The Perfect Law of Liberty

“But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.” Jas. 1:25.

Whatever is done voluntarily is always the most perfect, and at the same time the most blessed and the most pleasant—first and foremost for the one who is doing the deed, and secondly for the one for whom the deed is done. God loves a cheerful giver, which is the same as someone giving of his own free will. The opposite is compulsion and bondage, which is unpleasant for both parties.

We also have other glorious expressions for all the magnificent works we read about in 2 Corinthians 8:1-5. What is written there is almost unprecedented in world history!

They gave according to their ability—yes, even beyond their ability—of their own volition, begging earnestly to be allowed to take part!

First they gave themselves! What generosity! And the source of this, as we see in verse 2, was their abundance of joy, even though they were experiencing hard trials and deep poverty.

They were blessed before—they gave almost more than what they possessed—and they were certainly even more blessed after they had followed the perfect law of liberty to such an uncommonly high degree.

This is the liberty for which Christ has made us free! Gal. 5:1; John 8:32; Rom. 6:18; Rom. 8:2; Rom. 8:21. It is therefore important to make use of this glorious, blessed, lovely liberty!

Think of all the things we are allowed to do, all that we have liberty to do! We can serve and give our lives in many ways, as much as we desire and have opportunity for. We can be merciful, lend and give to our heart’s content; pray as much as we want; give thanks as much as we want; love all people just as they are, without reservation and without exception; write constantly to edification, comfort, exhortation, and help in innumerable ways; visit and take care of those who are sick and weak, thereby bringing joy to them and to us. We are completely free to submit ourselves, to defer to and yield to others. We are also absolutely free to humble ourselves and be content with as little as possible of earthly things; and how delightful and profitable that is! And there is full freedom to suffer all kinds of injustice for the sake of peace—indeed, to take it joyfully! How delightful! We can also freely refrain from all kinds of vain and unprofitable talk, and thus wonderfully prosper in God’s blessing. There is also full liberty to cease from having any demands whatsoever on any person whatsoever. This will also cause us to flourish! To do the opposite is simply torturing and plaguing yourself unnecessarily!

Glorious, wonderful liberty for which Christ has made us free! Oh, how important it is to use the opportunities—with the greatest joy and thankfulness!