“True Freedom”

Scripture: Galatians 5:13-25

As next week is the 4th of July, and I won’t be with you, it seems all the more appropriate that we focus on the 5th chapter of Galatians. Verse 1 begins with these words “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.” Interesting thought, isn’t it – Freedom for freedom’s sake!
But freedom to do what? To be what? Where should that freedom lead us? Are we free now to follow our own “conscience”? Are we free to live a life that pleases us? Are we free to “find” ourselves within the context of this world?
Verse 1 continues “Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Perhaps it is as simple as that – that we are freed from the slavery of this life. And of course, any freedom can never come without cost – it cost Christ a great deal, and if we are to truly live in Christ’s freedom, it will, indeed, also cost us. Our freedom cost Jesus Christ great pain and suffering, and that same freedom will cost us a life of persecution.

Frederick Douglass, the 19th century abolitionist wrote “Those who profess to favor freedom, yet deplore agitation, are men who want crops without plowing the ground; they want rain without thunder and lightning; they want the ocean without the awful roar of its many waters.”

Freedom comes at a cost. Whether it is civil and social freedom, or the spiritual freedom that is offered by the Lord, there will always be others who will not want us to have that freedom, and will do everything in their power to take it away. They will want us to wear their yoke of slavery! But we need to resist their yoke, and when we do, there will always be agitation.

Read Galatians 5:13-15

But we are called to show the world a better way – instead of earthly slavery, we are to live in Godly servanthood! Now some may tell you that there is no difference between the two – slavery is slavery. They want you to believe that unless you are living a life of “personal determination”, then you are enslaved.

v.15 “If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.”

The slavery of personal freedom can lead us nowhere but into destruction! “Personal freedom” will always infringe on the personal freedom of someone else, but the freedom that comes from our walk with Jesus Christ – now that’s totally different! It allows us to serve each other, to care about each other, to put the needs of others ahead of ours,
to “love each other as we love ourselves”.

Read Galatians 5:16-18

When we yoke our self with Christ, when we choose to live in the Spirit, the worldly life, by all reason, must fall away. This freedom is not one that allows us to choose our own way. It is the one that allows us to live in a way that is right in God’s eyes, not in the eyes of the world! The way of the Spirit brings hope and purpose and direction by following the One who created freedom!

The author J. Walter Cross tells of flying a kite with his son Jay in southern Florida during some windy weather. The wind was strong, and the kite grew smaller and smaller as it tugged against the string. The harder it blew, the higher it rose. Then there was a sickening snap!
The string had broken. The kite was free, but it was no longer soaring higher. It was tumbling, falling crazily to dash itself against the ground or become tangled in the trees. What kept the kite airborne was the restraint of the string. When that was lost, the kite was unable to fly. We are never freed until we are restrained by something that [allows us to soar]higher and higher. It is not the absence of restraints that makes us free.
There is no freedom in life until one belongs to God. Every other form of it is an illusion. We find the freedom to achieve the greatest desires of our lives only when we live in that relationship. When Christ binds us to himself, then we are free.
-- J. Walter Cross, Bradenton, Florida, 23 January 1994.

The kind of life that the world calls us to can only dash us against the earth or entangle us in the obstacles that we create – it can only result in a sinful existence that leads us further and further away from God.

Read Galatians 5:19-21

“The acts of the sinful nature are obvious:” – don’t you wish they really were? Don’t you wish your friends could see the sinful nature for what it truly is – that it is nothing less than the ultimate bondage? A life in Christ’s Spirit frees us from this destruction and brings us to a true freedom – a freedom to live in the Lord’s nature! And what is His nature?

Read Galatians 5:22-25

When we crucify our sinful nature, the fruit of the Spirit become obvious in us.
This all rings so very true for me. The Saturday night that I claimed Jesus Christ as my Savior could have been perfectly described by Frederick Douglass’ words. There was agitation in my spirit, a “plowing” of my soul, spiritual thunder and lightning all around me, and the roar in my heart was nearly deafening.
And when I returned to work on Monday, several people commented that I must have had quite a weekend, and that was before I told them anything about it! And even though my “sinful nature” had been crucified, that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t try to sneak back in from time to time. But now sin has become obvious to me! Hallelujah! It wasn’t before!
Our walk with Christ not only brings us a freedom unlike anything we have ever known before, it also brings about a clarity in our vision. Keeping in step with the Spirit brings us release, certainly, but it also reveals the truth about sin – that it can only bring us a life that is nothing more than a kite without the tether.

As we approach July 4th, with all of the celebrations of liberty, remember what freedom is truly all about. It has been won by great sacrifice and by an even greater love. It frees us from oppression and condemnation. It opens our lives to unbelievable opportunities. It doesn’t mean that there will always be smooth sailing, but it does mean that we are headed in a glorious direction and that any misdirection in our journey will be caused by nothing more than our own lack of vision.

Celebrate freedom in Christ. Celebrate walking in step with His Spirit. Celebrate the connection that we have in Christ that allows us to soar as on wings of eagles. Now that, my friends, is true freedom!