Freedom
Dr. John K. Mathew
One of the greatest motivating factors for people throughout the world today is the quest for freedom, for self determination. Armies fight for it. Nations vote for it. Individuals work for it.
Even though some people resist Christianity itself as an obstacle to freedom, Christians have historically stood up for the poor, the oppressed, the captive, and the underprivileged.Likewise, liberation from ignorance, disease, and political oppression have invariably resulted wherever Christian faith and principles have been adopted.
The Bible of the Christians is a liberating book. Melvyn Bragg writes, "The King James version as it is known in America, provided the vocabulary, the seedbed and construction model for the early development of democracy. It was the consolidating voice of two empires. It unleashed and motivated philanthropic movements of a size and effectiveness which battered the lives of ordinary people throughout the English speaking world.
Its ferocious sense of mission transformed and sometimes destroyed native cultures. In the words of Benson Bobrick, "without a vernacular Bible, the English Bible in particular, through its impact on the reformation of English politics, there could not have been a democracy as we know it, or even what today we call the 'Free world'.. It can be said with no ambiguity that the Bible has liberated people all over the world and its impact on peoples life is incredible.
How ever the main focus of Bible is not political, economic or cultural liberation. It is purely spiritual.The liberating power of the Bible and the God it represents is unparalleled. The Bible says, 'It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery"(Gal.5:1). It has to be stated at this point that the freedom Jesus offers is not a license to do anything. True freedom lies in the obedience to God's law.
True freedom is the ability to do what is right. It takes obedience in order to have true freedom. For example, I can sit at a piano and be at liberty to play any keys that I want, but I don't have freedom, because I can't play anything but noise. I have no freedom to play Bach, or even'Chopsticks'. Why? Because it takes years of practice and obedience to lesson plans to be truly free at the piano. Then, and only then, does one have the freedom to play any piece of music. The same is true of freedom in living. To be truly free, we must have the power and ability to be obedient.
How true Jesus's saying is, "If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, Just as I have kept my Father's commands and remain in his love."(John 15:10).
