The Illusion of Freedom

I was listening to the radio today and the host was talking about how Canada is faring as a multicultural society with respect to immigrants who bring their religious beliefs with them.  The specific group mentioned were people with Islamic beliefs, and the question that was raised was whether this group could really assimilate into Canadian society given basic differences like gender equality.  In Canada there is a deep rooted sense of equality between men and women in terms of things like having a public voice through mechanisms like voting.  The dialogue was lively and the end result was that it would be difficult for a foreign culture like Islam to mesh well with Canadian liberal democracy, because the freedoms offered to both men and women here do not line up with much of Islamic thought or expression.

I am of the opinion that our public dialogue, that which we hear most often in the public square, does much to shape the way we think in general.  And the talk that surrounds Canadian public life is that we are a nation that is free.  And in one sense I agree: we are free from political dictators; we are free to pursue our own life's work; we are free to move, and to speak etc.  These are amazing liberties that many do not enjoy, but we must be careful when we use the language of freedom.

The danger of our "freedom" language is that it can provide a subtle but devastating veneer that hides oppression underneath.  If we think we are really free simply because we are not living in a communist, or Islamic nation we are mistaken.  You see, there is a freedom that is more fundamental, more deeply rooted and essential to true human freedom that the language of politics can never touch.  We were designed for freedom, but freedom is often not achieved by many in our free Canadian society.  When this happens we are living in an illusion of freedom.

I have heard it said that ideals are what you hope for and values are what you actually live out.  So what are our values as Christians?  Do we allow our lives to be shaped more by political rhetoric than by essential and foundational truths that come from God through His word?  I believe that politics, the expression of public leadership and governance, is something that God approves, but I also believe that He desires for the ideals of godly freedom to inform, shape and ultimately give guidance to the values of individual lives that in turn shape the values of political life.

There is no room to separate our beliefs from our public life--if we do all we are doing is contributing to the veneer, the illusion of freedom in our country.

But Paul gives us a different vision, a different mandate:  He says that because the ministry of the Holy Spirit has brought righteousness to us we should be very bold! (2 Cor. 3:12)  We are not to be arrogant or insensitive, but we are invited into a public expression of our faith in Jesus--and the base meaning of "politics" simply means public.  We are invited to boldly live out our lives in Jesus in public.  But we need some kind of a guide to help us navigate what this looks like- - -what is it that we are to look for to help us?

Consider verse 17 "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." Do we want real freedom?  Then we need to be able to indentify where the 'Spirit of the Lord is' because there is real freedom.  So where is He?

Well, according to 2 Cor. 6:16 we are the temple in which the Holy Spirit dwells so, amazingly, the freedom that all people need resides within each believer in Jesus!  Incredible.  I begin to imagine that the hope for our massive country to find freedom already exists but it is contained in me!  What a gift, and what a opportunity.

But how?  This is where it gets difficult for a lot of Christians, because whether it's through fear or ignorance, we often don't know how to share this gift of freedom of others.  Here are only two things that might help us along:
First:  God makes an impact to the world through us in a myriad of ways.  When someone is hurting, it is godly to care for them.  When someone is hungry, it is godly to feed them.  When someone is hurting someone else, it is godly to protect the helpless.  And on and on and on.  Every gift and personality that God has given and made is useful in His Kingdom and that includes you.
Second:  Do everything as unto the Lord.  What this means to me is that we begin to live with intent.  When we are living our lives, then we need to have our eyes fixed on Jesus and remember that we are working through His Spirit that lives in us.  He desires to speak and direct us. He wants to give us words at the right times, but we are deeply embedded in the thinking that our spiritual lives are so separate from our political lives (our daily lived out lives) that we don't live with godly intent.

So let's start today:  let's ask for the Lord of all things to help us to live in real freedom, to live as the Holy Spirit guides us and let's be ready to see Him change us and change our world.

BT