Monday, July 4, 2011

True Freedom Comes From Christ

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

Today is the Fourth of July. Our country is celebrating its independence. We have so many freedoms that others around the world don’t have -- freedom to worship as we desire, freedom to speak our minds, freedom to have a fair trial with legal representation. I could go on and on. We who are citizens are greatly blessed.

Not because we did anything special. We didn’t. Our freedom was bought and paid for more than 200 years ago by the bravery of those who came before us. We are free because we were lucky enough to be born in the United States. We received a gift we didn’t earn. We should be thankful and filled with gratitude.

It’s the same with our salvation. Jesus died for us. We don’t deserve it. We certainly haven’t earned it. But He gave us this gift of eternal life. We only have to believe that Jesus is God’s Son, that He came to earth in human form, lived a perfect life and died a cruel death on a cross as He took our sins on Himself. He rose three days later and now sits at the right hand of God. When we accept His gift, we receive the Holy Spirit to live inside us. That is humbling.

Pastor Rob told us yesterday that instead of being filled with pride on this day we should be filled with gratitude. We live in a free country because of others. And we have been given new life because of Jesus Christ.

That gratitude should lead us to changed lives, Pastor Rob noted. How can you say you’re proud to be an American but despise the very things that make it so -- like free speech and taxes? How can you gratefully accept Jesus’ gift of salvation without changing how you see the poor, the sick, the outcasts?

We want freedom -- on our terms. We want others to go along with what we think and believe. But that isn’t true freedom. On this day, take a few moments to give thanks for your right to disagree with your neighbors and to worship God however you choose. And remember that our true freedom came when a humble carpenter died on a cross for you and me.