Free

Today is June 19th, Juneteenth. It’s a day our nation has set aside to remember the belated arrival of freedom, commemorating the moment in 1865 when news of emancipation finally reached the enslaved people in Galveston, Texas. It is a day that reminds us that God is always on the side of liberation, even when that news is delayed by human brokenness and systems of power.

In today's reading from Acts 5, we encounter another story of emancipation. The apostles have been thrown into the public jail by the local authorities, locked up simply for healing the sick and offering everyday people hope. But during the night, an angel of the Lord opens the prison doors and brings them out.

Notice what the angel tells them to do next. They aren't told to run for the hills, lay low, or go into hiding to protect themselves. The angel says, "Go, stand in the temple courts and tell the people all about this new life" (Acts 5:20).

In our everyday lives, whether in Chester, WV, or across the river in Ohio, we see folks locked up in all sorts of ways. Sometimes those prisons are institutional, but often they are constructed of grief, addiction, or the heavy burden of our own negative self-talk, telling us we aren't enough. I see it frequently, both in pastoral ministry and in the trenches of residential care. We all have moments where we feel trapped in the dark, feeling like we've let others down.

But the gospel promise is that God specializes in opening locked doors. And the freedom Christ offers isn't just a release from our chains, it's a release for a purpose. Like the apostles, when we experience God's unmerited grace, we are called to step back out into the community, into our everyday interactions at the grocery store, the clinic, or the sanctuary, and live out "this new life." We are called to embody the good news.

The chains do not get the final say.

Psalm 86 reminds us today, "For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call on you."

May we walk in that liberating, steadfast love today, and may we be the kind of Church at that helps unlock the doors for our neighbors.

Prayer:
God of Liberation and Grace, we give thanks today for the chains you have broken in history, and the chains you continue to break in our own lives. When we find ourselves locked in darkness, send your light to lead us out. Give us the courage to stand in our community and share the hope of this new life, not just in our liturgy, but in our warm and radical care for one another. In the name of the One who sets us free, Amen.