The Paradox of Freedom
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[00:00:00] Hi, this is Tammy from Rebuilding Faith Online Community. I joined the community because I learned that there are alternate and viable views on Christian theology and biblical interpretation views. That really resonated with me and made me realize that I was on a deconstruction journey. The best part about my experience in the community has been the book studies.
This is where we read through different books and have group conversations about what each of us is learning. Knowing that I am not alone in my spiritual journey gives me hope and comfort.
jeremy_2_09-12-2025_142007: Welcome to another episode of Rebuilding Faith.
These are 10 minute Bible messages for people with questions and doubts, and today I want you to imagine what comes to your mind when I say the word freedom.
Now if you're an American, there are certain images that we have come to associate with the idea of freedom.
You might think of the American flag, you might think of a bald eagle, right? We have these kind of images and [00:01:00] this is what we say. These are the icons, these symbols of freedom. But today what we're gonna see is Jesus had a very different. Idea of what freedom looked like, and in fact, it may not even make sense to us.
So let's explore it together. In John chapter eight, verse 31, we read this, Jesus said to the people who believed in him, you are truly my disciples. If you remain faithful to my teachings, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. Ooh. Doesn't that sound good? Give me some of that. The truth will set you free.
That sounds like a really good idea, especially in an era of misinformation. When you watch things and read things and you wonder what is. True what is not true. This is a daily [00:02:00] occurrence. Even just trying to process the news of the day. We live in a time when our politicians are arguing over releasing the Epstein files and we are left to wonder what is true about all of this.
These words ring out that you will find freedom in the truth, and this is the premise that Jesus begins to make. But Jesus is gonna take it further. Verse 33. But we are descendants of Abraham. They said, we've never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean you will be set free? Right? They're a little confused by this imagery.
Jesus replied, I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. So if the son sets you free, you are truly free. Now, today, when we think of slavery and these images [00:03:00] come to mind, we likely think of the race-based slavery of America's history of the American plantations.
But Roman slavery worked differently. Slaves in the Roman Empire were not based on race. It was usually. Captives of war. So when the Romans would win, they would often make slaves out of the people that they had conquered. Now, more often than not, a lot of the slaves that they brought in were professionals.
They were doctors and accountants by profession. Many of them were well off even as slaves. Now in the Roman culture, slaves had civil rights. They could even sue their masters. And they could expect to get a fair hearing in a trial if their master had done something to abuse them. Now, the only time you really have a lot of examples of Romans, mistreating slaves is when you had slavery as a punishment when someone was.
Put into slavery as a punishment, then that was a bit different. [00:04:00] But for the most part, most of the way that they treated their slaves was a relatively comfortable and safe lifestyle. Now, for much of Roman history, a slave status was temporary. It usually lasted about 20 years, and not more than that.
There were, well-established paths for slaves to get their freedom. Eventually. In fact, some of the translations of the passage we just read seem to indicate this, seem to lean on this reality. David Bentley Hart's translation of verse 35 says this, but the slave does not remain in the household for life.
The sun remains for life. The idea of being this slave is here for a season, not going to be with us forever. This was the idea that you were a slave. For a while now, this idea began to shift and come to a standstill during the time we refer to as the Pox Romana, the [00:05:00] Roman peace. This was about the first and second centuries.
Now, during this time, there were less new slaves being made because there were less Roman conquests happening, so they were not conquering and bringing in as many new slaves. So during the time of Jesus there, there was a shift beginning to take place where it became more difficult, it became slower to receive your freedom because there were not as many new slaves coming in.
And this idea of freedom from slavery was being discouraged as time was going on as kind of an unofficial. Roman policy. So when Jesus is on the scene when he's talking about slavery, there was a shifting of the culture on this issue of slavery, which is fascinating to consider when Jesus uses a metaphor of obedience to him as being the route in which [00:06:00] to experience freedom.
So there's already this cultural tension. This was something they likely spent a lot of time talking about. This was a well-known part of what was going on, and then Jesus speaks right to this, but he does it in a way that many people would've not seen coming. Essentially what Jesus is saying is, make me the master of your life by choice.
Like, not because I'm going to conquer you, not because I'm going to defeat you in battle, but choose this. Choose to make me the master of your life, and then and only then will you really experience freedom. This is a wild idea and it would've been a wild time for Jesus to introduce this. But the author of John seems to be implying there are really two realities at play here.
Either sin would have the [00:07:00] authority or Jesus would, and and so essentially it's choosing between will you be ruled by sin, where sin is your master, sin is the ultimate authority, or will you be ruled by someone else and that person is Jesus. Paradoxically, a master slave relationship with Jesus is what brings true freedom.
So are we okay giving Jesus this kind of authority in our lives today? This ultimate authority to overrule even things that we might believe or we might want? Do we have the ability to submit? To Jesus in that way. What would this kind of freedom look like? I wanna close with a quote from Justin Bronson Baringer, and this is such a powerful idea.
It's a play on the image of freedom, and I think this is more of what Jesus has in [00:08:00] mind when he offers us a different kind of freedom than the way that the world views freedom. Here's what Baringer says. True freedom is not having the right to say whatever you want without consequences. It is being able to say what is right, regardless of the consequences.
Will we have freedom like that? Either the ultimate authority will be sin. Or it will be the person of Jesus who we say, show me a better way to live. And Jesus says, I will give you freedom in the process. I'll see you next week on Rebuilding Faith.
