Dangerous freedom

Dangerous freedom

Bible: Galatians 5:1-21

Reading

You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh (V.13).

Freedom is dangerous in the hands of anyone who doesn’t know how to use it. That’s why criminals are shut in prisons with steel bars and concrete barriers. Or think about a campfire that is allowed to spread in a dry forest. It quickly becomes a blazing inferno. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the Christian life. We are free from the Old Testament law’s penalty and its power to call us guilty. Stress, anxiety and guilt are replaced by peace, forgiveness and freedom. But here is where we often fail. We sometimes use our new freedom to live selfishly. We start to do what we want because we’ve already got our place in heaven booked. The proper use of freedom is “faith expressing itself through love” to serve each other (GALATIANS 5:6,13). When we rely on God’s Spirit and focus our energies on loving God and helping others, our selfishness that causes so much pain will be kept in check by God (VV.16-21). So let’s always use our freedom to spend more time helping others out, rather than making more of a mess. Like a raging fire, freedom without limits is dangerous. But when lived within the Bible’s teaching, it’s great for everyone.

FREEDOM DOESN’T GIVE US THE RIGHT TO DO
WHAT WE WANT, BUT TO DO WHAT GOD WANTS.

Youth Edition – Our Daily Bread Ministries