[The following is the manuscript of my sermon delivered on the 5th of July, 2015, Independence Day weekend. This service also included the observance of Holy Communion following the sermon message. Look for the video on our Vimeo channel, http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]
Yesterday marked the 239th anniversary of the birth of our nation. The United States of America was born on July the 4th, 1776, with the signing of the Declaration of Independence from England and English rule. The signers of that historic document put everything on the line to take a stand for liberty and freedom, and most lost everything, including their lives. Folks who settled here left Europe seeking religious freedom, and then fought bravely to keep it and gain political freedom as well. They refused to be slaves to the religious and political whims of rulers in a far off land.
But there is One, much longer ago, who also fought and died for our freedom, who provided us the means of escaping slavery forever. Listen and follow along as I read from the Gospel according to the Apostle John, chapter 8, verses 31 through 36, from the New Living Translation of our Holy Bible…
But there is One, much longer ago, who also fought and died for our freedom, who provided us the means of escaping slavery forever. Listen and follow along as I read from the Gospel according to the Apostle John, chapter 8, verses 31 through 36, from the New Living Translation of our Holy Bible…
31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
33 “But we are descendants of Abraham,” they said. “We have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean, ‘You will be set free’?”
34 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. 35 A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.”
--John 8:31-36 (NLT)
Let us pray… Heavenly Father, thank You so much for placing us in this nation where we can still worship You freely, without fear of political or governmental intervention. We pray Lord that You will continue to bless this great land so that future generations may also enjoy the liberties we’ve known so long. Speak to us now so that we might receive Your message for us this day. In the glorious name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
French writer Alexis de Tocqueville, after visiting America in 1831, had this to say:
"I sought for the greatness of the United States in her commodious harbors, her ample rivers, her fertile fields, and boundless forests -- and it was not there. I sought for it in her rich mines, her vast world commerce, her public school system, and in her institutions of higher learning -- and it was not there. I looked for it in her democratic Congress and her matchless Constitution -- and it was not there. Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great!"
Edward Gibbon, author of the book The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, attributed that fall to the following five points:
Is America still good? Many of her people are, sure. But what of this country as a whole? More to the point, how many of those five signs that Gibbon listed are in evidence in the US today?
Throughout history, those nations and peoples who were the strongest, the greatest, the most powerful… each one was destroyed from within, not by some mightier opposing force, but by the decay and erosion started by its own people. Have we, as a nation, lost touch of what true liberty and freedom encompass? Have we turned our focus away from the One who offers to truly set us free?
We are an independent nation – we pride ourselves on our independence. It’s that old “pioneering spirit” that built this country, and that basically built the Reformed Church in America. And not being dependent on someone else, and especially not some foreign country, can be a good thing, as far as it goes.
But family, there’s a very simple truth summed up by two equations: Independence from God equals slavery to sin, and that leads to death and damnation. Dependence on Jesus equals freedom from sin and death, and that leads to salvation and eternal life.
This is the truth that Jesus spoke of in verse 32 of today’s scripture reading, the truth that sets us free. Like those ancient Jews in verse 33, we today may think we have never been slaves to anyone, but Jesus would tell us we’re wrong, just as He told those proud descendants of Abraham in verse 34. We have been slaves to sin because we sinned! And for that very reason, we needed someone to free us from those bonds of slavery. We needed a Savior. We needed the Son, so that we could be truly free. We needed Jesus.
God gave us a hint of what Jesus would do for us when He spoke to Moses in Exodus chapter 6, verses 6 and 7…
French writer Alexis de Tocqueville, after visiting America in 1831, had this to say:
"I sought for the greatness of the United States in her commodious harbors, her ample rivers, her fertile fields, and boundless forests -- and it was not there. I sought for it in her rich mines, her vast world commerce, her public school system, and in her institutions of higher learning -- and it was not there. I looked for it in her democratic Congress and her matchless Constitution -- and it was not there. Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great!"
Edward Gibbon, author of the book The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, attributed that fall to the following five points:
- The rapid increase of divorce - the undermining of the dignity and sanctity of the home, which is the basis of human society.
