Paul Said: Freedom!

Freedom! If you live in the United States, you’re going to hear a lot about freedom this week as Independence Day ( the Fourth of July) is coming up. Some churches will hold Independence Day events – picnics, concerts, even “patriotic worship” services. The beliefs that undergird Christian Nationalism can, over time, creep into churches without any fanfare or much notice. Christian Nationalism ties national identity and political identity to Christian faith in dangerous ways.¹It would be wise for us to think about church Independence Day events and our faith².

Words, as you know, can have a variety of meanings depending upon their context. Freedom is one of those words. It is one thing to talk about freedom in an American context. It is another thing to talk about freedom in a Christian context. We also talk about freedom as individuals. In recent years, freedom, for many of us has come to mean, ” I should be able to do what I want.” These various uses of the idea of “freedom” are not the same thing.

What Paul has to say about freedom is consistent with the teaching of Jesus- our freedom to act means we should be aware of how our actions affect others.

For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love becomes enslaved to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.

Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law. Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such thing. And those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Galatians 5:1, 13-25 NRSVue

Paul was writing to the church, perhaps more than one church, in Galatia in the late 40s or mid 50s CE. People there were trying to figure out how to be Christians. How should people who were raised as Jews or Gentiles now come together as followers of Jesus? How do people who were raised with different practices, different standards of behavior, different beliefs, now live and worship together? What practices, what rituals, what principles, what ethical standards should they keep and what should they let go of?

Paul has been making his case that Christians can step away from the rules that previously governed their lives. But he is clear to add, that doesn’t mean people can do whatever they want. Freedom is not “an opportunity for self- indulgence”. Rather freedom is an opportunity to care for each other- it is an opportunity for love.

Paul talked a lot about the “flesh”. Sometimes people think he was saying our bodies are bad. Or that Paul thought being human was opposed to being spiritual. Sometimes, when Paul talked about “flesh” he was talking about physical bodies including a moral aspect. Other times “flesh” was a sort of technical term that Paul used in a dualistic way to make his point. There are things of God and things that oppose God. He used the language of spirit and flesh to make that distinction. Sometimes Paul’s use contains some of both aspects, physical bodies and “flesh” as a hostile power.³ Paul’s use of the term was complex, and changed based on context.

Paul offered his list of “works of the flesh” and “fruit of the Spirit”. This wasn’t and isn’t a definitive list of bad and good behaviors. Lists of vices and virtues, like this one, were common in the ancient world⁴. No one would have been surprised that Paul included one in his letter.

There are a few things we might particularly note about this list. First is, while we tend to individualize it, we should not apply it to individuals only. Paul was writing to churches and so this is also about communal behaviors. Second, while Paul used the imagery and language of enslavement, Paul was not calling for a hierarchical, master/slave structure. Christians are called to “through love become enslaved to one another.” As in other places, Paul was encouraging non hierarchical relationships between people. Third, while we often don’t read too far past “sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery” in Paul’s list, the middle part of this list is important- and longer. “Idolatry, sourcery, enminities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy… and things like these.” This middle part of the list are acts that destroy relationships and community.

The list of virtues, “the fruit of the Spirit” is also not exhaustive⁵ Neither of these lists are check lists. Neither list is comprehensively complete. Instead the lists describe actions that help or damage Christian community. The call is for us to be guided by the Spirit and not by cultural norms or influences.

My hope is that this weekend, you spend some time thinking about freedom. Think about the various kinds of freedom we speak about and celebrate. What is freedom to a Christian? What is freedom for an American? Are these freedoms the same or are their differences? Are there ways in which being guided by the Spirit will bring us into conflict with national or political freedoms? Must one be a Christian- or at least adhere to Christian “values” in order to be truly American? How should the fruit of the Spirit affect how Christians act in their public, civic life?

Let’s not carelessly or mindlessly confuse or conflate political freedoms with the freedom Christians have in Christ. The relationship, whatever it is, between being a Christian and a citizen is complex. It deserves our serious reflection.

1. https://prri.org/research/support-for-christian-nationalism-in-all-50-states/ 30% of Americans are Christian Nationalism adherents or sympathizers. Fifty five % of Republicans hold Christian Nationalist views ( 25% Independents, 16% Democrats). ↩︎
2. You can read PRRI research about Christian Nationalism and who supports it here. ↩︎
3. Hayes, Richard B. “Galatians” in The New Interpreter’s Bible, volume XI, (Abingdon Press, 2000) page 321. ↩︎
4. For examples in the Bible, see Mark 7:21-22; Romans 1:29-31; 1 Cor 6:9-10; 2 Cor 12:20 ↩︎
5. For examples in the Bible see Rom 12:6-8; 1 Cor 12:7- 11. ↩︎