What does it mean to be free?

When one thinks of freedom, it is often seen in the light of doing anything, any time, in any way one desires. But is this what freedom really looks like?

The Bible also points us to freedom. When Christ died on the cross, he chose to go to the cross despite the mockery, pain, despair and loneliness it cost him. And he did it for my liberty, your liberty — freedom from slavery to sin.

What does freedom really look like?

 

The promise

Paul in Galatians 3, talks about Jesus being the “seed” or offspring of Abraham through whom God’s promise to bless all the nations will be fulfilled. 

God did not forget this promise. He was bringing it all to pass in his perfect timing and wisdom. His promise was fulfilled through Jesus and that fulfilment has brought us liberty.

What for?

Yet, this freedom that has been bought by Christ and received through faith is not for me to do as I wish. In this freedom, I am to love God and love others. As Paul declares in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” 

In this freedom, I am to love God and love others.

It is a freedom led by the Spirit that produces the fruit of righteousness. So perhaps a question we need to constantly ask ourselves is — “Am I producing the fruit of the Spirit in my life?”

What does this look like in our everyday life?

we can choose

Paul gives us a good vision for this in Galatians 5:13-14 where he encourages us to “serve one another humbly in love”. Perhaps by looking at the fruit of the Spirit described in Galatians 5:22-23, we get a better glimpse into what it looks like to put love into action in our daily lives. 

Galatians 5:13-14 encourages us to “serve one another humbly in love”.

We can choose … 

To love when we have been hurt.

To be joyful in the little or more that we have.

To choose peace and not wage wars or easily find fault.

To be long-suffering when we face seasons when nothing seems to be going our way.

To be kind, when unkindness is on the tip of our tongues.

To choose goodness, even when we are unfairly treated.

To be faithful at home, at work, in relationships.

To be gentle; rebuking in love but affirming and reconciling in grace.

To have self-control, fleeing temptations and turning to Christ for help.

Our freedom has been bought for us by the blood of Christ. Let’s not waste this freedom but live wisely loving God and loving others.

Mess scares us.
Many of us want to fix it, or at least try to neaten it up so the curious eyes of those around don’t make us feel uneasy. Somehow, we have been taught to package our lives into neat parcels and showcase the good sides and not the bad sides.

Look at posts on social media and you see it.

But deep down, we know that our lives aren’t as nicely packaged and pristine as we want them to look to the outsider.

The good news

Here’s the good news: God sees your mess and He loves you. He is not going anywhere but staying by your side, wanting to journey with you through the mess. He is a faithful God who makes good on His promises.

God sees your mess and He loves you.

About a year ago, I was baking with my daughter. Holding an egg in her hand, she was ready to crack it into the bowl. But with one knock on the bowl, her little hands squished the egg towards herself. So, instead of the egg dropping into the bowl, we saw runny, gooey egg white and yolk all over her top, flowing down the tabletop, trickling down the cabinet, and racing to the floor.

Oh my gosh. That was my first thought.
“Sorry Mummy,” she whispered quickly, half expecting me to be upset.

It doesn’t sound very funny with the description of the mess, but honestly, the way the egg cracked, and my reaction coupled with hers, made me burst out laughing.

“It’s okay, Sweetpea. These things happen. We are baking and you’re learning. Let’s clean up and try again,” I enveloped her in a bear hug and assured her.

Clean-up was not the most fun, but before I knew it, we were back on track baking what we had set out to, and the next egg she cracked went into the bowl perfectly.

This story reminds me of how sometimes we fear that the mess we make is too great. We beat ourselves up and we sulk, dwelling on thoughts that tell us we are not good enough.

But wait. Remember that God sees you as so much more important than the mess. He wants to clean up the mess with us if we would let Him.

Sure, our mess may be a lot more than just gooey egg on the table and floor, but think about how much bigger God is as well. He can take the load of our mess, no matter how big it is. The question is whether we would let Him take it.

Think about how much bigger God is as well. He can take the load of our mess.

Others messed up too

If we look at characters in the Bible, we see a lot of mess. Jacob manipulated his brother, Esau, into giving him his birthright for a bowl of soup and some bread (Gen 25:29–34). He then dressed up like his brother and tricked his father into giving him the blessing meant for Esau (Gen 27:1–41). Yet, Jacob was still chosen to continue the line which carried God’s promise (Gen 28:10–15).

King David messed up too. He coveted another man’s wife and then eventually sent the man, Uriah, to the frontlines to be killed to cover up his sin (2 Sam 11). In the end, King David had to be confronted by the prophet Nathan to realise the mess that he had made (2 Sam 12:1–15).

