Freedom is a word everyone desires, yet few truly understand. Many chase it in places that quietly enslave them, while rejecting the very One who offers it freely. To understand what true freedom is, we must first understand what Christ set us free from—and what He set us free for.
Freedom from sin
Sin is a powerful taskmaster such that even when you purpose in your heart not to succumb, you find yourself falling too easily (Rom. 7:15–19). It is common for the world to think freedom is the opportunity to do whatever they like. Most of them equate sin with freedom. So sometimes, you’d see a person delay in accepting Christ because they are scared of losing their freedom. However, those who eventually take that step of salvation realise very quickly that the sinful lifestyle they thought was freedom was, in fact, the real bondage. Scripture calls it slavery to sin (Romans 6:16).
The real entrapment is when you cannot turn yourself away from certain things, even if you wanted to (Jhn 8:34). Romans 6:16 BSB says “Do you not know that when you offer yourselves as obedient slaves, you are slaves to the one you obey, whether you are slaves to sin leading to death, or to obedience leading to righteousness?” However, in Christ, we don’t live in slavery to a master who leads us to death. We live in righteousness that leads to life (Rom. 6:17-18).
Freedom from the law
The law operates on a break-one, break-all basis (Jam. 2:10). That is, if you’re guilty of breaking one of the laws, it is as good as breaking all of them. With this failure to keep the law came the penalty of sin (Rom. 6:23).
The level of perfection the law required was something we could never meet (Rom. 3:20). How sad it would have been to be stuck in a cycle of aiming for perfection and falling short of it (Rom. 3:23). How enslaving it would have been! But through freedom in Christ, we are no longer subject to the law(Rom. 7:6). We are now under grace (Rom. 6:14), which teaches us how to reject ungodliness and walk uprightly before God (Tit. 2:11–12). We are now under grace that makes righteousness available to us, instead of striving to attain it (Rom. 3:24).
Jesus is the end of the law (Rom. 10:4). The law says work, make an effort to be accepted. Christ says that because you are accepted already, you can now work (Eph.1:6; Eph. 2:8–10). The labour of a believer dwelling in the freedom of Christ is not laborious like that of the one under the law. It is from a place of rest (Heb. 4:9–10). That is, for example, you will not please God so you can be blessed, but you are blessed already, and so you can please God(Eph. 1:3).
He set us free from religion for a relationship
Have you ever observed the way some people practice their religion? It may be quite ritualistic. So many protocols to observe, steps to take—missing one thing negates every other thing. It all just seems so complex. That is how “Christianity” outside of the freedom Christ gives looks like (Col. 2:20–23). When people become very religious and ritualistic about things, it becomes a routine, monotonous, and lifeless devotion (2 Timothy 3:5). That was what Jesus fought the Pharisees about so often (Matt. 23:23–28). Their desire for religion, more than spirituality, more than a relationship with God, was causing them to derail.
Jesus Christ came to set us free from the burden of religion, that we may come into a relationship with God (Jhn 15:15; Rom. 8:15)—a relationship where we can relate with God as one does with their Father and friend. Although it may seem familiar and “safe,” religion will weary you out and eventually prove to be a bondage (Galatians 4:9).
Come to Me, all who are weary and heavily burdened [by religious rituals that provide no peace], and I will give you rest [refreshing your souls with salvation].
Matthew 11:28 AMP
Religion is what pushes a believer who sins into condemnation. But spirituality—relationship with God, which is the freedom Christ gives—will convict that believer of their righteousness and lead them to repentance (Jhn 16:8–10; Rom. 8:1). Jesus gave us the freedom to become sons (and daughters) of God, such that we can cry out, Abba! Father (Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:6).
Jesus set us free from death (John 11:25–26)
Jesus says in John 11:25, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me will live, even though he dies.” The death of a believer is not really death, but merely a sleep (1 Thess.4:13–14). Those who die in Christ will rise again (1 Cor.15:20–23). They will receive eternal life and will be raised to life with transformed bodies. Death as we know it won’t be the end for them. It won’t cage them forever. Through Jesus Christ, they have been set free and will live eternally (2 Tim. 1:10).
What did Christ set us free for?
Freedom to serve Him
Whatever keeps us away from God is not freedom; it is bondage (Rom. 6:22). In the beginning, when God instructed Adam and Eve to avoid eating the forbidden fruit lest they die (be separated from God), it appeared to be a restriction (Gen. 2:16–17). But it was, in fact, all they needed. The only freedom they needed was the freedom to serve God and be in His presence(Gen. 1:26–28). After their disobedience, born from an illicit desire for freedom, they ended up welcoming sin and various forms of evil into the world (Gen. 3:1–7). What the devil gave them was only a false sense of freedom outside the confines of what God had given.
The only place where true freedom lies is in Christ (Jhn 8:36; 2 Cor. 3:17). The world will give you the illusion that it possesses freedom, but it really does not (2 Pet. 2:19). Sin gradually eats away that freedom to the point where you couldn’t break free even if you wanted to. And as if that weren’t enough, it sets you up for destruction (Rom 6:23). But you can find peace, safety, and freedom in Christ Jesus today.
They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for “people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.”
2 Peter 2:19 NIV
If you would like to make the choice to come to Him, please say this prayer:
Dear Jesus, I thank you for your sacrifice that provided my freedom. Today, I confess you as my Lord and Saviour and believe in my heart that you are Lord. From now on, I walk in the freedom that you have given me, even as I break free from the bondage of hell, sin, and the grave. Amen.
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