What is True Freedom?

Galatians 5:1

Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.  

When you think of liberty or freedom, what comes to your mind? We celebrate our country’s freedom every year on July 4th and I think it is a wonderful holiday. I am glad to live in a country where we have the freedoms that we have. We enjoy freedom of speech. We have the freedom to vote for our elected officials. It is awesome that we get a say-so in who runs our country and our state, all the way down to who runs our local government. We have the freedom to worship God according to the Bible without fear of persecution or harm. We are very lucky in this country. Juneteenth (June 19th) is another holiday that I believe is important to recognize in this country. I am glad that we are recognizing this holiday as of the last couple of years. It commemorates the ending of the horrible practice of slavery in our country. How we as a country could be a part of something so degrading and dehumanizing is beyond me. We have come a long way in this country as far as basic human rights are concerned. Of course our country is not perfect, however, it is the only country that I would want to live in at this present moment in time. Do I agree with everything our government decides to do? No I don’t. Do I agree with everything the government allows to happen? Absolutely not. But I do not dwell on everything that I don’t agree with. I can only strive to live my life the way that I know God wants me to live, and try to be a positive influence on others along the way. But there is a type of freedom that is above every other type of freedom. I am thankful that I have a type of freedom that goes beyond the worldly freedoms of this life. The freedom that I am most proud of is the freedom that I have in Christ. It is the most important freedom that I have. No matter what happens here on earth, Galatians 5:1 tells me that I am free because I belong to Christ. Let’s dive in and look at the context of this verse. Who was Paul talking to in this verse? What was going on at this time? Why is he writing the letter? How does it apply to us today?

So first….who is Paul talking to in Galatians 5:1 and what is going on at this time? In Galatians 1:2, we read that Paul is writing to the “churches of Galatia”. The churches of Galatia are the ones that Paul established on his first missionary journey: Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe. Paul and his company endured heated persecution from the Jews in these cities. In Acts 13:49, when Paul was preaching in Antioch of Pisidia, we learn that, “the word of the Lord was being spread throughout all the region.” Acts 13:50  tells us that the Jews did not like the success that Paul was having in their city, so they “stirred up the devout and prominent women and the chief men of the city, raised up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region.” Then, when they moved on to Iconium, they were teaching in the synagogue and “a great multitude both of the Jews and of the Greeks believed.” (Acts 14:1) So, again they were having success!! However, we see in Acts 14:2 that because of their success, “the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brethren.” The city was divided with some standing with the apostles and some standing with the Jews. In Acts 14:5, the Bible says that “a violent attempt was made by both the Gentiles and the Jews, with their rulers, to abuse and stone them.” So Paul and his brethren were chased out of Iconium and went into the cities of Lystra and Derbe where they continued preaching the gospel. (Acts 14:6-7) Let’s not forget that Lystra is where Paul was stoned and left for dead. (Acts 14:19) It is so amazing that Paul and his brethren never backed down in the face of persecution. They just kept preaching the truth without fear of what might happen to them. I ask myself these questions often. If the message of Jesus wasn’t true, why would people risk their life for it? Why would Stephen die for it? (Acts 7)  Does it make sense for people to be so passionate about a message that isn’t 100% true? And how would something that is not 100% true stand the test of time the way that the gospel has? If anyone reading this has doubts, those are just questions to stir your heart. Why take a chance with your eternal soul? The God of the universe is in complete control. The Bible is 100% truth. There is no doubt in my mind. Always keep in mind the verses that, in my opinion, are the hub of the entire Bible. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 

