Freedom

Galatians 5:1
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

Freedom, as a Biblical concept, can be a little difficult for Americans to grasp. We tend to see freedom as the freedom to do something, where-as Biblical freedom generally refers to freedom from something.
The first sentence of this verse seems a little silly at first, doesn’t it? Of course, Christ set us free for freedom – DUH!! If we’ve been set free, then we obviously have freedom, right? Unfortunately, I think there are so many of us who have been set free who are not living in freedom. It’s as if we are in prison – a damp, musty cell, wasting away, and Jesus comes along and opens the cell door. We are free!! Free from all the horrors prison life has cast our way. Yet we still have to be the ones to stand up and walk out that door. I wonder how many Christians are still sitting in their cells, just staring at the open door wondering why they aren’t experiencing freedom.
You and I must follow Jesus out the door into the great unknown! It can be so scary, not knowing exactly what to expect, but we can be sure of one thing – it will be MUCH better than where we were before. And when things get tough, or temptation comes our way, we must stand firm, and not run back to that which we know best, where we think we are more comfortable; we cannot run back into our prison cell. You and I must be diligent about reforming new habits to replace the old ones. We must create new “comfort places” that are far from our prison cells.
Yes they were familiar and seemingly easy, but “it is for freedom that Christ has set us free,” not so we can wallow in our misery, while staring at the open door and whining that we just can’t get free. Let’s stand up and walk out that door! One step-at-a-time, we can walk away from the bondage and into glorious freedom! Won’t you join me?