Through these stories, we see a common theme of messing up and then God coming to save. And the in-between of these steps is a repentant heart. Jacob knew what he had done to Esau was wrong and eventually made up with Esau (Gen 32–33). David realised his sin and cried out to God for mercy (2 Sam 12:13, Psalm 51). We don’t have to let our mess define us. Come back to God in repentance and see Him work in you, making something beautiful from the mess.

       We don’t have to let our mess define us.
       Come back to God in repentance and see Him work in you,
       making something beautiful from the mess.

Characters in the Bible are just as messy and broken like us. Yet, this did not stop God from making good on His promises, showing His faithfulness when his people are unfaithful. God even used the mess to make something beautiful. After their first child died, Solomon was born of David and Bathsheba, who eventually became the next king after David, carrying on his lineage. We look at characters in the Bible, we see a lot of mess. Jacob manipulated his brother, Esau, into giving him his birthright for a bowl of soup and some bread (Gen 25:29–34). He then dressed up like his brother and tricked his father into giving him the blessing meant for Esau (Gen 27:1–41). Yet, Jacob was still chosen to continue the line which carried God’s promise (Gen 28:10–15).

Characters in the Bible are just as messy and broken like us. Yet, this did not stop God from making good on His promises, showing His faithfulness when His people are unfaithful.

would you give God your mess?

Some may ask, why does this lineage even matter?

The line of descendants from Abraham to Isaac to Jacob to David led all the way to Jesus (Matt 1:1–17). And this is our good news to live out and carry to the world — Jesus came to save us from our mess and give us life anew! Through the generations, God has been the same faithful One amidst all the mess in the world.

Would you give God your mess today and let Him rescue you?

Have you ever wanted something so badly that the consequences did not matter to you? It could be wanting to fit in, wanting to look trendy beside your friends, or wanting to feel loved. The nation of Israel had this strong desire to fit in with their neighbours and did not pay any heed to the consequences that were to follow. They suffered as a consequence but again and again, God’s love and faithfulness remained.

What happened?

One example of Israel’s error is found in the book of 1 Samuel, which recounts how Israel demanded for a king even though God was already their king. The people wanted a king — a human king they could see and hear (1 Sam 8:5, 19–20). God’s heart was grieved (8:7–8), but He had the prophet Samuel warn the people about the consequences of having a king to rule over the nation of Israel (8:9–10):

• The people would have to give their sons up to serve the king in his army and for his own benefit like farming and arms-making (8:11–12).

   

• The king would also take their daughters as workers for him (8:13).

   

• The king would take the best of what the people had and distribute part of their grain and wine to his closest allies; he would start by taking their servants and livestock to serve him and end by taking they themselves as his slaves (1 Sam 8:14–17).

   

• Eventually, even though they would make an outcry against the king, God would not answer them (8:18).

But stubborn as they were, the people still insisted and refused to listen and wanted to be like the other nations around them (8:19–20). They wanted a king to rule over them, so God gave them a king (8:22).

God would once again restore the relationship He had with His people
who had turned away from Him.

god’s response

Instead of completely forsaking His people when they went against Him, God did just the opposite. Look at God’s response to His people when they later realised their sin and cried out to God ( 12:19).

In 1 Samuel 12:20–22, Samuel assures the people of Israel:

Do not be afraid. You have done all this evil; yet do not turn away from the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. Do not turn away after useless idols.They can do you no good, nor can they rescue you, because they are useless. For the sake of his great name the LORD will not reject his people, because the LORD was pleased to make you his own. 

God would once again restore the relationship He had with His people who had turned away from Him. God would call His people back to Himself. God is gracious and He remains faithful even when we are not. 

Instead of completely forsaking His people when they went against Him,

God did just the opposite.

Our response

What are some things you have demanded for, that you know are not the best for you? When have you not heeded the warnings or gentle reminders from those around you and sought to do things your own way? Know that God has not given up on you and He is still calling you to Himself. 

What ‘kings’ have you established in your life that you need to dethrone to place Jesus rightfully on the throne of your heart again? Now is the time to set things right with Him.

Know that God has not given up on you
and He is still calling you to Himself

The hymn “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus” by Helen Howarth Lemmel encourages us: 

Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
That the things of the world
Will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace

When the world beckons us to turn aside to desire other things that may look good or seem to be the popular choice among our friends, let us turn our eyes upon Jesus. May the words of this song resonate in our hearts — that we would choose to turn our eyes upon Jesus and not turn aside to other things. And in doing so, Jesus will cause our desire for Him to grow and the desire for the things of the world to fade.

