LITTLE HEAVEN
FREEDOM
By Philip Periera
For you were called to FREEDOM, brethren; only do not use your FREEDOM, as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love be servants of one another. (Gal 5:13)
15th August, it is a time of celebrations all over India on account of Independence. What were we freed from? We are told from the slavery of foreign power ruling the country. Several countries all over the world celebrate freedom some calendar day or the other. It is really a matter to consider whether individuals in respective country do really have political freedom. At least in India, we can confidentially say that there are enough people who do not really know what freedom is all about. It is just another day of struggle for them.
Here Paul is not talking about political freedom. In fact when he was writing this Epistle most of the world was under Roman rule. Paul is talking about a unique freedom, which worldly people cannot understand. Till Christ came, all men were under slavery to the god of this world, i.e. the devil. Adam by his disobedience handed over what was legally his (and there for ours) to the devil. Our Lord through His atoning death on the cross purchased us back and made us free. So our freedom is really a freedom from the world system.
What do we do with this freedom is a big question. Once we were slaves to elementary spirits and we followed rules and regulations. Now Jesus has made us free and made us sons and daughters of God Almighty. Child while still below the maturity age is like a slave only. The child does not have full authority. Even the slave at home can rule over the child. Once the child comes of age he/she become partakers in the riches of their father. (Gal 4: 1-3)
Are you still submitting to regulations? Touch not, eat not, wear not etc. (Col 2:21) according to human regulations. If Christ died for you, you also died to elemental spirits. (Col 2:20) If you still follow after the flesh, you are not free. Abraham had two sons. One was of the flesh and the other of the promise. The one of the flesh was born to a slave and where the other was born to the legal wife through a promise. So if you have believed in the promise of Christ, you are sons of promise and the scripture is very clear in that, the sons of slave do not inherit the father’s treasure. (Gal 4:23,30,31).
What makes us free? The Word of God. Because the Word of God is Truth and truth is not something abstract. Truth is a person called Jesus Christ. When the Word of God is received in your spirit and obeyed, you are set free. (John 8:32). If the Son sets you free, you are free indeed. If we are lead by the Spirit then only we can claim to be sons and daughters of God. For we did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into sin, but the Spirit of son ship, whereby we can call Abba Father. (Rom 8:14,15). If we are still living in sin (that is to live by flesh) we are still children of Hagar and not of Sara. God has blessed the world only through the promised SEED of Abraham. How we do we distinguish between being in slavery or being in freedom?
Now the works of flesh are plain; immorality, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, party spirit, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. (Gal 5:19-21). If we can check our life against this exhaustive list of works of the flesh, we should be able to know whether we are enjoying the freedom in Christ or not. But, the people who are in freedom will exhibit love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Gal 5:22). In the former traits it is obvious we are in slavery where as fruits show that the Spirit of freedom does reside within us.
Paul in his letter to Timothy says that we have not received the Spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control (2 Tim 1:7). If God has given us the spirit of self-control, we should be able to live in the fruit of the spirit. We need not have to fall back into slavery. Jesus Christ has once for all paid the price for our freedom. If we still deliberately sin then there remains no sacrifice to be offered, and we on our own crucify the Son of God again. (Heb 10:26).
The second greatest commandment that our Lord gave was to love one another; by this the world will know that we are truly the disciples of Jesus Christ. Then only the world can know that we have a freedom that is not something the world can really understand. Where there is the Spirit of God is there is liberty (2 Cor 3:17). This liberty frees us from any and every regulation however holy or authentic it may look like. You need to follow only the Spirit and not any rule or authority. There is no authority or rule that can overrule the authority of the indwelling Holy Spirit. But take care; your liberty is guided by your love. If you think a certain way of life within the scripture is right but a weaker brother gets offended, then you have not acted in love. Your liberty has become a stumbling block to your brother. Allow the Spirit to guide you in this matter.
Christ has set us free and if Christ sets us free, we are free indeed. No more bondage to the world. No more bondage to the elemental spirits. Freedom does not mean disobedience. Rather your freedom gives a reason for obedience for Godly authorities.
May the Lord who gave us this freedom guide us through until He comes with the trumpet and victorious call?
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