We passed the high, solid, window-less walls of a prison yesterday. Just looking at it made me shudder. There was no way to breach those walls, no avenue of escape.

Behind those rock walls live people who have been convicted of crimes. They were put there to protect others. If I had to guess, I’d guess that anyone looking at the picture of those prison walls is saying, “No way! I’d never want to get stuck in a place like that!”

Sadly, many people today trap themselves behind hard, ugly, impenetrable walls from which they have no hope of escape…invisible walls. Drug addicts and alcoholics sentence themselves to a life of hell on earth inside a prison most people never see. Mental illness shuts people away in rock-less, wall-less prisons.

Jesus died today, Good Friday, to set us free from invisible prisons. Jesus’ death wasn’t a defeat. It was a victory. Death couldn’t hold Jesus. The rock tomb couldn’t hold Jesus. Three days later Jesus arose from the dead! He lives! He’s alive!

Jesus died to set us free from sin, judgment and death. He won the victory for us. He can knock down the prison walls and set us free. It’s up to us.