Here in America--and many other places for that matter--we often overlook how much freedom we have. I don't mean to go on a political rant or nationalistic comparison, but we have it pretty good here. That freedom did not come cheap, nor will it remain without ongoing work and sacrifice. There is a price for freedom. Remember that.
What does it mean to be free?
When I speak of freedom, I mean the ability to make decisions, and take actions, according to my own desires. I am talking about the opportunity to do and think and say what I want, when I want, how I want. That, to me, is freedom. Unfettered. Unrestricted. Free.
I've never really known what it is like to be anything other than free. I cannot really say what it is like to be caged, fenced in, bound by restrictions. Not really. I've always had the opportunity to enjoy God's Creation as I choose. It's a gift, one which I jealously guard and cherish.
True freedom does not come from any government.
Without overlooking the civil liberties and freedoms I alluded to in my opening, being an American does not make me free. Were I only an American, I would remain bound and chained by a force and reality from which I could never break free. Some of you know what I am talking about, and some are about to stop reading. I encourage you to not do that. If you don't want to hear what I am going to say, then you need to hear it.
The reality of which I am speaking, the one thing which binds all of us into slavery, is sin. Thoughts and actions, words and motivations counter to the will and law of God. All have fallen short. All have sinned. And after a single sin--just one--we lose our freedom. We become slaves. That enslavement cannot be released by any work of man. Left to ourselves, we are slaves for eternity.
Freedom comes from Christ.
The only answer to sin is Christ. If you do not want to be a slave, then you want to be a follower of Christ, a child of God. Christ suffered, died, and rose again that we might have freedom. It's that simple. To receive emancipation from the chains of sin, all you have to do is accept that. Admit that you are a sinner, and that there is nothing you can do about it. Ask God to forgive you through His Son, Jesus Christ. Believe this to be true, and you are free. Believe it not, and you never will be.
Read the verse in the picture above from Isaiah 40:31. Put your hope in God, and know what it means to truly be free. To be renewed. To run this race of life, and not wear out. Now who wouldn't want that?
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