The choice of freedom

I seem to be following a pattern here... the choice of joy, the choice between life and death and now I am looking at the choice of freedom. Most of the reason for thinking around freedom is because this weekend I am preaching and we have temporarily stepped away from the Lectionary and have been looking at the Apostle Paul's letter to the Romans for the past 2 weeks and once again this week.

Paul writes:

"Let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature. 
Accept those whose faith is weak, out quarreling over disputable matters..."


Freedom. It was for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened by a yoke of slavery."

The Apostle, Paul, is writing to the Galatians. He is mad that the Galatians are being so easily led astray by the Jewish Christians who are telling them that they have to follow the law and be circumcised. Paul says, NO. That was the old law and we are now under the new law - the law has been fulfilled and Jesus Christ and His death and resurrection. One can almost hear the sarcasm in his voice; wait, was it God or humans that set you free, he asks???

So, I have come to believe that all of life is a choice, especially when one follows Jesus Christ. It's a choice. God does not force His way into our lives; He does promise us that the only way to live fully is to live in Him and that could seem like we are being blackmailed into following Him because how else could we live? But actually there is only one way to live and that is to live IN HIM.

Jesus said, 

"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with them, and they with me." 

Jesus did not say, "I will bang down the door until you let me in..." Jesus does not barge into our lives unasked, uninvited; He gives us that choice to respond to His call. 

And that is where the freedom comes in. Every time.... and it doesn't stop when we make the choice to follow Jesus Christ. We make choices every day. The choice to talk to a stranger just because we know God is prompting us to do so. The choice to walk a little further so we can see the flowers along the way. The choice to take more time than we might have done with a friend who just wants to talk for longer... The choice to invite another driver into our lane and not cut them off.... or use inappropriate hand signals just like everyone else does. The choice to not go to Starbucks one more time and instead buy the person on the street coffee instead. The choice to be in the world but not of the world because the world is crying out for a different way of living and we know the God who made them and loves them and longs for them to know Him too. 

So, as the Apostle Paul says, 

"You my brothers and sisters, were called to be free.... serve one another humbly in love....Love your neighbor as yourself."

So choose life... choose freedom....