“You,
brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom
to indulge the flesh; rather serve one another humbly in love.” Galatians
5:13
Freedom.
Liberty. Whichever word we choose to embrace, if there is no sense of
duty or responsibility associated with either, it cannot be said we are truly
free – not if we are in fact slaves to our own personal desires or selective in
whom we are willing to serve. The saying, “Your freedom ends at the tip
of my nose”, is more than a demand for boundaries, which must also be
respected. It is an acknowledgment that freedom and basic human rights
for one means freedom and basic human rights for all. There cannot be a little
freedom any more than there can be a little justice.
When
The Lord set us free from the bonds and chains of our past, it was not His
intent that we would trade one set of chains for another. To exercise the
freedom we hold so dear means we must understand our commitment to the whole of
our communities – but to also understand that if we are unwilling to commit to
the well-being of the community, we should not expect the community to concern
itself with our well-being.
Christ
called forth the Church, the “ekklesia”, the congregation of the faith, the
community of believers. In order for us to understand the depth of this
meaning, we must learn to read the Scripture not as “love letters to me”
but as encouragement to the entire community of saints. Then – and only
then – can we begin to understand the true nature of liberty.
This
is the reality of Christ. This is the nature of the Covenant of The
Lord. Thus it must become the very nature of our being if we are to
pretend we are somehow connected to Christ. “Love your neighbor as
yourself” is more than a commandment; it is the very foundation of the
community.
Blessings,
Michael
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