28 Mar 2024

A metallic chain with an explosed link.

I heard a sermon today that was really good – the passage was Galatians 5 and the topic was about freedom in Christ.  The pastor spent a good amount of time defining freedom and how we as a society have completely gotten the definition wrong.

Society wants to define freedom as “being able to do whatever I want, whenever I want.”

But that’s not freedom, that’s slavery.  He used the analogy of the “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” and said that when we think that freedom is being able to do whatever, whenever, we are basically saying “true freedom is freedom to sin and have no repercussion”.  But that kind of “freedom” results in further bondage to sin so it’s not really freedom, it’s slavery!

He then paraphrased John Piper who said

“You are fully free when you have the desire, the ability, and the opportunity to do what will leave you no regrets forever.” (http://www.desiringgod.org/sermons/you-will-know-the-truth-and-the-truth-will-set-you-free)

and defined freedom as :  “the desire to do what you should do.”

That leads to two pretty interesting results:

1)  The desire to do the wrong thing – this is bondage to sin, and if unforgiven, will lead to eternal damnation.

2)  Doing the right thing but not desiring it – this is bondage to legalism or religion in that thinking that just by doing it, you will be OK, regardless of your motivation.  If this is your heart, you are either being led astray like the Christians in Galatia, you are not a mature Christian and need to grow, or you are not really a Christian.

But when we truly desire to do the right thing, and actually do it, with the fervor and attitude of one who understands that “for freedom Christ has set s free” (Galatians 5:1), then, and only then, are we truly free.

Are you truly free?  What are you doing with your freedom?

Leave a Reply