- Higher and higher taxes and the spending of public monies for free bread and circuses for the populace.
- The mad craze for pleasure, with sports becoming every year more exciting and more brutal.
- The building of gigantic armaments when the real enemy was within: that being the decadence of the people.
- The decay of religion - faith fading into mere form, losing touch with life and becoming impotent to warn and guide the people.
Is America still good? Many of her people are, sure. But what of this country as a whole? More to the point, how many of those five signs that Gibbon listed are in evidence in the US today?
- An ever increasing divorce rate.
- The tax burden on the working people growing heavier all the time.
- If it feels good, do it – don’t worry who else might suffer or be inconvenienced, the only thing that matters is personal pleasure.
- Spending more on our armed might to stand against other nations when our real enemy can be found in the moral decay of our fellow man.
- Religious freedom under attack from all quarters, even from within as we argue among ourselves, with the voices of true spiritual leaders being stifled everywhere.
Throughout history, those nations and peoples who were the strongest, the greatest, the most powerful… each one was destroyed from within, not by some mightier opposing force, but by the decay and erosion started by its own people. Have we, as a nation, lost touch of what true liberty and freedom encompass? Have we turned our focus away from the One who offers to truly set us free?
We are an independent nation – we pride ourselves on our independence. It’s that old “pioneering spirit” that built this country, and that basically built the Reformed Church in America. And not being dependent on someone else, and especially not some foreign country, can be a good thing, as far as it goes.
But family, there’s a very simple truth summed up by two equations: Independence from God equals slavery to sin, and that leads to death and damnation. Dependence on Jesus equals freedom from sin and death, and that leads to salvation and eternal life.
This is the truth that Jesus spoke of in verse 32 of today’s scripture reading, the truth that sets us free. Like those ancient Jews in verse 33, we today may think we have never been slaves to anyone, but Jesus would tell us we’re wrong, just as He told those proud descendants of Abraham in verse 34. We have been slaves to sin because we sinned! And for that very reason, we needed someone to free us from those bonds of slavery. We needed a Savior. We needed the Son, so that we could be truly free. We needed Jesus.
God gave us a hint of what Jesus would do for us when He spoke to Moses in Exodus chapter 6, verses 6 and 7…
6 “Therefore, say to the people of Israel: ‘I am the Lord. I will free you from your oppression and will rescue you from your slavery in Egypt. I will redeem you with a powerful arm and great acts of judgment. 7 I will claim you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God who has freed you from your oppression in Egypt.'"
--Exodus 6:6-7 (NLT)
In his letter to the Galatians, chapter 5 verse 1, the Apostle Paul notes the liberation Jesus offers, but issues a warning …
5 So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law.
--Galatians 5:1 (NLT)
That sounds like we have a choice, doesn’t it? Stay free or return to our chains of slavery. This is where free will comes in. In the Book of Revelation, chapter 3 verse 20, Jesus says …
20 “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear My voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends."
--Revelation 3:20 (NLT)
It’s our choice whether to open the door and let Jesus in or to ignore Him. And I’m not talking about the door to our house, but the door to our heart, our spirit, our soul.
So how do we heed Paul’s warning, how do we reach for the doorknob to our soul? Joshua addressed free will in chapter 24 verse 15 of his book…
So how do we heed Paul’s warning, how do we reach for the doorknob to our soul? Joshua addressed free will in chapter 24 verse 15 of his book…
15 "But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Would you prefer the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates? Or will it be the gods of the Amorites in whose land you now live? But as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord.”
--Joshua 25:15 (NLT)
And that gives us an answer to how we can should respond to Paul’s warning: we should serve the Lord. God Himself answered this question for us long ago, when in the 2nd book of Chronicles, chapter 7, verses 14 and 15, He promised us this…
14 “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. 15 Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to prayer made in this place.”
--2 Chronicles 7:14-15 (NKJV)
Family, our nation is in desperate need of healing. We need leaders who will lead us to a place of healing. We need for our house to serve the Lord. We need to humble ourselves and get down on our knees before God Almighty and pray, and seek His face, and turn from our wicked ways. For only then will our Creator hear our prayers. Only then will the Great Physician heal our land. Only then will the Son free us from slavery to sin.
