The Limits to Freedom

All freedom has limits.

I hope you know that.  In order to be a truly free society, we must have rules that limit some of our freedoms.  Otherwise, you'd have nothing but chaos, disorder and anarchy. No rules means anything goes.  If anything goes, than he or she with the biggest posse or weapons rules.  That's not freedom.  That's tyranny.

So freedom has limits.

For instance, I have the freedom of speech but can't shout fire in a crowded room.  I have the freedom of the press, but I can't publish lies about people without facing the consequences.  I have the freedom of assembly, but I can't destroy public property.  I have the freedom to drive, but must obey the designated speed on the road (or pay for a ticket if I don't.)

We have freedoms, but we also have restrictions and limits to our freedoms to ensure that everyone is safe and free.

Our freedom in Christ is no different.  Yes, we are free from the law. Keeping the law will not provide salvation.  No matter how good we are, we cannot earn a spot in heaven because of how well we keep God's law.  We are free from that burden.

When we surrender our lives to Christ, our salvation is based upon his merit, not ours.  Our place in heaven is secured by his sacrifice and not by our ability to keep the law.  So we are free from the burdens of the law.

But our freedoms have limits.

In 1 Corinthians 10, Paul addresses the church in Corinth about eating food sacrificed to idols.  The Christian believers knew it was no big deal.  The idol gods were not real, so the food was no different than any other food.  However, if someone else thought the food was special and honored a false god, then Christian ought not to eat it.  By doing so, they may lead someone away from Jesus Christ.

Our freedom in Christ is limited in that everything we do should honor God.  We are not free to pursue our own pleasures if our pleasures interfere with someone else coming to Christ.  Our appetites are not to be satisfied if we are going to cause a weaker believer to stumble in their faith.

Therefore, we must keep the law, even though we are no longer saved by it.  We do that to honor Christ and by honoring Christ, we lift him up to others.

We are free, but freedom has limits.  Even with Christ.

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