It Might Not Be What You Think…

Is your definition of Freedom more informed by the culture, or the Bible?

Coming off the Independence Day holiday – a day largely focused on giving thanks for both our individual and collective freedom – I am struck afresh by just how much our American understanding of freedom can influence how we understand our Christian Freedom.  The problem is, the two are not the same.  In fact, in many ways, they are diametrically opposed, and applying the American ideal of freedom to our understanding of what the Scriptures speak of as our freedom can lead to serious error.

‘Merica the Individual

As an example – a few years ago, we had back door neighbors that would hand-launch large, powerful fireworks from their backyard, less than two dozen feet from our house – something that is illegal in our city, not to mention exceedingly dangerous. This became a bit of a habit for them during holiday weekends, but what was odd, was they would almost always do it late at night (once as late as 2 in the morning) on the last day of the long weekend, when many of their neighbors were already sleeping in preparation for the work week.  And, as an extra added bonus, this neighbor would shoot these mortars off once every 15 to 20 minutes – just enough time for you to fall back asleep before, Boom! Now, I’m not sure if you’ve ever been woken out of a deep sleep by a large explosion just outside your bedroom window, but needless to say, I wouldn’t suggest it…

Or perhaps I should be more introspective in my critique.  Recently, we were on a long road trip and stopped at the bastion of fine dining that is McDonald’s.  Needless to say, what unfolded was a comedy of errors that I found anything but amusing.  They messed up our order, significantly overcharged us and wouldn’t fix it, and then, to add insult to injury, would not give us the soda we ordered without charging us even more.  What was my godly Christian response to such offenses?  I ever so gingerly applied full throttle to our minivan, my tires screeching as I laid down a thick layer of rubber as we departed. 

These examples typify the sort of freedom we embrace in America – a sort of free-for-all freedom that focuses on my right to do what I please, when I please, no matter how it impacts others.  We presume we know better than our authorities and flagrantly disobey the laws.  We don’t take the time to think how our actions may impact others.  All we’re concerned about is our own enjoyment.  And, just like the illegal fireworks display outside my bedroom window, if anyone tries to get in the way of this freedom, you better bet sparks (or the acrid smoke of burnt rubber) are going to fly!

A Better Way

But the question begs to be asked, is this modern American version of individualistic freedom really what the Bible teaches?  It is not.  In fact, it’s not even what our country’s founding fathers had in mind.  If we take our cultural notion of freedom and superimpose that on the Biblical texts, we will get it all wrong – with consequences that stretch far beyond simple theological error to practical implications that impact when, why and where we go to church, how we treat our family and friends, and how we respond to others when we are wronged.  

But how then should we look at freedom from a Biblical perspective?  Here are at least four ways the Bible, and the New Testament in particular, describes what it means to live out our Christian Freedom:

• Christ has freed us from the righteous requirement of the Law by fulfilling it perfectly Himself.
• Christ has freed us from the penalty of sin by bearing the burden for our sin and presenting us to God clothed in His righteousness.
• Christ progressively frees us from the power of sin in our lives, as His Spirit works to make us ever more like Him.
• Christ has freed us from the selfish demand to put ourselves first so that we can sacrificially and joyfully put others first

Freedom from the Requirement of the Law

“It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.  Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law.”

Galatians 5:1-3, NASB 1995

I’d argue that this aspect of our Christian freedom most closely parallels our cultural understanding of freedom – at least at the surface.  Imagine you are a first century Jew, having recently become a Christian. You’re being taught that all those sacrificial laws that you’ve been keeping all your life, all the laws about what is clean and unclean – you don’t have to keep them any more.  That sounds like freedom, right? Perhaps, to the first century readers of the book, the freedom wasn’t quite so clear – especially when you have family and friends putting social and emotional pressure on you to return to the old, tried and true ways of your forefathers.  Yet Paul makes it clear, to capitulate to the demands of the law is to turn your back upon Christ.  Paul insists we must stand firm in this freedom and guard against the alternative, lest we become a slave to the law and its unkeepable requirement once again. 

But does this freedom mean we are free to disregard the whole law?  Does this passage give us carte blanche to embrace lawlessness – to be free to do what we want, when we want, with who we want, without any regard for God’s holy commands? As Paul would say, by no means!  We are not justified by faith in Christ alone so that we can be free to sin with reckless abandon.  As Paul unpacks the implications of the freedom we have in Christ through the amazing gift of grace, he makes this point explicitly. Romans 6 addresses these abuses head on, going so far as to say that a believer’s freedom from the law does not mean sinful license, but a new slavery to righteousness (Romans 6:18).  We are set free from sin to become slaves to righteousness! 