Sometimes we do feel like we’ve been forgotten, don’t we? We look around us and everyone seems to have it together and we wonder, “Why not me?”. 

For many of the Bible’s characters we are familiar with, they too may have felt this. For example, Joseph was falsely accused and thrown into prison. Even when he helped his inmate out of prison, he was forgotten. But God had not forgotten Joseph and eventually used him to save his whole family and the population of Egypt from a severe famine (Gen 39–41). How about the woman who suffered haemorrhaging for 12 years and saw no light of healing for so long? She must have felt forgotten. But God had not forgotten her and in the end, she had a personal encounter with Jesus himself (Matt 9:20–22).

The Lord will work out his plans for my life—
    for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever.
    Don’t abandon me, for you made me.

Psalm 138:8

Psalm 138:8 tells us that “The LORD will work out His plans for my life — for Your faithful love, O LORD, endures forever. Don’t abandon me, for You made me” (NLT). This is God’s promise that He will be on the journey with you and He is at work in perfecting and completing the good work He has started in your life. Even when it seems that things have gone wrong, remember that God has not let you out of His sight. You can trust and rest assured that God isn’t giving up on you or that He has stopped working in your life. His faithful love holds you.

Back in junior college, I remember the day when I received my GCE ‘A’ level results. Staring at my grades, I felt lost and unsure. I had worked hard and did not get the results I had hoped for. I was devastated because, while many of my good friends were headed to the school of their choice, I was kind of left on the shelf, forgotten. At that point, I didn’t understand nor feel like this was God’s perfect plan all set in motion for me. But God knew and He was working in and through situations that looked bleak to me. 

Eventually, I did get into one of the local universities and into a course I had interest in. As much as I was disappointed initially, God truly had a plan for my life and He was teaching me that I could trust Him. The next four years were one of the best in my life — making amazing friends whose friendships carry me till today, enjoying and being challenged in what I studied and soaking up the experiences of hall life and more. Looking back now, those difficult times revealed God’s faithful love to me and how God did not and will not abandon me. He knows better than I do and I can fully rely on Him.

In the big and tricky situations in my life, or the small and mundane,
even in things I don’t even mention to others;
He knows and He is faithfully working it out.

god’s terms, not mine

Another thing to remember is that this working out of God’s plan for my life is through Christ, in order that I may be made more and more into His likeness and glory. So whatever that has to do with me — big or small, significant or seemingly insignificant — He is there and doing something good. In the big and tricky situations in my life, or the small and mundane, even in things I don’t even mention to others; He knows and He is faithfully working it out.

Sometimes, we lose ourselves in thinking God’s plans for our lives would pan out in how we generally understand “good” to be — good grades, good health, good family, and so on. When that doesn’t happen, we lose heart. We question God’s goodness or what He says because it honestly doesn’t look good at times. But if we read carefully, we see that this is the working out of God’s plan for our lives, not our plans for our lives. It is based on God’s terms, not ours.

On this journey, God’s mercy holds us fast.
God is kind and He is gentle with us.

His mercy endures forever

At times, without being able to see the big picture, it feels like being stuck in a maze with the exit point being a blur. But in those moments, may we pause and remember that God holds us close. Through the heartaches and pain, or the frustration and tears, this verse clearly says that God’s faithful love is present. In the NKJV translation, it speaks of God’s mercy being upon us. His mercy endures forever. 

On this journey, God’s mercy holds us fast. God is kind and He is gentle with us. Isaiah 64:8 reminds us, “Yet You, LORD, are our Father. We are the clay, You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand.” God is mercifully at work in our lives, making us beautiful.

In the second half of Psalm 138:8, David pleads, “Don’t abandon me, for You made me.” This is a call on God’s character, His perfect character that never changes. Therefore, just as David did, I can trust in who God says He is. Despite my flaws and failures, God will hold me fast in the good times and the bad times of my life and His mercy endures forever. 

Through this journey, I will emerge complete, beautiful and refined in Christ who never fails. 

So when you feel forgotten, remember the promises God has given — He is working out that which concerns you and He does so with mercy and faithfulness. Let this truth shape your life and your thoughts because you are loved and remembered.

Sitting at my sewing machine as the clock strikes one in the morning, my eyes are slightly heavy, but my mind is active and I’m still raring to go. The thread flies across the patterned cloth, seaming its side just the way I want it to. My eyes focused on the hand-drawn pattern of a dress beside me, I make sure to flip to the right side of the cloth before letting my needle do the work. The clock strikes again. This time, it’s three in the morning. How did time fly by like that? I’m not tired. I’m actually more awake. Holding up my completed project, a sense of fulfilment and delight fills me. I feel alive.