So……why did Paul write a letter to the Galatian churches? In Galatians 1:6-7 we find Paul’s reason for the letter. It reads, “I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ.”  Paul wrote the letter to get the Galatian Christians back on track. They had been influenced by Jewish false teachers who were still trying to keep the law of Moses. The Jews were trying to bind parts of the law of Moses on these new Christians. They were telling them they had to be circumcised in order to be saved. (Acts 15:1) This was the perverting of the gospel that Paul was referring to in Galatians 1:6-7. Paul called it a “different gospel”, however he then clarifies that there is no other gospel when he says, “which is not another”. Paul then went so far as to say in Galatians 1:8, that if anyone preaches another gospel to them, let them be accursed. And…..for good measure he made that statement again in verse 9. These Jews were trying to undermine Paul’s teachings, and they were even trying to discredit Paul’s apostleship. We know this by the way Paul begins the letter in Galatians 1:1. He says, “Paul, an apostle (not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father who raised Him from the dead).” Paul begins the letter by defending his apostleship first and foremost!  Then he defends the gospel a few verses down from this in Galatians 1:11-12 when he says, “But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.” I am sure that all this was confusing to the new Galatian Christians. And I’ll bet these false teachers were super convincing just the way that false teachers are in this day and age. But just think about all the persecution that Paul endured when he was preaching and establishing churches in those cities. I can’t even imagine the kind of persecution and pressure that was put on those new Christians in those cities! Were they ready for that pressure? They were babes in Christ! They were vulnerable. They had just come out of pagan religion to become New Testament Christians. And now, they had these people coming to them who were very knowledgeable in the law of Moses, saying that Paul was a fake and everything that he told them was a lie. These new Christians were not grounded in the truth yet, and I am sure these Jews seemed very intelligent and charismatic. I’m sure they appeared to know what they were talking about. Does this sound familiar? Isn’t this going on in our world today? There are some very charismatic men and women spreading false doctrine like wildfire in our country and across the world today. Paul and the apostles preached repentance and baptism in order to be saved. In Romans 6, Paul gives a beautiful explanation of baptism and the essentiality of it. The entire chapter is focused on baptism. He also says in Galatians 3:27 that everyone that is baptized into Christ has put on Christ. He told them in the Galatian letter that if they tried to keep the law of Moses, that they would sever themselves from Christ. So basically they would not be in Christ anymore at that point. He told them that if they kept one part of the law, then they would have to keep all of it. He said that they would  “fall from grace” if they tried to be in Christ and still follow parts of the law of Moses. (Galatians 5:2-6)  In other words, they had to be “all in” for the gospel of Christ. We have to be “all in” for the gospel of Christ as well. Also, the term “fallen from grace” in verse four refutes the idea of the “once saved, always saved” doctrine that many denominations teach today. The parallel between these judaizing false teachers and the false teachers of today is clear. They were distorting the truth of how to be saved back then in somewhat the same way that people distort it today. Isn’t the truth distorted today when false teachers tell people they don’t have to be baptized in order to be saved? That they can just verbally say they want to be saved? In comparison, the Jews during this time in history were trying to bind more on the Galatian Christians by making them adhere to the law of Moses in order to be saved. Whereas false teachers today are telling people just the opposite. They are teaching people that they don’t have to do what the Bible plainly says is required to be saved. In some instances, people are told they don’t have to do anything at all to be saved. Please study for yourself. The scriptures on the steps of salvation, which include baptism, are at the bottom of this post. If you need help understanding, please reach out. I would love to study with you or put you in contact with someone to study with. 

How does Galatians 5:1 apply to us today? So…..when Paul says “do not be entangled again in the yoke of bondage”, what does that mean to me? It means that I don’t need to become a slave to sin again after I become a Christian. Just like the Galatian Christians during the first century, didn’t need to become slaves to the law of Moses again, we can’t become slaves to the world and to sin again, once we have gained our freedom through Christ. We can’t have God and the world. Christ chose us out of the world and out of sin through the gospel. (John 15:19) Why would we want to lose our freedom in Christ and be a slave to sin and worldly desires again? Paul explains the difference in being a slave to sin and a slave to God in Romans 6:20-23. It reads, “When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.” I normally use the New King James Version, but I used the New Living Translation for these verses because I thought it made it easier to understand. When we are a slave to our worldly desires and sin, what are we working toward? What is our end result? Spiritual death and separation from God for eternity is the end result of being a slave to sin. (Isaiah 59:2) When we are baptized into Christ and become a Christian, we are slaves to God. We are slaves to what is good and righteous in God’s eyes. When we are slaves to God, what are we working toward? What is our end result? Eternal life with God and His Son Jesus Christ is our end result when we are slaves to God. And I ask myself, is it really slavery to be a Christian? Do I feel enslaved? NO!! I am free from the sin, the worries, and the cares of this world. It has been a journey for me to feel this freedom and I still struggle some days in certain areas of my life. It certainly does not mean that life is perfect. But…..being a Christian is the closest thing to a perfect life that I can imagine. Have I ever fallen away? Have I had to repent of sin that I let myself fall back into? Have I had to go back before my brothers and sisters in Christ and ask for forgiveness? Have I had to rededicate my life to Christ? Have I had to ask for the prayers of my brothers and sisters in Christ? Have I been on my knees before God begging Him to forgive me and help me? Yes!! To all of the above questions!! It took me quite a while to realize what a special thing I had. I had been raised in the church for my entire life, and I am sorry to say that I took it for granted. I feel like I was just going through the motions of what I had been raised to do. It wasn’t truly my faith. I was still just doing what mom and dad had taught me to do for a while. It was not that I didn’t believe it, but I wasn’t taking responsibility for my own part in it. I am truly thankful for my wonderful parents and my upbringing in the Lord. I would not be where I am today without it. But we all mature at our own pace depending on our own circumstances. I truly believed everything that I was taught, but I didn’t find my own way as a Christian until later in life. I didn’t have my own ministry and mission, which every Christian needs, by the way. Everyone has something to offer the church and the lost. We just have to find our own niche. Anyway, I am fully vested in my own ministry and mission for Christ. I know that I can never do enough, but I’ll never stop trying to do more. I pray that my children have found their own faith in God set apart from us as their parents. I pray they have found their own ministry and mission, their niche. Every Christian, no matter what age, is their own separate branch with their own separate responsibilities on the vine which is Christ’s body, the church. (John 15:1-8) I had to become my own branch separate from my parents’ branches as we all do. This is a big part of the freedom we feel in Christ. We have to come into our own as Christians. We fully give our lives to God, and find our own ministry in the church and mission for the lost. That is when we find true freedom. Your ministry and mission will not be the same as someone else’s. It is yours. And btw, you don’t have to go to another country to be a missionary. I’m so thankful that we have people who can and are willing to do that. That is their niche. But we are all missionaries in our own way by how we live our lives and conduct ourselves in front of the lost. We have a mission field in front of us everywhere we go. People can see Jesus in us if we are letting Him be seen. That is freedom. Showing Jesus through love toward the lost is freedom and it is a mission. Don’t ever diminish your impact as a Christian.

