Do you like software freedom? What about freedom in Christ?

Software freedom

If you're reading this on gemini, you probably have some awareness of of the Free Software Movement. ("Free" does not refer to the neccesity of payment, but to the permissions licensed to the user)

While the Open Source "Movement" suggests pragmatic reasons why one should use free software, the FSM has been rooted in morality.

The Free Software Movement rejects proprietary software as invalid, or evil. Adherence to the Free Software Movement often looks like replacing the proprietary software (which is already entrenched in your life) with free (as in freedom) equivalents.

> My hope was that a free operating system would open a path to escape forever from the system of subjugation which is proprietary software. I had experienced the ugliness of the way of life that nonfree software imposes on its users, and I was determined to escape and give others a way to escape.

-rms

In some cases, this can overlap with neo-luddism, as an alternative solution to the proprietary software problem is to simply use no software.

The purpose of this post is not to win you over to the the Free Software Movement, many of you may already be friendly to the idea, or on the journey yourself (though possibly with some compromises). The purpose of this post is to introduce you to another freedom.

Freedom in Christ

We are born into a world of sin and are naturally enslaved to it. With it, comes the consequences:

> For when you were servants of sin, you were free from righteousness. What fruit then did you have at that time in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now, being made free from sin and having become servants of God, you have your fruit of sanctification and the result of eternal life.

- The Apostle Paul, writing to the church in Romans

Can you become free from sin without becoming a servant of God? Some try by fashioning a god after their own likeness, then obeying that. Others form religions to impose good behavior, or pragmatically try to convince others to do the right thing, but it is impossible to please God on our own.

> For what the law couldn’t do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God did, sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, that the ordinance of the law might be fulfilled in us who don’t walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.

- Romans 8

Have you heard of Jesus Christ? He's not just the messenger, but *the way* through which we can be made free from sin. Being in very nature God, he became a man and endured the punishment needed for sin so that many can be saved.

> Remember, friends, to you the call came to give you freedom. Only, do not make your freedom an opportunity for self-indulgence but serve one another in a loving spirit. Indeed, the whole Law has been summed up in this one precept –

> ‘You must love your neighbor as you love yourself.’

- The Apostle Paul, writing to the Galatians

Conclusion

With Freedom in Christ, we are free from captivity to the sin nature, to obey God, enabled by His Spirit to do good.

We therefore put off our former ways, out of love for the One who saved us.

Christianity has a perfect Savior. The "savior" in software freedom was built by man.

Christ is the perfect model for how we should live. The people of the free software movement are flawed humans.

Christianity saves us from eternal punishment. Software freedom only 'saves' from an imposed ugly lifestyle on earth.

I pray that you would embrace Jesus Christ as your Savior, loving him and keeping His commands.