“To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32 This Thursday we will celebrate July the 4th. The day we remember in the history of our country that the United States won its freedom. The freedom was from the tyranny of a King. The freedom came with a great cost, but it gave us the right to form our country into a country where there were certain unalienable rights including the right to pursue happiness. So then, as we know it as Americans, we have always been free since that time. But that is not necessarily true.
The real truth of the matter comes from the teachings of the Bible, God’s Holy word. The bible says that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. It goes on to say that the wages of sin is death. So the truth is that in order for us to be free, there has to be a remedy or a way to be free from death itself. We can have the rights to say what is on our mind without being thrown in jail which is called free speech. We can have the right to worship God in the manner we choose which is called freedom of religion, but even then, are we really free? If you think about it, a lot of the struggles the early patriots had with England seem to be struggles we are having today with a government that seems is over reaching at times. Think about the taxes we pay for example! So, are we really free? Can the government truly give us the ultimate freedom over death? The answer of course is NO!
So, then you turn into the Bible and see the ministry of Jesus. The miracles he performed proved that he was different than anyone else. They showed he was sent from God. And of course you have his teachings which as he said in the above scripture would actually lead us to truth, and then that truth would set you free!
So what is the truth that Jesus proclaimed? It was Jesus himself! He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life! No one comes to the Father except through him! The truth shall set you free. So, by knowing and believing that Jesus is the only Son of God given to us by the Father, we have found the way to be free from the bondage of sin and death and given the promise of everlasting life with God in heaven. That is really the only real freedom in this world! The rest that we call freedom sometimes, is really just partial freedom. So as much as I celebrate the freedoms we have in this country, it doesn’t compare with the freedom that comes from knowing Jesus. I hope all of you reading this will pull out a bible look at this scripture and choose to do exactly what Jesus said in holding to his teaching and becoming his disciple.
(Editor’s Note: This column is written by a different Littlefield pastor for the Leader-News each week. The columns are published on this page on Wednesdays.)