John 8.31-36

In 1984, Freddie Mercy, and his band Queen, could be heard on radio stations all across the world lamenting, 

Oh, how I want to be free

Oh, how I want to break free.

In 1995, when Mel Gibson’s historical war drama, Braveheart, depicting the First War of Scottish Independence against King Edward I of England, took movie theaters by storm, the world was witness to what would become one of film’s classic moments as Scottish warrior William Wallace screams out in his last breath during his execution, “Freedom!”

After New York City’s iconic Twin Towers were destroyed in 2001, a new structure was erected on the site and was named The Freedom Tower.

And, a few weeks ago, when a high-profile political activist was assassinated on a college campus, the dark crimson of his blood stained the simple white t-shirt he was wearing which had the word “Freedom” emblazoned across the front.

All of this shows that the human heart is longing for the experience of freedom.  And, because the human heart has to make a point about asking for freedom over and over again, we are admitting that we are not, by nature, free.

So, what does it mean to exist in a state a freedom?  What are we longing for and asking for?

Well, freedom is the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.

Freddie Mercy wanted to experience freedom from the burdens and oppressions and unfair expectations of an unhealthy relationship.

William Wallace wanted to experience freedom from the burdens and oppressions and unfair expectations of governmental overreach.  

In the naming of The Freedom Tower, America wants to experience freedom from the burdens and oppressions and expectations of terrorists who want our country defined by their rules and laws, not the rules and laws of our own Constitution.

And, in the wearing of a t-shirt that simply said, “Freedom,” the young political activist wanted to experience freedom from the burdens and oppression and unfair expectations of those that had different opinions than him.

Today the Christian Church around the world is celebrating the 509^th anniversary of the Reformation.

For those of you unfamiliar with this history-changing event, the bass player from Megadeth, yes, you heard that correct, the bass player from Megadeth, also an ordained Lutheran Elder, sums up the Reformation succinctly and beautifully for you.  (I love this quote and I share it almost every year.)

In his biography, My Life With Deth, he says,

“In 1517, the German theologian, Martin Luther challenged the political agenda of the [serving] priesthood, which taught at the time that believers could buy their way into heaven.  Luther went back to Scripture, read it, and declared that the church was doing it all wrong. They were not following what Jesus said.” (Dave Ellefson, My Life With Deth, 174)

On the day that Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses to the church door in Wittenberg, Martin Luther was standing on the church steps, holding up the Word of God, the Bible, metaphorically yelling, “Freedom!”  

Martin Luther and his reformation colleagues weren’t seeking a revolution and split within the Church community.  They simply wanted the leaders and teachers of the Church to return to teaching the people about Jesus Christ, as presented by God Himself, in the Word of God, the Bible.

In order to return the truth of the Bible back to the common man and woman, Martin Luther translated the Bible from it’s original Hebrew and Greek, into the language that the people could read for themselves and used the newly developed printing press to make copies that individuals could keep in their homes and study for themselves.

Once people read the Bible for themselves, they clearly recognized the lies, deceptions, and false burdens that the big “churches” in town were feeding them and enslaving them with.

In this movement, back to the actual words and truths of the Bible, God’s Word to them, people were finding freedom and being set free from the unGodly burdens the church was placing on them.

However, as history has shown us, the church leaders were not interested in teaching their people about Jesus as found in the Bible.  And, after rejecting Luther’s call for church reform, which clearly meant they were rejecting God and His Word, the Pope and his church used their seemingly unlimited power in society put Luther’s life at risk.  This caused Martin Luther to live the rest of his life hidden away in a friend’s castle in an attempt to stave off assassination. 

Our Biblical text for this morning, chosen for us by the lectionary for Reformation Sunday, comes from the Gospel of John.  

It is in these words of Jesus that Jesus makes it explicitly clear where freedom is found and how you and I can live a truly free life.

John 8.31-36 says this:

[31] So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, [32] and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” [33] They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?”

[34] Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. [35] The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. [36] So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. (ESV)

In this Biblical text, we hear that even though these particular Jews placed their faith in Jesus for the forgiveness of Sin and eternal life, they continued to struggled with falling into their old patterns of thinking.

Even though they repented of their Sin and confessed faith in Jesus as the only way to the Father in Heaven, they often returned to the burdensome rules and lies of the religion that they grew up in.

