True Freedom in Christ

My coach would always say, “Turn around is fair play.” If we did something to one of our teammates on the field, we shouldn’t be surprised when we received what we dished out. This always played out when we went in for a hard tackle; you knew to be on guard for the rest of practice for someone to tackle you. I knew I had the freedom to play as dirty as I wanted to, but I quickly learned that the level at which you treated others on the field was the level at which you would get back in return.

In His letter to the Galatians, Paul reminded them that Christ came to bring us freedom, not bondage. Thus, with that freedom, we can act and do as we please, but that would be giving into the desires of the flesh. Instead, Paul encourages us to overcome the flesh by choosing to love our neighbor by treating them how we desire to be treated. He says this is the way to overcome the flesh’s sinful desires.

Our desire to live on our terms and treat people how we feel they deserve to be treated entraps us instead of helping us live the life of freedom Christ has come to give. When we are slaves to our emotions, we are not free. Our flesh rules over us. When we choose to respond to people in the way we wish to be responded to, we defeat the flesh and choose to live in the freedom that Christ gives us.

As Christians, we have the most freedom in the world; many people think Christians live a life of bondage. It looks like that from the outside because, most of the time, we choose to let our flesh lead our decisions. Let’s choose today to lead with love and let the world see the freedom it brings.