Today is July 4th. It’s a day we celebrate the independence of the United States. We celebrate the rights and freedoms we have living in this country. It is certainly something to celebrate and be thankful for.
Today, you can also take the opportunity to thank God, not just for the freedoms we have in the U.S., but the freedoms He has given. His are the greater freedoms. They are freedoms which no invading force can take from us. They are freedoms that exist even when in physical captivity.
The freedoms God has given us are many, including:
- Freedom from the guilt of our sin
- Freedom from death and condemnation
- Freedom being enslaved to sin
- Freedom to love and follow Jesus
- Freedom to truly love our neighbor
- Freedom from having to earn our salvation by our works
It is this last freedom that Paul is writing about in Galatians 5:1. The Galatians were being told by a certain group of people that in addition to believing in Jesus, they needed to live by all the Jewish laws and customs in order to be right with God. This group was trying to bring the Galatians back under the Law.
Paul is admonishing the Galatians to resist this group and trust in the finished work of Jesus Christ. They had been freed from the Law. He is telling them that no additional works are needed. All that is needed was accomplished by Jesus and received by them through faith.
What wonderful news!
This message is not just for the Galatians, but for you and me as well. Through faith in Jesus Christ, our sins have been removed and we have been made righteous. Our works cannot add anything to our salvation. We are truly free to live in Christ.
So, let us, today and every day, celebrate the freedom we have in Jesus Christ.
