Free Is Always Better

“Free is always better.” People often use this phrase to describe something we gain unexpectedly and at no cost—a cup of coffee, a meal, and sometimes a vacation!

We know what free means in concept, indeed. But do we know what it means beyond unexpectedly obtaining something material? I am sure what comes to mind for most of us is also some version of being free from obligation, free to exercise our will, or free from tyranny or exploitation. 

But what if true freedom ran much deeper? The church father and Apostle Paul wrote to the ancient church in Corinth: “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”

When Paul writes this, He equates the power of the Holy Spirit with the power of God. The Holy Spirit is equal to Yahweh in every way. Whenever anyone follows the Way of Jesus through repentance and faith, his or her condition changes completely. Followers of the Way of Jesus possess renewed hearts and minds, enabling them to see the revelation of God more fully, and the Spirit becomes the prime mover in the lives of God's people. 

He frees them, energizes them, empowers them and leads them! 

We who are in Christ are free because we have been filled with the Holy Spirit, Who frees us. We are free from the dominion of sin and death. We are free from guilt and shame! We are free from sin's influence. We are no longer in bondage to anything! Instead, we are free to withstand corruption and to do good instead of evil. 

Freedom stood as one of those words that Paul used to summarize the experience of the total transformation we experience in Christ. Paul, of course, did not mean that Jesus' people were free from all obligations to obey God. Instead, for Paul, freedom in Christ was freedom from sin and freedom to righteousness. 

Paul closed this section of his letter with a description of the new life of freedom that all followers of the Way enjoy in Christ. He writes that we, with unveiled faces, reflect God's glory. 

The transformation in followers of Jesus has ever-increasing glory, and expanding glory comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. We receive glory from Christ, who has sent us his Spirit! If this is true, we should be experiencing freedom in every aspect of our lives. We should have freedom in relationships, freedom in our work, freedom in our friendships, freedom in our finances, and freedom concerning our mental well-being. 

We are freed to serve and freed to live passionately for God and others. We are freed to maximize our gifts and talents in a way that brings God glory and us joy.

Here is the rub, though. Most people who say they follow the Way of Jesus are not free but bound. Bound by lies, old sin patterns, fear and self-preservation, and visions of the American Dream. Bound by political ideology. Bound by generational sin. But God wants more than that for you and the community He has sent into and for me. He wants us to be free, and He wants us to be agents of freedom for others. 

So yes, free is always better. And when we grasp the true meaning of freedom, all of life gets better.