The Aquila Report

Your independent source for news and commentary from and about conservative, orthodox evangelicals in the Reformed and Presbyterian family of churches

Providence College
  • Biblical
    and Theological
  • Churches
    and Ministries
  • People
    in the News
  • World
    and Life News
  • Lifestyle
    and Reviews
    • Books
    • Movies
    • Music
  • Opinion
    and Commentary
  • General Assembly
    and Synod Reports
    • ARP General Synod
    • EPC General Assembly
    • OPC General Assembly
    • PCA General Assembly
    • PCUSA General Assembly
    • RPCNA Synod
    • URCNA Synod
  • Subscribe
    to Weekly Email
  • Biblical
    and Theological
  • Churches
    and Ministries
  • People
    in the News
  • World
    and Life News
  • Lifestyle
    and Reviews
    • Books
    • Movies
    • Music
  • Opinion
    and Commentary
  • General Assembly
    and Synod Reports
    • ARP General Synod
    • EPC General Assembly
    • OPC General Assembly
    • PCA General Assembly
    • PCUSA General Assembly
    • RPCNA Synod
    • URCNA Synod
  • Subscribe
    to Weekly Email
  • Search
Home/Featured/Why You’ll Never Be Free Until You Start Obeying God

Why You’ll Never Be Free Until You Start Obeying God

Freedom is the ability to do what we ought to do—that’s real freedom.

Written by Kevin DeYoung | Thursday, December 13, 2018

It wasn’t just an exchange of slavery to a certain kind of enlightenment freedom. It was servitude to Pharaoh which was hardship and oppression in exchange for serving God—which is true freedom, true joy, true happiness in loving God, in knowing God, in delighting in God, and doing things God’s way instead of our way.

 

Defining Freedom

We sometimes define freedom as the ability to do whatever we want to do, but that’s not really how the Bible understands freedom. Freedom is the ability to do what we ought to do—that’s real freedom.

When we hear the story of the exodus and the famous line Let my people go, what we forget is that Moses said, Let my people go in order that they might go into the wilderness and they might worship me.

There was always an end to it. It wasn’t just freedom as we might understand it. It was worship.

So that’s the way the Christian understands freedom. But the cry of the Christian is not first of all just freedom (meaning to do what I want) but it’s the biblical freedom to do what I ought—to go and to worship God. So, the commandments that he gives us are not to make us enslaved but to keep us free.

We see that in the history of redemption itself. Slavery was under Pharaoh, freedom was under Yahweh. But it was a certain kind of freedom.

God would speak to the Israelites with the assumption that they were going to serve someone. There’s a Bob Dylan song that echoes this: “Everybody is going to serve somebody.” The Israelites were going to serve Pharaoh or they were going to serve Yahweh.

It wasn’t just an exchange of slavery to a certain kind of enlightenment freedom. It was servitude to Pharaoh which was hardship and oppression in exchange for serving God—which is true freedom, true joy, true happiness in loving God, in knowing God, in delighting in God, and doing things God’s way instead of our way.

This article is adapted from The Ten Commandments by Kevin DeYoung. This article originally appeared in Crossway.org and is used with permission.

Related Posts:

  • 3 Ways We Corrupt the Idea of Freedom
  • The Voice of Freedom
  • The Voice of Freedom
  • Since God Is Sovereign, How Are Humans Free?
  • Am I Free If God Is Sovereign?

Subscribe, Follow, Listen

  • email-alt
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • apple-podcasts
  • anchor
Providence College
Freedom to Enjoy - A new book by Cindy Taylor - Feasting Responsibly on the Wagon Train of Life for the Glory of God, 
 -- Who Gives us All Things to Enjoy

Archives

Books

Geerhardus Vos: Reformed Biblical Theologian, Confessional Presbyterian - by Danny Olinger

Special

5 Solas of the Reformation
  • About
  • Advertise Here
  • Contact Us
  • Donations
  • Email Alerts
  • Leadership
  • Letters to the Editor
  • Principles and Practices
  • Privacy Policy

Important:

Free Subscription

Aquila Report Email Alerts

Special

5 Solas of the Reformation
  • About
  • Advertise Here
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Principles and Practices
  • RSS Feed
  • Subscribe to Weekly Email Alerts
Providence Christian College - visit

DISCLAIMER: The Aquila Report is a news and information resource. We welcome commentary from readers; for more information visit our Letters to the Editor link. All our content, including commentary and opinion, is intended to be information for our readers and does not necessarily indicate an endorsement by The Aquila Report or its governing board. In order to provide this website free of charge to our readers,  Aquila Report uses a combination of donations, advertisements and affiliate marketing links to  pay its operating costs.

Return to top of page

Website design by Five More Talents · Copyright © 2021 The Aquila Report · Log in