Jesus, Marriage, Freedom

Jesus, Marriage, Freedom

(John 8:31-36)

As a pastor, one of the greatest privileges is that I can share the happiness and sorrows together as it happens. In one's life, marriage is a big turning point in life, and I am very happy to be here with you. Especially, I am really happy to officiate the marriage service of Mr. Francisco who is one of my best friends, and Ms. Monica, who is one of my greatest co-workers of the kingdom of God.

Christian weddings have a special aspect. The image of the bridegroom and the bride is not only an image used to express God and Israel in the Bible but also an image used to express the relationship between Jesus Christ and the church. Marriage is holy and has a special meaning. This wedding service is not just for the two, but it is also the time to renew the wedding of everyone who is attending this ceremony.

Today's wedding service is a holy time to look back at your own marriage. While remembering the excitement, promise, the eyes of love, God's grace and love from the wedding ceremony, you need to recall the meaning of your marriage. Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I hope that such a work will be at this time.

Among the verses that we read today, there is a verse that we are very familiar with, one that refreshes our hearts. "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free"(32). Including this verse, there are many instances of the word ‘freedom' in the passage. What is freedom? How can we get freedom? 

To be "free", does not mean simply that one is not bound or tied to any obligation. The things that give freedom to people are not liberation and separation but affiliation belonging. A state that is not connected to anything raises fear and anxiety. 'Fri', which is the roof of the Indian-Germanic languages such as frei, friede, and freund, means 'to love'. So, to be free means to belong to a friend or lover. Human beings feel freedom in the relationship of love and friendship. Freedom is the most archetypical relational vocabulary. There is no freedom without a support. (Byung-Cheol Han, The Fragrance of Time, pp.61~62)        

In today's words, the reason why Jesus said to people that if you stay in the Word, you will truly become his disciples, 'you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free', is that because they are now misplaced to be bound. People want to belong to somewhere(or someone) in order to dispel fear and anxiety. However, fear and anxiety are so strong that they cannot tell whether they belong to the truth or not. In such a situation, a tragedy arises.

Jesus wants to free those who have tied themselves to the wrong, and to bind them back to the truth. The truth is Jesus Christ, whom we confess as the Lord. Since we are bound to the truth of Jesus Christ and we belong to Him, we are free. The apostle who is tied to Jesus and most strongly expresses belonging is Paul. Paul introduces himself as a slave of Jesus Christ whenever he introduces himself.

We often think that a slave is not free. But, rather, the Apostle Paul calls himself a slave of Christ. Why would the Apostle Paul speak of his own identity through the metaphor of 'slave', which would not fit with freedom? The apostle Paul knew what 'freedom' means. He wanted to say that the more you are bound to Jesus Christ, the truth itself, the more you can be a free man. That is why he speaks of himself as a 'slave' of Christ.

Marriage is the task of binding ‘me’ to the other. Marriage is a human activity that brings more freedom than any other activities. The Apostle Paul says this in Galatians. "You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another as a slave in love" (Gal. 5:13). Marriage is a work of binding one another. And in order to confirm the bondage of one another in their real life, they try to be a slave one another. So, the husband insists on the wife's body, and the wife insists on the husband's body. Marriage is "declaring that I am no longer mine, but my partner."

Christians enjoy true freedom because they belong to, and are bound to Jesus Christ, the Truth. Like apostle Paul, we declare ourselves to be   'a slave of Christ'. We do not fear binding one another through marriage. Rather, we are delighted and joyful because we know what freedom is in Christ. We belong to Christ and are bound together. Just as Jesus freed the Church, the Bridegroom and the bride may believe that each would be a slave to one another, driving out the fear and anxiety, and enjoy the true freedom.                                

Through this marriage, I would like to express my heartfelt congratulations to both of you, who will give one another as a slave in order to get real freedom. There will be no fear because you are bound to one another. There will be no anxiety because you will always be on each other's side no matter what happens.           

Today, this time, I am truly grateful that Jesus Christ is giving freedom to these two through marriage, and to all of us who are attending and celebrating this wedding. I believe that Christ is restoring freedom that we have forgotten. We thank God who has made us belong and bind one another through marriage in the love of Christ. Through marriage, I hope we could be renewed to be children of faith who experience and enjoy the true freedom that the Lord has brought to us.