Day 80: We Have Been Set Free In Christ
Today and tomorrow, we are going to explore two ideas that my seem strange to place together: freedom and glory. As we will hear, the whole creation is waiting to see us – the children of Father God – finally revealed in our “glorious freedom” (see Romans 8:21). In the Scriptures, glory and freedom are linked together in some key passages. Here we will discover that true glory is produced when the children of God use their freedom to love and serve others (even our enemies).
WORDwork:
Galatians 5:1-16
For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery. … 5:5 For through the Spirit, by faith, we wait expectantly for the hope of righteousness. 5:6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision carries any weight—the only thing that matters is faith working through love.…
5:13 For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity to indulge your flesh, but through love serve one another. 5:14 For the whole law can be summed up in a single commandment, namely, “You must love your neighbor as yourself.”
According to verse 1, what has Christ done for us?
What are we now waiting for through the Spirit?
What is the “only thing” that matters in Christ Jesus according to 5:6?
How are we to use the freedom that has been given to us in Christ?
What is Paul’s summary of the whole Law?
We have truly been set free.
In the Galatians passage that we have here, Paul is addressing a community of believers who are being plagued by false teaching. This false teaching is calling them to do certain things—get circumcised and keep the Mosaic Law—in order to be right with God and maintain a favorable relationship with God. Paul says that this type of teaching is contrary to the One True Gospel and is therefore accursed (see Galatians 1). In Christ we have all that is necessary to be right with God and with one another.
The Mosaic Law was composed of some 613 commandments (plus all the additions the Pharisees had added). Paul now considered that trying to keep all the law was a form of slavery. God does not intend his children to bear this burden any longer and has therefore set us free in Christ. We are right with God on the basis of faith, not rule keeping. Christ has set us free so that we might become mature—discerning between good and evil, pursuing righteousness and not just avoiding sin.
In Galatians 5, Paul repeats this truth to the Galatians: “For freedom Christ has set us free!” As those who are now in Christ, we are called to live in light of this freedom. Getting circumcised cannot help anyone become more mature in Christ. Keeping a long list of “Dos” and “Don’ts” can’t help us become mature in Christ. As Paul says, the only thing that matters is “faith working through love.” This is a critically important statement that we need to understand.
We have been given a New Commandment by Christ.
Jesus himself said,
John 13:34
“I give you a new commandment—to love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.
In the same way that Jesus loved us, so we are to love another. This is a high standard. Yet this is exactly what Paul is calling the Galatians and us to in chapter 5. Christ has set us free from rule-keeping and sin and from ourselves so that we may love. Love does not flow from obligation but from pure desire and choice. Christ has set us free so that we can use that freedom to love.
We are called to use our freedom to love.
There is something else that we need to be aware of. Although we need to have freedom in order to love, freedom does not guarantee that we will use it properly. With freedom comes the temptation to use it for selfish ambition and selfish desires (remember Adam in the Garden). Christ has set us free and given us an example of how to use our freedom.
As Paul says, “You were called to freedom… do not use your freedom as an opportunity to indulge your flesh, but through love serve one another.” Paul’s concept of the “flesh” is a large topic that we will cover at a later time. For now, simply understand that we are constantly tempted to put ourselves in the “center of the universe” without thinking about others. We are tempted to put our selves “first” rather than Christ and others. Our flesh is that part of us, still corrupted by indwelling sin, which calls us to please and satisfy ourselves, at the expense of others, at the same time denying what Father-God gives to us freely in Christ.
Jesus even takes this whole reality a step further:
Matthew 5:43-45
“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor’ and ‘hate your enemy.’ 5:44 But I say to you, love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you, 5:45 so that you may be like your Father in heaven…
We were all at one time enemies of God. Yet Father-God sent Christ the Son to sacrifice Himself for us so that we might come to know Him as He truly is. As we follow Jesus as our Savior and Master, we realize that we too are called to this radical, revolutionary and heart-transforming expression of self-sacrificial love. Christ has set us free indeed; He desires that we now use that freedom to show others the reality of His love. As we love others as He has loved us, we open the door for the power of the Gospel to do its life-transforming work.
Think about ways that you can use your freedom to serve Father-God and others. This week, plan to do something for someone that will give them a taste of love and/or grace.
*You can find a complete list of all the MilktoMeat readings here.
