Engaging Absolute Negative Freedom

1 Corinthians 10:23-24

"Everything is permissible"--but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"--but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.

                I was seated in a tour bus listening to our guide expound on the wonders of the city of Kiev. As we passed a government building, which represented the Communist regime, our guide broke from her script and began to verbalize her own feelings. “I was so tired of hearing about the masses. Everything was for the masses, but there was nothing for me. The individual did not count. The individual was expendable.”

                One of the hallmarks of Western society is individual freedom. Our Constitution declares that it is every person’s right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This concept of individual freedom (and responsibility) comes right out of Christianity. It is Christianity that declared the value of each person; that each person has value and dignity, and has both the right and the responsibility to determine the course of their life.

                Christianity established the idea of personal freedom and choice as opposed to culturally or tribally defined commitments. This is based on the Protestant theology of the priesthood of all believers. This concept of freedom to pursue a meaningful life has morphed into a free for all. In late-modern thinking, the concept of freedom means that we are free from all limits. We are free from any absolute standard and from all boundaries. Today, anything goes, and no one has the right to say otherwise. It is obvious in how the concept of freedom of religion has been twisted into freedom from religion.

                Tim Keller, in his book Preaching, highlights some basic flaws in what he calls Absolute Negative Freedom.  First, it erodes community and fragments society. We see this happening in America today. Instead of being a unified nation, we are becoming a collection of subgroups that often are at odds with one another. In order for there it be genuine community some choices must be restricted and individual responsibility must be assumed.

                Another flaw in the Absolute Negative Freedom concept is what is called the harm principle. I am free to do whatever I choose as long as I am not harming another person. The problem with this is that there is not absolute standard for what is harm and what is not. Without an absolute standard that sets clear boundaries, we are each left to define what harm is for ourselves.

                A third flaw in this theory is that it makes meaning and purpose in life superficial and hollow. If there are no absolute standards of right and wrong, then there is no real value to anything that we do. It doesn’t matter if we treat others well (whatever that means) or cruelly (who is to say what is cruel?). Without God in the picture, our lives become meaningless.

                The Bible tells us that faith in Christ brings us genuine freedom. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.( John 8:36) This freedom that we have in Christ has two important dimensions. We have been set free from our bondage to sin. Sin is no longer our master, telling us how we should live. But we are also set free to pursue righteousness. With our new freedom comes responsibility. We are free to choose how we will live, but we are also responsible for how we live. We were created to live in harmony with God. Through Christ, that relationship can be restored and lived out. But it means placing ourselves under God’s authority and living according to His absolute standards.

                Paul addressed the concept of Absolute Negative Freedom in his letter to the Galatians. Some in that church was saying that because of the grace of God, which covers all of our sins, it doesn’t matter how we live our lives. We are free to indulge every passion, because grace abounds. Paul made it clear that this is a gross misunderstanding of grace and of the freedom we have in Christ. He openly challenges that idea that we are free from any limits. You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. Galatians 5:13

                Peter picked up on the same theme. He called people to embrace the freedom that they had been given in Christ, but to use it for God’s glory and not their own passions. Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. 1 Peter 2:16

                Life without limits may seem like ultimate freedom, but it is really chaos. For example, what if everyone decided that they were free from all the rules of driving? They were free to drive on whichever side of the road they chose, at whatever speed they chose, without regard for others. There would be mass carnage. Freedom without boundaries is not only dangerous, it is deadly.

                As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "Everything is permissible"--but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"--but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others. In Christ we have been set free from our bondage to sin, but we have also been set free to follow Christ and to live our lives in service for him. It is only as we live under His authority that we can experience true freedom.