“I made you like Me, I made you FREE.”
Driving along a backcountry road one summer night I reached to turn down the music blaring out of the speakers and asked Holy Spirit what He wanted to sing. And for the next fifteen minutes I could only sing this one lyric, so simple but yet so profound.
Freedom. It’s necessary. It’s life giving. It’s joy packed. It’s liberating. But what does freedom look like?
Sadly, in today’s society that is all about freedom for all the wrong reasons you see freedom displayed in an ugly way, in a way that isn’t actually freedom at all. You see people backbiting for what we call “passing on prayer concerns.” You see people giving testimonies of God’s grace but yet tearing others down that had previously hurt them. You see those all around you hurting people at the expense for their own gain. Where has freedom gone wrong? Where have we misconstrued the beauty of freedom and how honoring it is?
“If you abide in My Word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the Truth, and the Truth shall set you free.” John 8:31-32
Jesus is the ultimate guide for freedom. — Yes, it wasn’t always rainbows and sunshine when Jesus spoke. He brought love along with correction, He brought peace but in turn the Pharisees became offended, He brought a freedom that was an upside down way of thinking and living. Not everything He said or commanded tickled people’s fancies but He never operated in freedom in order to abuse or hurt someone else. He simply knew His identity, He was the Father’s Son, He was Savior, He was King, He was the propitiation for all mankind. He knew.
I think the key to healthy freedom is knowing who you are. Who are we in Christ? Who are we as a new creation in Christ Jesus?
The book of Romans could be put on this whole blog entry as a reference but for the sake of trying to condense: In chapter 6 it says that we, as lovers of Jesus, can walk in the newness of life because we have been buried and resurrected with Him; that we must consider ourselves DEAD to sin and ALIVE to God in Christ Jesus. Later in verse 18 it says, “and having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.” Reading on in chapter 8 it continues more, “but you received the spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs – heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.”
In just those two chapters the Word says that we can walk in the newness of life, alive to God, set free from sin, living lives of righteousness (goodness, honor, virtue, uprightness), and that we are His kids, heirs WITH Christ!!!
If that isn’t freedom then I don’t know what is?! Knowing who you are can unlock how you truly view freedom. Freedom isn’t for our gain or to make us look better than others. Knowing that we are co-heirs with Christ and that we can CHOOSE to join with Him and display His beauty and love to others is freedom. We receive freedom through complete intimacy with the Father and we choose to walk out freedom daily. But what does freedom look like?
“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.” Galatians 5:13
“Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but loving as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.” 1 Peter 2:16-17
“Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” Colossians 3:12-16
In the commentary of the New Spirit Filled Life Bible this jumped out to me, “Christian freedom is not the removal of moral restraints, but the freedom to serve one another. The gospel exchanges the oppressive bondage of legalism for the higher bondage of LOVE.” Freedom unleashes us to truly love. Knowing who we are in Christ gives us the freedom to love God, love others, and love ourselves.
As I was pulling into my driveway that night I finally began to sing a different song lyric, “The only thing that can set you free is letting Me love you like you’re meant to be.”
Go and be free and love freely.
