Freedom
***Video "I'm putting up the Flag"
We are free to gather here to worship God, publicly. We owe a debt to those who have gone before us; whether everyone fully appreciates this unique country and the freedoms that we have been given, or not. The foundation of this nation was built on the blood of patriots who gave their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor.
And there's something important that many don't understand about our freedom to worship. Our founding fathers desired freedom to worship without government intrusion – but they were very clear it wasn't simply 'worship' in a general sense. The reason this freedom was so important to them was to worship THE God, The Creator.
The Plymouth Charter states that their Colony was established: "To advance the enlargement of the Christian religion to the glory of God Almighty." The Delaware Charter defines the purpose of their Colony, "To further propagate the Holy Gospel." The Rhode Island Compact: "We submit our persons, lives, and estates unto our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords."
We were born a Christian nation! When it came to the question of 'from where do our rights come'? Our nation's first leaders very clearly understood that...
I. God is the source
God has allowed mankind all sorts of governments, but history shows that God blesses those nations who acknowledge that government's authority comes only from God. It clearly states this in Genesis 1:1 (NIV)...
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
If any government rejects that foundational verse - you will have tyranny. The heritage we celebrate is not one of our own greatness, but a recognition of God as The Ultimate Authority. But that authority has been challenged by many. We're told by many, in matters of ethics and law, and recent Supreme Court decisions, "You can't push your morality on others!"
All of our laws are an expression of our morality. They always have been as founded in Judeo Christian values and the Ten Commandments. Telling someone who wants to kill someone that murder is wrong is imposing your morality on them. That's not their morality - they want to murder - but the law, grounded in God's Word, opposes their beliefs. Laws will change, morality will change – God, and what He values, does not. We shouldn't be surprised by trends we see in popular culture.
George Washington, our first president said, "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible." And in his farewell address to the nation, he said, "Morality is a necessary spring of popular government. And let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion." But that's what modern America is currently attempting.
When the majority of people reject God, you can't expect their beliefs to reflect a morality based on His Word. But the Bible teaches that our hope…
A. Is not in government
The early church never looked to the government for guidance or approval. The early Church didn't ask what rights government would allow – they followed Jesus and boldly, graciously, actively worked to persuade others to follow Him. They believed…
Psalms 33:16-20 (NIV)
No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength. (17) A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save. (18) But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, (19) to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. (20) We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.
No politician, no political party, no president, no court, no one can give us what Jesus Christ can! Our only hope is, and always has been, in God and in His Word. The solution to America's problems isn't politics.
Don't get me wrong, I have very strong political opinions. I do vote and I strongly encourage Christians to participate in their civic duty to vote as guided by their Biblical values. One reason is to honor those who gave their lives for you to have that right to vote. And also, believers need to speak up, to have their voices heard in this Representative Republic – even if it doesn't seem to make much difference lately. We should stand and loudly proclaim in everything we do – God is our Authority, God is our Hope!
We know, there are, and there always have been…
B. Those who reject God
And when you reject God as The Authority - logic and reason won't persuade; truth won't convince. When people reject God, you will see a great divide occur between those who seek to follow God and those who reject God. And it's not that we simply disagree on political issues. The real problems we see in our nation don't come from political opinions; they actually reflect the bigger issue of idolatry.
Idolatry is putting anything before God; giving it first place rather than God. The idols that many worship are the love of self, the idol of human pride. Many of the issues of morality we are now facing are because of the idol of 'complete sexual freedom'; the desire to have no higher authority on human sexuality than our own personal desires. That's not God's design.
Now it's very easy for us to see this idolatry in others, outside the Church. But do we struggle with that same desire to have no higher authority in our lives…? I have to confess, I'm frustrated with many modern Christians on the issue of God's Authority.
A priest in Ireland was reprimanded for preaching a 'controversial message'. He reflected on sin, and God's forgiveness. He said, "You rarely hear about sin, but it's rampant. The promotion of sex between two men and two women. That is sinful, and we need to listen to God about it because if we don't, then there is no hope for those people."
"God says, 'I have come to call sinners, but if you don't admit you're a sinner, then you're not listening to my call...' But how will people know that God wants to forgive them if we don't tell them? God loves you, he has come to call sinners, but he wants you to have life and have it to the full," Several of the congregation heckled the priest and walked out. The Bishop over the parish later apologized for the priest's 'harsh words' and said, "The Gospel.. is a Gospel of love and ever proclaims the dignity of every human person. It calls us to ever have total respect for one another..."
Many claim to follow Christ but promote changes in God's established Biblical values. But in order for them to hold their modern moral beliefs, they have to convince themselves that the Bible doesn't really say what it says. They have to believe that somehow they are the only ones who understand what it means to "love thy neighbor"? We see this in Matthew 22:36-40 (NIV)...
