“When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”” 1 Corinthians 15:54-55 ESV
Reflection: what does freedom mean to you?
There is a deep longing for freedom in every human being. The obvious freedom from slavery, bondage, oppression of any kind. It is a drive to be cut loose from anything that is forcing us to do something we don’t want to do, holding us down or back, limiting what we believe, what we have the potential to become. It drives us to strive for amazing things, to overcome all sorts of odds.
But why? Why do we feel so deeply about freedom?
Perhaps the first question to wrestle with is where does the oppression come from?If we think broadly, what might seem like oppression is all around us, and we all feel it to some extent. Think of paying (a lot of) taxes, a government doing things we don’t agree with, a job we feel stuck in, even being on a relationship where one person is demanding of and controlling the other. But we can also see in nature that God is not of chaos, He is of order. So some structure is needed. Some authority and control is necessary to make progress and not fall into chaos. But when the evil in man takes over, we move from God ordained to oppression and slavery. For instance, one definition of oppression is “unjust or cruel exercise of authority or power”. That is clearly not from God.
It stems from the sin in man.
Paul touches on our deeper need for the freedom we truly desire, we long for – that of freedom from death. From sin, because “The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.” 1 Corinthians 15:56 ESV. If we look at the beginning of time, of creation, God created us to be in relationship with Him, in perfect harmony with each other. No taxes or government needed. And the promise we have, that through the victory of Christ Jesus over sin and death, we too will be clothed in immortality. He writes “When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” 1 Corinthians 15:54 ESV
So how will this happen? We read “But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For “God has put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when it says, “all things are put in subjection,” it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him. When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all.” 1 Corinthians 15:23-28 ESV
Now this is the true freedom we long for. No death. No sorrow. No oppression. No taxes or government needed. God Himself will be all in all. Let us today thank him, who has given us true freedom.