SWORD of the SPIRIT                                                                                     1023

“Freedom Is Not Free”

 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery…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 5:1, 13)

It is disheartening to see the rapid rise of various movements in America that embrace giving up essential freedom fought for and paid for with precious lives. People are demanding Democratic Socialism instead of our Constitution. A paraphrased version of Ben Franklin’s quote engraved on the Statue of Liberty states that ‘people who would give up essential liberty in order to gain temporary safety deserve neither’. It is as if we have become such a pampered society that like Peter Pan we never want to grow up. The movement and trend is to trade the liberty and freedom we have as “We the People..” for bondage to big government or some ideological system of laws.

Since our places of work and our churches are microcosms of society we see the same effects there as we do in the political arena. Work ethics are nearly non-existent. People feel that they are entitled to a ‘living wage’ paycheck, but do not want to put forth the effort to earn it. In our churches people increasingly want to be ‘entertained’ and hear ‘feel good’ preaching rather than delve into the Truth of the Word of God. Like their desire for big government to do everything for them, they expect that the evangelistic work of the church belongs solely to the Pastoral team and not to them. They have lost sight of the fact that as the Body of Christ, they are the church and that we all bear the responsibility of the Lord’s great commission to us.

Men and women fought and died to obtain and preserve the constitutional freedoms we have in America. Our freedom was not free and it came at a high price. However, like all things of this world, America’s freedom is temporal and it can be lost.

There is a freedom however that is available to all people that can never be taken away from us – freedom from the law of sin and death. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:1-2)

This freedom also came at a high price. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

Jesus, fully God and fully man, willingly paid the price with His life for our freedom and opened the door for us to have eternal life through faith in Him. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father; …If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free…So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. (John 10:18; 8:31-36)

Although we need to continue the fight to preserve our constitutional freedom in America, rest assured that you will never have to fight to earn the freedom purchased for you by Jesus. My sheep hear my voice…I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand; And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. (John 10:27, 28; 6:39)