Fettered - All The Good Seed Daily Devotionals for 2026

Jesus answered them, Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.
John 8: 34.

Fettered
A medieval legend tells of a blacksmith who could forge such excellent chains that no-one ever succeeded in breaking them. The smith himself was strong like an ox and had broken many a chain that others had forged.

One day the smith was caught stealing. He was captured and fettered. This giant of a man told himself that he would break his chains and escape from the dungeon. He wasn't concerned, until he examined the chain closely and to his horror ascertained that he himself had forged it. It was of the best quality! He would never break that one. The man was hopelessly trapped in his own chain.

This is an apt illustration of someone who leads his life apart from God. He never inquires after God's will or His yardstick for good and bad. Instead he follows his own instincts and urges, trusting his own moral judgment and strength. What is wrong with that?

As God's creature man is responsible to his Creator, the living God. He owes His Creator obedience. But through his own self-will he forges for himself a chain of sin, adding link by link.

God does not simply let him continue. He makes him feel that the chain of sin is keeping him captive and that he cannot free himself. So God offers us freedom through His Son, Jesus Christ.

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Today‘s reading: Ezekiel 23: 36 - 24: 14 · Psalms 126: 1 - 6