Freedom in the Christian Life
I want you to watch a video clip from the film Braveheart. Freedom is a very precious commodity. We hear a lot about freedom today. There are wars fought over it, legislation enacted to give people freedom, protests marches, freedom of speech, freedom of religion etc. There is a lot said about it, shouted about and you know a lot of it is plain nonsense. Freedom – are you free? This morning I want us together to look at the Freedom we have in the Christian Life.
What am I free from?
What am I free to do?
What am I free from?
Terry Waite in his book ‘Taken on Trust’ describes being chained to the wall and only allowed to go to the bathroom once a day. He was shackled to that radiator for 1763 days, almost four years. We can only imagine the sense of freedom he has now. But imagine that after he was released he was walking past the building where he had been held and one of his captors calls him over. The man says ‘Mr Waite won’t you come back into captivity again? We will give you a new set of handcuffs, a new chain, a new room and a new radiator to be chained to.’ Would Terry Waite go back? No of course he wouldn’t. Would you? Now why would I ask such a question? Simple really – most Christians I know have done exactly that. Paul says in Galatians 5 verse 1 ‘It is for freedom Christ has set you free. Stand firm , then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again with the yoke of slavery.’ Yet when I look around me and observe the lives of many Christians I see slavery and not freedom. I see people burdened with guilt, bound by fear, enslaved to habits which are sinful, shackled with an attitude that is far from Christlike. Yet here Paul says Jesus has set them free. In John 8 verse 32 Jesus says the truth shall set you free and four verses later in verse 36 he says ‘if the Son sets you free you shall be free indeed.’ Friends how come Christ has set us free and yet most Christians are still in chains, still in bondage, still shackled by fear, by sin, by the flesh, the world and the devil.
In Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress there is a point at which Christian’s burden, which he has been carrying all his life, falls off his back and rolls away. Do you remember where this happens? It falls off at the foot of the cross and it rolls into an empty tomb. He never again carries that burden on his back – the burden by the way is sin. Friends Christ has set you free from the burden of sin. Listen to the prophet Isaiah, chapter 1 verse 18 and chapter 6 verse 7. Do you understand you are freed from the burden of sin. Let me remind you what Jesus said ‘come unto me all that labour and are heavy laden and I will …’ add more weight to your burden? No, ‘and I will give you rest.’ What was the constant refrain coming from the lips of Jesus to people – come to me and I will remove your burden of sin. Friends we have been freed from the burden of sin.
You see that is why Paul warns the Galatians not to put the yoke of the Law back on themselves again. You see Judaizers had got in amongst them in the church and had started to win them over to the heresy that in order to be saved they need to be circumcised and to obey the Law. You know it seemed so easy to them and almost so obvious that this was right but it was wrong. It was a minor medical procedure but the theological and doctrinal implications were enormous. What Paul says is this – if you believe that circumcision is necessary then you do not believe that Christ’s death on the cross is sufficient to save you from your sins. In fact you have rejected the gospel of grace and you have gone back to the ‘good works’ path. And you all know that all the Law does is convict you of your sin and burden you with guilt.
When Moses came down Mount Sinai with the tablet of commandments and he began to read the law to the people in the desert what was their reaction? Guilt, shame, despondency and desolation. The Law did not spell freedom it spelt condemnation. Why? Because it convicted them of their sin – that is why a sacrificial lamb was provided so that an atonement through the shedding of blood could be made on their behalf. The Law brought condemnation and guilt. It laid a burden on the people. It held them in bondage. But when Christ, the Lamb of God, came he fulfilled the Laws requirement and made atonement for the sins of many. The burden was lifted from off the back of the people because the requirement of the Law had been met and a perfect life was sacrificed in their (and our) place.
So why would the Galatians go back into slavery when they had been freed from bondage. Well you know it was the pattern of their forefathers, and ours. The people of Israel are laid out of slavery of Egypt but no sooner are they free than they begin to grumble that life was better back in Egypt. The Galatians were doing the same. They allowed men to come in amongst them and to sow heresy. You see there is always something in the heart of each man and woman that wants to earn salvation, that wants to contribute something to it. Paul says you cant and in trying do you deny the gospel of grace.
Paul says here you have been freed from the requirements of the Law. Now listen to me very carefully here because he is not saying you are free to break the Law. Listen closely and follow closely. Paul is here speaking about our relationship with God, he is speaking about our justification before God. He says it is Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection which justifies you before God, that is restores you to a right relationship with God. He says you have been freed from sin but he does not say you are free to sin. Do you understand that? You are free from sin but that is not the same as saying you are free to sin. You are free from the condemnation of the Law but you are not free to disregard or break the Law.
You see the cross is a narrow bridge over a place where two polluted streams meet. One stream is called legalism and the other is libertinism. One seeks to be right with God by rules and regulations – ie good works. The other seeks to use Christ’s atonement as a licence for sin. Both are wrong and we need to keep our balance and walk over that narrow bridge. It is so easy to fall into one or the other of those two filthy streams. It is so easy, and in some ways safe, to become legalistic. You know what I mean? We all have grown up with it here – where being Christian is more about what you do not do than what you do do. I remember reading in a book once a comment by a visitor who said ‘in Northern Ireland it seems it is okay to hate each other but not to have a swing on a Sunday.’ Legalism. The other danger is ‘libertinism’ where people live in whatever way they choose believing that Christ has forgiven them all sin and therefore sin does not matter anymore in their lives. We have people like that in the church also. Look at verse 13. God has called me to freedom in Christ. That freedom is not to be used, Paul says, as a reason or justification for sin. The word he uses in the greek is ‘aphorme’ which is a military word which denotes a vantage point, or bridgehead from which to launch an attack. So right at the very beginning he states a negative – you are not to use this newfound freedom to indulge the flesh, the sinful nature.
