Reflection: Terry
Voice: Li Huan
You can be Free
Audio
Today is Tuesday, the 3rd of June. We start the day with this prayer:
Blessed are you, creator God,
to you be praise and glory for ever.
As your Spirit moved over the face of the waters
bringing light and life to your creation,
pour out your Spirit on us today
that we may walk as children of light
and by your grace reveal your presence.
Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Psalm reading for today is Psalm 100:
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
2 Serve the Lord with gladness!
Come into his presence with singing!
3 Know that the Lord, he is God!
It is he who made us, and we are his;[a]
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
and his courts with praise!
Give thanks to him; bless his name!
5 For the Lord is good;
his steadfast love endures forever,
and his faithfulness to all generations.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit:
as It was in the beginning, is
now, and shall be forever. Amen.
The Scripture Reading is 1 John 3:1-10
See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. 3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.
4 Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. 5 You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. 6 No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. 7 Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. 8 Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. 9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. 10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.
Reflection
Some of us may feel a sense of despair when reading this passage from 1 John 3. Others may find it starkly honest—and because of that, profoundly hopeful.
The truth is sobering: a person who sins continually and habitually will eventually become “lawless.” Sin has a compounding effect. One act leads to another, and soon our hearts, thoughts, and desires drift further from God and the goodness He intends for us. Our minds become consumed with how to satisfy ourselves, and in the process, we may lose our appetite for God—and even, at times, for life itself.
Living a habitual or addictive life of sin is devastating. It may involve substance addiction. The modern fentanyl crisis is a grim and visceral reminder of the brokenness humanity faces. The list of addictive patterns is long: alcohol, synthetic drugs, and more. In Singapore, we can be grateful for the legal protections that make it harder for some of these substances to take root—but temptation finds other avenues.
There is also sexual addiction, a struggle made more intense by the constant appeal to our most basic desires and the ease of access in our digital world.
For others, the bondage may be found in more “familiar” patterns—sins passed down or shaped by the families we come from. Behavioural sins such as uncontrolled anger, bitterness, or rage can destroy relationships and leave long-lasting wounds. Some of us are born into such environments and carry those scars still.
This is precisely why Jesus came. As verse 8 tells us, “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.” He came not only to forgive sin but to break its power. He came so that we might have life—life to the full (John 10:10)—not a life stolen by the enemy.
If you find yourself caught in a cycle of sin, will you turn to the Lord again? He is always ready to receive you. And sometimes, the way forward involves walking with someone else. It could be a trusted friend, a Cell group member, or a trained professional who can walk with you through addiction or brokenness.
My brothers and sisters: Live in the light and freedom that Christ has won for you. You were not made for bondage. You were made for Him.
We end with this Collect:
Almighty God,
you have broken the tyranny of sin
and have sent the Spirit of your Son into our hearts
whereby we call you Father:
give us grace to dedicate our freedom to your service,
that we and all creation may be brought
to the glorious liberty of the children of God;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Be blessed by this country gospel song, Thank God I am free.
Daily Devotion 
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