(By Theanna Joyce)
I wonder how Eve would have defined freedom.
Was it basking in the evening glow, wind blowing through the trees of the garden of Eden, while she and her husband walked alongside their Maker?
Or was it reaching out and touching the fruit? Listening to the serpent’s voice as she ate and gave to her husband? See, the father of lies is crafty and freedom is challenging to live in the good of. He takes something beautiful and twists it, keeping just enough of the truth for it to be convincing, and soon freedom is bondage — but it looks so good that people put the chains on themselves.
What is freedom? Well, freedom is the state of being free. Not being coerced into things or restrained by another. We think of slavery being abolished and rights being given to those who had none. I think a lot of young people might describe freedom as the absence of discipline or rules that constrain us.
As a kid, freedom felt like running outside to rollerblade with my friends rather than sitting at the piano bench for 30 minutes. But because I was freed from those daily 30-minute “torture” sessions, I am not free to play the piano. I don’t have the skill, the discipline, the freedom to sit on the bench and play my heart out (what comes out instead is a discordant noise that rattles teeth and induces migraines).
What the world doesn’t know, and what Christians often forget, is that we all serve a master. It’s bigger than my mom telling me to sit down and practice; it’s either God leading us in the way of life, or sin and Satan in the way of destruction.
Blessedly, the Christian woman can listen to God’s words saying “Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace” (Romans 6:14). The blood of Jesus purchased our freedom and allows us entrance into the throne room and into the very family of God (Ephesians 1:7, Hebrews 4:16, Galatians 4:5).
But what does this mean? How do we live this? We read the truth with our eyes, hear it preached on Sundays, and then we get up from the piano bench to play outside instead of choosing the way of life. (Side note: the piano analogy is an analogy…I’m thankful that the way of life does not necessitate piano practice.)
How do we choose freedom?
For me, one of the ways looks like memorizing Romans 8. I’ve got the first few verses down. I say them to myself throughout the day to remind myself that God is my God and that I am not condemned because Jesus died for my sins, and He is standing before God on my behalf right now, advocating for me (1 John 2:1). Choosing freedom means remembering that our feelings fluctuate, but God is steady. Our feelings might tell us to indulge, give in, to sin just a little, but God is our master now and He has given us a way out (1 Corinthians 10:13). Our freedom is not a “get-out-of-jail free card,” but rather a chance to live our lives for the glory of God (1 Peter 2:16).
And one day we will see the promise, look upon the face of our Saviour, and be fully free from temptation and sin (Romans 8:21, Revelation 21:5). Until that day, let us walk in freedom, denying the flesh and devoting ourselves to God (Romans 8:12-13, Psalm 119:45).