Student Ministry - May 2021
Dear Church Family,
Is freedom a Christian virtue? Most people would agree that freedom is a good thing that one should strive for and protect. But is freedom something we as Christians should hold as a necessary reality for our lives? You might be surprised to hear that for many people today this is a difficult question to answer. Some might say that freedom is simply a cultural value. Many people of the younger generation are willing to trade freedom for safety. Don’t worry, this is not a political conversation, but because of the reality experienced by many people today (especially the younger generation) we have to ask this question: does Christianity value freedom?
The answer is an emphatic YES! To be Christian is to be free. Now, this does not mean that people will never try to force us to act against our freedom. It doesn’t mean that we will never suffer for the sake of our freedom. It does mean, however, that while people will push vigorously against our freedom, they can never take away our freedom. But what freedom are we talking about? We know Christians have been imprisoned and enslaved for millennia, so in what way are we immutably free? We are free in the most significant way. We are free to live according to the truth. We are free from things like the fear of man and the fear of failure. We are free from performance driven lives. All of this is true because of the ultimate freedom we have; freedom from sin and the result of sin.
Listen to what Jesus says about the freedom He gives to those who trust in Him in John 8:31-36:
31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?”34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
Here Jesus is telling us that everyone is a slave to sin, and that He is the only one who can give us freedom. This means that freedom isn’t just a virtue of Christianity, but that Christ is in fact the only source of freedom at all. Without Jesus, all other freedoms in life are nullified by mankind’s slavery to sin. We have to understand that real freedom is only attained in Christ. This is true because in Jesus, no weapon can defeat us, and even our own failures have been overcome. Sin is no longer our master, and death itself cannot separate us from our freedom to live.
This means I don’t have to cave to peer pressure. I don’t have to give in to lust. I don’t have to bow down to cultural idols. I don’t have to compete with the Jones family. I don’t need to have the nicest newest things. I am so free that I don’t need anything, because I have what I need the most, Jesus. And in this, we are not isolated and enslaved to selfishness. Paul reminds us that this freedom does not lead back to sin when he says, “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” (Gal. 5:13). In Christ, we are free from only loving and protecting ourselves, and now we can love God and love each other without fear.
This is the freedom that the world needs. We have the key to their freedom. It is the gospel of Jesus Christ. We just need to share this amazing truth and boldly let freedom ring.