Tim Keller - Absolutism
Christianity claims absolute truth but does this not take away freedom? Is not freedom the right to choose truth for ourselves? The answer to this is no because the reality is as follows:
Truth is more important than you think!
Freedom is more complex than you think!
Jesus is more liberating than you think!
Truth is important because the freedom one experiences is grounded in it's associated truth claims. However truth claims in general are power plays as by their very nature they elevate themselves above those of others. In general therefore truth claims erode the freedom of others.
Freedom is more complex because true freedom comes from submission to the truth not evasion of it. One is free to drive a car if one submits to the truths of how to drive it. Freedom is not an absence of constraints (liberalism) nor the presence of constraints (religion) but the presence of the right constraints in accordance with the truth of what God made us to be. A person will never excel as a musician without the constraint of practise. A person without a musical gifting will not excel as a musician with the constraints of practise. But a person with gifting and practise is freed to excel.
The greatest example of the complexity of freedom is love. A husband and wife will only truly love when in mutual submission to one another they constrain individual freedoms to be released into the deeper freedom of marriage, partnership.
Jesus is more liberating...
In John 1:1 we read "in the beginning was the Word (logos)" logos means reason of existence therefore John implies Jesus is the reason for existence. We are made to know him,love him, serve him, and find our joy in him in a marriage relationship. This marriage relationship is Jesus as the head and the church as his bride. Only in this relationship can we experience true freedom. But like any marriage relationship surrender of individual freedoms by the presence of constraints is needed. Jesus has surrendered more in in his incarnation, life, ministry, death, burial, resurrection and accession than we could ever know. In response we too can now surrender into that relationship because of what Jesus achieved on the cross.
If our logos was an absolute truth (a set of rules) salvation would be achieved in fear and that brings slavery. The gospel is not a set of rules based on abstract truth but a relationship of surrender. This knowledge truly frees us from our former slavery. As Paul rightly says the love of Christ constraint us... Producing true freedom....
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