When I was a kid, I couldn’t wait to grow up and be free to do whatever I wanted.
Freedom meant no one could tell me what to do. Cool notion, I suppose, as long as it’s just me in the wide open spaces. Just me and the open road, I can ride wherever I want at whatever speed I want.
Then I grew up and realized there were other people on the road. Everyone doing their own thing, on the road or in life, leads to lots of crashes. Turns out that freedom, in a community, involves a good deal of give-and-take.
For many people, freedom becomes transactional. I choose my own actions as long as I’m willing to live with the consequences. So I’m free to ride down the center stripe, as long as I realize I might get a ticket…or get squished by a semi.
In the USA, freedom often equals “rights.” I demand my right to do _____, with little consideration of whether _____ is actually the right thing to do. I’m an American. I demand my rights!
Jesus spoke of a different sort of freedom, defined by, of all things, a gate.
In John 10 Jesus said, “I am the gate for the sheep…whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
You and I bristle at the notion of being penned up behind a gate. Where’s the freedom when you’re trapped like helpless sheep?
Except…that’s not what this gate is about. Jesus says this gate protects from an enemy, a thief who comes to steal and kill and destroy. The sheep, Jesus says, are free to come and go as they please.
Jesus describes a gate that protects but confines no one. His gate provides authentic life, abundant life, life to the full.
Authentic, actual, real freedom.
So I follow team safety rules when we ride because I don’t want negative consequences…crashes, traffic tickets, angry drivers. It’s a self-centered transaction. I do the minimum required in exchange for what I want.
Or I follow team safety rules because I care about the community, because I believe life works best when it’s not all about me. I do it because I believe we’re designed for community and that’s where really abundant life happens.
I do it because I want to be free.