Sunday's Message (Freedom in Christ: Freedom That’s Challenging)

On July 4, we'll celebrate our 250th anniversary as a country. And even though we haven’t been perfect, we’ve served as an example of freedom for the rest of the world. But as important as that is, the Bible teaches that true freedom is a spiritual reality found through Jesus Christ that transforms how individuals live, serve, and interact with the world. With that in mind, during the six weeks between Pentecost and Independence Day, we’re exploring six key things the Bible says about our freedom in Christ:

• May 24 - Freedom That’s Empowered
• May 31 - Freedom That’s Liberating
• June 7 - Freedom That’s Enlightened
• June 14 - Freedom That’s Limited
• June 21 - Freedom That’s Active
• June 28 - Freedom That’s Challenging 

On Sunday, we discussed how our freedom in Christ must be challenging. Below is a YouTube video and the text of the sermon. You can stream the service by going to the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel on Sundays at 10:00 a.m. (EDT).  You can hear a podcast of the service at the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel or the Sligo Presbyterian Spotify Page. 

Well, here we are, six days away from our semiquincentennial, which of course means, this is probably the last Sunday I’ll actually get to say that word: semiquincentennial. And for me, well, that’s a little disappointing, but what are you going to do?

And since we’ve almost reached the fourth, we’re just about finished with the series we started a little over a month ago. You see, as we’ve been getting ourselves ready to celebrate our freedom as a country, at SPC, we’ve been talking about the kind of freedom we have as Christians. And over that time, we looked at how our freedom in Christ is empowered and liberating, enlightened and limited. And last week, we talked about how Christ has freed us to be active, you know, so that we can grow and share and serve. And this morning, we’re going to consider one last aspect of this liberty we’ve been given and discuss how it’s also a freedom that’s challenging.

And you know, it’s interesting, as we’ve seen with these other topics we’ve covered, based on what they wrote, I think our founding fathers recognized that this new country they’d sort of birthed was also going to face challenges. For example, George Washington seemed to be afraid that factions and political parties would polarize the nation and paralyze the government. He wrote, 

The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. [George Washington, From his Farewell Address]

And leaders like John Adams and Benjamin Franklin thought that a free, self-governing people could only survive if the citizens remained moral, educated, and engaged. As Adams wrote, 

Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There never was a democracy yet that did not commit suicide. [John Adams, Outlining his anxieties on pure democracies]. 

And Franklin said, 

Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters. [Benjamin Franklin, Collected in historical overviews of Franklin’s letters]

And of course others feared that, over time, individuals in power would try to expand their authority at the expense of the people. For instance, James Madison, the father of the Bill of Rights wrote,

I believe there are more instances of the abridgement of freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments by those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations. [James Madison, From his speech at the Virginia Ratifying Convention]

You see, as they moved from the revolution, our founding fathers recognized that their free nation would face challenges that would both shape and determine its future.

And I think the same can be said about the freedom we have in Jesus Christ. And that’s what we’re going to talk about this morning. You see, for the next ten minutes or so, we’re going to focus on three challenges that I believe we encounter as men and women whom God has set free. And for each, we’ll consider how we might both face and overcome them. Now that’s the plan.

And for me, it starts with this: our freedom in Christ is challenging because it requires radical submission. In other words, rather than giving us permission to run around and do what we please, God has freed us so that we can submit ourselves to him, you know, to his authority and direction. And I’ll tell you, I think we see this in scripture. For example, just listen to what the Apostle Paul wrote to the Romans:

When you were slaves of sin, you didn’t have to please God. But what good did you receive from the things you did? All you have to show for them is your shame, and they lead to death. Now you have been set free from sin, and you are God’s slaves. This will make you holy and will lead you to eternal life. Sin pays off with death. But God’s gift is eternal life given by Jesus Christ our Lord. [Romans 6:20-23, CEV]

Now that’s what Paul wrote. And in his first letter, Peter said this to “to God’s people who are scattered like foreigners in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia:” [1 Peter 1:1b, CEV]

You are free, but still you are God’s servants, and you must not use your freedom as an excuse for doing wrong. Respect everyone and show special love for God’s people. [1 Peter 2:16-17a, CEV]

I’ll tell you, whether you’re talking about Paul or Peter, Christian freedom demands submission God, because, according to what they wrote, true liberty isn’t found in the absence of limits, but rather in our liberation from the power of sin and in our ability to become the kind of people God created us to be. You see, for them, absolute freedom is an illusion. It’s just not possible, because whether we like it or not, human beings are always going to be serving something, whether it’s our destructive desires or our loving Creator. And I’ll tell you, that’s why the death of Jesus Christ was so important. You see, on that cross, Jesus freed us from something that was really bad, you know sin and frustration and separation, while at the same time, he freed us for something really good, a new master, one who loved us before he laid the foundation of the universe and will love us long after time has lost its meaning. You see, we’ve been freed so that we’re able to submit ourselves to God.

And I’ll tell you, this is something we can do by making the intentional decision to become quiet and to listen: to listen to him speak to us through his Word and to listen to him speak to us through prayer and to listen to him speak to us through that still, small voice we call conscience. And along with listening, we can also decide that we’re going to respond and that we’re going to do what we’ve been called to do, but not because it’s easy and not because it’s popular and not because it’s profitable, but rather because it’s the right thing to do. And trust me, it will be, because the one we’ve been freed to serve is loving and strong and wise. You see, even though our freedom in Christ can seem challenging, first, we can meet that challenge through radical submission.

