One of our greatest privileges in our time and place in the world is the freedom to say basically anything we want. However, scripture teaches us that the misuse of this privilege can cause incredible harm. How can we discern where the line is drawn between speech that harms and speech that blesses, and how can we learn to control our speech for the good of others and the glory of God?

Guest Speaker (For Freedom) | April 19, 2026

Jesus had a destiny to save humankind through his death and resurrection, a destiny he freely accepted. As his followers, we often struggle with the concept of destiny because it causes tension with our desire to live in freedom, a calling scripture clearly gives us. How can we learn to live in this dual reality wherein two seemingly contrary things can be true at once?

Freedom in Christ is ultimately centered on the resurrection of Christ. His gift to us is not only that we experience eternal life after death but that we live fully empowered over sin, death, pain, and judgment as long as we live.

Although many humans enacted the death of Jesus, it was only because he freely laid his life down that human will was able to momentarily triumph. In what ways are we willing to lay down our lives for the sake of others?

The release of Judas led to the death of Jesus. Because Judas was set free to betray Jesus, we have been set free to live to glorify Jesus. In the end, he became enslaved by his own guilt and took his own life, while Jesus freely gave his life.

During the time of Christ, worship of God had become incredibly distorted from what it once was. Whereas they had become slaves to burdensome systems, Jesus came to set them free, but he would do so by challenging their present ways of worship. How can we listen to the reprimand of Christ and choose the kind of worship that sets us free rather than the kind that holds us back from our true purpose?

Part of understanding the gift of our freedom in Christ is our lives before Christ often try to pull us back into them. Whether it is sin that draws us back or simply the comfort of the things we've outgrow, we are not meant to return to anything that enslaves us.

Discerning between freedom in Christ and worldly privilege often has to do with the impact of our actions on others. Today, we will examine how even actions that seem trivial to us can be damaging to others, and how we can consider the needs of others ahead of our own.

When we refuse to embrace reality, we remain slaves to the narratives we tell ourselves. Thankfully, Jesus is the ultimate truth-teller, and when we put our faith in him, we are free to embrace the totality of life.