To find true freedom in Christ, I had to fully give my life to Him, to fully trust in Him, and to fully give my struggles and temptations to Him. I had to lay myself at His feet. I can honestly say, I don’t know what took me so long to figure it out. Take my advice, my sisters in Christ, younger and older. Stay strong in Christ. Don’t let yourself fall away. Pick your people that you hang around very carefully. Surround yourself with people who are positive influences on you. Study God’s word every single day. This will help us find our ministry and mission. Being in God’s word gives us confidence. I need to know God’s word if I am going to help someone else to know it. Plus, God cannot heal you if you don’t allow Him to speak to you through His word. Pray to God every single day. Tell Him everything. He is your ultimate best friend. Show Christ’s love to others and you will have a ministry and a mission that will grow as you grow. Being in Christ is the only true and complete freedom. Be your own branch on His vine. (John 15:1-8) You are so important to His kingdom. Now if you are not in Christ at this point, He needs you. He wants you. No matter how you were raised, no matter what your past is, no matter what walk of life you are in. It doesn’t matter to God what you have done in the past. We all have a past. He wants to forgive you and He wants everyone to be saved. 1 Timothy 2:3-4 says, “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” He wants you to understand the truth and be free in Him. He died for you. You can overcome whatever sin is in your life through Him and be free. Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, “That which has been is what will be, That which is done is what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun.” Whatever struggles with sin you have today are the same struggles that people had in the past all the way back to Biblical times. Let Jesus’ blood wash you clean so that you can be free. And please…..don’t let anyone tell you that the truth is whatever you want it to be and that truth is subjective. The truth is not subjective. Subjective means that the information is based on someone’s opinions, feelings or emotions. The truth is objective. Objective means that the information is based on facts and evidence. The Bible is 100% the truth, because every word of it is from God, and God who created all things is the only one who has the authority to determine truth. Men do not have that authority and neither do we through our opinions, feelings, and emotions. We will have to change and we will more than likely have some bad habits to break. It will not be easy and we may fall and get back up several times. I certainly did.  We all do. We may have some things that we have to deny ourselves of. The Bible says that we have to deny ungodliness (sin) and worldly lusts (sin) in order to have hope in Christ. (Titus 2:11-14)  Unless we change we cannot be in Christ. But won’t the change be soooo worth it? To be with God and His Son Jesus Christ in heaven someday? To be free from all the sin, worry and cares of the world? I don’t know about you, but that is my ultimate goal, for myself and everyone else as well. Like I always remind everyone, we won’t be perfect!! It is not about being perfect. It is about our effort to be Christ-like and live according to His purpose. I want everyone to feel the freedom found in Christ. Remember Jesus’ words in John 8:31-32, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” Let Christ free you. Love to all of you. Thank you so much for reading. Have a wonderful week ahead!! 

Are you in Christ? Below I have added God’s plan of salvation with scripture references. If you need help in understanding, please reach out.

God’s Plan of Salvation

If anyone ever needs help in learning the truth of the gospel, please reach out and I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can. Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)