And second, I also think our freedom in Christ is challenging because it requires self-denial. In other words, in spite of how the world generally defines liberty, for us, freedom doesn’t mean we now have the right to run around and do anything we want. Instead, Christian freedom is about being free to put ourselves second rather than first, to be a servant rather than a master and to focus on their needs rather than our wants. As a matter of fact, it’s like what Paul wrote to the Corinthians:

I am not anyone’s slave. But I have become a slave to everyone, so I can win as many people as possible. When I am with the Jews, I live like a Jew to win Jews. They are ruled by the Law of Moses, and I am not. But I live by the Law to win them. And when I am with people who are not ruled by the Law, I forget about the Law to win them. Of course, I never really forget about the law of God. In fact, I am ruled by the law of Christ. When I am with people whose faith is weak, I live as they do to win them. I do everything I can to win everyone I possibly can. I do all this for the good news, because I want to share in its blessings. [1 Corinthians 9:19-23, CEV]

Now, that’s what Paul wrote, reminding us that Christian freedom demands self-denial, because true biblical liberty is not the right to do whatever we want, but rather the power to live as we should. In other words, our freedom was never intended to be used as an excuse to indulge ourselves and our wants and our desires. Instead, Christ has freed believers from the slavery of sin so we can willingly use our liberty to love and serve others. No wonder, Paul also said this to the Corinthians: Some of you say, “We can do whatever we want to!” But I tell you not everything may be good or helpful. We should think about others and not about ourselves. [1Corinthians 10:23-24, CEV] You see, Christian freedom is all about self-denial.

And I’ll tell you, I think this is possible when we make the intentional decision to shift our priorities. But trust me, that’s not as easy as it sounds. I mean, we live in a society that tends to measure success by the stuff we’re able to acquire. I mean, as Malcom Forbes once said, “He who dies with the most toys wins.” Now that’s our culture, but remember, we’ve been set free. And we don’t have to focus on the toys we can get. Instead, we can prioritize our time and our talents and our stuff so that we can give. And even though that won’t do much for our portfolio, it just might move us a little closer to what Jesus had in mind when he said, “If any of you want to be my followers, you must forget about yourself. You must take up your cross and follow me. If you want to save your life, you will destroy it. But if you give up your life for me and for the good news, you will save it.” [Mark 8:34b-35, CEV] You see, even though our freedom in Christ can seem challenging, second, we can meet that challenge through self-denial. 

And third, I also think our freedom in Christ is challenging because it requires active love. Of course, that’s really not a surprise, especially considering what Paul wrote to the Galatians. He said,

My friends, you were chosen to be free. So don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do anything you want. Use it as an opportunity to serve each other with love. All the Law says can be summed up in the command to love others as much as you love yourself. But if you keep attacking each other like wild animals, you had better watch out or you will destroy yourselves. [Galatians 5:13-15, CEV]

Now that’s what Paul wrote, and I’ve got to tell you, for him, man, that just makes sense. You see, Jesus didn’t die on a cross so that we can spend our time focusing on and worrying about ourselves. Instead, we’ve been liberated so that we can freely serve our neighbors. For example, even though I recognize that it’s kind of counter cultural, we’ve been freed to be patient and kind. And we’ve been freed to be supportive, loyal, hopeful, and trusting. And my gosh, we’ve been freed to feed the hungry, to give drink to the thirsty, to welcome the stranger, to clothe the naked, to care for the sick, and to comfort the prisoner. You see, for Paul, this is what we’ve been freed to be and do. Man, we’ve been freed to actively love.

But to do it, I think we’ve got to make another intentional decision. I’m telling you, I think we’re going to need to change our focus. We’re going to need to change our focus from self to service, from wants to needs, from fists that are closed to hands that are open. I mean, contrary to what we’ve been taught, the kind of love Jesus had in mind when he told his disciples to love one another, it really had nothing to do with how they should feel but rather what they should do. In other words, he told them and tells us to treat others in a loving way and to it, even if we don’t particularly like them. And you know, I think Paul felt the same way and that’s why he told the Romans to “Let love be your only debt! If you love others, you have done all that the Law demands.” [Romans 13:8, CEV] You see, even though our freedom in Christ can seem challenging, third, we can meet that challenge through active love. 

Now, by next Sunday, our semiquincentennial will be in the rearview mirror. And even though I believe official and unofficial events will continue throughout the year, our 250th anniversary will be history on July 5. Of course, as a country, I think we’d all agree that some of the challenges described by Washington and Adams, Franklin and Madison are every bit as valid today as they were over two hundred years ago. As they say, freedom isn’t free and by its very nature, independence is challenging.

And I think the same is true for us as followers of Jesus Christ. You see, in a very real way, our freedom as Christians challenges and subverts some our assumptions about what freedom actually means, because, when you get right down to it, Christian freedom requires radical submission and self-denial and active love. And so, with that in mind, as we move beyond this particular series, let’s not only remember that our freedom in Christ is empowered and liberating and enlightened and limited and active, let’s also remember that it’s really challenging, but let’s also decide to take up the challenge.