What does freedom look like?
Notes
Transcript
What does freedom look like?
What does freedom look like?
1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants—things which must shortly take place. And He sent and signified it by His angel to His servant John,
2 who bore witness to the word of God, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, to all things that he saw.
3 Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near.
4 John, to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,
5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,
6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
7 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Normally a 4th of July message is usually an easier message. It is full of thankfulness and hope. It is also full of peace and excitement for the future. This year, it is not the same message. This year, I look around me at everything going on in our nation and our world. The turmoil, the fear, and the uncertainty. So I think, what does freedom really mean? It seems to be sliping away. What does it look like?
Define freedom:
the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved.
There are many people today living in a gilded cage. This cage is lined with beautiful and self-absorbing things. They look around and see all the beautiful items and enjoy the the pleasures of these things and ask themselves and of the church, “Why do I need God. Why should I care about stories in this book? They are not relevant for today. What does it matter about someone who died over 2,000 years ago?”
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
This is why. The day will come, and I think very soon, when the door will be slammed shut on those who choose to stay in that cage. The beautiful and self-absorbing things will disappear as the temporary things they are. But those who have claimed Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour will cast away the corruptible in exchange for the incorruptible.
True freedom is not found in this government or any other government of this world. True freedom is not to commit every sin free from consequences. We know there are consequences. True freedom is living in the light of Jesus Christ. True freedom is having the chains of death and hell broken off of us. True freedom is having access to the mighty throne of God. This is not something we could do our-self.
6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.
We know where true freedom lies. It is the One who is the lover of your soul and sacrificed it all for you and for me. Who is more than worthy of all our praise and honor and glory. Even though things seem to be chaotic all around us, we can take courage and strength in knowing our God has everything in His control. There have been many who paved the way for our freedom in Christ.
On February 12, 2015, The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant kidnapped 20 Egyptians who were working construction in Libya and beheaded them because they would not reject Jesus. There was another man who was kidnapped at the same time. He was from Ghana and was not a Christian. All he had to do was deny Christ and they would have released him. He saw the immense faith of the others, he reportedly said, “Their God is my God”. This group also released a video on April 19, 2015, of 30 more Ethiopian Christians being murdered.
David and Linda left their home and church in Brooklyn, New York, 18 years ago to share the gospel in Israel. They have experienced severe persecution. There have been Jews, Muslims, and Gentiles come to faith in Jesus Christ because they went to prepare the way of the Lord. One such man lost everything, his wife and children, his jobs, and expelled from the community.
These soldiers of the faith are some of those whom we honor today. We have new brothers and sisters in the family of God because of soldiers like these. Today, we celebrate our freedom in Christ. We proclaim the gospel. We know this freedom did not come easily and we will not take it for granted. The Lord is coming back and going to take us to our real home. Until then, we need to make a way for the King in our hearts, in our homes, in our families, in our neighborhoods, in our towns, in our state, in our country, and in our world.
3 “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight.’ ”
Split the sky with your glory
Bring to life an awakening
Burn away everything that's not for You
Hear our voices crying out
We won’t stop ‘til heaven's come down
We won’t stop ‘til every knee bows to You
And all our hearts will sing is
Make a way for
Make a way for
Make a way for the King
The King is coming
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