In 1995, Mel Gibson starred in Braveheart, an Academy Award winning film about the life of Scottish knight, William Wallace. Much of the dialog is fictitious and full of creative license, but there’s one scene that always stirs my heart. Before the Battle of Stirling Bridge, the first real battle of the First War of Scottish Independence, the movie depicts Wallace addressing his army. He says: “I am William Wallace. And I see a whole army of my countrymen here in defiance of tyranny. You have come to fight as free men, and free men you are. What would you do with that freedom?” (emphasis added)

In Galatians chapter 5, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, St. Paul writes these words: “For freedom, Christ has set you free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery” (Gal. 5:1a). Everything about the mission, ministry, and message of Christ is about freedom. The sick are freed from their illnesses. Sinners are freed from their sins. Some are freed even from death! Jesus’ whole mission was an operation of liberation! By Baptism, you have been freed from worrying about your sins because they are forgiven through Christ’s death. You have been freed from the fear of death because Christ is risen, and death is not the end. You have been from the power of the devil because Christ has defeated him with His perfect obedience to the Law. Forgiveness, eternal life, and salvation are yours. Freedom for all eternity!

What will you do with that freedom?

Some will squander that freedom. They’ll bury it in the backyard like the wicked servant in The Parable of the Talents. Some will take their freedom and hoard it for themselves, keeping themselves safe and not caring at all for those who are around them. They’ll present their dirt-covered talent to their Savior and be welcomed into His presence. But, perhaps in the back of their minds they might wonder…

What could I have done with that freedom?

Here’s what the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther says we should do with this freedom in his  “Treatise on Christian Liberty”: “To make the way smoother for the unlearned—for only them do I serve—I shall set down the following two propositions concerning the freedom and the bondage of the spirit: A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none. A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all” (emphasis added). This means that every Christian is set free from the things I listed above. They are perfectly free lords of their lives; they can do whatever they wish. This freedom is the gift of God in Jesus Christ.  And, Luther tells us what we should do with our freedom, that is, serve our neighbors. In this freedom from Christ, our wills align with His will and we serve others in our homes, in our families, in our congregation, and in our community. We don’t abuse our freedom and use it as an excuse. Instead we lean into that freedom and use it in ways that are God-pleasing and kingdom-expanding.

What will we do with our freedom? We will use it to free others from the same terrors that we have been freed from. We will preach the Gospel as St. Francis of Assisi tells us, “Always preach the gospel and, if necessary, use words.” Our actions of service and care for our communities will prepare hearts to hear the life-giving Word of Jesus Christ.

This is what we will do with that freedom.

In Christ,

Pastor Tom Vanderbilt