Dear Christian friends:

Here in America we hear and read much about freedom: Freedom to say anything we like. Even freedom to criticize our president. Freedom of speech. Then we have freedom of the press. Our newspapers are free to print anything they wish except lies. Freedom of religion. Not forced to join any certain church. Free to choose our church. Freedom not to join a church.

Now in the papers we read about the freedom riders. Who ride buses in the South and sit in "Jim Crow" seats. They forced the interstate bus to stop segregating the Negroes and whites on interstate buses.

So here in America we love our four freedoms and fight and die to keep them. But there is one freedom we Christians have which is much better, more precious than any American freedom. That is:


Our text talks about our wonderful freedom in Jesus. But I question if many of us understand this precious freedom. By our talk and actions we often show that we do not really understand and enjoy this wonderful freedom in Jesus.

Most of the time we still live as slaves. Slaves to what? Who is our master? Every slave has a master. Who is your master? The Ten Commandments and other laws that men and churches invent.

We are good because we are afraid of the law. We drive carefully and within the speed limit because we don't want the police to catch us and the judge to fine us. We are slaves to the law and fear the police.

We pay our income tax and do not cheat because we are afraid of the internal revenue agents who may catch us and convict us and send us to prison. We are slaves to fear of the law.

We obey the Ten Commandments a little bit, partially, because we are afraid God will punish us with sickness or other troubles. A few nights ago I saw a husband tell his wife: "You and me better go to church or else God will punish us with sickness or trouble, I may lose my job."

That husband and wife go to church because of fear of the law and fear of punishment. They are still slaves. They do not understand our wonderful freedom from the law in Jesus Christ.

One lady didn't come to Lenten Service last Wednesday. She tole her husband: "I love Jesus enough." Anyone who thinks or says: "I love Jesus enough" is still a slave of the law and doesn't yet understand his wonderful freedom in Jesus. Sometimes members say: "I went to church last Sunday now I earned a vacation for this Sunday. God can't expect me to go to church every Sunday." People who think or say or do like that are still slaves under the law.

And you people who easily feel hurt or insulted when others sin against you and you get angry and refuse to forgive are still slaves to the Ten Commandments. You judge yourself and others by the Ten Commandments and you are either proud and self-righteous or you are afraid with a bad conscience and feel to give up God and church. You are all still slaves of the law living in pride or shame, boldness or fear. You don't yet understand your wonderful freedom in Jesus Christ.

You are like the Galatians in our text here. They were very troubled about the laws and arguing and fighting among themselves about many laws. So Paul tells them the story about Abraham's two sons, Ishmael born from one of his slave women by natural way and Isaac born of Sarah without nature by God's word and promise when she was too old to have a baby by the natural way.

Paul says we are not children of God by nature or by law or by obeying the law. That has nothing to do with it. We are children of God by His word and promise, like Isaac, in Jesus Christ through the forgiveness of sins which we accept by faith. We are born again by water and the spirit we are free from the Ten Commandments.

No law can now condemn us if we believe in Jesus Christ who perfectly kept the law for us and who paid for our law-breaking by His holy suffering and death on the cross. Paul says, "Dear brothers, we are not slave children, obligated to the Jewish laws, but children of the free woman, acceptable to God because of our faith." (Galatians 4:31, TLB)

Well, how should we think and speak and do if we remember our wonderful freedom in Jesus Christ? We should drive carefully because we love God and our neighbor and don't want to hurt or kill anyone. We should drive within the speed limit cheerfully and gladly and not because the police may catch us if we speed. Also we will be courteous.

We should not go to church because we are afraid that God will punish us if we fail to go. We should go because we love our wonderful God who made us and freed us in Jesus. We should eagerly and cheerfully hurry to church to sing and praise our beautiful Savior.

We will never say, "I love Jesus enough", but we will say like the hymn, O For A Thousand Tongues:

O for a thousand tongues to sing
my great Redeemer's praise,
the glories of my God and King,
the triumphs of his grace!

And you will not say, "I went to church last Sunday I think I'll stay home this Sunday." But you will cheerfully and freely say with King David, "I was glad when they said unto me, "Come, let us go into the house of the Lord." (Psalm 122:1)

If you really understand the wonderful freedom you have in Jesus you will not be proud and self-righteous and find fault with others or be easily hurt or insulted, but you will have kind understanding and a patient heart with others. You will forgive and forget and suffer many wrongs against you rather than make trouble and complain.

Now if you think about your past thoughts and deeds you will surely confess that you have not understood very well your wonderful freedom in Jesus. Paul says in Galatians 5:1, "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery."

This means daily confess your sins to God and look to Jesus crucified for forgiveness and freedom. If you do, you will live in freedom; if you don't, you will in slavery.

Amen.