This year is a big deal for the people of the United States because we’re celebrating a major milestone—it’s been 250 years since we broke free from the rule of King George III and Great Britain’s control back in 1776. It’s a huge anniversary, and freedom is something that’s on lots of people’s minds. We’re talking about the freedom our ancestors fought so hard for, and it’s something we still value deeply today and that many have continued to fight for ever since.
Political freedom
For most Americans, freedom means mainly political freedom. The American Enterprise Institute describes freedom this way:
”Political freedom in the context of U.S. independence refers to the ideals of self-governance and consent of the governed, as articulated in the Declaration of Independence and later embedded in the Constitution and Bill of Rights. The Declaration of Independence, adopted on July 4, 1776, declared the colonies’ separation from Great Britain and emphasized the natural rights of individuals, including the right to political participation and representation.”
This laid the foundation for our democratic government, and our political freedom lays the foundation for all the other freedoms we have, including religious freedom, which is ensconced in the First Amendment to the Constitution. In a truly free society, individuals have the right to practice their faith without fear of persecution, and that society has an obligation to protect this right.
Many of the founders, including those who may or may not have been Christians, argued that religious freedom was a cornerstone of a free and democratic society, and that it was essential for promoting tolerance and respect for others.
The founders also believed in the separation of church and state (meaning that the state would not mandate a particular religion), but that religion has an important role in shaping public policy. We can see ways in which Christian values such as compassion, justice, generosity, and humility informed the founders and have informed legislative and public policy decisions in a positive way ever since.
Economic and religious freedom
But political freedom isn’t the only kind of freedom. There is also economic freedom and religious freedom, which some believe are intrinsically linked to political freedom. The claim is that they reinforce each other because both depend on the distribution of power.
The U.S. Constitution promotes economic freedom by protecting individual rights, limiting government power, and ensuring the enforcement of contracts and property rights. This framework is essential for a thriving free market economy and political liberty.
If the state controls all economic activity, it ultimately controls who gets a paycheck, a platform, or a printing press—the things that make free political (and religious) expression nearly impossible to sustain.
In the United States, we have a market economy and are trying to keep it that way, even as democratic socialism seems to be gaining ground, at least among the young. Our current system allows different groups, such as businesses, churches, and wealthy individuals, to operate independently and make their own decisions without government control over everything they do. These groups are like separate power centers, and they don’t have to answer to the state just to survive. This means they have some freedom to operate independently, which is an important part of our economy and our way of life.
It’s that independence that allows them to criticize the government or worship outside of state-sanctioned institutions without losing their livelihoods. In this system, secure private property rights—which are the opposite of socialism and communism—aren’t just an economic good; they’re a prerequisite for active and even courageous civic involvement.
The interconnectedness of our freedoms
The American founders believed that religious freedom, the right to own property, and the ability to govern themselves were all connected. They thought that if the government could take away your money or property unfairly, it could also stop you from practicing your religion or speaking your mind. This is because the threat of losing everything you own could be used to control what you say and do.
When you look at what the founders wrote and said about freedom, you see that the right to own personal property comes up a lot. It’s not just about being free to make money, but also about having control over the things that belong to you. This idea of personal property rights is a big part of what they meant by liberty.
In the past, strict governments have often tried to control everything at once. They don’t just pick one area to control, like the economy, or people’s freedom to organize, or what they can and can’t believe in. For example, in the old Soviet Union, the government took over the economy, banned people from forming their own political groups, and targeted religious institutions.
They didn’t completely outlaw religion, but they made it clear that Atheism was the official state ideology, which was part of their Marxist-Leninist beliefs. They did all this because they saw any independent group or idea as a threat to their power. They wanted to control everything, and they didn’t want anyone or anything to challenge them.
Other countries that are communist, like China and North Korea, do things in a similar way, but they also have some big differences, and that’s what makes it all more complicated.
States such as China and Singapore have demonstrated that a degree of economic freedom and growth can coexist with tightly restricted political and religious freedom. That seems to run counter to the simple claim that political liberty is necessary for the existence of free markets, or that free markets automatically produce political liberty.
In our country, those on the political left argue that the concentration of economic power within our democracy in the form of wealthy individuals and large corporations (which they sometimes call the U.S. ”oligarchy”) can itself erode political equality; these wealthy and powerful entities can buy political influence.
Some people think that when a few individuals have financial freedom, it can actually hurt the political freedom of the rest of us. It really depends on your political views. You might see financial freedom as a way to protect and support democracy, or as a threat to the whole system. Either way, it’s an important issue to consider.
From a Christian point of view, being able to practice your faith without the government getting in the way is what religious freedom is all about. It’s a basic right that the government gives us. So, in a way, how free we are to practice our religion depends on what the government allows. Even when things are going well, religious freedom just means the government leaves us alone to believe what we want.
