Freedom

1 John 2
1My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for[a] the sins of the whole world.
3We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands. 4The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5But if anyone obeys his word, God's love[b] is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.


Can you live with out the Bible? Most people would answer yes probably, they can get by. Isn't that how we live? Most people these days know very little about the Bible. Some are exposed to it once a week on Sunday morning. But how many people these days are involved in some kind of systematic study of the Bible or even read it on a regular basis? Everybody's excuse is they are too busy. But is that really living or just existing?

Is it freedom to not have to worry about the restrictions and guidelines in the Bible? Or is it meaninglessness and chaos? Freedom comes from following what you are designed to be. Freedom comes from finding the right restrictions. A race car going 200 mph is free on the race track, but not on a busy city street. There is no freedom on the athletic field unless there are rules to be kept. Otherwise it is just chaos. A certain celebrity golfer it appears has been doing what ever he wanted in his life. But it did not bring freedom. What it brought was chaos and bondage. A canoe is not free sitting on the land but only as it goes down the river. We are only free as humans as we follow the will of our Creator.

The scripture above tells us there is no relationship with God without the Bible. To have a relationship with someone means you are willing to let the other person's will cross yours. Otherwise you are just using them like an object. The deeper the relationship, the more you are willing to let their will cross yours. To have a relationship with God means you are willing to let His will cross yours. The more you let God's will cross yours, the deeper your relationship. Without the knowledge of God's will in the Bible there is no possibility of a relationship with God because there is nothing to cross your moral will. You do what you want. You are your own boss. There is no need for moral discipline.

This is also why to have a deeper relationship with God you have to go deeper into His word. The deeper the relationship, the more you are willing to let the other person's will cross yours and you must know what that will is. A shallow understanding of God's word makes for a shallow relationship with Him. Understanding of God's word doesn't necessarily lead to a deeper relationship either if you are not allowing His will to cross yours.

To be a Christian means to have a relationship with God. We don't obey Him to get Him to save us. We let His will cross ours because He has already saved us, through the life and death of Jesus Christ. We grow in our relationship with God by finding out more and more what He created us to be, the right restrictions, and disciplining our moral will to align with His. This is freedom. Can we really live with out the Bible? Or is it just existing in chaos?

Doug Owen
Executive Director
Young Business Leaders of Jackson
618 Briarwood Dr., Suite A
Jackson, MS 39211
o- 601-978-1848 c- 601-201-5489
www.ybljackson.org