Galatians 5:1

New International Version

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

For Encouragement

Observe how a domesticated animal learns to enjoy life in its confined environment and its owner. It feels safe and pampered. However, it is never free. No matter how comfortable it may feel or how well it adjusts to its environment, it is still in bondage and confined to a space that is not its natural habitat.

When someone releases a pet into its natural habitat, it may feel uncomfortable at first. However, it quickly realizes its surroundings and regains a sense of freedom. It reconnects with its own kind and learns how to interact with them once more. Once liberated, this animal rarely returns to live under the control of its former master, except in movies. Interestingly, over time, the animal no longer responds to the voice of its former master, even if it used to obey their commands.

The irony is stark. We, whom Christ has set free from slavery to sin and brought into the kingdom of righteousness (Rm. 6:18; Col 1:13), run back to sin’s bondage again. We respond to the voice of our former taskmaster, sometimes without coercion. The Apostle Paul wondered about this fallback by the Galatians and berated them (Gal. 4:9).

Christ has set us free for freedom (5:1). But instead, we forget this and desire the old and rotten delicacies of our former master, rather than enjoying Him and feeling free in our natural environment in Christ.

You whom Christ has liberated, why have you not trained your ears to the voice of your Lord? You have kept your ears still tuned to that of the enemy. Why? Do you see how a child can pick the voice of its mother from those of a thousand mothers and will not fall into the outstretched arms of another? It is a natural process, yet it is a disciplined training. The more you listen, the more distinct it becomes. 

You get liberated as you recognize today that you are not a child of the enslaved woman but of the free woman (4:31). The more you listen to the voice of God through His word in Bible reading and studies, preaching, teaching, prayer, and scripture memorization and meditation, the sharper God’s voice becomes to you. Try it and see how liberating it is. 

Oh, to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be
Let Thy goodness like a fetter
Bind my wandering heart to Thee

Prone to wander, Lord I feel it
Prone to leave the God I love
Here’s my heart, oh take and seal it
Seal it for Thy courts above

[Hymn by Robert Robinson]

Pray with Me

Father, help me remain in you and not run back to the world from which you delivered me. My heart is prone to worldly desires and my feet are swift to move back to indulge its delicacies. Deliver me, Lord, I pray, and revert my slippery feet to your solid ground. In Christ Jesus I pray. Amen.