Freedom and where to find it (remade)

With it being the week of July 4th, let’s talk about freedom for a moment. It is a word I take for granted because I have grown up with all kinds of freedoms. But today, let’s look at true freedom and where to find it.

We always hear a lot of talk about freedom around the Fourth of July. Just yesterday, I received a group text from a minister which read; “Do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh. Walk by the Spirit, whose fruit is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, and self-control.” (Galatians 5)

Although I take my freedom for granted, often in my internal world, I am far from free. Matthew 26:41 says, “the Spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.” I feel like I am constantly battling my flesh and struggling with the thoughts in my mind.

I want to eat less, worry less, spend less. But instead, I eat more, worry more, and spend more. If I am truly walking by the Spirit, where’s that self-control Paul talks about?

What does it look like to walk by the Spirit?

The other day, I realized I am not just a slave to food and spending, but also to my “to-do” list.

Take a moment and think about what you think about. Think about where you spend your money and where you spend your time. Are you incessantly shopping on Amazon or eating out of boredom? Do you feel some sort of satisfaction in these things or do they leave you with an emptiness that all packages delivered at your front door can’t fill?

Are you binge watching the latest Netflix “Top 10,” hours on end? Or are you like me, and can’t wait to get home from work, just to get on the couch and watch reruns of my favorite sitcom, as my brain shifts into some kind of mind numbing haze, so I don’t have to think or feel?

Paying attention to what we give our attention and money to can be a real eye opener.

Take my to-do list for instance. Each day, I list out the things I need to do for the next day.  As I go along, I get a little rush as I draw a line through the completed items. But, before I get to the end of the list, I’m adding more to the bottom for the next day. Sometimes I think, “if I could just get to the end of this list, then I would be free.” However, I never get to the end.

Freedom does not come at the end of a list, the end of the day, or even the end of your career! Freedom does not show up when your bank account reaches some magic number. No! Freedom comes right here.

Freedom and where to find it

In Romans 6:16-18, Paul says, “Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? ¹⁷ But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. ¹⁸ You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.” 

Now, I’m not saying that spending, eating or watching TV is sinful. Or that it is keeping you from a relationship with God. In fact, Paul tells us later in Chapter 8, that “nothing can separate us from the love of God.” But it could be distracting you, and me. The freedom you are searching for comes from obedience to Christ.

Jesus tells us in John 8:34-36; “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. ³⁵ Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. ³⁶ So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

Any freedom we have comes from God.

Once we begin to grasp ‘how wide and deep” the love that God has for us is, we can begin to understand the freedom that comes with that love. It is not a love full of rules and regulations. It is love so sacrificial God was willing to give His own Son for us. For me and for you! It is love we cannot repay. But it is a love we can embrace. We get to spend our lives worshipping the One who loves us more than anything else. This is freedom!

Let us pray:

Father God, how is it You would love me? But You do! Thank you teaching us about freedom and how to find it. Thank you for loving us so much, you sent your Son to set us free. Help me to embrace that freedom and your love. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

P.S. – Don’t miss the YouTube below. If you can’t view, open this message from your browser. Leave me a comment below because I love hearing from you. Forward this message to a friend and share on Facebook. See you back here next week. -M