Will we do as God asks? Do we truly care enough about our nation to humble ourselves before God and pray for its healing? Are we willing to stop focusing on the sins of others and instead repent of our own sin?
I invite you to humble yourself right now. I wish we had a little more room in the pews so you could kneel if you felt it. If you’d like to, come join me here at the foot of the cross of the One who offers us truth and freedom. Let us repent of our sin and pray for our nation, that our Lord’s eyes be open and His ears attentive to our prayer, made here in this place.
Amen.
Join me now as we pray… Heavenly Father, we humble ourselves before You. We seek Your face and Your favor, for ourselves and for our nation. We are concerned, Lord, about the ultimate fate of our friends, our neighbors, and our loved ones. We fear that our country is not headed in the right direction, which should be toward You. We worry that we are too wrapped up in judging the actions of others that we fail to see how our own actions might not be pleasing in Your sight. Forgive us, Father, when we self-righteously point out the splinter in someone else’s eye while ignoring the plank in our own. Forgive us for rebuking the sin of others yet seeing our own as acceptable. Forgive us for picking and choosing which sins You would deem most vile and worthy of damnation.
Father we ask that You heal our land. Not only has the earth suffered under our stewardship, but humanity itself shows far too many signs of widespread moral decay. Please help us all, Father, as a people, to turn from our wicked ways, to be concerned more for our fellow man than for ourselves, to strive to do only what is right in Your eyes. Remind us that Jesus sacrificed His all so that we could be freed from slavery to sin, freed from the threat of eternal damnation, freed from the grasp of Satan. And show us that the freedom Jesus granted does not give us the liberty to return to our sin but to live as You would have us live.
Hear us now, Lord God, as we silently repent of our sin and seek Your forgiving grace…
Father, thank You so much for showing favor to this great land and for giving it to us as our home. Please, Lord, continue to smile upon us and our nation. Grant us Your blessings so that we might bless others. Instill in us the vision of Jesus so that we might see all of Your creation through His eyes and not our own prejudices. In the most holy name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
Will we do as God asks? Do we truly care enough about our nation to humble ourselves before God and pray for its healing? Are we willing to stop focusing on the sins of others and instead repent of our own sin?
I invite you to humble yourself right now. I wish we had a little more room in the pews so you could kneel if you felt it. If you’d like to, come join me here at the foot of the cross of the One who offers us truth and freedom. Let us repent of our sin and pray for our nation, that our Lord’s eyes be open and His ears attentive to our prayer, made here in this place.
Amen.
Join me now as we pray… Heavenly Father, we humble ourselves before You. We seek Your face and Your favor, for ourselves and for our nation. We are concerned, Lord, about the ultimate fate of our friends, our neighbors, and our loved ones. We fear that our country is not headed in the right direction, which should be toward You. We worry that we are too wrapped up in judging the actions of others that we fail to see how our own actions might not be pleasing in Your sight. Forgive us, Father, when we self-righteously point out the splinter in someone else’s eye while ignoring the plank in our own. Forgive us for rebuking the sin of others yet seeing our own as acceptable. Forgive us for picking and choosing which sins You would deem most vile and worthy of damnation.
Father we ask that You heal our land. Not only has the earth suffered under our stewardship, but humanity itself shows far too many signs of widespread moral decay. Please help us all, Father, as a people, to turn from our wicked ways, to be concerned more for our fellow man than for ourselves, to strive to do only what is right in Your eyes. Remind us that Jesus sacrificed His all so that we could be freed from slavery to sin, freed from the threat of eternal damnation, freed from the grasp of Satan. And show us that the freedom Jesus granted does not give us the liberty to return to our sin but to live as You would have us live.
Hear us now, Lord God, as we silently repent of our sin and seek Your forgiving grace…
Father, thank You so much for showing favor to this great land and for giving it to us as our home. Please, Lord, continue to smile upon us and our nation. Grant us Your blessings so that we might bless others. Instill in us the vision of Jesus so that we might see all of Your creation through His eyes and not our own prejudices. In the most holy name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
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