Freedom

Galatians 5:1, 13-21

July 4, 2004

Today, we celebrate our Nation’s birthday, but do we truly understand Freedom? The men who signed the Declaration of Independence were essentially signing their own death warrants in order that we may be free. As he signed it, John Adams said: "Whether we live or die, sink or swim, succeed or fail, I stand behind this Declaration of Independence. And if God wills it, I am ready to die in order that this country might experience freedom."

'Freedom' is a word on everybody's lips today. There are many different people advocating it and canvassing it. There is the African nationalist who has gained 'Uhuru' for his country - freedom from colonial rule. There is the economist who believes in free trade, the lifting of tariffs. There is the capitalist who espouses free enterprise and the communist who claims to set the common man free from capitalist exploitation. There are the famous four freedoms first enunciated by President Roosevelt in 1941, when he spoke of “freedom of speech everywhere, freedom of worship everywhere, freedom from want everywhere and freedom from fear everywhere.”

To a great extent, our modern freedom objectives have become success, status, and security. These are followed closely by self-indulgence, comfort and pleasure. Our permissive society turns freedom into license; rights into riots; and pornography into profit. Concerned about a higher standard of living, some fail to live by any standard. Riches are elevated above righteousness, and science above the Savior. We abandon the moral law and then shake our heads in disbelief as crime increases.

However, freedom, as defined by Scripture, has a much different meaning. There are many in our land who have forgotten about God and the Gospel upon which this Nation was founded. Freedom is even in the language of the church itself. Jesus himself said, "You will know the truth and the truth will set you free."

 

When we talk about freedom as Christians, what do we mean?

Listen to this contrast from Scott McKnight:
For the apostle Paul, freedom involves slavery to God and His will, while for moderns freedom means doing whatever one wants. For Paul, freedom begins only in a relationship with God through Christ and in the Spirit, while for moderns freedom means being left alone. For moderns, freedom is independence, while for Paul it is interdependence.

I. Our independence as people is based upon our dependence on God.
The Declaration of Independence states:
“…We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."  We are not obligated to the Law - We are obligated to God.

 

Freedom does not mean the absence of constraints or moral absolutes. Suppose a skydiver at 10,000 ft announces to the rest of the group, "I'm not using a parachute this time. I want freedom!"
The fact is that a skydiver is constrained by a greater law - the law of gravity. But when the skydiver chooses the "constraint" of the parachute, she is free to enjoy the exhilaration.
God's moral laws act the same way: They restrain, but they are absolutely necessary to enjoy the exhilaration of real freedom.

II. We are obligated to our fellow man.

"With a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes & our sacred Honor."

We must treat others with the love of God who lives in us and loves them.

Democracy – Gov by the people – Only Christian form because it is the only form that forces us to consider the others as equal to us. We are all equal under God.

 

The true fruits of freedom, then - We must think of our neighbor as ourselves.

The closest you will ever get to freedom is when you freely pour your life into the lives of others.

A mom was watching her four-year-old as he stood on the kitchen chair he had dragged close to the wall. He stared intensely at the painting there: one of an old man praying over a small loaf of bread. What was so uncommon was that the boy stood there for such a long time, so the mom finally asked, “What are you doing, Honey?” “Looking.” He said the word as if it were heavy. Moving closer, she noticed tears forming under his long dark lashes. “What are you thinking?” He didn’t hesitate with his answer, “He doesn’t have any peanut butter.”

It is when we are there to encourage another who is struggling that the church is the church. It is when we are there to lift up another who has fallen that the church is the church. It is when we give hope to those who are hopeless that the church is the church. It is when we demonstrate love to the unlovable that the church is the church.

III. True freedom can only come in Christ
Patrick Henry was a great statesman and orator. 1775 “Give me Liberty or Give me Death!”
He said: "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded not by religionists, but by Christians - not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ."
His Last Will and Testament ends with: "I have now given everything I own to my children. There is one more thing I wish I could give them and that is Christ. Because if they have everything I gave them and don’t have Christ, they have nothing."

One of the most dramatic symbols of the new political freedoms in the worlds was the tearing down of the Berlin Wall. In 1990, church leaders invited Billy Graham to conduct a rally at the Brandenburg Gate. They said that rock stars, entertainers, and political groups had rallied at the Wall, but little or no attempt had been made to present the gospel of Jesus Christ. Here's how Graham described the event:
The rally was 'symbolic' and meant to underscore the needs of spiritual development in the new spirit of freedom. One East German woman said that when they first came over to West Germany, they thought they would hear church bells ringing and be handed a Bible. Instead they were greeted with about $50 to spend in the luxury stores in the West. She said, “What we really needed to hear was the voice of God.”

Freedom: As we remember this day the birth of our nation, let’s not forget where true freedom comes from.
We who live in freedom need to examine our lives to see if we are bound by materialism, personal fulfillment, or religious tradition. If we are, we must either receive Christ or renew our fellowship with Him.

 

Gal. 5:1- "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free"
I. Freedom to Love instead if hate
II. Freedom to be joyous in the midst of sorrow
III. Freedom to have peace in the midst of conflict
IV. Freedom to be kind when others hurt
V. Freedom to do good, when others do evil
VI. Freedom to have Christ as your anchor, when others have nothing to trust in.

 

Braveheart: “Freedom”