Paul tells the Galatians, and us, we are made right with God by grace through faith in Christ – our justification. That frees us from the burden of sin, from a guilty conscience, from the fear of death. However we may be freed from sin but we are not free to sin.
We also have freedom of access to God and freedom of acceptance by God – all because of Christ. Therefore ‘stand firm’ in the freedom which Christ brings, and Christ alone brings. Do not go back into the old way of trying to earn or win God’s favour by obedience to the Law. The Law condemns. The Law convicts and brings a guilty conscience but God has cleansed that conscience by the precious blood of Christ ( 1 Peter 1 v18-19).
What am I free to do?
If God has freed me from the burden, the punishment of sin but I am not free to sin then what am I free to do?
Freedom to enjoy a relationship with God that was once denied to me because of my sin. Let me ask you a very serious question: Is it a joy to you to be a Christian? I do not mean are you always happy, top of the world form. I mean is being a Christian a joy or a burden to you? You see I think to many people it is a burden because they have gone back into the works mindframe and lifestyle. Listen to me – God loves you unconditionally – you cannot make him love you anymore and there is nothing you can do which will make him love you any less. Your salvation is in Christ – not your obedience. But your sanctification is in your obedience. Ah – there is the key. Your holiness, your personal godliness, your witness before God and others depends on your obedience. Your salvation is all of Christ. Your sanctification is the work of the Holy Spirit each day leading you to obey God’s Word and will so that you might become more like Christ each day. Friends do not mix up your sanctification and your justification. I am free to be obedient which leads to godliness, holiness and Christlikeness.
I have freedom to serve my neighbour. Paul says in verses 13-15 that I have been freed to serve others, not exploit them. You see the mark of freedom is service. Sounds strange but as we are told we are no longer our own but have been bought with the blood of Christ. We are freed from the slavery of sin and become servants of Christ. I display my freedom in Christ by serving others in the name of Christ. It is out of my freedom that I serve. It is an expression of my love towards Christ who has set me free that I serve others in his name.
I am freed from self-indulgence and from the slavery of my sinful nature. If you read on to verse 22 of chapter 5 you read of what is replacing the sinful nature in my life. I am being freed from the power of sin in my life and in its place comes the fruit of the Spirit.
Illustration: hold up empty glass. How can I get all the air out of this glass? Suction – I can get a vacuum pump and suck all the air out but eventually the glass will shatter. Or I can do this – fill it with water. Freedom in the Christian life is not sucking a sin out here and there but being filled by the Holy Spirit so that there is no room in my life for sin. The fruit of the Spirit in my life brings me freedom – against such things Paul says there is no law, nothing to condemn, nothing to convict and therefore no guilt. So I am free to be filled with the Spirit, which brings freedom and not bondage.
I am free to live without condemnation of the past or fear of the future. God does not wipe away my sin, give me salvation and then put on handcuffs of past memories to hinder my Christian life. No, such handcuffs are self-imposed. I am free from my past – he has wiped it clean. It no longer imprisons me – my debt has been paid. Listen to these words spoken by Peter on the day of Pentecost (Acts 3 v19) ‘Repent, then, turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.’ He sets you free from your past – why would you go back and put on the burden he has removed. Some of you need to accept his forgiveness, some of you need to repent and some of you who have repented need to take off the self-imposed handcuffs of memories. You have freedom from your past. And can I also say some of you need to take the memory handcuffs off other people – because you have put them there and you keep them there.
You have freedom from the fear of the future because Christ has promised ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you’ and ‘lo I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ Some of you need to accept the freedom of fear from the future. Some of you need to read Psalm 23 and realise that the sheep does nothing in that Psalm except follow the Shepherd and receive the blessing and refreshing even after the Valley of the Shadow of Death. You have been freed from the fear of the future. You are freed from the fear of death – because as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15 – in Christ we look at death and ask ‘where o death is your sting, where o grave is your victory – you have been swallowed up in Christ.’ You have been freed from the fear of death because of Christ – why put that burden back on.
Let me finish with one last illustration. I do not know if you have ever done a parachute jump. Imagine that it is your hobby and you just love the freedom that gliding down to earth under the canopy of a parachute gives. You have the freedom of the skies within the parameters or boundaries of the parachute. But say one day you decide you do not want the boundaries of the parachute, you want total freedom. So you jump out without your chute. You have total freedom for a while but suddenly the ground looms and now without a parachute disaster also looms, in fact death is certain. You see freedom has boundaries in order to keep us safe. In Christ we have freedom – within the boundaries of God’s Word. We are free from the punishment of sin, from eternal death, from the past, from fear of the future, but we are not autonomous. We are not free to do our own thing. We are not free from responsibility. We are not free to sin. We are not freed from love and concern for others. We have freedom from the requirements of the Law in terms of our justification but we are required to obey the Law for our sanctification.
The Son shall set you free and you shall be free indeed. Amen.
