God's commands set us free

“I run in the path of Your commands, for You have set my heart free.” Psalm 119:32
This is a theme that Paul elaborates on in the book of Galatians: that God’s commands are given so that we can have freedom. This is contrary to what the world tells us: ‘God wants to spoil your fun by saying ‘Don’t do this’ and ‘Don’t do that’.’ But this is not so. Yes, God’s commands lay down boundaries for us, and there are certain things that we are commanded not to do. But we are free within those boundaries, and if we keep within them we will live a life of abundance. God’s commands are not given to restrict us, but to protect us. For example, think of the prevalence of sexually-transmitted diseases in the world today. If everyone obeyed God’s command: sex is to be reserved for two people married to each other – this problem would not exist.
Rather than thinking about the things God has commanded that we shouldn’t do, we should concentrate on the things He has said that we can and should do. We can be generous to others and bless them. We can speak words of encouragement to edify people. We can seek His Holy Spirit to work in power in our lives. We can reach out to a lost world that they may know the love of Christ.