The Illusion of Certainty

A Yoke of Slavery

We usually think of “a yoke of slavery” in Galatians 5:1 as legalism, ritualism, the law of Moses, or the old patterns of sin. All solid interpretations, but there’s a subtler yoke of slavery many of us gladly clasp around our own necks: the illusion of certainty.

Certainty feels safe. It promises control. It offers the comfort of knowing exactly where we stand, who is right, who is wrong, and where the boundaries lie. It tells us we can have faith without mystery, discipleship without risk, obedience without trust. It whispers that if we just get our theology precise enough, our spiritual life predictable enough, or our world orderly enough, then we will be free.

But certainty isn’t freedom. It is another form of bondage—because it requires us to shut our eyes to anything that doesn’t fit, to squeeze God into tidy shapes, and to keep a death-grip on whatever set of answers we’ve decided will anchor us. Life becomes less an adventure of following Christ and more a project of defending our conclusions.

Henri Nouwen writes “We are fearful people. Fear has become an obvious dwelling place, an acceptable basis on which to make our decisions and plan our lives. Those we fear have a great power over us. Those who can make us afraid can also make us do what they want us to do. People are afraid for many reasons, but I am convinced that the close connection between power and fear deserves special attention. So much power is wielded by instilling fear in people and keeping them afraid. As long as we are kept in fear we can be made to act, speak, and even think as slaves. The agenda of our world – the issues and items that fill to see how easily that agenda becomes ours. But fearful questions never led to love-filled answers; underneath every fearful question many other fearful questions are hidden. Fear engenders fear. Fear never gives birth to love.”

The life of faith was never meant to be a maze of airtight certainties. It’s a journey built on trust in a Person, not mastery of a system. Jesus did not say, “Come to me, all who are confused, and I will give you explanations.” He said, “Come to me… and I will give you rest.”

Paul’s words to the Galatians cuts through the illusion of certainty
Christ has already set you free—so stand firm in that freedom.
Not a freedom from truth, but a freedom from fear of what will happen if we don’t have it all wrapped up.

The gospel doesn’t demand that we pretend to have perfect clarity. It invites us to walk with the One who is the Light—even when the path isn’t.

So what does it look like to stand firm in freedom?

• To hold our convictions with confidence, but not with clenched fists.

• To admit what we don’t know without fear of losing ourselves.

• To let Scripture form us, even when it disrupts us.

• To trust the Spirit’s leading more than our craving for tidy conclusions.

• To remember that certainty was never the goal—Christ is.

The yoke of certainty is heavy precisely because it was never ours to carry.

The freedom Christ gives isn’t the freedom of knowing everything; it’s the freedom of being known, loved, and held by the One who does.

Stand firm in Him.
Let the illusion of certainty fall away.

And discover that faith, unburdened, is true freedom.