Freed from the Penalty of Sin

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”

Romans 8:1-4, NASB 1995

We are also free in the sense that we are no longer under condemnation for our sin.  For those in Christ, sin has been once and ever conquered by Christ, setting us free from the power of sin and death to finally condemn.  Christ’s work on the cross perfectly fulfilled the righteous requirement of the law in our place, so that we, adorned in Christ’s righteousness, can be counted as righteous before the burning holiness of God.  

And what is the evidence that this great exchange has occurred in the heart of a professing Christian?  It is a life that is lived in lock-step, not with the worldly, sinful desires of the flesh, but in accordance with the Spirit. It is the Spirit who superintends our righteousness – who is the immediate means by which any good work we do is accomplished.  I would argue, verse 4 does not paint a picture of a Christian walking by subjective senses, leadings and impressions as they try to find out what God is trying to communicate to them.  I’d argue God never merely tries.  His miraculous communications in Scripture are overwhelmingly described as clear and unmistakable. Rather, to walk according to the Spirit is to know, embrace and live out the Spirit-revealed objective truth of the Word of God. (Romans 12:1,2). 

Freed Progressively from the Power of Sin

“For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 6:20-23, NASB 1995

While we are justified in an instant, we are sanctified over a lifetime.  For many Christians, especially those who come to faith later in life, we can point to things that the Lord has delivered us from in an instant, shortly after first believing.  In all honesty, in many ways I was a goody-two-shoe before Christ drew me to Himself in my junior year of high school.  I didn’t drink, I didn’t  smoke, I didn’t do drugs. I was not sexually active – not even close.  I was pretty firmly on the self-righteous side of the spectrum.  Except… I swore like a sailor.  Whether it was using God’s name in vain or dropping an F-bomb, my speech was so peppered with expletives that you’d think I thought they were a mandatory part of English sentence structure.  For me, that changed overnight.  Suddenly, my conscience convicted me of the bitter reality of my sin – especially when using the Lord’s name as a swear – and in an instant, the impulse was nearly entirely gone.  

But there are other things – deeper sins – that are not so easily rooted up.  Sins that require a lifetime of earnest fighting.  Sins where each inch of victory is hard-fought.  This is what I mean by progressive sanctification – we become more and more like Christ as we wage war against the old man that still remains (Romans 7:21-25).  Passages like Hebrews 12:1,2 and 12:14 point to a type of Christian living that increasingly pursues and resembles Christ.  

And while there may be seasons of struggle and malaise, the Christian’s life, especially when the camera is drawn wide, is a life that looks, and loves more and more like Jesus – that hates and exposes sin more and more – that rejoices and longs for God all the more as the years go by.

Freed to Put Others First

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Galatians 5:13,14 NASB 1995

And finally, and most counter to our American sense of freedom, is the freedom we have in Christ to lay our rights – and even our lives – down for the good of others.  Jesus’ parable of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18:21-35) points to the heart of why this is such a precious freedom by showing us an example of the opposite. There, Jesus points to the absurdity of a servant, who is forgiven a debt he could never repay, yet then treats a fellow servant with judgment and contempt over a minor debt.  Yet despite the absurdity that Christ reveals through this parable, it’s also important to note this is exactly what each of us tend to do.  We fail to see God’s gracious gifts of breath and heartbeat despite our massive debt of sin, yet when it comes to another human, how often do we take offense and demand recompense at the drop of a dime?  In those moments when we are tempted to allow our internal judge to severely rule against another, might we look to Christ, and the insurmountable debt of sin we cannot repay before we cast our self-righteous first stone. 

Truly grasping this truth, especially in tandem with the reality of God’s absolute sovereignty and goodness toward His saints,produced truly extraordinary joyful sacrifices among our first century brethren, and has continued to do so over and over again throughout church history.  If time allows, I’d encourage you to take a look at just a few of the stories recorded in the New Testament, like the Hebrew saints who joyfully accepted the plundering of their goods to love others suffering in prison (Hebrews 10:32-34) or the Christians in Macedonia who, despite suffering from extreme poverty themselves, overflowed in generosity toward other suffering saints at a level far beyond what they could afford (2 Corinthians 8:1-5).

And then there’s those passages about how we should use our liberties when around unbelievers (1 Corinthians 8:1-13) or fellow, weaker saints (Romans 14).  The basic principle is simple – our freedom in Christ is designed not to serve our own selfish desires, but a freedom from sinful selfishness that empowers us to serve others, even our enemies, at great cost to ourselves, knowing that every step of the way, God is working every ounce of our suffering and sacrifice for our greatest good.  With such assurances, we are free to lay down even our lives for the sake of the fame of His name and the good of His people.  

May we all live in such Christ-exulting, risk-taking, people serving freedom this year!  It is such freedom that our countrymen, and indeed the whole world, desperately needs!