A Tale of Two Freedoms (Part 3)

True Christians never get to be “free”. 

At first glance, it’s too easy to assume America and God mean the same thing when each mentions freedom. Some quick googling reveals several lists seemingly pairing these two concepts. Upon attending many American church services one is likely to hear praise given for the freedom we have to worship in this country. For some, the very fact that we have what America calls freedom—individual liberty—provides evidence of God’s favor upon our nation. 

The trouble comes when we start to read Scripture a bit more carefully. 

Nestled in both the lists linked above is a passage that should radically challenge our understanding of godly freedom. This passage reveals a crucial difference between the values of our nation and those of God’s Kingdom: 

But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness.

Here—and in the entire chapter—Paul takes the concept of freedom far beyond anything the United States could ever hope to mean. Romans 6 paints a beautiful picture of how the people of God join with Christ in his death and resurrection. Paul emphasizes that through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross we too can die to sin, no longer having to be mastered by it. Instead, we willingly offer ourselves to become servants—slaves, even—to the will of God. We exchange our old, abusive master for an infinitely better and more loving one. 

We should not miss that the passage is not just a celebration of our liberation from sin. Paul also emphasizes a need to stop our own sinful behavior. If we are going to follow our new master—Jesus—then we must obey his commands to live a holy life. Yes, we have God’s grace to support us when we stumble. Yet Paul still explicitly calls the people of God to cease sinning, despite the promise of God’s grace. We don’t live as we like; we must live as God wills.

After reading this, I wonder how we could ever think God and our nation mean the same thing when they mention “freedom”. 

Americans hate the idea of being mastered by anyone. We fought a revolution to ensure we would no longer be subject to the British. Millions of Americans suffered under the yoke of slavery for almost another century until outrage over that injustice resulted in the deadliest war in our nation’s history. Some of us couldn’t even tolerate being asked to wear a mask for a while. In big and small ways, Americans consistently show we loathe being told what to do.

How, then, can patriotic Americans ever support the idea of godly freedom? 

At no moment in Paul’s description of the life of a true Christian do we get to be free in the American sense. We begin as slaves to sin: living lives destined for destruction; ruled over by desires harmful to ourselves and others. After accepting Jesus’ sacrifice for us, we become slaves to righteousness: committed to denying our old lives and instead following the example of our Lord. 

Jesus’ example is exceptionally important for us to consider here, since he makes it clear just how far the Christian life is meant to be from anything Americans would call freedom. In one of the most gut-wrenching passages of Scripture, we see Jesus praying to the Father shortly before his crucifixion. In a moment of despair, Jesus declares that he does not want to die. Were he free to do as he wanted, he would not have gone through with his execution. He would have denied the will of God for his life.

“Yet not my will, but yours be done.” 

If Jesus had meant what America means by freedom, then none of us have any hope of eternal life. Had he embraced our nation’s commitment to individual liberty, then every single one of us would still be dead in our sin, bumbling through lives full of self-destructive behavior, followed by an eternity of torment. If Jesus did what he wanted, we would all be doomed.

Thank God our Lord means something very different than our nation when he thinks of freedom. Further, Jesus’ definition of freedom isn’t just different: it’s infinitely better. In the next post, we’ll look at how godly wisdom shows us that by denying individual liberty, we open ourselves up to serve others. By rejecting the American idea of freedom, we become free to be useful to the Kingdom of God.