Spiritual freedom
Christians see spiritual freedom as something unique, separate from the freedoms we have in our daily lives. The key difference is what each type of freedom actually saves us from. Spiritual freedom isn’t just a result of being free to do what we want or having enough money; it’s about being free from something deeper.
Spiritual freedom in Christ addresses a much deeper need than liberty in religious expression, and it’s worth noting that Jesus makes that distinction himself in John 8. When Jesus says, “And you will know the truth and the truth will set you free” (v.32), the crowd responds that they’re already free because they’re descendants of Abraham and have never been slaves to anyone. They’re talking about their freedom as a nation and a people. They missed Jesus’s words entirely, as they often did.
But Jesus doesn’t argue with them about that. Instead, he takes the conversation in a completely different direction. He says that anyone who sins is a slave to sin. He’s not talking about being controlled by a government, like the Romans in those days, but about something much deeper. He’s talking about being trapped by the guilt and consequences of our sins. And then he promises that if he sets us free, we’ll really be free. Jesus is offering a kind of freedom that no government or authority can give or take away. It’s a freedom from the thing that separates us from God, and it’s a freedom that only he can provide.
The key difference is that religious freedom refers to the ability to act freely within a societal context, whereas spiritual freedom is about being free in a more profound sense: being unencumbered by the constraints of our own sinful nature and standing before God.
The Bible puts it this way: we’re no longer condemned when we’re in Christ because His Spirit has set us free from the grip of sin and death, as Romans 8:1-2 says. This freedom is not just about what we can or can’t do, but about who we are in Christ and how we relate to God. It’s a freedom that’s rooted in our very being, and it’s what allows us to stand before Him without fear of judgment. So, in essence, spiritual freedom is not just a human right, but a divine gift that transforms our lives from the inside out.
In the book of Galatians, Paul talks about freedom in a unique way, saying it’s something Christ has already achieved for us, rather than something we’re still trying to get from the government, or religion, or wealth, or anything else. He writes, “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery”—that’s Galatians 5:1 (ESV). This idea of freedom is not about waiting for someone in power to give it to us, but about living the life that Christ has already made possible.
Paul wrote four important letters, called the “Prison Epistles,” which include Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon, all while he was in prison. This was during his time under arrest in Rome. What’s really interesting is that even though Paul was being persecuted by the government, which didn’t allow much freedom to practice his “religion,” he seemed really happy and free in his letters. The reason for this freedom was his strong belief in Christ, and Christ alone, which gave him the strength to cope with his difficult situation.
Consider these verses from those letters (all from the ESV):
Philippians 4:11–13 — “Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned, in whatever situation I am, to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
Philippians 1:21 — “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”
Ephesians 6:20 — “for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.”
Colossians 4:3 — “At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison.”
I think we can say that while political, economic, and religious freedom really do tend to come as a package matter of history and mutual incentives, the New Testament’s category of true freedom was never contingent on any of them being present. The reason is that freedom in Christ transcends and is therefore not dependent on the others.
Aging presents a lot of challenges: declining health, the loss of friends and loved ones, diminished capacity, and the growing awareness that our days here on this earth are numbered. But because of the spiritual freedom we have in Christ, we don’t have to face those realities without hope. For those of us who are “seasoned,” this freedom means we don’t have to cling desperately to youth, health, independence, or control, because our eternal hope and joy were never rooted in those things to begin with.
Financial freedom
Financial freedom is definitely a phrase that means different things to different people. In the culture, many of the definitions run counter to the stewardship-centered vision we find in Scripture and that I have espoused in my blog and books.
Financial freedom is a state of mind where you’re not worried about money all the time. It’s like being free from a big weight that’s always on your shoulders. Robert Kiyosaki, who wrote Rich Dad, Poor Dad, says it’s “freedom from fear,” a simple way to put it.
There’s also a movement called “Financial Independence, Retire Early” (FIRE), where people aim to become financially independent as soon as possible. For them, it’s not about having a lot of money or being rich, but just having enough to live comfortably. They’re not chasing more and more; they just want to live without stressing about money. It’s a pretty appealing idea, isn’t it? But how realistic is another matter.
This kind of framing of freedom from anxiety and personal autonomy, however, is quite different from the biblically defined, stewardship-centered vision of financial freedom espoused by Christian writers like Ron Blue, Randy Alcorn, and even Dave Ramsey. This is similar to the “religious versus spiritual freedom” discussion we’ve been having and actually part of it.
Blue, a man who wears many hats—author, teacher, and founder of Kingdom Advisors and the Blue Trust—has a simple yet powerful message that sums up his life’s work in just four words: “God owns it all.” (Dave Ramsey often says the same thing.) One thing he’s talked about openly is what he calls the “paradox of prosperity”: the more money you have, the more choices you have, but the more you have to manage, which can be a real burden; and, for some, the more they have, the more they want, as they can never be content with what they have and don’t have.
