One week ago, America celebrated its 248th birthday (Independence or Freedom Day), and as many of you know, I celebrated my 61st birthday. So, excuse me if I get a tad carried way during the month of July with the subject of freedom, I’ve been vividly reminded of it my entire life lol.
In 1995, the movie Braveheart hit theaters and gave us a vivid picture of the pursuit of freedom in Scotland. In this movie, Mel Gibson portrays a Scottish rebel named William Wallace who leads his people in rebellion against tyranny and the slavery of the English king, Edward the Longshanks. Young William was a young boy who saw both his father and brother killed trying to free Scotland. The Scotts hated their English invaders, but most lacked the courage and leadership necessary to fight for their freedom. As time went by, the English dealt the final blow when they took the life of William Wallace’s new bride. William decides that there are ‘things’ worth fighting, and that one of those things is certainly freedom!
As Christ followers, we are to spiritually fight to live out our freedom in Christ. To be free from our past, free from our shame, free from legalism (a term that describes having to do good works or obedience to the law to earn salvation), free to tell the truth about ourselves, free from obeying rules to merit God’s love, free from our idols, and free from our addictions, etc. This is a lifelong pursuit as we mature and grow in Christ.
The apostle Paul wrote an entire book of the Bible with the big picture theme of ‘freedom’…the book of Galatians. In chapter 1, he chastises the believers in Galatia for believing that you needed to add something to the death and resurrection of Jesus to be saved. Listen carefully to his words from vv. 6-9, “ I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.”
In chapter 2, Paul uses Titus as exhibit A to prove his point. Titus was a Greek pagan and polytheistic worshiper before trusting in Christ. All who knew him, both Greek and Jew, knew his life had been radically changed. Paul therefore asks the leaders in Jerusalem these questions: Will you require that Titus be circumcised? Will you require Titus to jump through these hoops of Jewish law before you can call him your brother in Christ? The answer was a big ole NO!
These Judaizers had infiltrated God’s new church in Galatia and wanted to put the Galatian Christians back into slavery (Gal. 2:4), the slavery of trying to earn God’s favor and love in order to be saved, of paying God back for His mercy and grace, and of living in the fear that you may lose your salvation because you did not do enough. Paul unpacks this truth: Christ followers must not depend on our own performance but fully trust in the performance of the Lord Jesus on the cross. To say we need “more” than Christ’s work on the cross is an offense to God. It screams to Him that the death of His son was not enough.
In Galatians 5, Paul clarifies real spiritual freedom. First, freedom is not a license to sin, “for you were called to freedom, only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh”. Jesus, in John 8, puts it this way: “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.” Second, freedom is not alone! In vs. 13b and 14, Paul says that real freedom has a concern and love for others and it shows itself by serving others.
Obviously, these truths clash with the world’s definition of freedom where freedom is described as the complete absence of any constraints. Put another way, the world’s freedom is to do what you please, when you please and how you please. This may feel good in the moment, but history has shown that it not only hurts others, but it also destroys the one living out his or her freedom in this way. Tim Keller puts it this way: “Freedom is not so much the absence of restrictions as it is finding the right ones, those that fit with the realities of the God who made us and how we best flourish as humans.”
Let’s take the time to ponder, dream and consider what it would look like to live out Paul’s exhortation in Galatians 5:1: “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” I think we’ll know when biblical freedom is alive and well at Fellowship because we will not gratify the desires of the flesh (Gal. 5:16) and God will then produce ‘freedom fruit” in us. What is ‘freedom fruit’? Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Gal. 5:22-23). This is the fight that God has called every believer to. It’s worth fighting for!