Thanks to the ingenuity of our Chinese friends, we here in the US
celebrate our independence this month with massive displays of colorful
fireworks.
Every year when we sing our national anthem and enjoy the vibrant
patterns created by “bombs bursting in air,” I remind myself that most bombs
are deadly, not beautiful like the fireworks display. Although both use similar
ingredients, one is intended to kill; the other to entertain. In this metaphor
we see an example of how something can be used for both good and evil. In the
hands of capable, careful, and caring people, something dangerous becomes
glorious. But the opposite is also true.
Freedom—the very thing we celebrate with fireworks—can also be used for
good and evil. As believers in Christ, we are free from the restrictive Mosaic
law, but the Bible warns us not to use our spiritual freedom for selfish
purposes: “Do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love
serve one another” (Gal. 5:13).
Not everyone has political and religious freedom, but all believers in
Christ have spiritual freedom. We must not use it as a weapon to impose our
will on others but to display the glory of God’s will.
Freedom doesn’t give us the right to do what we please, but to do what pleases God. (RBC)
