What has freedom got to do with mission? Isn’t mission about commitment, becoming a slave to Christ… about going… leaving things behind? Isn’t mission the opposite to freedom?
Yet I suppose the gospel itself does bring freedom, with the Word saying things like through Christ I am no longer a slave to sin and death and it truly is for freedom that Christ has set you free! Even death has lost its sting!
The gospel brings freedom to live life the way it is meant to be lived, with Christ as Lord, and without fear. This is always a free choice, something we are never forced to do but something that will bring joy, peace and yes, freedom, even in the midst of pain, fear and suffering.
Interestingly, the very freedom to do as we like when we like seems to be the very thing that often enslaves us. “Freedom” has brought much pain and sorrow in the midst of affluence to many families here in the west and has sometimes been just an illusion to many families in the developing world.
Freedom is a theme reflected in the scriptures and is also being struggled with and fought for in many countries around our globe. As I write, freedom is being fought for on the streets of Tehran and in Pakistan, Sudan, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Iraq, Afghanistan….to name but a few.
What shall be our response as Christians to the cries for freedom around the world? What sort of freedom is God calling us to proclaim? More importantly, what will you do with your FREEDOM? (FREEDOM is the theme for the ReachOut Missions Conference 2009, www.reachoutmissions.com.au – check it out!)