Freedom...

Much has been discussed lately about our freedom in Christ and the responsibilities that come with that freedom. When we speak of freedom in Christ, we must always be wary of using it as an excuse to simply do whatever we want in the name of liberty. Our freedom is not a freedom that simply gives us license, but it is a freedom to follow hard after Jesus as His children who love Him because He first loved us. It is the freedom to pursue Him in a personal and growing relationship unencumbered by the bonds of legalism and manmade religion. It is a freedom to give up everything for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord!

When we read Paul's writings we see what this freedom in Christ truly is. This freedom is quite the opposite of the so-called 'American Dream'. The freedom that Paul had was not a freedom to gain earthly things and pleasure and popularity for his own sake, but rather the freedom to give it all up for the glory of God and count it as gain! Our freedom is not a freedom to be burned upon our own earthly lusts, but a freedom that is consumed with glorifying God whether by life or by death. The freedom we have been given is the freedom to set our minds and affections on things above and not on things here on the earth. This is the freedom to live as life was meant to be lived -- for the glory of our sovereign, creator God. It's the freedom to give up carnal pleasures and count it as great gain, it's the freedom to suffer terribly and realize it's all working together, and it's the freedom to face the very doorway of death and know it's the threshold of paradise.

Oh, we may argue about dress, music, bible versions, etc., but none of us have the right to claim 'freedom in Christ' as an excuse to live for our own glory and pleasure. That is simply not the freedom that we have been given in Christ. We have been set free from the wrath of God, by the grace of God, for the glory of God. Let's live free from the bonds and cares of this world, and let's use that freedom given to us by Christ's sacrifice and His unmerited mercy and grace to present ourselves as living sacrifices which is our reasonable act of worship!

Related Scripture:

Philippians 1:12-30 & 3:1-10

Colossians 3:1-17

Romans 1:16-18

Romans 8

Romans 12:1-2

I Cor. 15:55-56

Trevor