Religion vs. The Gospel: Part II

Freedom.

I'll admit until about a month and half ago, that word in the Biblical context really scared me because I didn't understand it. Some Christians use it as a basis for "everything is permissible" kind of lifestyle. Still others choose to ignore the word completely and demand that both they and others around them live their life according the rigid set of religious rules they deemed necessary to obtain holy living. I found myself somewhere in the middle (but sometimes slipping to group #2) and more often than nought, with my head stuck in the sand like an ostrich. Maybe I was afraid of the answer, but for whatever reason I usually chose to dance around the issue so I didn't have to examine it too closely.

I was always left with this question, "What does freedom in the Christian life look like? What is it for?"

To me, it was more of an issue regarding how we chose to live our own lives. But then, I stumbled across Galations 5:13 and my eyes were suddenly opened.

"You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature[a]; rather, serve one another in love."

The simple truth had been there the entire time and yet I kept missing the point.

The point of freedom isn't about us. It is God's way of relieving us of a heavy burden of following the "law" so that we can focus on others. In the past few month I've been hit time and time again, with just how much the Gospel has an outwardly perspective as its focus. Sometimes I get so concerned with how I doing and how I'm appearing to live my life that I realize I'm missing the point entirely. Not that being concerned about our walk is a bad thing; it's quite the opposite. However, we aren't really fulfilling the purpose God has set before us if we choose to concentrate mostly on ourselves.

I'll admit I see this a lot in myself and in the Church. Sometimes we are afraid "to get our hands dirty" by associating with people that are difficult or involved with things that could lower our image. We can spend a lot of time pouring all of our effort into our own walk that we neglect the ones God has called us to love.

I know it is a whole lot easier to cut these people out of our lives but it is not what the Gospel is asking us to do. It is not what Christ did. The love of what He did on the cross is enough to cover the blemishes of us all. His perfect love couldn't be anymore outwardly demonstrated and in that I find a sense of freedom I am no longer afraid of.

In fact, I embrace it wholeheartedly.

"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love" Galations 5:6