Freedom

 

As I was sitting in our suite looking at the grandeur of the Rocky Mountains on November 11, I was struck with the freedom and peace I enjoy every day, and the cost for that freedom. So many gave their lives to buy the freedom I enjoy. We are experiencing those costly freedoms being taken away one at a time.

We seem to be fighting against the government restrictions put on us during this COVID-19 pandemic. I’m wondering if it is more in response to the freedoms we have been losing over the past decade – freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to be heterosexual – than it is about this pandemic. The restrictions we are being asked to follow are the last straw. We are done, we are tired and weary and just want life to be simple and free, like it used to be.

What is freedom? Freedom for whom? It seems one man’s freedom infringes on another man’s freedom. So, freedom can’t really mean ‘the right to do as I please’ because there’s anarchy in that and history has recorded for us what happens when there is anarchy. How could I apply freedom to this season when I feel held captive by COVID-19? What does freedom in the midst of a pandemic look like, especially for the Jesus follower?

Freedom is never free; someone has paid for it dearly. I have lived all my life in freedom and take it for granted most of the time. I don’t really think about it until something that is dear to me is taken away or I am blocked from enjoying it.

Last weekend something very dear to me was blocked. Due to the rising numbers of active cases of COVID-19 in our province, our officials asked us to kindly stay home and not have people in our homes who are from a different cohort group or family, and especially people from a different county. Our county was ‘purple’ which meant we had to follow ‘enhanced measures’ in an attempt to lower the number of active cases. We had planned a family birthday celebration in Edmonton with all our kids and grandkids; the first time we would all be together in four months. We had booked a photographer to take our family photos; first time in 5 years. Three of our households were in the ‘enhanced measures’ parts of the province (three different counties). We were NOT free to meet together, not free to all be at our son’s house, not free to go about as normal.

Does this mean that our warriors fought in vain? Should we stand and fight to win back the life we enjoyed less than a year ago? Is this even a battle we need to fight? Have we gotten so comfortable in our bubble of comfort that we think we deserve it? I have friends who lived during WW2 and the things they hear on the news with all the ‘shut-downs’ and ‘COVID requirements’ etc. remind them of what life was like back then. I don’t mean to minimize their concern and yet I find that I must ask, “What is the real issue here for the Christian? What is really at stake?”

I’ve been studying in the book of Galatians lately. Paul writes about living in gratitude and joy. He celebrates his freedom from the beginning to the end of this letter. He also mentions how he suffered terribly at the hands of ‘false’ Christians and Roman leaders: beatings, scourging, imprisonment, stoning, etc. So, what was he referring to when he rejoiced like he did and invited the believers to rejoice with him? They were not free; not like we are here in Canada. Is it possible to live under the thumb of a tyrannical government and still experience freedom? According to Paul it is.

In his book Galatians for You, p. 9, Tim Keller talks about the meaning of the term ‘the gospel’.

“The gospel – the message that we are more wicked than we ever dared believe, but more loved and accepted in Christ than we ever dared hope – creates a radical new dynamic for personal growth, for obedience, for love.”

Let’s stop and think of the implications of Keller’s statement. Jesus Christ came to rescue humankind from death and destruction. He came to set us free, truly free, from the bondage of sin, from lies the enemy speaks over us, from striving to belong, etc. This kind of freedom cannot be taken away by anyone or anything. But he accomplished much more than that. The gospel is “an explosion of joy and freedom which leaves us enjoying a deep significance, security and satisfaction – the life of blessing God calls His people into.” (p. 9, Galatians for You). Significance, security, and satisfaction. That is worth more than anything money can buy. No army can win that for you. When God looks at those who have received Christ’s free gift of salvation, He sees His Son.  He loves us because He loves us, not because of our behaviour. We are incredibly valuable to Him.

A theme that jumped out for me in Paul’s letter to the Galatians is love and gratitude. When we realize how deeply we are loved by our Creator, we can love Him in return and love those around us (for they, too, are created by Him). As we get to know Him, our hearts flood with gratitude for all He has done for us and all He makes available to us.

It’s easy to get side-tracked and sucked into the stresses of the world around us, to get caught up in bemoaning all we have lost. I miss my family. I miss being able to sing without a mask on. I miss hugging and visiting family and friends as desired. But all of this pales in comparison to what Jesus has done for me. The restrictions we are living under do not undermine our freedom to love, to rejoice, to be kind, to be grateful. We certainly have been challenged to come up with creative ways in which to do these things, but has our true freedom been taken away?

Another angle to think about is how does exercising my freedom affect the freedom of the one next to me? When I demand to have my own way – to be free to do as I choose – I am often infringing on someone else’s freedom. Could it be that we have begun to emphasize the wrong kind of freedom? Have we redefined what freedom really is? Are we setting our security and worth on our circumstances?

Stuart Briscoe, in The Communicator’s Commentary – Romans, says that the word used for the ‘good news’ in the New Testament is the same one that is used in the Old Testament when the Jews were told they were going to be liberated from their Babylonian exile and allowed to return home in freedom. The difference, Briscoe says, is that “The good news to which Paul was committed had a message even greater and grander – an exhilarating, exciting announcement that God Himself had procured liberty for people in spiritual bondage and reconciliation for those in spiritual exile.” (p. 27-28). This is a deeper, everlasting freedom. This is the kind of news people need to hear if they are ever to be ‘free to become the people God intends for them to be’. This kind of freedom supersedes anything we can hope to find in this world.

What would happen if we would stop caterwauling about all the privileges we have lost and begin giving thanks to God for what He has given us through His Son Jesus? Are we as upset about spiritual freedom and loss thereof, as we are about political freedom or social freedom? We are totally free to love, to be kind, to go the extra mile for that overworked front line medical worker or anyone working in retail or those in the food services industry.  

Jesus spoke to the people in his hometown:

““The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”” (Luke 4:18–19, NIV84)

Only in relationship with Jesus will we find true and lasting freedom. Only in Jesus will we find peace and joy and gratitude.