"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" (37) Jesus replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' (38) This is the first and greatest commandment. (39) And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' (40) All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
And notice the order – Jesus placed loving God first. If you love God, you will show love to your neighbor. But just showing love to your neighbor doesn't necessarily show love to God. Obeying God shows love to God. Again, Jesus' words in John 14:15 (NIV)...
If you love me, you will obey what I command.
We are called to follow God's Word - and we are also called to show grace and mercy. Being Biblically correct and showing love are not mutually exclusive. People outside of the Church, and even people in the Church, will question God's Authority in different situations. And in our nation, people are free to do that – but understand…
II. Freedom brings choices
But not all of those choices are beneficial or right…
Galatians 5:13 (NIV)...
You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.
And Peter, in the context of discussing freedom and authority, wrote…
1 Peter 2:16 (NIV)
Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.
And with choices, there will be many differing opinions on religion and 'truth'. But Patrick Henry said, "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. For that reason alone, people of other faiths have been afforded freedom of worship here."
Our religious diversity is a natural result of freedom. And there are many flourishing religions in our nation that reject the God of the Bible; religions that Biblically would be called 'false religions'. And it is partially a result of Christian Churches who, over time, forgot their mission and may have failed to tearfully and lovingly share the truth that Jesus is The way to the Father!
Prior to 1861, 90% of all of America's College Presidents were preachers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Brown, Dartmouth, William and Mary and Columbia were founded by Christian preachers and church affiliations with the expressed intent to educate young people for Christ.
Harvard's original motto on the school's seal states these words in Latin, "Truth for Christ and the Church." At its founding, Columbia University stated its purpose: "The chief things that are aimed in this college are to teach and gauge the children to know God and Jesus Christ and to love and serve Him in all sobriety."
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof". But in 1798, our second President John Adams wisely cautioned, "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."
Things have changed in our nation. But one thing that is consistent…
A. There is a price
There is a price for following Jesus. And there always has been…
2 Timothy 3:12-17 (NIV)
In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, (13) while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. (14) But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, (15) and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
(16) All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, (17) so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
As the moral fabric of our nation deteriorates, as moral relativism increases in our Post-Christian society, the price for following Jesus will rise. But understand, this is nothing God's Church hasn't experienced before. America, born as a Christian nation, is an anomaly of sorts in the world. Its unique founding sets it apart as a 247 year old 'experiment'. The 'natural state' of human government is to reject God's authority. I'm not suggesting that we don't fight against it, but rather that we don't let it discourage us from our high calling.
God is still completely in charge; our mission hasn't changed. We still preach Christ and Him crucified! We are told by many 'we are on the wrong side of history' – but we serve the One who writes history!
The church has always been counter-cultural, standing as a stalwart beacon of hope in the face of changing morality! God's Church stands for God's design for love and human relationships. God's Church values the sanctity of human life, the sanctity of marriage – God's values - even despite our own personal failings. - Because truth is independent of our 'sin', but based on God's perfection.
There is a price for following Jesus, but choosing to pay that price leads to…
B. Freedom in Christ
For many, their freedom to choose or reject God leaves them slaves to sin. But for those willing to submit themselves to Jesus – those who humbly surrender their will to God, they actually become free.
Romans 6:20-23 (NIV)
When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the control of righteousness. (21) What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! (22) But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. (23) For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The freedom that comes with living a Christian life comes from the fact that we are bound to Christ! Jesus Christ and His teachings are the only way to true freedom and equality for everyone! I believe in the superiority of Jesus over everything else! And it is His desire that we share His message with anyone who will listen!
At this time of year, we frequently hear the words 'freedom' and 'liberty'. They go hand in hand - but there's a slight difference. 'Freedom' means to be "free from... something", and 'liberty' means to be "free to... do something." - Free from and free to. For those who follow Jesus - we have been given freedom from sin and liberty to serve. We've been freed from sin in order to be free to serve! Exercise your freedom and liberty for the Glory of God!
So What?
It's very easy to see how this message applies to other people; 'those people' who reject God's Authority. Never ever forget that we are all sinners saved only by grace! None of us here deserves God's grace that He has poured out on us. All of us are learning how to give ourselves over to God's Will on a daily basis. Don't forget the great patience with which God has treated you in calling you out of your sin.
Even as we celebrate our independence as a nation - in order for us to experience the freedom that we have in Christ, we have to continually acknowledge our utter dependence on God. Continue to love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, and GO out and show love to your neighbor!
The best way for us to celebrate this coming 4th of July - get on our knees and pray!