This Saturday, July 4, our country will celebrate its 250th birthday. On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence, which includes the following words: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
It is a blessing to live in a nation where we have freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of press, freedom of assembly, and freedom to petition our government (all rights guaranteed by the first amendment of the United States Constitution). These freedoms are cause to celebrate and give thanks to God.
More than 1700 years earlier, however, the apostle Paul spoke of another freedom. The freedom Paul spoke of was not freedom from a tyrannical king, or freedom from taxation without representation, or freedom from excessive governmental control. The freedom Paul spoke of was a much greater freedom. It was being free from slavery to sin. He says in Galatians 5:1, “It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore, keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.”
The greatest freedom of all is the freedom to live free from slavery to sin. It is a freedom granted to all who are in Jesus Christ. Jesus says in John 8:36, “So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.” The freedom we have in the Son is the freedom granted in the gift of His salvation. It is a freedom that frees us from both the bondage and the penalty of sin. Jesus says in John 8:34, “Everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.” Since everyone is a sinner, everyone is a slave of sin and therefore needs to be set free from sin.
“It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore, keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1)
Two things happen through salvation in Jesus that frees us from being a slave to sin. First, in Christ we are completely forgiven of our sin and totally justified before God. To be justified means to forever be in a right standing relationship with God whereby we are not guilty but righteous, not condemned but forgiven, not at odds with God but at peace with God. Romans 5:1 says, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 8:1 tells us, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,” and Ephesians 1:4 says, “He chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.” In Jesus we are freed from the bondage of eternal condemnation as our sin penalty is paid for through His death and our eternal life is guaranteed through His resurrection. With our sin penalty removed, we are granted the freedom of eternal life to forever enjoy the glorious presence and pleasures of God.
Second, in Christ we are freed from the bondage of sin. In Christ, we become a new creation, with a new heart, and are indwelt by the Spirit of God, so that sin no longer dominates our life. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation….” And Romans 6:17-18 says, “Thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.” Through salvation, we are freed from sin’s domineering power. In Christ, we can now walk in obedience to God living the kind of holy and righteous lives that are pleasing to Him.
As we celebrate our independence as a nation this July 4, let’s not forget the greatest freedom of all – the freedom from sin we have in Jesus Christ!
