{"id":2896,"date":"2025-07-27T19:16:30","date_gmt":"2025-07-28T02:16:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/?p=2896"},"modified":"2025-07-27T19:16:30","modified_gmt":"2025-07-28T02:16:30","slug":"free-from-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/?p=2896","title":{"rendered":"Free From Me"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

(Galatians 5:1, 13-25)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

All student loans have been cancelled. Any remaining car payments have been eliminated. All remaining criminal sentences have been commuted and records have been expunged. Great news! \u2026 that is, if any of those apply to us. But if none of them do, then it’s rather ho-hum news. Freedom only matters to those who need to be freed from something. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul talks a lot about freedom in the verses from Galatians 5. We know that we have freedom in Christ. But, what exactly is it we are free from? He mentions not being \u201cburdened again by a yoke of slavery\u201d (v.1).<\/em><\/strong> What exactly does Paul mean? The rest of Galatians makes it clear that the good news of the gospel means we have been freed from being enslaved by the law. In other words, we don\u2019t get to heaven by keeping the rules. That means we aren\u2019t bound to the unattainable standard of perfection in our lives.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We want to make sure we know why that\u2019s such a big deal. While the relationship we believers have with God\u2019s law is always going to be conflicted, we need to know why. It\u2019s easy and natural for us to find relief from knowing that our salvation isn\u2019t found by keeping the law, because we all know that\u2019s impossible. Very few of us stay up at night wondering if we\u2019re good enough to get to heaven. We know keeping the law doesn\u2019t save us; Jesus does.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But we may not have the best understanding of why. See, it isn\u2019t the law\u2019s fault. We don\u2019t find relief from salvation by works so appealing because the law itself is unbearable or problematic or too strict. God\u2019s law is perfect. We have to understand that the real reason we naturally take issue with the law is on our end. It shows who we are. It shows that we – not the law itself – are the real problem.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s like the insurance adjuster assessing the status of a car after it\u2019s been in an accident. There\u2019s the hope that the car can be fixed, that whatever damage was done can be replaced or repaired by a mechanic and we\u2019re back up and running in no time and on the road again. But the law doesn\u2019t reveal that about us. Instead, it shows that we\u2019ve been written off as a total loss, just like that car that has been totaled and is beyond repair. No, our problem isn\u2019t God\u2019s law; our problem is that we\u2019re broken beyond repair. We\u2019re <\/em>the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We sometimes refer to our spiritual enemies as the “unholy trinity,” referring to the threats of Satan, the world, and our own sinful flesh. When Paul writes that we are free, he means we are free from being enslaved by these three enemies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But of these three, which freedom do you appreciate the most? You might answer Satan. And indeed, he is a threat. But I wonder if that\u2019s part of what makes him so effective. When our attention is on him, when we are concerned about the possible damage he can do to us, we let down our guard against the enemy inside us: our own sinful nature. And if we think of Satan, the world, and our own sinful flesh as allies coordinating attacks against us, they don\u2019t really care who gets the credit – they just want to see us spiritually and eternally crash and burn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For now, let\u2019s give our attention to the very real threat of self, which the writer of Galatians is very well qualified to address, since he demonstrated a keen awareness of this struggle. He shared it in another of his letters to the Romans, where he wrote, \u201cI do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.\u00a0And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.\u00a0As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.\u00a0For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.\u00a0For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.\u00a0For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do\u2014this I keep on doing\u201d (Romans 7:15-19).\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why is self such a sneaky sinful threat? Let’s consider an example from the outdoors. Think about all the different kinds of bugs there are outside. Think of the bee. When a bee does its thing, you know it right away. It stings. Or a mosquito. It itches. So when you see or hear a bee or a mosquito nearby, you’re on the lookout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then there\u2019s the tick. Ticks aren’t like bees and mosquitos. They don’t announce their presence. Ticks can be such a pain because you don\u2019t even know they\u2019re there until you spot them, and that may not happen until days later as they swell and become big enough to be seen with the naked eye.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s your sinful flesh. The other stuff is easier to watch out for. Satan\u2019s temptations. The world\u2019s allures. We know what to watch out for. And, to some extent, because they are external temptations, we can still disassociate a bit from them. Because, while we may have a sinful desire for those things, it\u2019s still just the desire<\/em> that is the problem – not us, we convince ourselves. We\u2019re still able to differentiate between right and wrong, and able to identify those wrong desires that we shouldn\u2019t have, all the while still thinking pretty highly of ourselves when we succeed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But that is exactly what Paul is warning against in these verses. Don\u2019t believe the lie that you are basically a pretty good person who just has to wrestle with some wrong desires here and there. The truth is, you as a person are what\u2019s wrong, and the reality is that if you ever have even a single good, right, pure, thought, it\u2019s only because by faith, the Spirit has worked that into you. When we admit this, when we quit trying to downplay it or balk at our sinful nature, it starts to make sense why we struggle the way we do.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s why marriage is so tough. When I work with couples in their marriage, do you know what the problem is 9 times out of 10? It\u2019s the spouse. The husband or the wife lays out for me everything that is wrong with their spouse. You know what almost never happens when I\u2019m working with couples in marriage? I can\u2019t think of the last time a spouse wanted to talk to me because they were struggling with being the reason their marriage wasn\u2019t better. They knew they were the problem. They knew they were selfish. Isn\u2019t that odd? It\u2019s a wonder any marriage works when most every spouse is convinced that their partner is the problem!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul provides two examples in the verses from Galatians which demonstrate we\u2019re the problem. He warned, \u201cBut do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh;\u00a0rather, serve one another\u00a0humbly in love.\u00a0For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: \u201cLove your neighbor as yourself.\u201d (Galatians 5:13-14).<\/em><\/strong> Have you ever wondered why the Bible directs us to love others as ourselves? Why would that <\/em>be the metric, the standard? Why not, love your neighbor as your parents, or as your spouse? Because we are in love with ourselves, that\u2019s why! We\u2019re experts at loving ourselves! We think the world of ourselves! That\u2019s what the sinful flesh does: it loves – and will fiercely defend and justify – self over everything and everyone else.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s why we struggle so much even to serve others unselfishly. It isn\u2019t about how much I do or how I serve someone else; rather, it\u2019s how in my own mind I constantly keep tabs and am comparing all of the deposits that I have made in the relationship with how infrequently the other person has made any deposits and how often they seem to make withdrawals. See, I am not serving anyone else out of love for them, but out of love for me, and as I am constantly comparing, the other person always falls short. That\u2019s what our sinful flesh does. That\u2019s what is always at work within us. That\u2019s the first example. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