When pressed with the question, “Why are you free from your Sin, and the condemnation and punishment your Sin deserves?”, these Jews stumbled back on the idea that they were loved and saved by God because of their ethnicity.  They say, of course we are free to love God and love others, we are Jews and sons of Abraham!”

This return to lies and religious rules returned free men and women back into slaves as they put back on the burdens associated with trying to prove your worth to God.  After all, being a Jew and son of Abraham meant that you had to perfectly keep 620+ rules if you had any hope of being loved by God.  

In a song that I have been listening to on repeat for several weeks now, The Devil Wears Prada speaks of this same return to a burdensome situation when they present us with the following hauntingly beautiful metaphor:

Something’s f***ing wrong with me

I fall back on what I know

That same place where the flowers never grow

In these lyrics, admitting a struggle with returning to the place that has proven to be unfruitful and full of death, even after knowing freedom from that place of burden, oppression, and unfair expectations, I am quickly reminded of how this behavior is a continual struggle for those of that have tasted the freedom that comes through knowing God’s for love us in Christ.

Proverbs 26:11 speaks to this ridiculous part of our human experience when we are told:

[11] Like a dog that returns to his vomit

is a fool who repeats his folly. (ESV)

And, the Apostle Paul, yes, even the Apostle Paul, who wrote the majority of what we call The New Testament in our Bible, describes his struggle with finding himself often lacking the freedom that God’s love bought for us in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.

In Romans 7:15–25 and 8.1, the Apostle Paul admits this:

[15] For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. [16] Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. [17] So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. [18] For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. [19] For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. [20] Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

[21] So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. [22] For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, [23] but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. [24] Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? [25] Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!…

[1] There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (ESV)

So, where does true freedom come from?

How do we find the ability to take deep peaceful breaths while checking the “done” boxes on our our never-ending to-do list?

How do we lay down at night with a mind that can be free of anxiety, stress, and worry?

How can we walk into our jobs, our schools, and our homes, with our head held high in strength and confidence?

There is only one way to be truly free today.

True freedom comes when you are able to say that God does not require anything more of you or your life. 

That’s right, God, the only one who is worthy to judge you, does not require you to follow any more rules to prove your worth to Him because His love sent Jesus to perfectly follow every Godly rule for you.

True freedom comes when you can wake up in the morning and prepare for the day ahead by saying, “I am not perfect.  I will not be perfect today.  I will make wrong decisions.  I will use wrong words.  I will think wrong thoughts.  But, because of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection for me, God loves me now and will love me at the end of the day.  Regardless of what happens today, God will never stop loving me.”

God has done and provided all you need in Jesus Christ. 

Who then is the pope, the priest, the pastor, a spouse, a child, family members, friends, a boss, a teacher or, who then am I, to make me feel guilty for not living up to some ungodly criteria and unBiblical expectations.

Jesus brought you the good news of freedom through God’s grace.

God is not a God of burden.

God is the God of love.

God is the God of forgiveness.

God is the God of restoration and reconciliation.

God is the God of freedom because God requires NOTHING from you in exchange for His love, forgiveness, and eternal freedom.

Everything God required from you was completed for you in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

It was a freely offered gift from Him to you. 

A gift that was purchased by Him, for you, with the blood of His own Son.

This is the truth that sets you free.

Jesus lived the perfect life of obedience to God the Father.

Jesus took on your sin and died on the cross to take the punishment that your sin deserved.

Jesus rose from the grave defeating the power of death once and for all.

And all of that perfection,

all of that completed work,

all of that victory,

all of the meeting of God’s requirements

was finished for you because God is gracious and God loves you.

This morning, you are free from rules.

This morning, you are from from expectations.  

This morning, you are free from religion.

This morning, you are set free from a fear of letting God down.

This morning, you are set free from worrying about being rejected.

This morning, you are set free from being anxious about end-of-life matters.

This morning, you are set free to worship and thank God however you can right now.

This morning, you are set free to rest in knowing that whatever happens today, God will still wrap his arms around you at the end of the night and say, “I love you!”

There is nothing more that has to be done to solidify your relationship with God.  Jesus Christ has eternally connected you to God, the Father in Heaven.

This morning, if you find yourself with faith in Christ, Jesus, God’s Son has set you free and you are free indeed!

This is the Word of God for you today.

This is the Grace of God for you today.

This is the Freedom of God for you today.

Amen.

Reverend Fred Scragg V.

October 26, 2025.