Thank God that all of us are created unique with different likings, personalities and strengths. Yet, in all our differences, God has made us to enjoy Him, the work of His hands, and the work of our hands.

Ecclesiastes reminds us that it is the gift of God that all of us should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all our labour (Ecc 3:13). And this work of our hands — this labour — is part of co-creating with God. This work that God has given to us can be an act of worship unto Him.

I know that there is nothing better for people than to be happy and to do good while they live. That each of them may eat and drink, and find satisfaction in all their toil — this is the gift of God.

co-creators with Christ

In an article titled “Created Co-Creators” by Drew Rick-Miller, the project Co-director of Science for the Church, he says that humans are co-creators with God and this is a reflection of the freedom that we have to participate in God’s purposes. The idea of co-creating is not about placing ourselves on the same level as God, but acknowledging that when we submit to His will and purposes, we become willing participants to His ways. This approach was first introduced by Lutheran theologian Philip Hefner. In a sense, God has made us to be his hands and feet on earth to carry out His good purposes on earth. Ultimately, it is God’s work and ways being fulfilled and not our own cleverness or ability.

Therefore, when we create — when we build something, when we freely create through art, music, dance, when we discover new technological improvements, when we form relationships and create moments of delight — we are exercising our status as co-creators in Christ. First Corinthians 3:9 tells us that “we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.” And this act of co-creating can be worship unto God.

It isn’t just doing what needs to be done. It is doing what needs to be done while knowing that you are worshipping God through it.

So whether you are a student, an employee, a parent, or whether you find yourself caring for your elderly parents or little children, or whether you are painting, creating music, serving food or playing sports; when we see that this work we are doing is good — fulfilling God-given roles — there can be great joy gained and fulfilment found. Understanding the importance of co-creating with God is freeing and helps us to find joy and meaning in the work, no matter how mundane or difficult. It isn’t just doing what needs to be done, it is doing what needs to be done while knowing that you are worshipping God through it. In the past, I used to see worshipping God as something fixed to a time and place; like at church or at home when spending quiet times with God. But as I grew in my understanding, worship became so much more than that. Our lives in and of itself is a worship unto God. That means in all we do, say, think — these are acts of worship. So when we do what needs to be done with a heart that seeks God’s glory, we are worshipping. 

NOw what?

Knowing that we are co-creators with God and our work is worship unto Him … now what? The truth is, work can still be frustrating and discouraging. Instead of jumping out of bed in the morning and going to school or work, we find ourselves dragging our feet, wondering how long more before the day ends. How then can we find joy in this work?

In his article “How to Fight Laziness”, John Piper declares that: we need to have a good theology of work. Simply put, it is having a biblically sound theology of work. Work is not a bad thing. Frustrating work is the bad thing. When God made the heavens and the earth, He was working. That’s why Genesis tells us that “by the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing” (Gen 2:2). This work that God completed has resulted in the beautiful world we have – majestic mountains, rivers that wind and bend, glorious sunrises and sunsets, stars that twinkle in the night sky, and so much more. 

God had wanted to share the work of co-creating with humankind. In Genesis 2:15, it tells us that “the LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it” (emphasis mine). He did not give humankind work in order to tire him out and frustrate him. He gave work that was fulfilling and work that was good. Therefore, let’s be encouraged to give our whole-hearted best in all that we do (Ecc 9:10), remembering that we are “working for the Lord, not for human masters” (Col 3:23).

He did not give humankind work in order to tire him out and frustrate him.
He gave work that was fulfilling and work that was good.

a gift

A question to ponder upon: What is the work that makes you come alive? 

For me, I come alive when I work with my hands, whether in kneading dough to make a loaf of sourdough, knitting or embroidering to create something beautiful, or even putting words on paper. I have a sense of God’s delight – almost a glimpse into how a father simply enjoys looking on as his daughter creates something of her own – and my own delight as well. Perhaps for you, work takes on a different and more unconventional direction. You may love coding or designing, or you have a knack for problem solving. Whatever it may be, these moments of coming alive while co-creating is a gift from God.

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Eph 2:10). Use the giftings and talents God has given to you and work at it with all your heart as a worship unto God, knowing that you are His hands and feet in this world. Enjoy this process of co-creating, becoming a willing participant in the purposes of God for your life.