For freedom Christ frees us! Stand firm, then, and be not again enthralled with the yoke of slavery
Paul to the Galatians 5: 1, Concordant New Testament
I've heard that phrase batted around so many times in my time in the church. That is, to "Live free" in Christ Jesus. Yet, in all my years sitting in the pews of the mainstream church, I never fully realized what it really meant to be free in Christ. In fact, it wasn't until I walked away from the church that I began to see what living free in Jesus was truly like. So, what is it like to live free in Jesus? Well, I can illustrate it with examples of what I no longer feel as if I am required to do in order to gain His favor. By living in Christ, I'm no longer required to sit in a pew once or twice a week listening to some Pharisee school educated pastor tell me what I must do to please God. Not only that, I'm no longer required to set forth a tenth of my income for the upkeep and day to day operations of the church system. But most important, I'm no longer required to listen to the false church theology that it is my own sin, which Jesus has already paid the price for, which distances me from God. For me, living in free in Christ is living in the knowledge that my life is not my own, but I live each and every day in He and the Father {Johns Account 14:20}. THAT is the true definition of living free in Jesus. Yet if you were going to inquire of any typical church pastor what the meaning of this concept is, you might get a totally different answer. For in the eyes of the church, living free in Jesus means living within the regulations and traditions of the church. Anything less than this and you're in danger of falling into sin and/or upsetting God. And who wants to upset the Lord, right? Therefore, many well intentioned believers continue to live in the traditions of the traditional church. They have been taught that doing so will lead them into a life lived in Christ, but along with a few other things taught by those in church, this is a lie. For to truly live free in Jesus we must realize that we are IN HIM. This is true essence of living free IN Christ.
Now the Lord is the spirit, yet where the spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom
Paul to the Corinthians (2) 3: 17, Concordant New Testament
The apostle Paul, in his evangel, mentions the truth of what it is to be living free in Christ Jesus. That it is Christ Jesus Who has freed us {Paul to the Galatians 5:1}. But what have we been set free from? For one, through Christ Jesus we have been set free from that sin which those within the church continue to remind us of {Paul to the Romans 6:11}. I always have thought it strange that the same church that preaches the truth of Christ Jesus dying on the cross for the forgiveness of sin can in the same breath accuse us of having sin which separates us from God. Did Jesus give Himself for the forgiveness of sin or didn't He? Well, Paul seems to think so. That Jesus is the innocent blood sacrificed for us {Paul to the Corinthians (2) 5:21}. Are we to disregard the scriptures of the evangel of Paul simply because they don't vibe with the narrative of the church theology? Well, let's look into what Jesus Himself said about the freedom which we find in Him. That if the Son has made us free, "You will be really free" {Johns Account 8:36}. I figure that Jesus knew what He was talking about. Jesus has never proclaimed that we will be free if we tithe more, go to church more or give more of our time to the local church. Therefore, I can honestly say that everything which the church has taught about living free in Jesus has been in error. That isn't just me talking. This is confirmed through the scriptures of the evangel spoken by Paul as well as the words of Jesus Himself. That we will know the truth, and that truth shall set us free {Johns Account 8:31-32}.
~Scott~
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