But wait. Haven’t we already celebrated Independence Day? We enjoyed the fireworks and the parades and felt gratitude for the brave patriots who sacrificed their lives for our freedom? Yes, we did. But there is another Independence Day that has been given to each of us by God’s grace.
Another Independence Day began on the cross outside Jerusalem where Jesus died to give us freedom, liberation and hope. In John 8:36, Jesus said, “If the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed” (NLT).
II Corinthians 3:17 says, “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” Christ has given us freedom from guilt, shame and sin.
Guilt is the feeling that we are to blame for some bad outcome in our life. We replay a particular scene over and over in our mind.
The antidote to guilt is found in Philippians 3:13-14: “But I try to do this one thing: forgetting the past and looking ahead to the things that lie ahead, I run the race I am meant to run to the finish and receive the heavenly prize for which God has called me through Christ Jesus.”
Focus on the future Christ has for you and declare your independence from the guilt of the past.
Shame often comes with guilt. Shame is a feeling of humiliation, embarrassment, rejection, regret, or inadequacy. Guilt has to do with how we see ourselves. Shame has to do with how others see us. But what the Bible says about shame: Psalm 15:3, “No one will be put to shame who hopes in God.”
Jesus nailed our shame, humiliation, rejection, and inadequacy to the cross with Himself when He died for us. That was our Independence Day. That is our freedom. By Jesus’ grace, we must learn to walk in it.
It reminds me of the words of Benjamin Franklin: “We gave you a republic, if you can keep it.” The only way we can maintain our republic as a nation is by adhering to our founding document, the United States Constitution.
the Rev. James R. Pentz, senior pastor of New Covenant Assembly of God Church in Montgomery;
The only way we can preserve the freedom Christ has given us is to obey our foundational document, the Bible, the Word of God, which we need God’s grace to obey so we can live the life God wants us to live.
Evangelist and author Leonard Ravenhill asks, “Is what you are doing for a living worth Christ’s dying for?” In other words, is your position, your passion, your plan, your ministry worth Christ’s dying for? I think we often have to answer, “No, I don’t think it is.”
When we realize that the source of our guilt and shame is sin, we can change it. Sin was defeated on the cross, where Jesus took our sin, paid our penalty, and overturned our condemnation by dying in our place.
Romans 6:12-13 warns us, “Do not let sin control your life. Do not give in to sinful desires, but instead devote yourself totally to God.”
Romans 6:14 assures us, “Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the demands of the law, but under the freedom of God’s grace.”
Happy Independence Day! Enjoy the freedom you have in the Lord Jesus Christ.
