What is freedom? Really. No trick questions. Freedom is freedom, right? When John wrote that Jesus made you ‘really and unquestionably free’, he meant it. So, if you want to go and have a massive sin-fest tomorrow, no lightning bolt’s going to come from heaven to stop you. But. The way you use your freedom can lead you to wildly different places. Paul had a fair bit to say about that in his New Testament letters to the churches. He wrote sharply to the Corinthian church, who’d used their freedom to turn communion services into orgies. Corinth was a port city like Dublin, with lots of people who had no commitments. Decent grounds for consequence-free sex. So when the Christians heard they were made free by Jesus, they took license to get drunk and sleep around every Sunday. Paul stepped in, saying (we paraphrase) ‘… Maybe don’t?’ How did he explain it? ‘I have the freedom to do anything, but not everything is helpful. I have the freedom to do anything, but I won’t be controlled by anything’ (1 Corinthians 6:12 CEB). You’re free, yes. But the things you use that for can break you down and turn your freedom into slavery. Paul wrote another letter to the Romans, and he explained how we could use our freedom to lead to greater freedom: ‘Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you; God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word’ (Romans 6:11 MSG).
What Now?
Is there something you’re doing in your life that God could say ‘maybe don’t’ to? Let God into the situation and ask Him to help you use your freedom for the right things.