The Lord has been talking to me this morning about freewill. Free means different things to different people, and freewill has many ideas born from it. Free can mean the right to choose – at no cost or obligation – not restricted – exempt – not being used (available) – at liberty (not in prison or enslaved). This morning the Lord has been talking about the right to choose.

Freewill means the ability to choose; it also implies the freedom to choose. It comes full circle, because freedom is the right to exercise freewill, and comes with the responsibility to exercise freewill without denying that right to others. Freedom is the right to actively participate in the choice to be free. This morning Jesus has been talking about the right to choose love.

Love is a choice. Love is not an obligation, but obligations come with love. Love is not a feeling, but feelings will accompany love (God created feelings). Love is not suffering, but love chooses to suffer long. Love is not giving, but love inspires one to choose giving and love is given. Love is a gift from God, because He chooses to love. Love is a gift given by choice. The scripture tell us that love is a gift of the Spirit (see Galatians 5:22) and that perfect love casts out fear (see 1 John 4:18). God is love (see 1 John 4:16). God gave us the freedom to choose love, because He wants us to love Him and one another. We must actively participate in the choice. Love that is not freely given is not love.

In this world there is a fear of love. Abused children fear to love (and fear also not to love); the person that abused them feared loving or being loved or both. A neglected wife may chooses to love her husband, and suffers the pain of her husband’s choice to neglect her; she fears but chooses loving him. A man may choose to love an unfaithful wife, while fearing her unfaithfulness. God chooses to continue to love an ungrateful world. Once the choice is made to love, the act of stopping carries with it its own pain and suffering. The pain of this world has made us numb to the loss of love, but we still have the right to choose love.

In the physical, a woman makes a choice when she marries and when she births a child. A woman may give up her name for her husband’s name and something new is created. Part of the woman is taken from her to produce a new life. A man also makes a choice. When he makes a choice to love, then he becomes a willing servant to his family. A man has to give up some of himself to become one with a woman. If he is full of himself then there is no room for her or the family being created. Jesus came and gave up himself for the Church. The husband is the head of the wife as Jesus is the head of the Church. We want a savior that makes us rulers of the world, but Jesus gave himself. We have to be willing to give up some stuff when we choose to love.

When the children of Israel entered into the promise land the first enemy they battled was the flesh (circumcision). The second was Jericho. The flesh they had to cut away; Jericho was destroyed with obedient praise. Some believe that the word Jericho means the mouth. Once the flesh is cut away, we have to contain the mouth by using it to praise God. Praise is our verbal expression of love. We make a choice to praise God. David made a choice to praise God after his first son born from Bathsheba died. When tempted, Jesus chose to praise the Father. Praise is one way to tame the mouth.

To choose love takes a cutting away of some of our flesh and praising someone other than our self. Captivity is the giving up of freewill by choice or by force. Jesus is anointed to set the captives free. Israel was under Roman rule when Jesus walked the earth. They wanted to be free from their captivity. Jesus told them to love their enemy. He gave them a way to be free, but they couldn’t see love as freedom. Jesus is anointed to give sight to the blind. Lord, open my eyes that I may freely choose to love. In accepting freewill, love is my choice.

© 2008, 2017 Tim D. Coulter Sr.