Freedom Bible Church

Freedom Bible Church We exist to make disciples who love UPward, INward, OUTward!

06/23/2026

DAY 2
Obedience as Worship

Scripture Reading
Colossians 3:20, Ephesians 6:1–3, Exodus 20:12, Luke 2:51, Philippians 2:5–8

Devotional
Paul does something in Colossians 3:20 that would have surprised the ancient world: he speaks directly to children. Not about them, not to parents about how to manage them, but to children themselves as people accountable before God. In a world where children were legally closer to property than to persons, Paul addresses them as moral agents with real responsibilities to the Lord. That is itself a statement of dignity.

The command he gives them is plain: “Children, obey your parents in everything.” The word he uses for “obey” means to listen under authority — to hear and respond. It is comprehensive. Not selective. Not conditional on whether you agree, understand, or feel like it. And Paul extends it to “everything,” which the rest of Scripture qualifies only at the point where a parent would demand what God forbids. Short of that, the scope is real.

But the reason Paul gives is what transforms the command. He does not say obey because your parents are always right, or because it will make life easier, or because they are stronger. He says obey “for this pleases the Lord.” That phrase lifts child obedience out of mere behavior and places it before Christ. Ordinary obedience to parents is an act of worship. When a child hears a request and responds with genuine, willing compliance, they are in that moment honoring Jesus.

The proof of this is Jesus Himself. Luke 2:51 tells us that after the twelve-year-old Jesus was found teaching in the temple — astounding the scholars — He went home to Nazareth and was submissive to Mary and Joseph. The eternal Son of God obeyed His earthly parents. His obedience continued all the way to the cross. Philippians 2 calls it “obedience unto death.” The child who obeys their parent is, in a small but real way, living out the posture that defines Christ’s own life. That is not a small thing.

Reflection
1. What is the difference between obeying because you have to and obeying because you want to please the Lord? How does that difference show up in daily life?
2. Jesus “learned obedience through what He suffered” (Hebrews 5:8). What does it mean that the Son of God submitted to human authority? How does that shape the way you think about submission?
3. If obedience to parents is an act of worship, how does that change the way you think about how you obey — not just whether you obey?

Practical Application
Children and teenagers: pick one area this week where your obedience has been slow, partial, or reluctant. Before you respond to your parent’s next request, remind yourself: “This pleases the Lord.” Then do it fully, the first time, without the editorial commentary.
Parents: this is a good week to talk with your children about why you require obedience — not because you’re in charge, but because it matters to the Lord. Frame obedience as worship, not just household policy.

Prayer
Father, thank You that You dignify even the small moments of daily life by making them an opportunity to honor Christ. I confess that so much of my obedience — to You, to the authorities You’ve placed over me — is slow, partial, or reluctant. Forgive me for treating obedience as a transaction rather than a form of worship. Teach me to obey the way Jesus obeyed: willingly, completely, from a heart that trusts Your wisdom and wants to please You. Where I have modeled the wrong kind of obedience to my children, give me the grace to repent and do differently. And remind us all that the One we are ultimately obeying is not a harsh taskmaster but a good Father who sent His Son to save us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

06/22/2026

The Christian life isn't about self-improvement - it's about RESURRECTION!

06/22/2026

DAY 1
The Lord of Every Room

Scripture Reading
Colossians 3:17–21, Colossians 1:15–20, Ephesians 5:21

Devotional
Most of us have no trouble confessing that Christ is Lord over the big things: the church, the nations, eternity. The harder confession is that He is Lord at the dinner table. Lord during bedtime. Lord when a child refuses to listen and a parent is about to lose patience. That is exactly where Paul takes us in Colossians 3.

Before he ever gets to the home, Paul has spent two and a half chapters establishing the supremacy of Jesus Christ. In chapter one, Christ is the image of the invisible God, the One through whom all things were created, in whom all things hold together. In chapter two, Paul warns the church not to be taken captive by anything that sounds spiritual but quietly moves Christ out of the center. And in chapter three, he turns to the Christian life: seek what is above, put off the old self, put on the new, let the Word of Christ dwell richly in you.

