Navigating Life With Freedom…It Costs More Than You Can Possibly Imagine!

There they were…Adam and Eve, God’s crowning creation, cowering behind trees hiding from their Creator! What happened?! Freedom of choice cost them their innocence, their relationship with each other and with God…even their very souls! On the mountain overlooking Jerusalem, a dark figure knelt down offering sacrifices to a stone god. No, it wasn’t a pagan priest…it was Solomon, the great king to whom the Lord had appeared twice (1 Kings 11:1-11). How could he have adopted false religions? Freedom of will allowed him to substitute the counterfeit for the genuine! Listen, my friends, Janis Joplin was wrong…dead wrong…when she sang, “Freedom’s just another word for nothing else to lose.” Freedom, without God’s guidance, will cost you more than you can possibly imagine...even everything you’ve ever had!

As we approach our nation's July 4^th celebration, I honor those who paid the price for us to live in a free country. But the cost of freedom I’m talking about is different. It’s the devastation of believing that you’re free to live however you please…even if it displeases God! Look at what happens with that kind of freedom:

1. You’ll Drift into Dangerous Waters. Without a governing compass, you’re lost! Without proper guidance for your soul, you’ll become prey for every predator (Jer. 50:6-7; Ezek. 34:8).

2. You’ll Shipwreck Your Faith. To justify sinful actions, you’ll adopt false doctrines that condone unbiblical ways of life. Freedom to tamper with God’s word will sink your faith (1 Tim. 1:18-20)!

3. You’ll End Up in the Wrong Place. A deceptive compass is more dangerous than any storm at sea. It’ll convince you that evil is good and darkness is light (Is. 5:20-21). Self-governance means saying “Yes” to the right things and “No” to the wrong ones (Eph. 4:22-24).

Now, I’ve got Good News and Bad News. First the Bad News: Your “Self-Governing” compass is broken! It always points the wrong way! But here’s the Good News: God can replace it with His Compass that never fails. But this won’t happen unless you…

1. Identify the Oppressive Forces that Enslave You. There are three: 1-Your Fallen Nature; 2- Trying to Keep the Law; 3-The Devil. All three will keep you enslaved to sin, riddled with guilt and withheld from your destiny. But Jesus broke their bondages and set you free (Luke 4:18-19)!

2. Define “Freedom” the way God Does. Your fallen nature wants to be free from all restrictions. But true freedom in Christ means you can live as God intends, not as you please! (Gal. 5:16-25).

3. Walk with the Spirit of Life and You’ll Have True Freedom! God’s Holy Spirit is your NEW “Compass.” He always leads you into God's kind intentions. Walk with Him and you don’t have to obey sinful desires (Wow, that’s an eye opener!) (Rom. 8:2-4). Walk with Him and you’ll be free to become who God created you to be.

4. Understand that Your New Freedom Wasn’t Free for God! At unimaginable cost, the Son of God surrendered His privileges of deity, became a flesh and blood person, took the sin of the world upon Himself, humbled Himself to endure death on a cross, suffered the eternal punishment that we all deserved, and gave His righteousness to all who trust in Him (2 Cor. 5:21; Philip. 2:6-8). And He did it all for you…to set you FREE to walk into your Destiny!

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