As we approach Independence Day, I hope we all will take time to consider the freedom we enjoy.  Though we may not like all that's happening in our country, it's the best one there is.  Even if judges, legislators and other elected leaders put self-interest ahead of common sense, there is no other country better than ours.  We enjoy a freedom and prosperity greater than any nation in history.  So let's thank God this 4th of July - and every day - for the mercies He's shown us in America.

          "We hold these truths to be self-evident..." says our Declaration of Independence, and 56 men signed it.  Have you ever wondered what happened to the signers?  Five were captured by the British as traitors, and tortured until they died.  Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.  Two lost sons in the Revolutionary Army and another had his sons captured.  Nine of those 56 men fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.

          What kind of men were they?  Twenty-four were lawyers and judges.  Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and plantation owners.  They were men of means and well educated, but they had signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well it would mean death if captured.  Carter Braxton of Virginia, wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships destroyed by the British Navy.  He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.  Thomas McKean was hounded by the British until he was forced to keep his family moving constantly.  He served in the Continental Congress without pay, but his family had to live in hiding.  His possessions were confiscated, and his reward was poverty.

          Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.  At Yorktown, the Nelson home was taken over by British General Cornwallis and so Mr. Nelson urged General Washington to open fire on his home.  It was destroyed, and he died in bankruptcy.

          Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed.  The British jailed his wife and she died within months.  John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she lay ill.  His fields and mill were laid waste and their 13 children fled for their lives.  For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished.  A few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.  Norris and Livingston suffered similar fates.

          Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution.  These were not wild-eyed, foolish rebels.  They were soft-spoken men of means and education.  They had wealth, but they valued freedom more.  Unwaveringly, they mutually pledged to each other their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor.  Their sacrifices gave you and me a free and independent America.  And remember, we didn't fight just the British.  We were British subjects at that time and we had to fight our own government to be free!

          It is basic human nature to want to be free, to stand up for our rights, and to express our opinions freely.  Problems arise, however, when we elevate our opinion to the level of absolute truth, or when we deny there is such as thing as a truth higher than ourselves.  The more educated we are, the more intelligent we believe ourselves to be, and the more prideful we become, the more we will disdain anyone or anything we don't agree with, including truth itself.

          Jesus said..., "If you continue in my Word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free."  "Truth" appears 180 times in New Testament, 50 times in the Gospel of John alone.  Jesus' phrase, "I tell you the truth," occurs 80 times and is spoken only by our Lord.  It's part of the special language a rabbi regularly used to emphasize the truth of what He was going to say.  When Jesus says, "I tell you the truth," you can be sure His words were the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

          Pontius Pilate asked, "What is truth", a common question among government officials, but one every citizen must answer.  Some think it's unanswerable, like, "How high is up?"  Others say truth is relative, whatever you think it is.  Still others think their point of view is always the truth.  But too many don't know and don't care.  They're too busy making a living, tending the kids, paying the bills to be concerned.  So what really is this thing called "truth" and how can we face it?

          In Moscow, near the Bolshoi Theatre a few blocks from Red Square, there used to be a bust of Karl Marx.  Inscribed on it are words of Vladimir Lenin regarding Marx.  The inscription reads, "His words will last forever, because his words are true."  Many people in the early years of Communism believed that, but today only a handful do.  But today hundreds of thousands are learning the truth of God, that only in Jesus Christ can they be free.  It's the total opposite of Marx's doctrine that denied God completely.  They're learning that only through Jesus, God's Son, can they truly know freedom.

          Jesus spoke of truth as a standard, something fixed and unchangeable.  When He told Pilate He'd come to testify to the truth, He meant Truth that He was the Son of God.  Friends, that is the most important truth, the life-giving truth, truth we must believe and share with others still captive.  And there are some more of God's truths we must face, such as...