Then he immediately begins talking about the home. Wives and husbands. Children and fathers. And the phrase that governs all of it appears just before these commands in verse 17: “Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus.” That word “whatever” is not rhetorical. Paul means it. He proves it by walking into the most ordinary relationships in the ancient world and showing that Christ’s Lordship claims each of them.

This is where theology gets real. It is one thing to sing about the supremacy of Christ on a Sunday morning. It is another thing entirely to live under that supremacy on a Tuesday evening when everyone at the table is tired and someone has already said something they shouldn’t have. The lordship of Christ is not an abstract doctrine. It is a claim on every room in your house, every conversation in your car, every moment of correction, every word of encouragement, every act of forgiveness. Nothing is outside His reach.

Reflection
1. Where in your home is it hardest to remember that Christ is Lord? What does His lordship look like in that specific moment or relationship?
2. Paul moves directly from “do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus” to commands for the family. What does that connection tell you about how God views ordinary home life?
3. Is there any area of your family life where you’ve been operating as though Christ’s lordship doesn’t quite reach there? What would it look like to bring that under His authority?

Practical Application
Before your family gathers today — for a meal, for the evening, for whatever is next — pause and pray Colossians 3:17 over that time. Ask God to make Christ’s lordship visible in the specific moments and conversations that are coming. Write down one area of your home life that needs to come more fully under His authority, and bring it to Him in prayer this week.

Prayer
Father, I confess that I am quicker to acknowledge Your lordship in the church than at the dinner table. Forgive me for treating my home as though it were somehow outside Your reach. You are Lord of everything — the whole cosmos, and also my kitchen, my car, my conversations, my tone of voice, and my temper. I want every room in my home to reflect the lordship of Jesus. Help me to live that out today — not just to believe it, but to actually practice it in the ordinary moments where it costs something. Let Your Word dwell richly in us. Let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts. And where we fail, remind us that Christ is not only our Lord but our Savior, and that His grace covers what our obedience cannot. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

06/21/2026

Sunday worship gathering for Freedom Bible Church in Evans, GA

Today we thank God for the fathers, grandfathers, and father figures who faithfully love, lead, provide, protect, and po...
06/21/2026

Today we thank God for the fathers, grandfathers, and father figures who faithfully love, lead, provide, protect, and point others to Christ.

To the dads who are serving quietly, sacrificing daily, and seeking to lead their families in the Lord, thank you! Your faithfulness matters more than you know.

“Like a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.” — Psalm 103:13

06/20/2026

Before Paul tells us HOW to live, he tells us WHO we are. The Christian life isn't a self-improvement project — it's living out the new life we have in Christ.

06/19/2026

Grace always comes before obedience.

06/19/2026

Scripture reveals this powerful principle: what we set our minds on determines what we seek, and what we seek shapes our entire direction

06/19/2026

Day 5 — One Sign, Two People
What a Christian Marriage Says to the World

Scripture to Read:
Colossians 3:17–19, Ephesians 5:31–33, Revelation 19:6–9, John 13:34–35, Genesis 2:24

Devotional
Paul doesn't give us these commands in isolation. He gives them to a church. A gathered community of people trying to follow Jesus together in the middle of ordinary life. And when you read Colossians 3:18–19 in that context, something becomes clear — a Christian marriage is never just about the two people in it.
It is a sign.
Ephesians 5:32 makes it explicit. The mystery of marriage — a man and woman joined together as one flesh — points beyond itself to something greater: the relationship between Christ and His church. A husband's love for his wife is meant to image the love of Christ for His people. A wife's trust in her husband is meant to image the church's trust in Christ. Together, they declare something to the watching world about the nature of the gospel.
This is why the stakes of these two commands are higher than they appear. When a husband loves his wife with Christlike love — incarnational, sacrificial, sanctifying — he is not just being a good spouse. He is making an argument. A visible one. He is showing the world what it looks like when someone loves another person not because they deserve it, but because they have been captured by a love that works that way. And when a wife submits to her husband in the Lord — not out of cultural compliance but out of genuine trust in Christ's design — she is declaring that Jesus can be trusted with the ordering of a life.
Neither of you will do this perfectly. Not even close. Our marriages are imperfect signs, inconsistent witnesses, works very much still in progress. But that gap between the ideal and the reality is not a reason for despair. It is a reason for grace — and grace is exactly what Christ offers.
He does not come into your marriage to beat you up. He comes to expose what is broken, cover it with His grace, and teach you a better way to live together. That is the gospel at work in the most ordinary place it can reach — your home.
That is worth everything.

