What is the source of your freedom? Where does it come from?
For Christians the source of real liberation is the Spirit of God. He liberates the human spirit from bondage to the old masters of sin and death.
Try to imagine life for Paul when he lived under the old taskmasters of the law, sin and death. Paul (Saul at the time) was a very respected Pharisee. He was a scholar of the Torah, the five books from Moses, Bereshit, Shemot, Vayikra, Bemidbar and Devarim (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) and of the oral laws of restriction and commands from his era, now found in the Talmud.
You've heard how doctors make the worst patients? Why is that do you think? Possibly because they know too much and may fear the treatment? I think of Paul in this way when I contemplate what it was like to live under the law as he did. He knew so much of the only text available to anyone of his times; taught from it, killed from it, admonished from it. But when it came time for his own treatment do you think he struggled with and feared failure? In those dark corners where there is just him and God, do you think he succumbed to the realization that they were forever locked into a perpetual life of sacrifice? Do you think he struggled with how fallible he was? Can you see the chains now?
So, how did God set us free from the condemnation of the law? First of all the law was holy and good. It was not evil - it came from God. The problem was in our own sinful nature. Whoever tried to keep the law failed. So God sent his own Son to remove the burden of the law from us by offering himself as an eternal sacrifice for our sin. (Pop! There goes a link in that sin chain of bondage!)
Then, how does God set us free from being dominated by our sinful nature? It's by being controlled by the Spirit instead of being controlled by the sinful mind. We either live in accordance with our sinful nature or we live in accordance with the Spirit. BUT HOW? I HAVE SO MUCH TO GET RID OF! The indwelling of the Holy Spirit, that supernatural spirit of the Father living inside us, counters our sinful nature. Do you now utter to yourself things like - "Oh!! That shouldn't have come from me!" when before it was common behaviour and you never considered it? This is the Holy Spirit countering your sinful nature. He intercedes and teaches, convicts and converts. (Pop! There goes the link that says "You don't have the ability to change.")
But what about death. How does God set us free from this? First, we were dead in our spirit toward God but now our spirit has been made alive. Second, the death of our body will be overcome by our future resurrection. The Spirit is active in both. Our body dies to our sin but our spirit is alive because of righteousness. If His Spirit is in us, He that rose Christ will also raise us. And no power on earth can separate us from the love of God. (POP POP - The chain of death broken at the cross)
Why do we still try to submit to the authority of legalism? We are still flesh and it still has sinful ways. We will battle these sinful urgings. As we cultivate our lives in the realm of the Spirit we become more accustomed to a life of godliness - Less Flesh - More Spirit. (Pop - The link of thinking "It's going to be a breeze" is broken - Satan can't use this to bring us down)
Where can I find the strength to battle this sinful nature? We can come to God now as one of his children. There is no more condemnation of our sins. Take confidence in this. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is from God to you - take confidence that you belong to Him. We are not alone anymore with the law and our perpetual sacrifice. (Pop - the chain of weakness is destroyed)
And when I am weak how does this Spirit minister to me? What should I pray for? We do not know what we ought to pray for but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God's will. (Broken - The chains of self-reliance are crushed.)
Can you see the broken chains at the foot of the cross? Death couldn't keep Him, the grave couldn't contain Him and through Him I am saved. My sin is no longer seen by the Father. I am free.
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