To see Paul\u2019s second example, take a focused look at the laundry list of sins Paul mentioned, starting in verse 19. \u201cThe acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality,\u00a0impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions\u00a0and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.\u00a0I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God\u201d (v.19-21).<\/em><\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By my count, the list mentions 15 different examples. But if we take away the external temptations that include sex and alcohol, do you notice anything about the remaining ten? Each one of them is 100% a “me” issue that is entirely my fault and no one else\u2019s. Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, discord, jealously, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy – there is no one to blame for each of those sins but me! In other words, while ultimately every sin we commit is our fault, two-thirds of Paul\u2019s list is made up of sins that very directly expose my heart as the problem! You have no one to blame but yourself for the damage sin does in your life!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why Paul\u2019s struggle in Romans 7 was so frustrating for him; he knew he <\/em>was the problem. And ultimately, that awareness led him to the only conclusion any of us can arrive at. Listen to the rest of his words from that section of Scripture: \u201cSo I find this law at work: \u00a0Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me.\u00a0For in my inner being\u00a0I delight in God\u2019s law;\u00a0but I see another law at work in me, waging war\u00a0against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin\u00a0at work within me.\u00a0What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!\u201d (Romans 7:21-24).<\/em><\/strong> There can only ever be one conclusion: thank you, Lord, for Jesus, and the deliverance he provides from myself!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that<\/em> is the freedom about which Paul is raving in these verses before us from Galatians. \u201cIt is for freedom that Christ has set us free.\u00a0Stand firm,\u00a0then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free\u201d (v.1,13).<\/em><\/strong> When Paul says that Christ has set us free for freedom, that freedom includes the freedom from your own selfish heart. On the cross, Jesus didn\u2019t just pay for your sins; he introduced you to a world that is no longer governed by the dictatorship of your own selfish heart. That <\/em>is true freedom – to be free from the deception of believing that my time, energy, and resources during my lifetime on earth are best utilized in service to self. That if I keep after it, eventually I will find utopia here on earth that finally has my perfectly designed life just the way I want it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no such thing. It is a mirage, and the only reason I believe it is because I fall back to the lies of my own sinful flesh. Real <\/em>freedom means I can stop chasing after that lie. Real freedom means so much more.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I understand the true freedom I have in Christ, then I also become aware that when I have an issue with serving someone, it is never truly about the other person, but about me. Because the other person has no bearing on the freedom I have in Christ. No matter how good or how horrible the other person is, my freedom allows me to find joy in the act of service. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That freedom craves the pursuit of Paul\u2019s famous fruits of the Spirit: \u201cBut the fruit\u00a0of the Spirit is love,\u00a0joy, peace,\u00a0forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,\u00a0 gentleness and self-control.\u00a0Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh\u00a0with its passions and desires.\u00a0Since we live by the Spirit,\u00a0let us keep in step with the Spirit\u201d (v.22-25). <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Look, no one would dare to claim that the acts of the sinful flesh Paul listed earlier is desirable or noble. No one. But everyone here this morning absolutely agrees that everything listed as the fruits of the Spirit are not only noble and worthy of pursuit, but a blessing to everyone anytime they are put into practice. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dear friends, You. Have. Freedom. You are free to pursue this good and worthy fruit. You are free to put it into practice in service to your neighbor and to Jesus, no matter what. At all times. No matter the circumstances. Let us give our undivided attention to putting this fruit into practice and loving Jesus and our neighbor, since the freedom we have in Christ, the freedom from our own sinful flesh, means we have a heart that is filled up to the brim when loving our neighbor as ourself. We know what it\u2019s like to love ourselves. But more importantly, we know how much more fulfilling it is to love our neighbor even more than ourselves.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Galatians 5:1, 13-25) All student loans have been cancelled. Any remaining car payments have been eliminated. All remaining criminal sentences have been commuted and records have been expunged. Great news! \u2026 that is, if any of those apply to us. But if none of them do, then it’s rather ho-hum news. Freedom only matters to… Continue reading Free From Me<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[927,65],"tags":[69,70,53,355,5,354,109,223,36,137,977,108],"class_list":["post-2896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-undivided-attention-series","category-sermons","tag-free","tag-freedom","tag-grace","tag-guys","tag-jesus","tag-prayers","tag-preaching","tag-selfish","tag-sermon","tag-serve","tag-sinfulnature","tag-teaching"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p842FN-KI","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2896"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2896\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2944,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2896\/revisions\/2944"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1thingmatters.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}