Doubly Free

Independence Day is an annual holiday commemorating the formal adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, in Philadelphia.  At the first holiday the Declaration of Independence was read aloud, city bells rang, and bands played.  Although July Fourth was a bit different this year, it is traditionally celebrated publicly with parades, pageants, patriotic speeches, organized firing of guns and cannons, displays of fireworks, and family picnics.

So, what exactly do we celebrate on the Fourth?  Our celebration is one of independence of the United States from Britain.  As a country we are free to govern our own affairs and to act in responsible ways in our society.  Wars and events, like September 11, 2001, remind us that there is a price to be paid for the freedom and independence that we enjoy.  Here are some things that recap from a biblical perspective what we should know about bondage, freedom, and life.  The Bible tells us:

(1)   Everyone is in bondage because of sin.  “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).

(2)   Spiritual freedom is made available to us through Jesus Christ.  He paid a high cost for us when He died on the cross to pay the penalty of our sins..  “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness: by his wounds you have been healed” (I Peter 2:24).

(3)   Through the sacrifice that Jesus made, you and I can participate in spiritual freedom.  St. John puts it this way, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36).

(4)   By personally receiving Jesus as Savior and Lord we enter a life-sharing union with God and are promised eternal life.  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

(5)   Jesus provides a blessed life for us which only comes through Him.  Jesus said, “I am come that you might have life and have it to the full” (John 10:10).  John goes on to say, “He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life” (I john 5:12).

Let us be thankful and grateful to God for the freedom and independence that we enjoy as a country.  And may those who by faith, have received Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, be thankful and grateful to God for the spiritual freedom they have.  With these two freedoms, a person who is a Christian and lives in the United States might say that he or she is doubly free.