Pastor's blog

For this last sermon, I made use of Facebook to prove a point to myself. I imagined that no two people would define freedom in the same way. Based on the responses I got, I was right. It turns out there may be a reason for that. History, philosophy, politics have all looked a freedom from two different angles. There is one side that looks at freedom as an independence from imposition, people are able to act independently and are not being forced by someone else. We are free to speak, to practice religion, and to assemble of our own free will. Simply stated, freedom is choice. Think free market, small government, or even pro-choice.

On the other side of the coin, there are those who define freedom as the capacity to act on one's desires. Amendments to the Constitution ensured the right to vote to women and minorities. Simply stated, freedom is equal opportunity. Think gov't regulation, affirmative action, or even pro-life. If you pay attention to political debates you can hear echoes of these two views of freedom. Often times they are opposed to one another.

By either definition, freedom has been an extremely important part of, if not central to, the American conversation. From Patrick Henry's speech (give me liberty or give me death), to the Declaration of Independence (life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness), freedom has always been highlighted as one of the virtues and goals of the American project. So much so, that I imagine it's hard for Christians in America to read words like "For freedom Christ has set you free." and not hear their own history and politics.

Don't get me wrong, there is certainly a thread of freedom in the Bible. God freed the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. Jesus said, "I am the truth," and also said, "The truth will make you free." Paul would write to the Galatians that Christians were called to freedom. But do Jesus and Paul mean the same thing that Patrick Henry, Thomas Jefferson, and American Christians today mean?

Jesus wanted us to be free from sin; free from all those things that separate us from those we love, from those we don't, and from God. Paul wanted us to be free from the law; free from all those rules and regulations that end up leaving us fearful of punishment on the one hand and judgmental on the other. Jesus died and God raised him from the dead so that we could be free even from death. Certainly, part of the good news is freedom, but it is part of the good news and not the whole of it.

The Bible celebrates our freedom, but not as an end in itself. If you ask me, that's the difference between American freedom and Christian freedom. For many Americans (even the Christian ones) freedom boils down to the independence to make whatever choice best suits them. It's as if a good society is based solely on the liberty that is enjoyed by the people. That is not what matters most in God's kingdom.

In fact, there is one kind of slavery that God's word is not opposed to: becoming slaves to one another through love. That's why this sermon is called "Give Me Slavery or Give Me Death." It is the only kind of slavery that will lead us to the life that God wants for us and it is the kind of slavery for which God set us free from all the other kinds of slavery that bind us: our addictions, our prejudices, our personal preferences and social norms.

If there is one thing that Jesus and Paul would insert into the American conversation about freedom it's this (a quote from Galatians 5): Yes, you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters, but do not use your freedom as an opportunity to indulge yourself, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

Jesus died and God raised him from the dead so that we might be free, but not for freedom's sake. The choice is not between freedom or death (as Patrick Henry would have it) but between "faith working through love" or death. We have been set free in order that we might walk in faith bound as slaves to one another in love. Freedom, then, is not the chance to do as I please but the opportunity to serve as others have need.

Freedom is certainly something to be valued and cherished and spread around the globe. Taking a weekend to step back and acknowledge our freedom is certainly a good thing. But as we work together across the aisle and in our communities I hesitate to say that we need more freedom. We need more faith. We need more love.