Focus
Stop and thank God for being present with you today. Ask for God’s guidance as you hear God’s voice through scripture and the writer.
Read
Genesis 3:1-3 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.’”
Reflect
What is Freedom?
There are two kinds of freedom in modern philosophy: Freedom from, or negative freedom, and freedom to, or positive freedom. Think of it this way. Negative freedom is freedom from external obstacles or restrictions from others. Things like curfews, chores, and age restrictions all indicate outside limits to your freedom. Positive freedom is the freedom to be in the driver’s seat and direct your life. Positive freedom involves making choices about what you want to do with your life…like deciding to stay out really late, letting the dishes pile up, and watching whatever you want because you can. Now you’re interested, right? The hope of life for most humans, especially in our society, is to have as few external restrictions on our freedom as possible. Yet this is not the greatest end.
The mark of a mature man or woman is someone who may be externally free to do anything but finds the internal will not to do everything OR someone who may be bound by external circumstances but finds the internal will to be free. The point of life for the Christian is not freedom for freedom’s sake but freedom to glorify God and enjoy God forever in the midst of life.
Pray
God, you call us to freedom in Christ, help us to experience all the freedom that is offered in Jesus Christ. Keep us from being tempted by those things which promise freedom but instead entangle us, keeping us from being fully human. Amen
Go with God!
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