our disobedience (1 John 4:18).

Paul said in Galatians 3:24, “The law was our guardian until Christ came; it protected us until we could be made right with God through faith”. When Christ came, He set us free from the yoke of bondage by meeting the demands of the law for us: “Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace” (Romans 6:14, ).

There is no longer condemnation for those of us who belong to Jesus Christ, to the Jews first and also to the Gentiles (Romans 8:1–2) because He took the guilty sentence in our place: “God did what the law could not do. He sent his own Son in a body like the bodies we sinners have. And in that body God declared an end to sin’s control over us by giving his Son as a sacrifice for our sins. He did this so that the just requirement of the commandments and laws would be fully satisfied for us” (Roman,s 8:3–4, ).

The Chris Jesus Believers life is characterized by a joyous freedom to follow Christ out of love and not a dreadful life of slavery to following rules. Jesus Christ has lifted the yoke of bondage from our shoulders and placed on them His yoke, one that describes obedience and discipleship: “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I Am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:29–30). Love & Grace!

HIS HONORABLE ANOINTED CHOSEN AND APPOINTED SENIOR APOSTLE & MESSENGER,
ELDER JAMES WINFREE SR. THE LORD GOD JESUS CHRIST, ALL IN ALL AND EVERYTHING!
I'M NOT FOR SALE AT NO COST OR PRICE!