True Freedom by Mayada Naami
“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1, NIV).
This past weekend we celebrated the Declaration of Independence which was adopted on July 4tth, 1776. It represents the core of our beliefs-the very makeup of our identities as citizens of the United States of America. United, not divided. The Declaration of Independence contains several references to God, and it states that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” We can see in these words an affirmation of our founding fathers’ religious faith. In stating that the people’s rights are endowed by our Creator, liberty is the inviolable birthright of all. It was created to secure our divinely endowed and unalienable rights. The Declaration refers to God as “Nature’s God,” “Creator,” “Supreme Judge,” and professes its “firm reliance on the protection of divine providence.” In God we must trust.
You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. (Galatians 5:13, NIV)
God created man and woman in His image to reveal His character and nature, to take care of His creation, and to be in relationship with Him. He gave Adam and Eve freedom to make their own choices, and sadly, as we continue to do today, they decided to not trust in His provision and wisdom. They chose to doubt His Word and character resulting in a spiritual separation from God, their ultimate demise. Innocent humanity can only know about evil by being able to participate in it. God knows evil only to hate it. True freedom is when our wants align with God’s Will for our lives. Only when we surrender control, and trust in His infinite wisdom, will we experience the peace of God that surpasses all understanding. As believers we are freely given eternal life through the death and resurrection of Jesus and are empowered by the Holy Spirit to choose to live in freedom of our sin nature.
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:1-4, NIV)