Freedom is a key distinctive of following Christ. When Jesus died on the cross, He freed us from God’s punishment for our sins. When He walked out of the tomb, He freed us from the bondage of death that had plagued humankind since the Garden. When the Holy Spirit fell on Jesus’ followers in Acts 2, He freed us from the religious requirements required to draw near to a distant deity. Through Christ, God was once again with His people, in relationship, and His people were free to draw near to Him, unhindered.

From the earliest days of our fallen world, religion has been a vehicle for people to draw close to whatever they worship as gods. Religious expressions are often ways for people to manipulate those gods into doing their bidding: “Give me a good harvest; heal my sick loved one; let me have a son.” Because people want the blessing of the gods, they are beholden to the rituals. If they do something wrong the blessing could disappear. Religion is a burden people bear to receive something they want.

Paul lashes out at the Galatians for this mindset. “You were called to be free, brothers!” Jesus didn’t die so that you would be enslaved to ritual and religion. He died so that you can actually draw near to God. You have freedom and life. Don’t turn that into some sort of lifeless, contract relationship.