I think his whole point is that, in the end, wealth doesn’t really give you the freedom you think it will. It’s a pretty profound statement, and it makes you think about what’s really important in life. Is it the money, the stuff, the status? Or is it something more? Blue’s message is a reminder that true freedom and contentment come from a different place altogether.
Randy Alcorn, a popular author, shares a similar idea in his book Money, Possessions, and Eternity. He says that God doesn’t give us more money so we can live a more comfortable life, but so we can give more to others. This way of thinking changes what we mean by “financial freedom”. It’s not about having more money for ourselves, but about being able to help others. This idea is also a key part of another book I really like, God and Money by John Cortines and Gregory Baumer.
And we all know that the Bible contains numerous verses that talk about financial freedom, but mainly from the standpoint of being free from a love of money:
Luke 16:13 — “You cannot serve God and money.”
Hebrews 13:5 — “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have.”
So, when we talk about financial freedom, people usually think it means having a lot of money, so much that you’re protected from anything life throws at you. But, if we look at it from a biblical perspective, financial freedom is actually about being free from the control of money, no matter how much or how little you have. It’s about not letting your finances dictate your life, and instead, living a life where you’re not slaves to money, regardless of your bank balance.
Freed up for what
One of the most wonderful verses in the Bible is John 8:36: “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (ESV).
This verse comes from a section of the Bible with a particular cultural context—one in which slavery was a common practice. But Jesus isn’t talking about slavery as a social practice; he’s talking about slavery to sin, and freedom from both its penalty and its power.
In Galatians 5:1, Paul writes, “For freedom Christ has set us free” (ESV). Taken out of context, the verse seems redundant: “Free to be free”; okay, kinda makes sense, right? However, the original context is different from how I’m using it here. Paul wrote it to the “bewitched” Galatians so that they would not return to the bondage of the Mosaic Law as a means of being justified before God. Instead, they should live in the freedom that Christ set them free to experience.
Thus, our freedom in Christ first has a “freed from” aspect that is more than just a metaphor. As Christians, we have been freed from sin’s condemnation (Romans 8:1; Romans 6:14) because God’s justified wrath against us was poured out on his Son on the cross instead (Romans 5:9; 1 John 4:10).
But this freedom is also a change of status: in Christ, we have become members of God’s household, part of his family, the Church (Galatians 4:4–7; Ephesians 2:19).
We have also been freed from many other things: the fear of death (Hebrews 2:14–15), false identities built on performance or approval (Galatians 1:10), the love of money and material things (1 Timothy 6:10), and people-pleasing, serving out of guilt or obligation rather than love (Ephesians 6:6–7).
But God hasn’t just freed us from things; he has freed us to things as well. He has freed us from something to something else. Here are some of them:
Freed to live — free from a false identity built on performance, status, or approval to live as who we actually are in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).
Freed to work — free to work as unto the Lord; not for the sake of achievement, position, or money, but because God created work for our good and his glory (Colossians 3:23).
Freed to give — free from the grip that money and possessions have on us so that we can hold our money and possessions loosely instead of selfishly hoarding them (1 Timothy 6:17–19).
Freed to serve — free from people-pleasing and obligation so we can serve out of love rather than legalism, duty, obligation, or guilt (Galatians 5:13).
Freed to rest — free from the anxious, always-earning, always-accumulating posture of our modern hustle culture so that we can trust in God rather than strive in our own strength (Matthew 11:28–29).
Freed to love — free from score-keeping and self-protection, free to forgive and be forgiven (Ephesians 4:32; 1 John 4:19).
Freed to worship — free from having to perform for God, free actually to enjoy him (Psalm 16:11).
Freed to dream — free from regrets over your mistakes and failures in the past to imagine the future that God is calling you to (Jeremiah 29:11).
Freed to hope — free from fear, despair, or dread about what’s ahead, free to face aging and the end of our time on earth with assurance and without fear (Psalm 23:4; 1 Corinthians 15:55–57).
These are just a few of the many things God has freed us from and for. As Christians, we experience and live out these freedoms in different ways. Perhaps a “freed up life” can be described as being free to love God and others, fulfilling Jesus’s greatest commandment (Matthew 22:37–39).
As I enter the final season of my life as a Christian—I was converted at 19, so I have been a Christian for over 50 years—I want to continue to experience the freedom I have in Christ. Perhaps like some of you, I don’t experience the good of that every day in all things, but that is my heart’s desire.
The message still resonates: God set us free in Christ to live as he intended: a life of freedom. That’s what it means to be free indeed.