By Brandon Brown
Those of us who live within the United States have heard the words freedom, rights, and liberty. If we have spent most of our life in the U.S. those words take on certain contextual definitions. In fact, when we hear the word freedom, we most likely have the picture of personal liberty and the freedom to do as we please, for lack of a better phrase. But for the Christian, is this how we should view freedom? Does freedom provide us with the possibility of personal autonomy or selfishness?
Recently, I read a Tweet by a fellow pastor, Rev. Ben Cremer, which read:
Our personal freedoms quickly turn into a justification for trampling on the personal freedoms of others when we define freedom in terms of uncompromising autonomy rather than in terms of loving our neighbors as ourselves.
I am sure that many wanted to respond with the ideals of freedom as experienced in the U.S. and other societies which claim freedom as a virtue. But what I immediately thought about was Paul's letter to the Galatians. There were competing ideas of how those outside of the Jewish religion were to be treated as they converted to Christianity. One group insisted that the outsiders, or Gentiles, needed to follow the Law of the covenant of Israel, including circumcision for males. But the Gentiles were resisting this as their experience was of the Spirit working in grace and they felt that the yoke of sin and even the law had been defeated by Jesus on the Cross and resurrection. Paul spoke into the situation by arguing against those who wanted the Gentiles to follow the Law by claiming we have freedom in Christ. Paul claims that the freedom in Christ needed to be defended against those who would put people under a yoke of Law.
Yet Paul does not treat freedom as license to self autonomy. After warning of giving in to those who would place believers under strict rules and directives, Paul warns against the misuse of freedom. I believe we can hear echoes of Galatians in Ben's words.
For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, 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.” If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another. (Galatians 5:13-15 NRSV)
This is a hard truth for many of us because it reminds us that the freedom offered in Christ is freedom from sin and selfishness; not freedom of self sovereignty nor autonomy. Paul claims that freedom is experienced through becoming slaves to one another because he sums the law up in one commandment: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Paul warns against the selfishness of devouring one another rather than loving one another. The freedom we have in Christ is nothing like the freedom of personal liberty and autonomy. Instead, the freedom found in Christ is the freedom which allows us to place others before ourselves in love. In this freedom, we find that we no longer want to put ourselves first because our desire is for Christ and, therefore, others.