          Truth #1: "God loves us."  All of us need to know we are loved and valued by others.  It's basic to our existence.  That's why we get married, have children and bond to friends.  People can't live without acceptance and love.  The best and truest kind of love is God's love, which is His attitude towards all people.  The Apostle John said, "This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." (1 John 4:10)

          God really does love us, no matter what.  No matter who we are or what we've done, He values us above all creation.  He loves us enough to make a huge sacrifice for us, the life of His Son.  This is a great truth we must all face.  Yes, we are not perfect.  People do have problems, but our problems will never overcome the love of God.  "God so loved the world that He gave His only Son..." (John 3:16)  It's a truth we must face.

          Truth #2: "People are sinners."  Our biggest human problem is sin.  It separates us from God and from people.  Separation from people can be bad, but separation from God is deadly.  Sin is within us from birth and shows itself in the wrong things we do and say, and in the things we neglect to do.  Without forgiveness, we're lost.

          Romans 3:23 says, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."  The separation of sin is destructive because it's so cunning, especially these days when sin has become passé.  Far too many people today no longer believe they're sinful, just immature or underprivileged or frightened or uneducated or sick.  They don't seek forgiveness, just another self-help program.  But sin does separate us from God and each other.  It's a truth we all must face.  We must be perfect and we can't!  We must reach out to God for help.

          Truth #3: "God forgives sin."  Knowing we're sinners gives us no hope, only despair.  Romans 6:23 says, "The wages of sin is death," terrible news!  But there's Good News in that verse too.  "But the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."  Because we had no hope, God had to do something special for us.  He sent His only Son to give us life.  He's the one and only way back to God.

          People have been trying for ages to find peace in the world.  Some believe sharing the wealth is the answer, but that hasn't worked.  Some think education is the solution, that if we teach people better, our problems will disappear.  But our problem is not ignorance -- it's sin.  Ignorance can lead to sin, but education won't lead us out of sin.  Only forgiveness can.  That's a wonderful truth we must share, a truth that sets people free.

          Truth #4: "In Jesus we're saved."  God has done it all for us, but we must reach out to Him and be forgiven.  God wants us to be His children, so He gives us faith to trust in Jesus.  And in trusting Jesus, we are forgiven and adopted into God's family.  St. Paul tells us, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romans 10:13)  By faith we call on Jesus and receive Him into our hearts, and become God's children.  "To all who received Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God." (John 1:12)  By faith, we're children of the heavenly Father, set free from sin, free to love God and free to serve and love others.

          Jesus told His disciples - "When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth."  The Spirit frees us from bondage to Satan and his half-truths that have fouled our world.  The Spirit leads us away from lies into the truth of Jesus Christ, "the Way the Truth and the Life." (John 14:6)

          Do you see what we've just done?  We've just learned four all-important spiritual truths, short little sentences we can use to share our faith.  Write them down:  (1) God loves us,  (2) People are sinners,  (3) God forgives sin,  (4) In Jesus we're saved - four godly truths we can pass on to others, four spiritual truths that surpass all the civil truth a society could ever formulate.

          This is truths we dare not keep to ourselves.  We must pass it on!  In 1985 there was a celebration at a New Orleans municipal swimming pool to celebrate their first summer without a drowning.  200 people came, including a hundred certified lifeguards.  As the party broke up, they discovered a fully dressed body in the deep end.  Someone had drowned while surrounded by lifeguards!  I wonder how many people among us are drowning in loneliness, doubt and hurt, while we're celebrating the Gospel and merely guarding its message, but not sharing it?

          Today's let's not just worship, praise God and then go home.  Let's share our hope!  Let's pass it on to other drowning people!  Our faith was meant to be shared.  It's necessary to share it if we're going to keep it.  You have to give faith away in order to keep it!  Yes, there will be some who reject the truth of Christ, but we can't stop doing what's right just because public opinion.  We must speak the truth in love.  We must give away what we've been given.  We have hope and life in Christ!  Let's pass it on!  Amen.

Copyright © 2000 by Pastor Bob Tasler.  All rights reserved.