Reflection Questions

What does your marriage currently communicate to the people watching it — family, friends, neighbors, your children?
How does seeing your marriage as a sign of the gospel change the way you approach its daily challenges?
What is one area where you need to receive Christ's grace in your marriage rather than trying harder in your own strength?

Practical Application
Sit down together as a couple and ask each other one question: What is one thing I can do this week to love you better? Then listen. Don't defend, explain, or deflect. Just listen — and then do the thing. Simple. Concrete. Repeated over a lifetime, this kind of intentional love is what builds a marriage worth having.

Prayer
Father, thank You that You did not leave us to figure out marriage on our own. You gave us Your Word, Your Spirit, and the example of Christ's own love for His church. We confess that we have fallen short — individually and together. We have loved imperfectly, submitted reluctantly, and let bitterness take up more space than it should. Forgive us. Restore what has been worn down. Strengthen what is weak. And make our marriage — with all its imperfection — into something that points beyond itself to You. We want our home to be a place where Your lordship is real, Your grace is evident, and Your love is on display. Not for our reputation. For Your glory. In Jesus' name, Amen.

06/18/2026

Day 4 — The Sin Nobody Talks About
Bitterness, Harshness, and the Gospel's Answer

Scripture to Read:
Colossians 3:19, Ephesians 4:31–32, Hebrews 12:15, Proverbs 14:29, James 1:19–20

Devotional
Of all the commands in Colossians 3:18–4:1, Paul issues exactly one prohibition. One negative command in the entire household code. And he gives it to husbands: do not be harsh with them.
That specificity is worth pausing on. Paul could have said many things to husbands. He chose to name this. Which tells us something — he saw it as the characteristic and recurring failure of men in positions of authority in the home.
The Greek word is pikrainō — to embitter, to make something sour. The grammar suggests Paul may be addressing something already happening: stop being bitter. Not a hypothetical warning but a pastoral correction aimed at a real pattern.
It shows up in two forms. There is active harshness — the sharp word at the end of a long day, the cutting tone, the irritability that your coworkers never see but your wife experiences as the daily weather of your home. And there is passive harshness — the emotional withdrawal, the cold distance, the husband who is physically present but emotionally somewhere else entirely. Both are named. Both are prohibited.
But underneath the behavior is the bitterness itself — and bitterness has roots. It grows from disappointment that was never processed, from wounds that were never healed, from expectations that were never met and resentments that were quietly fed instead of mortified. Hebrews 12:15 warns that a root of bitterness, left unaddressed, causes trouble and defiles many. It rarely stays contained to one relationship.
The gospel doesn't offer behavior management here. It offers something deeper — the grace of a God who has absorbed every failure, covered every sin, and by His Spirit is capable of producing in a bitter man the patient, tender love of Christ. The same Christ who has never once grown bitter toward His church despite her long and messy history of failure.
That is the standard. And that is the grace available to every man who is honest enough to admit he needs it.

Reflection Questions

Is there bitterness toward your spouse that you have been nursing rather than bringing to Christ?
What is the root of any harshness — active or passive — that shows up in your marriage?
How does the patience and gentleness of Christ toward you personally challenge the way you treat your spouse?

Practical Application
Take ten minutes today and honestly ask God to show you any bitterness you are carrying toward your spouse. Write down what surfaces. Then confess it specifically — not as a general "forgive me for being harsh" but naming the actual root. Bring it to the cross. And if an apology to your spouse is warranted, don't wait. Short accounts make for healthier marriages.

Prayer
Father, I don't want to be a harsh person. But if I'm honest, I know there are ways I've let bitterness take root — in how I speak, in how I withdraw, in the resentment I've fed instead of released. Forgive me. I know You have never treated me with the harshness I sometimes show the people closest to me. You have been patient, gentle, and faithful even when I have not deserved it. I want to be changed — not just in my behavior but in my heart. Root out the bitterness. Replace it with the grace You have so freely given me. In Jesus' name, Amen.

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777 Blanchard Road
Evans, GA
30809

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Thursday 9am - 5pm
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(706) 651-8373

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