THE TRUTH ABOUT FREEDOM

“Ah, freedom.”

The thought that runs through our heads when we’re finally alone. When the project is finally finished. When we’re finally off work. When we’re finally on vacation. When we’re finally able to do what we want.  For different people, different circumstances cause us to breathe out that sigh of relief.  

Each of us has our own ideas about freedom. If you’re anything like me, in spite of the short-term instances of relief you occasionally experience, freedom is an elusive dream that you’re always chasing.

If I can just get through one more week, I’ll be free.

If I could just find a different job, then I’d be at peace.

If I could just break this one habit, I’d be okay.

If I could just have this relationship squared away, then I’d feel better.

If I can somehow find a way to make more money, I’ll be set.  

But the week comes and goes, and I still feel restless, the new job has its own set of problems, the habit just won’t go away, the relationship is never perfect, and the money is never enough.

​LIFE TO THE FULL

JOHN 10:10
​The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy;
I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

The imagery Jesus uses when He speaks these words is vivid – “life to the full.” Abundant life. Life that has richness. He’s not speaking about life in a biological term – He’s speaking of a quality of life that is higher than we are able to experience on our own because it comes only from Him.

Many of us would use words like frazzled, frustrated, overwhelmed, stuck, defeated, fearful, insecure, lonely, confused, burned-out, or discouraged to describe our lives. I know I’ve used those words many times, even in the last few months. In contrast, Jesus offers us abundant life. Life that could be described as peaceful, contented, gracious, loving, joyful, and free.  

​As you consider your current season of life, which list most resonates with you? Are you experiencing the abundant life and freedom that Jesus came to offer? Or is it possible that, like me, you’ve been attaching your peace and freedom to the wrong things and as a result, are experiencing discouragement over joy, frustration over peace, and bondage over freedom?

OUR NEED FOR TRUTH

I believe the biggest reason we’re not experiencing the freedom Jesus came to provide for us is that we’ve fallen into the trap of believing that this world and the things it has to offer can bring us peace and joy. I don’t think we intentionally trust in those things over Christ; but it’s an easy lie to believe and we are all vulnerable. Before we know it, we’ve invested ourselves so much into the lie that we are stuck, feeling defeated and overwhelmed – and ultimately, enslaved – to the lie.

It’s easier to believe that switching jobs will make us happy than to learn how to persevere and make the best in our current situation. But the next job has its own set of problems, and we’re still miserable.  

It’s easier to believe that money will solve our problems than to trust God to provide for our needs. But the money doesn’t come easily and before we know it we’re enslaved to our jobs to have enough to be enough.

It’s easier to believe that food will make us feel better than to seek God in our weakness. But our comfort food turns on us when we begin to have health problems and struggle to put down what’s hurting us.

It’s easier to believe that a person can satisfy our need for love and acceptance than to find our identity in Christ. But people fail us and we fail them, and it’s only a matter of time until we crumble under the pressure to perform to be accepted.

​It’s easier to believe the lie than to believe the truth. Until the lies blind us and bind us and we find ourselves utterly defeated. 

WHAT IS TRUTH

I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase, “the truth will set you free.”  And if I had to guess, you probably heard it in the context of a personal need to tell someone the truth so that you’ll feel better. And while it’s true that being honest can be liberating, that is not actually what that phrase is about.

John 8:31:-32
To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said,
“If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

JOHN 14:6-7
“I am the way and the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.
If you really know me, you will know my Father as well.
From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”​

​​From these passages, we learn something very important: ​​
​

​Truth is a person.

And that person is Jesus Christ. 

​​It is not something you can do or say that will set you free; it’s Jesus. Only Jesus has the power to set us free from lies, to set us free from bondage, to set us free from ourselves.
​

John 8:36
​So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed

​​Only Jesus has the power to transform our lives and give us a rich life full of peace, joy, and freedom. 

​WHAT FREEDOM IS ALL ABOUT

We live in a culture that says freedom is about self-indulgence. As a result, it’s easy to slip into the belief that freedom is the ability to do what we want, when we want, and how we want. But that is not how God defines freedom.
​
Rather than freedom being for self-indulgence, Scripture teaches us that freedom comes through Christ and results in obedience. 

JOHN 8:31:-32
TO THE JEWS WHO HAD BELIEVED HIM, JESUS SAID,
“IF YOU HOLD TO MY TEACHING, YOU ARE REALLY MY DISCIPLES.
THEN YOU WILL KNOW THE TRUTH, AND THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE.”

Galatians 5:13-14
You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free.
But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh;
rather, serve one another humbly in love.  
For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command:
“Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Just as a lion was created to run, roar, and hunt, we were created to pursue Christ, enjoy fellowship with him, worship him, and obey him. When we know Christ, we are set free to follow Him – to enjoy a relationship with Him – which is the very reason we were created. That’s why obedience is not a burden; it’s what we were made to do, and it’s in the context of that obedience that we finally find peace.
​
And let’s be honest - doing what we want, when we want, and how we want always leaves a bitter taste in our mouths. It’s never enough, and it frequently gets out of control until our pleasures control us and we end up in bondage, feeling overwhelmed, discouraged, and defeated. 
​

2 Peter 2:9
“people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.” 

​We must ask ourselves, what has mastered us? Are we being mastered by our pleasures and desires for control? Or have we been mastered by our gracious Savior, Jesus Christ? 

​what do we want

I believe the biggest problem we face is not that we want to be enslaved, but that we’re not sure we want to be free. Or, perhaps more accurately, we’re not sure we want to do what it takes to be free,

We’d rather settle for an acceptable level of discontent than do the hard things necessary to know Christ, follow Christ, and experience freedom in Christ.

We tend to look for a quick fix to our issues; we often think that freedom is found in avoidance, in escape; but it’s not. Jesus said we will have trouble, and in Isaiah, God promises to be with us when we go through fire, not “if.”

​When we talk about freedom, we’re not talking about a magic formula that will make problems vanish; I’m not offering any shortcuts to an easy life, nor am I promising the absence of pain and difficulties. Life is hard—there’s no way around that. What I am talking about is walking through the realities of life—things like rejection, loss, disappointment, wounds, and even death—in freedom and true joy that comes from walking in surrender to Jesus Christ. 

“‪Any notion the Gospel is designed 
to help you avoid crisis is a deception. 
It is a resource of hope and strength 
in and through crisis!” 
– Cary Schmidt

It’s time to stop and consider who we want to be. How do we want to be defined? What do we want our lives to look like in six months? In a year? In five years?

It’s easy to identify what we don’t want – “I don’t want to be depressed, angry, bitter, frustrated, overwhelmed…”

But it’s not enough to say what we don’t want, we need to know what we do want.

It’s time to ask ourselves, “Do I want to be free? Do I want peace? Do I want joy? Do I want Christ?”

We’ve been believing lies.

Those lies have led us to bondage and defeat.

If we want to be free, we need to know the truth.

If we want to know the truth, we need to know Christ.
 

ARE YOU READY?

​​Over the next several months, I’ll be sharing a series here at The Surrendered Life on Truth and Freedom that is inspired by the book “Lies Women Believe & the Truth That Sets Them Free” by Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth.
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I encourage you to seek God and ask Him to help you identify areas of your life where you may be struggling to experience freedom, and then join me as we begin to take an in-depth look at what it means to know Christ and experience freedom in areas such as our relationships with friends and families, our priorities, our circumstances, and more.