Freedom … The word is almost sacred to the American people, and over the world today it stirs great hope and aspirations. Our Declaration of Independence calls it an “inalienable” right and a truth “self-evident.” What is the source of this freedom, and what does it mean to us?<\/p>\n
Free agency, the right to choose, is a gift from God. He elevated man above the beasts of the field: making man in his image (Genesis 1:26), sharing with man the power of choice. Man need not be a slave to instinct or norm. He may rise above himself, pursue ideals, seek truth, and embrace it.<\/p>\n
But with power there is responsibility. The ability to choose the right exposes us to the danger of choosing the wrong. The same justice that rewards the righteous, must also condemn the wicked. Freedom, then, cannot be free. Even in the moral realm, it imposes obligations, and there are none more bound than those who foolishly demand unbridled liberty and become slaves of their own folly.<\/p>\n
In a free government, a man can vote as he chooses, but he may not vote correctly. He may, by neglect or party politics, fail the responsibilities of this truth and encourage corruption.<\/p>\n
In business, free enterprise allows a man to invest as he sees fit. But this is no guarantee of profit. He may invest unwisely, and “lose his shirt” — the price paid for an untrammeled opportunity.<\/p>\n
A study of freedom in every facet of life will emphasize the obligations of those who enjoy it. Conversely, man’s history shows that freedom is lost when its obligations are ignored.<\/p>\n
Freedom in religion is widely acclaimed, but it is as widely misunderstood. The constitution guarantees religious freedom, but cannot make whatever one chooses to believe acceptable to God. At best, man can only endorse the freedom God originally granted — a right inherent in the nature of man. Legislative, judicial, and executive authority in divine matters must be left to God.<\/p>\n
The need to serve God according to his law is not diminished by free will. That need is, in fact, intensified. We are more accountable before God for the way we exercise our free agency.<\/p>\n
In the very early times, the “priesthood” of all believers (I Peter 2:5, 9) was dominated by a rising clergy system. Each one’s obligation to “prove all things” (I Thessalonians 5:21) gave way to party loyalties and the word of the clergy. Soon the scriptural standard (Acts 17:11) was replaced by the usurped “authority of the church,” and history repeated itself. When the obligations of true liberty are slighted, liberty itself is lost.<\/p>\n
Individual liberty was not wrested from the church. It was lost by default. “Churchianity” dulls individual will and stifles initiative. In religion, as in business and government, the socialized slave is tranquilized by his lot and loses his taste for the rigorous life of true freedom.<\/p>\n
Dear Reader, how much of your own religion have you proven by God’s word? Perhaps you were baptized (?) by sprinkling, but have you ever read New Testament authority for that? You may be a member of some denomination, but does the word of God authorize its name, doctrine, and practice? Do you accept a thing as right or wrong simply because the preacher so declares it? Do such questions irritate you? We hope not! They are asked to help you see how easily one may forfeit individual freedoms in favor of unproven traditions. Truth has nothing to fear from honest investigation, but freedom can be lost without it.<\/p>\n
Fundamentally, religion is a choice of masters: God or self. Liberty under God is not the same as becoming your own God. Recognition of the Supreme Being should make us aware that man can no longer direct his own steps (Jeremiah 10:23). Jesus warned, “No man can serve two masters<\/em>” (Matthew 6:24). Joshua said, “Choose you this day whom ye will serve . . .<\/em>“; then he added that a decision for God imposed obligations (Joshua 24:15, 19-23).<\/p>\n Most pitiful of all are the willfully blind. Thinking they serve God, these allow the winds of the day to make their decisions. They stumble in the darkness of self-service, yet know not they are blind (Revelation 3:17). Freedom is not for the fearful, the crowd pleaser, or the lover of ease in Zion. It must be grasped with resoluteness, and retained with sacrifice — eyes wide open.<\/p>\n Freedom under God involves individual responsibility toward God: to know his will (John 17:17) and be freed from sin (John 8:32-36). Truth severs the shackles of sectarianism and gives assurance that we walk in his light. But we are warned that if we fail to properly exercise our freedom — in religion, as in government and business — we shall be bound by sin and finally perish.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Robert F. Turner via\u00a0Guardian of Truth\u00a0XL: 2 p. 1 January 18, 1996 Freedom … The word is almost sacred to the American people, and over the world today it stirs great hope and aspirations. Our Declaration of Independence calls it an “inalienable” right and a truth “self-evident.” What is the source of this freedom,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[426,790,310],"class_list":["post-56322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-free-will","tag-freedom","tag-government"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":31140,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/thoughts-about-true-freedom\/","url_meta":{"origin":56322,"position":0},"title":"Thoughts About True Freedom","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 24, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by R.L. Whiteside (1869-1951) \"Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free\" (John 8:31-32). People who long for freedom usually know little of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/fish-213x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":56314,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/freedom-can-only-be-found-in-god\/","url_meta":{"origin":56322,"position":1},"title":"Freedom Can Only Be Found in God","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 26, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"by Kent Heaton Thomas Jefferson wrote, \"And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure, when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but by his\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":55907,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/does-one-have-a-right-to-his-own-belief\/","url_meta":{"origin":56322,"position":2},"title":"Does One Have a Right to His Own Belief?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 17, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"by Eugene W. Clevenger via\u00a0The Preceptor, Vol. 1, No. 6, April 1952. A question that we often hear asked is, Does every person have a right to his own belief? I cannot answer that question honestly and completely with a simple \"Yes\" or \"No\", because to me the answer is\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":58419,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/on-being-noble-minded\/","url_meta":{"origin":56322,"position":3},"title":"On Being Noble-Minded","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 24, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"by Roger M. Hendricks via\u00a0The Graphic Evangelist, Vol. 21, No. 8, April 19, 1981. It is affirmed of the Jews in Berea that they \"were more noble minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the Word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scripture daily, whether those\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":56318,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/freedom-through-gods-law\/","url_meta":{"origin":56322,"position":4},"title":"Freedom Through God’s Law","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 26, 2008","format":false,"excerpt":"by Charles N. Spence, Jr. God had always wanted His people to be free. However, most people today have a radically different idea of freedom than God's. Many in the world today look at freedom as the uninhibited right to do what they want to do. We can see this\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5282,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/freedom\/","url_meta":{"origin":56322,"position":5},"title":"Freedom","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 4, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doy Moyer \u201cLive as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God\u201d (I Peter 2:16). If we really wish to honor freedom, then we will seek to live as servants of God. We cannot expect that God will\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Freedom-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56322"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56322\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56322"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56322"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}