I remember what a thrill it was, years ago, when our family took
the ferry out to Liberty Island to see the
Statue of Liberty. It was in August and
it was hot. I’m sure many of you have had the opportunity
to see the Statue of Liberty. This iconic symbol of national freedom
reopened on this Fourth of July, eight months after the storm Sandy
pounded Liberty Island . The idea of freedom was of course at the core
of the founding of America .
The right of privacy and freedom are central in the
controversy about Edward Snowden who has outed stories about telephone and
internet surveillance of American citizens by the National Security Administration,
the NSA. We hear that surveillance of
Americans by electronic means is nothing new, that it’s been going on at least
since 9-11. Is this much ado about
nothing?
Some say – “I have
nothing to hide, let them listen.”
Others say U.S.
government spying on civilians has reached a dangerous level. The rationale given is national security, to
keep us safe, to prevent plots and attacks by Islamic terrorists. And yet the surveilling of former CIA
Director David Patraeus I felt was troubling.
Was it a violation of the 4th Amendment which protects against
unreasonable searches and seizures? It
always comes down to that delicate balance between personal freedom and the
public good, between individual liberty and national security, doesn’t it? What do you think?
Historically, political, economic and religious freedom was
a motivating force in the American Revolution, with cries for self-government
and freedom of worship and fair representation.
Today the protection and preservation of our constitutional freedoms
continues to drive us although the peope and the courts sometimes disagree when
it comes to those 5 freedoms listed in the first amendment.
Especially since 9-11 and the awareness of the world of
global terrorism in which we live, the complicated debate between personal
privacy and the government’s need to know grows more intense each day. We
treasure our freedom and yet we also desire security and safety for our selves
and our children and grandchildren, so we have witnessed a gradual increase in
surveillance in government buildings, businesses, churches, sports arenas, national
monuments, airports, train stations, banks, schools and that trend will
continue.
This July 4, 2013, celebrates 237 years from that historic
moment when the Continental Congress voted to approve and sign the Declaration
of Independence in Philadelphia . Ever
since that momentous day we have celebrated Independence Day with fireworks, picnics
and parades. We Americans have built a nation based upon a
covenant under God. We believe that freedom is a God endowed and
indispensable right. We believe freedom
is worth making the ultimate sacrifice for.
We are aware of regimes in history and today where people live in fear
and oppression under dictators. We praise
God for our freedom as a nation and we thank the men and women, who have
sacrificed their lives to ensure the liberty which we enjoy.
Recall these famous words from the Declaration of
Independence – “We hold these truths
to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by
their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” True national freedom always has
inner-tensions. The drafters of our
Constitution sought to strike a proper balance between a strong central government
and one that protects particular freedoms and protected rights for states and
individuals.
In our morning scriptures we are likewise reminded that the
reality of human freedom originates from God.
Galatians says: “For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, and do not submit again to a yoke
of slavery.” You and I were created by God to live free
lives in our relationships with God and one another. Theologically, Christian freedom is a divine
gift; it reflects God’s will for our freedom is grounded in the liberating work
of God in Jesus Christ.
The Bible is realistic about human freedom. It says that human beings are not autonomous;
we are never totally or fully free. We
are always subject to some lordship, always vulnerable to some yoke of slavery. If not the lordship of God, then to some
other influence or power.
We think of some today who are slaves to their emotions, to
their desires, to their impulses, to their fantasies. We think of some who are addicted to drugs, to
pornography or alcohol, or gambling or money or power or violence. Can one become a slave to a particular
ideology or dogma or philosophy? The Bible
says human beings are slaves to sin, that is, to self-centeredness, to
self-worship, to idolatry, to rebellion against their creator. Yes, we can become slaves to evil, to the evil
one, to Satan. The question is – to whom are you going to be
in bondage?
But the good news is this - For freedom Christ has set us
free. Through faith in Christ, we can
begin to experience the free lives which God intended for us. Therefore, stand firm and do not submit again
to a yoke of slavery. For one can slip back, back-slide as we used
to call it into bondage to some other master.
What is freedom in Christ? It is a paradox - Christian freedom is becoming
a slave to Christ. It is being a servant
to God. I Peter says: “As
servants of God, live as free people, yet do not use your freedom as a pretext
for evil. Honor everyone. Love the family of believers.” We
read in Galatians: “For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters only do not use
your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become
slaves to one another.” It is based
on Christ’s command to love your neighbor as yourself.” We read in I Corinthians: “Though
I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I
might win some of them. To the Jews, I
became as a Jew in order to win Jews. To
the Gentiles, I became as a Gentile in order to win Gentiles. To the weak I became weak, so that I might
win the weak.”
The 16th century Reformer Martin Luther paraphrased this
truth in these words: “A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all
and subject to none. A Christian is a
perfectly dutiful servant of all and subject to everyone.” Is that a helpful perspective on Christian
freedom? Christian freedom is at the
same time freedom from the controlling power of sin and Satan and freedom for
service, for worship, for witnessing, for glorifying God and for loving others in
obedience to the command of Christ. We
are only truly free when we are a slave to Christ.
Is the Christian understanding of freedom is radically
different from a worldly understanding?
What do you think? The scripture
says we are only free when through the power of God’s love we are slaves to one
another. True freedom is always expressed in love and
this freedom to live free lives, is made possible by the Spirit of God, who
dwells with us and in us. It is God’s
Holy Spirit who gives us the power to live in freedom.
Think of other examples of this biblical truth of
freedom. Elden Trueblood writes: “We
have not advanced very far in our spiritual lives if we have not encountered
the basic paradox of freedom, to the effect that we are most free when we are
bound. But not just any way of being
bound will suffice; what matters is the character of our binding. The one who would like to be an athlete, but
who is unwilling to discipline his body by regular exercise and by abstinence,
is not free to excel on the field or on the track. His failure to train
rigorously and to practice abstinence denies him the freedom to go over the bar
at the desired height, or to run with the desired speed and endurance. Slavery to self-discipline is the price of
freedom.”
And isn’t that true also of work, of raising a family, of
being a mother or father, of getting an education, of learning a craft. We are most free when we are bound. But what is paramount is the character of our
binding. Is it a binding that leads to
loving others, to service, to sacrifice, to sharing, to generosity or is it
another kind of bondage?
We reflect finally upon another biblical truth, freedom always
comes with a cost! God sent his only son so that by submitting to
the slavery of death, we might be set free through faith for life. The letter of Philippians says: “Jesus
Christ through in was in the form of God, emptied himself, taking the form of a
slave, being born in human likeness and became obedient to the point of death,
even death on a cross, so that we might find new life and freedom in him.” II
Corinthians says: “For you know the grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ that though He was rich for your sakes, He became
poor, so that through His poverty, you might become rich.”
Remember what happened to those 56 men who signed the
Declaration of Independence?
Twenty-four of them were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants; nine were farmers and
large plantation owners. They were educated
men; men of social standing and property.
They signed that document knowing full well that the penalty if they
were captured was imprisonment and death.
Five signers were captured by the British as traitors and
tortured before they died. Twelve had
their homes ransacked and burned. Two
lost their sons serving in the Continental Army; another had two sons
captured. Nine of the fifty-six fought
and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War. Carter Braxton, a wealthy planter saw his
ships swept from the seas by the British Navy.
He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags. Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British
that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in the Congress without pay, and his
family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was
his reward.
At the battle of Yorktown , the
final battle of the war, Thomas Nelson Jr, knew that the British General Cornwallis
had taken over his home for the general’s headquarters. He urged General George Washington to open
fire anyway, the home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt. The signers pledged: "For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the
protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our
lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor." Amen!
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