"To the Jews who had believed in him, Jesus said, 'If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.' They answered him, 'We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?' Jesus replied, 'I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.' (John 8:31-36)
(In honor of the U.S. Independence Day celebration, here's an excerpt from a sermon I preached several years ago.)
Freedom is a central theme throughout the Bible. In fact, it was God's purpose to free us through Jesus Christ, foreshadowed in the Old Testament and fulfilled in the New Testament. In Isaiah 42:6-7, God gave His prophet the ministry of setting prisoners free:
"I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open the eyes of the blind, to free captives from prison, and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness."
This was not a reference to literal prisoners, serving time for some crime they had committed. Rather, it referred to those who were being held in a spiritual prison, in bondage to the things of this world that are controlled by the enemy, Satan. It was, and still is, God’s desire to set all people free from the bondage of sin and death that Satan has placed us under.
Isaiah reiterated this prophecy later on:
"The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners." (Isaiah 61:1)
It was this same prophecy that Jesus quoted at the beginning of His earthly ministry, taking the mantle upon Himself for setting free the prisoners of Satan. (Luke 4:16-21)
From the very beginning, when Adam and Eve fell into sin, it has been God’s intention to free us from the curse that He was required to place on creation for their sin. Therefore, it should be a priority for all Christians to live in the freedom that God has provided us through the death and resurrection of Jesus. And it should also be a priority for us to share that freedom with those who are still in bondage.
Therefore, through Jesus, we are freed from bondage to sin. But what exactly are we free from?
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:1-2)
We are free from the law of sin and death. The law of sin and death is quite simple: you sin, you die. The law of the Spirit of life is equally simple: you believe in Jesus Christ, you live. This life is made possible by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit given to all believers at the time of salvation:
“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” (2 Corinthians 3:17)
If you have the Spirit of God living within you, you have total freedom. But what does this freedom entail?
“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery....You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.” (Galatians 5:1, 13-15)
It is not a freedom to sin, but rather, a freedom from sin, and a freedom to live right, a life of love. It is also a freedom to be able to commune with God through Jesus Christ, and to have a close personal relationship with Him:
“In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.” (Ephesians 3:12)
So how do we live a life of freedom?
“I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts.” (Psalm 119:45)
Freedom comes about when we learn God’s ways for living our lives. Just as we cannot live in a free society without laws and ordinances, so neither can we live in freedom without guidelines and principles. These are found in God’s Word, and are the same for all people.
“But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it – he will be blessed in what he does.” (James 1:25)
These principles and instructions are given to us for our benefit. James says that we will be blessed if we follow them.
They are not designed to make our lives miserable, but to keep us from displeasing God. There is no reward or benefit from doing things our own way. We must conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the price paid for our freedom. Just as the freedoms we enjoy as Americans have come at a great price, so also our freedom from sin and death came with a great price as well – the blood of Jesus Christ. Therefore, we have a responsibility to live our lives in a way that honors the one who paid for our freedom. Romans 6:15-23 tells us:
“What then? Shall we sin because we not under law but under grace? By no means! Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey – whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness. I put this in human terms because you are weak in your natural selves. Just as you used to offer the parts of your body in slavery to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer them in slavery to righteousness leading to holiness. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
This is reinforced elsewhere in the Epistles:
“Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!” (James 2:12-13)
“Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.” (1 Peter 2:16)
Therefore, let us live our lives in freedom!
Have a safe and joyful Fourth of July celebration!
Pastor David
