Freedom

**Inspiration for this post provided by Rend Collective 

The other day in my literature class we were discussing a piece written in the early 1900s. We talk a lot about the context of the time and place the piece was written in order to know what may have influenced the author. For this particular piece, it was noted it was written in a time (early 1900s) when and in a place (Dublin) where the church was still a big player, greatly influencing day to day life. We also began discussing the images of freedom versus bondage/imprisonment the author was trying to convey.

Putting these two ideas together brought forth a loaded question from my teacher: “What does religion do to people?” He paused, awaiting an answer and I braced myself for what might be said. No one offered an answer, so he continued: “Religion puts you in bondage. It imprisons you, telling you what you can and can’t do. It takes your freedom.”

My heart sank at his answer. I didn’t know what to expect when he posed the question and the gravity of his answer hit me like a ton of bricks.

Sometimes, after we sin, we feel immense guilt and shame, a heavy burden on our shoulders that we just can’t shake. I know there are times when I can’t even bring myself to talk to God, I am so ashamed of myself. I’ve brought myself to tears, I’ve put myself down saying I’m so terrible and I don’t know how God can still love me or give me another chance. I know I would’ve stopped giving me chances a long time ago. I let the weight of my guilt push me down until I feel like I can’t breathe, like I can’t see any hope. To me, that is bondage and imprisonment.

But God is always there, reminding me to look at Him. To see the beauty of his sacrifice. To see and feel the freedom I have in Jesus. He pulls the weight of guilt off of me, reminds me that Jesus held that burden on the cross. He took it then, he takes it now, and he’ll take it every time, forever. I need not feel guilty anymore. I can remember Romans 8:1-2, which says: “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.”

We don’t need to be slaves to this world, to sin. We don’t need to be slaves to guilt and shame. In fact, if we are in Christ we are already no longer slaves to sin. We have been freed. We are free. We can conquer sin and we can conquer shame for “we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” (Romans 8:37)

My teacher’s answer shows the reality of the depravity of the world. The world doesn’t see following Jesus as freeing or joyful. They see it as following a set of rules, having no fun in life and acting like slaves. How easily the devil has them blinded to that fact that they are in fact in bondage now. It is only through Jesus on the cross that we can be freed from that bondage. Only through Jesus that we can be more than conquerors.