Exodus 26:31-33,
Matthew 27:50-51,
2 Corinthians 3:12-17
As people across The United States are gathered together today to celebrate our independence as a
nation, let’s remember there is something greater that we celebrate as Christians! On the day that
Christ died, the veil of the holiest of holy places was torn away, and Grace gave us a direct path to
true freedom over death and the gift of eternal life. Death no longer has its sting, nor does the grave
have its victory! Therefore, we should celebrate this freedom over sin and death that we have through
Jesus Christ!
How do you celebrate your freedom in Christ?
Do you shout it from the mountain tops of your good days so that your praises to God may be heard by others?
Do you sing praises in the valley of your bad days, proclaiming the freedom God still provides that it may
bring encouragement to yourself and others!
Do you get the same chills running down your spine as you do when the fireworks burst
across the sky and you hear songs like God Bless the USA, or when you hear or sing the the Star
Spangled Banner!
Do you sing God’s anthems of freedom loud and proud?
Do you sing songs of celebration like:
Come What May
In every high, in every low
On mountain tops, down broken roads
You're still my rock, my hope remains
I'll rest in the arms of Jesus
Come what may
(sang by We Are Messengers)
or
Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone)
My chains are gone, I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love
Amazing grace
(sang by Chris Tomlin)
Or
There Is Freedom
Where the Spirit of the Lord is
There is freedom
We'll be dancin' through the darkness
'Cause we believe it
Every stronghold has to break at the name of Jesus
Where the Spirit of the Lord is
There is freedom.
(sang by Josh Baldwin)
Psalm 98:1 Says,
“Oh sing to the lord a new song!
For He has done marvelous things;
His right hand and His Holy arm
Have gained Him the victory.”
Do you proclaim to others what God has done for you, in that he loves all of us SO MUCH,
that he gave his only Son, so that all who believe may have everlasting life. An everlasting
life that gives us freedom from the eternal death that our sins had bound us too. Our chains
are broken, we HAVE been set free through God’s amazing grace and never-ending love for us!
It’s worth celebrating right? And celebrations like this are not meant to be kept to ourselves, right?
We celebrate openly at Christmas and Easter, but what about the normal day-to-day at work, at
school, where you volunteer, wherever you are and whatever you are doing on a normal day.
Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to
salvation for everyone who believes…”
What better reason is there to openly celebrate Christ than to share how He gave His life for
us.
I know it could be that you are not ashamed, but too shy… God’s Word has an answer for you
as well.
Jesus says in Luke 12:11-12 when he was talking to the multitudes,
“Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and
authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say. For
the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you aught to say”
The Holy Spirit can guide our conversations, the very words we speak, if we allow the Holy
Spirit to use us and work through us.
Do we proclaim to those around us of the wonderful power of God that we experienced in our
lives? An almighty power that kindled the fire of the Holy Spirit within us when we first
believed! The excitement, the joy, of the burden of our sins lifted from us! Is that fire still
there in you, does the thought of being saved by grace still send chills of excitement down
your spine? Or cause you to look up towards heaven and give God a big grin and say, "thank you!"
Or has your fire gone out by being a silent Christian? Covering your light that you should be
shining before men. There is no other freedom greater than the freedom that comes from
the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ! We should not keep that to ourselves, we
should celebrate it daily and follow God’s commandment to spread that good news. If we are
rejected, know that we were not the first to be reject and we won’t be the last. The Bible has
a lot of examples of how the world rejected Christ, from His death to His resurrections, and even after His
resurrection! So let’s not be afraid, shy, or ashamed, but rather bold and courageous with
our love towards those around us who have not accept Christ as their Savior.
We proudly stand and sing our national anthem... do you proudly stand and sing for Christ?
Does your life demonstrate that amazing freedom we have through salvation and the
freedom we have to personally reach out to God who wants a relationship with us in our
highs and our lows. The veil of the holiest of holy places was torn away so that you and I can
go to God and have a personal relationship with Him.
Revelations 3:20 God says,
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will
come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me."
Some people make this verse all about salvation, but within the context of where this
verse is in the chapter; it is more of an invitation to believers to allow God back into their
lives and to not turn from Him. God wants a relationship with you, but how bad do you want
a relationship with God? The strength of your relationship with God determines the strength
of how bright your light shines before men. I believe that relationship determines the brevity
of your divine celebrations of rejoicings in what God has done in your life. If you don’t have a
close relationship with God, you more than likely don’t have a lot to celebrate as you are not
allowing Him to fully guide your life, and so your celebrations are short, few and far between.
But if you take each day and spend time with God, building that relationship with him, you
will have plenty to rejoice about as you see Him do His work in your life. As you draw closer
to Him, you will experience Him drawing closer to you. You will have plenty of testimonies
you can share with others about how God has personally guided your life!
So as we look at what July 4th signifies for our nation, our independence, our freedom…
Let’s not forget the greater freedom we have through salvation.
The freedom we have to worship the one true and living God.
Freedom to speak to others about the one true and living God.
Freedom to sing praises to Him. To sings hymns and spiritual songs.
All freedoms that will one day disappear as the end times approach. So let's make use of the
time we have, to celebrate and proclaim the freedom that Jesus Christ gives us through salvation!
How much of our God given freedom are we using to shout out that we are alive because
Christ is alive! Other groups that are influenced by Satan are openly celebrating their so-called joys,
let's not let them drown out the name of Jesus! I encourage you to be open in celebrating
the freedom you have received through salvation, and the freedom you have received from
God lifting you up when you were struggling. So let your light shine in celebration of the
deliverance He can give to all who believe.
"...Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom."
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