It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Galatians 5:1
History does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or timid. General Dwight D. Eisenhower
It is one of the most memorable scenes in the film, Braveheart, right before the death of William Wallace and his declaration, FREEDOM! he says from his chains and prison cell on death row…
Every man dies, not every man really lives. William Wallace, Braveheart
And who can forget the "freedom speech" before Wallace rides out to pick a fight, and then moments later the rag-tag bunch of Scottish Warriors (farmers mostly) charge the fields of Stirling to defeat the armies of the evil king, Edward Longshanks?
What will you do without freedom!?!?
Long before Randall Wallace penned the story of Braveheart, the Author of our story had Freedom on his heart. Ever since the Garden Fall in Genesis 3, a mission so grand, so glorious, and so loving was set in motion. We were ashamed and so we hid… God goes boldly to win us out of our prison. As with the beautiful story of Braveheart, we must win our freedom. Oh, it has been won by Christ through the Cross, Resurrection, and Ascension (see our Daily Prayer), and yet, we must regularly step onto the battle field, often declare our intention to our enemy, and then claim that for which we have been won.
Our Freedom might best be described by Paul in Romans 8. Essentially the old apostle writes, and I paraphrase… Jesus became like us, sinful man, so that we could become like Him, glorious ones. This is the greatest exchange program in the history of the world!!! Motivated by the wildest of love, He gives His Life that we might have Life and have it to the full… that is Freedom!
Look at how Paul writes it, and we offer the Amplified version because the volume of the message is wonderfully amplified…
Therefore there is now no condemnation [no guilty verdict, no punishment] for those who are in Christ Jesus [who believe in Him as personal Lord and Savior]. For the law of the Spirit of life [which is] in Christ Jesus [the law of our new being] has set you free from the law of sin and of death. For what the Law could not do [that is, overcome sin and remove its penalty, its power] being weakened by the flesh [man’s nature without the Holy Spirit], God did: He sent His own Son in the likeness of sinful man as an offering for sin. And He condemned sin in the flesh [subdued it and overcame it in the person of His own Son]...Romans 8:1-3 (AMP)
HE BECAME LIKE US SO THAT…
And we know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose. For those whom He foreknew [and loved and chose beforehand], He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son[and ultimately share in His complete sanctification], so that He would be the firstborn [the most beloved and honored] among many believers. And those whom He predestined, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified [declared free of the guilt of sin]; and those whom He justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity]. What then shall we say to all these things? If God is for us, who can be [successful] against us? He who did not spare [even] His own Son, but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things? Romans 8:28-32 (AMP)
...WE COULD BECOME LIKE HIM, GLORIOUS BELOVED SONS AND DAUGHTERS. If we are going to live the life that Jesus lived, we are going to have to be Free—Free at our core, and equipped with everything we need to step into His shoes and the part He has written for us to play. He even gives us His authority (Matthew 28: 18-19)… we must be going need it! Oh, it will take training, lots and lots of training; but to be sure, we must have it within us in order for it to be trained up and come out of us. God has made a way for us to be Free in order that we can become like Him.
Maybe one of Jesus' best friends, John, said it best when he wrote…
So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. John 8:36
It is the best news of all. It is what the cross and forgiveness afforded us… LIFE!!! We are given Resurrection and FREEDOM. Like the old General of WWII said, "freedom isn’t free, and we are going to have to fight for it… protect it."
There is nothing so sad as naive or ill-equipped believers. The enemy is at work, the kingdom of darkness is still in the story; defeated yes, gone no. If they can’t keep a soul from transferring their citizenship, then they work all the harder to make sure as much baggage and brokenness goes with them. Our enemy has a huge stake in compromising the saved and free and bringing them back into captivity. The POW camps of the spiritual realm are full of imprisoned Christians, able to leave at anytime and reclaim their freedom if they only knew how, but held by the guards of guilt, shame, and fear.
That is why Zoweh exists—to create environments to encourage, equip, inspire, and love the image bearers of God to live a life of More. To enable free hearts to live in intimacy, oneness, and connectedness with God and each other—Redemptive Community—where there is More Love, More Life… More Freedom!
It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows. Galatians 5:13-14 (MSG)