Freedom is Obvious

"It is for freedom that Christ has set you free." - Paul

 

"If the son sets you free, you will be free indeed." - The Son

 

"Our hearts inherently know what freedom feels like. To give something less than freedom to people, and then trying to call it freedom, can only be done by usurping the heart and making the case only in the head. Any genuine, authentic, honest, integrity-filled human being will not, and can not, buy that." - Yours Truly

 

It was late at night. I was finishing up a project in college that was due the next day. I was the last one in the communication building, and the school I went to had a curfew, and I was closing in on both finishing my project and finishing my day.

 

Time was up, and I headed for the back exit. To get there, I had to go through a little cubicle that had three doors: one that lead to the lobby (where I was), one that led to the Campus Radio Station's back door exit (where I wanted to go), and one that led to the Speech Pathology department. I opened the first door, went in, was careful to lock it behind me since I was the last person there, shut it, only to find that the door leading to the Radio Station's exit was locked. So was the speech path door. I proceeded to pronounce a small curse on the engineer who was genius enough to design such a system as I came to the realization that I was trapped.

 

Trapped. Imprisoned. Bound. Jailed. Pent up. Closed in. Squeezed. It was not a good feeling. In fact it was horrible. Keeping my peace in the midst of such a loss of choice was beyond difficult.

 

After vain attempts at unlocking any of the doors with every one of my keys, busting up my fists and elbows on the skinny, tall windows in the doors, and yelling my throat raw as the campus security guards passed by the building outside...If finally figured out a way up through the ceiling by climbing the doorknobs and over the doorframe. It was quite the personal drama.

 

And let me tell you...there is a huge, undeniable, obvious difference between the feeling of FREEDOM and the feeling of BONDAGE. No one has to explain it to you. It's clear as air.

 

But spiritually, it seems, everyone is explaining it. Including me. It's crazy when you think about it...having to explain freedom.

 

Can you imagine if I started calling out to everyone from that little cubicle of doors I was locked inside of, announcing and pleading and convincing people of the truth that "Freedom is in here!" Can you imagine the doors being unlocked, the doors swung wide open, being invited out to do whatever it is I could find to do out of there, but answering back, "No way! Freedom is in here. I'm NOT leaving."

 

I'm so sad that that is exactly what I learned growing up, and exactly what I taught for years. I would find it especially easy to look at other people in their little cubicles and argue with them about how they are not free in theirs, but if they would just come into mine, they would be free. It was easier to feel like I was "sharing truth" with them, because they would listen and argue. All the people outside of the cubicles just looked at me like I was crazy. But I would comfort myself with, "The road is narrow and only a few will take it."

 

Dude, the road is narrow enough when I actually offer the true freedom of Christ. He doesn't need me to add a bunch of rules that I have contrived out of the Bible and make the road even narrower.

 

A spoke on the freedom we have in Christ last Sunday to this band of brothers and sisters in Christ in Amarillo that I am becoming family with, but I was still being preached to by the Spirit of God on the subject all afternoon, and into our nations Independence Day on Monday. I was reflecting on my life I've lived, on the real and genuine need of my heart, on the freedom I want my wife and children to have when I had to stop and thank God for something...

 

I have grown incapable of accepting anything that feels contrived.

 

I know what freedom feels like. And I know what bondage feels like. I'm not going offer people bondage anymore and call it freedom. I'm going to offer freedom and call it life.

 

Father, may it be on earth as it is in Heaven.