Clothed in Christ—Free in Christ

By Deaconess Emily Carder

What’s a girl to do now that Jesus has set her free?

Freedom in Christ is pretty radical to get used to. That’s what sanctification is all about! Sometimes it’s hard knowing just what we ought to do, say, and become. Sometimes our old sinful nature gets in the way of our new Christian freedom. It can be painful learning that even though we are justified in Christ, that doesn’t mean we have the freedom to be foul-mouthed or that dressing like Britney Spears is the wisest choice. We’re not set free from sin to sin. We are freed from the Law to live within the Law, but that still doesn’t answer the question: What’s a girl to do now that Jesus has set her free?

Religions like Mormonism and Islam, and even other denominations, offer some specific answers, and that’s attractive to some girls. They tell them what to do. Islam tells women to wear a burka, often veiling the face. At first thought, many would wonder, “Who would want to do that?” But the fascinating answer is that many Muslim women—even given the choice—refuse to give up these garments even in countries where women are allowed every social, political, and educational opportunity. The clothes that Islam calls for gives them a sense of privacy and helps to remind them of a woman’s place. In return, men treat them with greater respect. What female wouldn’t want to be treated with honor?

No one treats a woman with greater respect and honor than Jesus, and He’s about more than dress. Through the washing of water and the Word, He makes her His own bride. He clothes her with Himself—His own righteousness. He places the crown of life upon her head. She becomes an heir of the kingdom of God.

Special clothing identifies people. The burka is one example, but there are more. Infants are often dressed in white for their baptisms. Brides wear white gowns and veils for their special day. Jesus marks the infant as His own. The bride becomes a man’s wife. Through these events, we see Christ working in His Church. While Baptism marks where Christ is present for us, a wedding can remind us of the relationship Christ has with His Church.

It would be impractical for Christian women to go about their daily work dressed as brides, so we don’t. That is one of the wonderful freedoms about being clothed in Christ. He has fulfilled the entire Law for us, so we are freed from all its requirements. For the Muslim women, the burka is a requirement. She must wear it. Her salvation is tied to those robes. In the end, burka becomes a burden and a prison. When there is no Savior, you’ve got to keep the Law perfectly to be saved.

For Muslims, Mormons, and even some Christian denominations, Jesus isn’t the Savior, but a brother-type example to follow. Muslims and Mormons even say that Jesus was a prophet but not the only-begotten Son of God. Each day for their followers is filled with the burden of knowing they must earn their way to heaven. Sometimes these religions even say that material wealth, happiness, or even world peace are signs of being right with God. Nothing can be further from the truth! When Jesus wraps you in Himself in Baptism, He never lets go, no matter what the circumstances look like. Ask yourself this question: What is most important? My family, friends, my health, and all my worldly goods, or my Baptism? If catastrophe should strike, leaving you alone and injured (as it did Job), the kingdom of heaven would still be yours. What is given to you in Christ can never be taken from you. Jesus continues to overcome the tribulations of this world (John 16:33). They cannot harm us because we are in Him. He is where our peace and freedom lie.

In Baptism, you are made in Christ’s image once more. You are freed to be who and what you are in Him. When the serpent tempted Eve, he told her she could be like God if she ate of the tree. Eve didn’t have to do anything to be like God. She was created in His image. Deceived by the serpent, Eve took the fruit and ate it. All mankind fell into sin when her husband ate too. Muslims, Mormons, and other denominations are like this as well. They tell us we have to do something to either be like God or to save ourselves. But Jesus does the work to make us His own.

What’s a girl to do now that Jesus has set her free? Live as one who is clothed in Christ. Live as one set free from sin and one who rejoices to be forgiven. Gather where the Lord gathers you for grace. The baptized, who are clothed in Christ, need to be where Jesus is, where He is spoken into their ears through the pastor’s preaching and Absolution, where His body and blood are put into hands and mouths in the bread and wine, and wherever Baptism is going on. Wherever these things are happening, there is Jesus at work for you, for me, for us. He is setting His people free.

Dcs. Emily Carder teaches elementary children at Good Shepherd Lutheran School in Brandon, Mississippi. She is a wife, the mother of a daughter and a son, and the grandmother of three girls. Her e-mail address is dcs_carder@comcast.net.