THE NORTHERN KENTUCKY SEARCHER
"Search the scriptures: for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me. " (John 5:39)

VOLUME 7, NUMBER 26, JULY 1, 2007

INDEPENDENCE DAY

            On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress of the fledgling United States of America, signed the Declaration of Independence.  In so doing they declared the new nation’s independence from the oppressive British regime, whose taxation and governmental policies had become intolerable.  They did not know what road lay ahead for them, but were determined to do whatever was necessary in support of the decision they had made.  The die was cast; there could be no turning back.

            The path that these men had chosen would not be without cost.  There would be suffering and deprivation for the general populace and there would be an enormous amount of blood shed by those men who gave their lives in battle in the pursuit of freedom.  In throwing off the shackles of their former “masters” the citizens of the new United States of America were subjecting themselves to a different form of government, a new set of “masters” so to speak, chosen by the people to provide for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  From these seeds shown in the beginning days would grow the mightiest nation on earth – the United States of America.

            The desire of the British government to control the lives of the colonists, to derive great profit from them, and the steps they took to assure that their desires would come to pass, caused the colonies to revolt.  One can see parallels between what happened then and what happens now when an individual decides to declare his or her independence and throw off the shackles of the most oppressive master of all.

            Jesus referred to Satan as the “prince of this world” in three different places in the Gospel of John.   In contemporary Jewish documents of the time, Satan is referred to with this descriptive phrase because he was viewed as leading the Gentile peoples – a classic example of Jewish prejudice.  King, in his commentary on the Gospel of John, p. 254, writes, “Here he is given the title since he is master of those who refuse to believe, in this case the Jewish political and social leadership.”  Make no mistake about it.  When a person refuses to believe in the Lord and to obey His word, that person has subjected himself to the “prince of this world.”  He has made himself a subject of Satan and serves a master whose regime is so oppressive and whose ultimate reward is eternal damnation.

            Consider Romans 6:15-23.  Paul wrote, “What then?  Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace?  Certainly not!  Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?  But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered.  And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.  I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh.  For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness.  For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.  What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed?  For the end of those things is death.  But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.  For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

            The time is far past for all of those who are subjects of the prince of this world, for all who are servants of Satan, to declare their independence.  Such a declaration is seen and experienced as they turn in humble obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ; believing His word, repenting of their sins, confessing their faith in Jesus as the Lord, and being baptized in water for the remission of their sins.  It is paradoxical that only by becoming a subject of Jesus Christ, His servant, can one truly be free.

            In John 8:31-36 we read the following, “Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed in Him, If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. They answered Him, We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone.  How can you say, You will be made free?  Jesus answered them, Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.  And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever.  Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.”

            Proclaim your independence.  Become a faithful child of God, and know what true freedom in service really is.  The immediate result is the best life possible on earth, and eternal salvation.

                                                Greg Litmer.