It
is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let
yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
Galatians
5:1
As
Americans today we celebrate our liberty,
freedom, and independence as citizens of the United States. Spiritually, every day is a celebration of
the freedom Christ has given us with his breaking the burden, the bondage from
the “yoke of slavery,” sin. In Christ we
are free of sin—that is the good news of
Jesus Christ. It is by our Lord’s grace that
he pours upon us a flood of power that pushes all slavery by the evil one in to
the abyss.
Americans
received independence, although there were those who resisted the revolution (Loyalist or Tories) in that day;
likewise throughout American history there has been opposition (violent sometimes,
e.g., the Civil War, other wars, riots, personal hateful actions) to other people
whose ideas, politics, etc. differ. Today
some resist Christ, refusing to turn to him; without opposition we are to exercise
love toward them. Why? Because the freedom given in Christ is love, grace,
and humility—where the actions of sin has no place! That is true freedom, because as Christ
followers, “we who are many form one
body, and each member belongs to all the others” (Rom 12:5-6). Independence is therefore not of God, we have
given independence up for unity and complete dependence in Christ! As Andrew Murray states, “Humility, the place
of entire dependence on God, is, from the very nature of things, the first duty
and the highest virtue of the Christian.”
As
we celebrate American national liberty, it is, nonetheless Christ who gives
true freedom. Our salvation is in Christ
alone, if we live, and speak as though “being
Christian and being American is indistinguishable, we lose the transforming
essence of our faith” (Erwin Raphael McManus). We must resist that confusion. What are we to do? We do as the Holy Spirit instructed the Apostle
Peter, who wrote to believers everywhere:
“Live as free men, but do not use
your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. Show proper respect to everyone: Love the
brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king” (1 Peter
2:16-17).
Celebrate,
and worship the giver of true freedom,
Owen <><
