One of the most dynamic scenes ever captured on film is the execution of William Wallace in the movie Braveheart. Wallace is being tortured for his crimes of treason against the crown of Britain. This brutal act is an attempt to give Wallace a final opportunity to renounce his deeds and realign his allegiance to the King. When Wallace is given a respite in which to speak, through the pain of disembowelment, he cries out, "Freedom!"

When we speak of freedom in today's world, most people narrow it down to our inalienable right established by the Declaration of Independence that guarantees our claim to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." In other words, when interpreted by a postmodern worldview, this says, "I must do whatever I can to be happy. As long as I don't hurt anyone else, I am fine." We equate freedom with license and feel that we are free when we "do our own thing." Even after becoming born again, many believers misinterpret scriptures to mean many things thus calling anything that might stand in their way of happiness to be legalism, and therefore they are open to do what they want. Is this what the scriptures teach? Is this what true biblical freedom is all about?

Over the last few months I've noticed a recurring theme in the conversations I've had with various students that I teach. They speak and know of freedom, but they have difficulty making it a practical reality in their own lives. They experience a bondage that's disguised as a pseudo-freedom. Many even evidence a fear of liberty, as if they're going to be lost to the dark side. Defeat, exhaustion, confusion, and even infuriation become the controlling ambiance of life when you believe you're free but you really aren't. Such a person needs to experience a renovation in the form of real liberation from the suffocating pseudo-freedom.

I have heard legalism defined as "anything that I think I must do to add to salvation." That is only partially right. Paul tells the Galatians that legalism is anything that I think I must do to put myself in right relationship with God. It's not so much about salvation as it is about sanctification. I don't have to jump through any hoops to be in right relationship; Jesus Christ alone makes me right with God. The Galatian church needed to hear this, as do we. Nothing I do makes me closer to God. Nothing I do keeps me in right standing with God. Christ has already done the work and set us free. (Galations 5:1).

So how do we obtain true freedom, especially if we are involved in some type of habitual sin? How do we break the cycle of sin followed by confession and repentance? What must be done to move on to maturity in Christ, leaving the old sin pattern behind us forever?

After a lengthy discussion with the Pharisees, Jesus proclaimed, "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." It's not the truth that sets us free, but the knowledge of that truth that sets us free. We must know what God says about us, about our lives, and about who we are in Jesus Christ. When we come to that realization then we can begin to move on to maturity.

The first amendment to the Constitution of the United States says this: "Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."

Four great freedoms are noted in that amendment. These are the freedom to worship; the freedom to speak; the freedom to print; and the freedom to assemble. I am thankful that we have freedom to gather together and worship the Lord. However, there are additional freedoms that those who have placed their trust in Jesus Christ enjoy.

First, we have freedom from the Lie. John 8:32 says, "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." There are two forces at work in the work day: the Truth and the Lie. Jesus Christ is the truth as He so adamantly states in John 14:6: "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." The Lie comes from the evil one. Jesus was speaking to the Pharisees when He said, "You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies" (John 8:44).

When we receive the Son of God as revealed to us in the Word of God, then we can know the truth. Without Him in our lives, we remain in bondage to Satan who is the father of all lies. It's the knowledge of this Truth that protects us from error. It's much like those whose job it is to identify counterfeit bills. We generally think that one would bring in all the counterfeit bills that had ever been discovered and have the workers study and familiarize themselves with these counterfeits. But oddly enough they do just the opposite. These workers spend most of their training studying not counterfeit bills, but genuine bills. The government wants them to be so familiar with what is true that a counterfeit is immediately obvious. The more we know, study, and apply the Truth as found in God's Word, the easier we are able to spot the Lie. Knowing the truth insures us from the danger of being deceived.

This does not mean that we will never sin. We are born with a sin nature. Ephesians 2:3 says, "All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath." The fact that we have been born into sin does not mean that we must be held captive by sin.

First, Jesus Christ guarantees that we are free from the guilt of sin. Romans 8:1: "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death."

Next, we are free from the consequences of sin. This does not mean that we are free from natural consequences. For example, if I choose to steal, I may be faced with the consequence of being charged with a crime and doing time in jail. However, Christ sets us free from the spiritual consequences of sin: "Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died-- more than that, who was raised to life is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us" (Romans 8:33-34). In other words, when we sin, because of the supreme and ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we have the opportunity to repent and ask forgiveness. This is certainly not freedom to continually and habitually involve ourselves in sin because of the grace of God. When Paul poses the question, "What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase," he answers in the next verse by saying "By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?" (Romans 6:1-2) Habitual sin is not the life of a believer who is walking in the truth.

Lastly, we are free from the power of sin. Romans 6:16-18 says, "Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one whom you obey-- whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness? But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness."We are no longer enslaved by the enemy! We no longer have to walk in the Lie! We can now walk in the truth of the word of God.