John 8:31-38 Amplified Bible
The Truth Will Make You Free
31 So Jesus was saying to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word [continually obeying My teachings and living in accordance with them, then] you are truly My disciples. 32 And you will know the truth [regarding salvation], and the truth will set you free [from the penalty of sin].” 33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been enslaved to anyone. [a]What do You mean by saying, ‘You will be set free’?”
34 Jesus answered, “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, everyone who practices sin habitually is a slave of sin. 35 Now the slave does not remain in a household forever; the son [of the master] does remain forever. 36 So if the Son makes you free, then you are unquestionably free. 37 I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you plan to kill Me, because My word has no place [to grow] in you [and it makes no change in your heart]. 38 I tell the things that I have seen at My Father’s side [in His very presence]; so you also do the things that you heard from your father.”
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
The Bible – Our Free Pathway to God’s Personal Truth
The Truth Will Make You Free
31 So Jesus was saying to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word [continually obeying My teachings and living in accordance with them, then] you are truly My disciples. 32 And you will know the truth [regarding salvation], and the truth will set you free [from the penalty of sin].”
Sometimes the Bible is described as a telescope.
A telescope is not something to look at but an instrument to look through.
When we do, we are free to see that what we see and believe is far away or hard to see is actually closer than we thought, when focused it becomes clearer to us.
When we look at life and history through the narrowed lens of the Bible, what once seemed distant and hard to understand will inevitably come into focus.
Through the Words of Scripture we are brought close to God and His truth.
Through the Words of Scripture we are brought near to events that happened thousands of years ago. We zoom in, for example, on the life and ministry of our Savior Jesus Christ, who became human and came to live among us (John 1:14).
Jesus wanted the people of his day to believe in him as the One who reveals the truth about God, what God is doing in this world, His freedom, through Christ.
But instead they wanted to hang on to old legalisms that enslaved them to a broken system, refusing to admit that they were slaves to sin, could not keep the law perfectly. Jesus urged them to accept him as the eternal truth and life who could bring them out of this slavery, give them new life forever with God.
Are we any different? As we daily encounter the Word of God, we must accept and meet God on his terms, not ours. By relying on the Spirit’s help, God speaks to us and breathes into us his life and truth. And that truth sets us free-free to serve him in our all daily work, play, relationships, and every other facet of life.
A Prayer of Gratefulness for our Nation’s Freedom
Galatians 5:1The Message
The Life of Freedom
5 Christ has set us free to live a free life. So take your stand! Never again let anyone put a harness of slavery on you.
Even though some American citizens may not feel too much gratitude for our nation in its present condition, we should want to view it with thankful hearts, treasuring how God worked in 1776, divinely established this nation in freedom.
As 2 Corinthians 3:17 explains, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”
Regardless of how some feel about our nation’s present state, 1 Thessalonians 5:18 urges us to “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
Especially as Christians to recognize that God is the author of freedom.
As John 8:36 explains, Jesus is the One that sets us free. “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”
Cultivating Ongoing Gratefulness for Our Nation’s Freedom
Long-lasting freedom requires citizens to practice ongoing gratitude.
Without continual appreciation and recognition of the efforts that fostered and shed blood, sacrificed for freedom, a nation starts to lose widespread support for it, leading to coming generations being uninformed and misconstruing events that led to the establishment of a free nation. Proverbs 11:14 explains, “For lack of guidance a nation falls, but victory is won through many advisers.”
Silence Equals Consent: The Sin of Omission author William J. Federer writes how on March 30, 1961, America’s future 40th President, Ronald Reagan, spoke to the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce on the importance of passing on gratitude for the history, lessons, and sacrifices of freedom to our future generations:
“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. The only way they can inherit the freedom we have known is if we fight for it, protect it, defend it, and then hand it to them with the well-taught lessons of how they in their lifetime must do the same. And if you and I don’t do this, then you and I may well spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it once was like in America when men were free.”
For America’s freedom to endure, it’s vital for us to pass on genuine, heartfelt gratitude for it by first giving glory, thanking God and, secondly, by recognizing exactly what it takes to maintain it. As Proverbs 15:22 explains, “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers, they succeed.”
Passing Gratefulness for Our Freedom On to the Next Generation
Proverbs 13:22 urges parents to leave an inheritance to their children.
Teaching our children and their children to be thankful for America’s costly freedom is vital and a priceless gift.
Taking the time to pass on gratitude for it to our families is well worth our time.
A key to parents passing on gratitude for America to future generations is by example, expressing it ourselves, and researching, studying, and knowing and then sharing and celebrating its rich history – both its victories and its defeats.
Providence Forum Executive Director Dr. Jerry Newcombe encourages parents to “Learn the true history ourselves and teach it to our children. “
There are plenty of sound resources out there trying to get Americans to learn about what made our nation so special.” One such resource is the Providence Forum “Foundation of American Liberty” film series, written and produced by Newcombe. This series explores the foundation of American liberty, which is our Judeo-Christian heritage.
A Prayer to Prepare Our Hearts to Celebrate God and Our 248th Nation’s 4th of July Birthday.
John 8:36 Amplified Bible
36 So if the Son makes you free, then you are unquestionably free.
America’s 4th of July holiday is all about celebrating freedom. Although many citizens may be viewing it as a reason for an extended holiday, family gatherings, and setting off fireworks, there is much more behind this national holiday. Many Americans may not realize where the desire for freedom, the kind that stirs the hearts of men and women, originates. 2 Corinthians 3:17 explains its source, “Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”
Many believe God’s way is to restrain people, but His way is freedom; as John 8:32 explains, “Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Humankind’s longing for freedom comes from God, who provides the way for us to be free. “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1).
Freedom Came to America
Sadly, some Americans have no idea how America came to be the free nation it is today. They haven’t heard or learned how God divinely led Christians from across the ocean who longed to openly serve Him to leave everything behind and risk their lives to set sail for a world where they could freely worship God.
In The Pilgrim Chronicles, historian Rod Gragg traces the Pilgrims’ beginnings in 1606 England as Christian separatists who had faced severe persecution by the Church of England. But fleeing to Holland in 1609 brought them face-to-face with worldly Dutch ways, causing them to look beyond the Netherlands for the religious freedom they longed to find.
Journeying to the New World offered them the opportunity to find the freedom to worship their Savior Jesus in peace. Because they did, the Pilgrims laid the biblical foundation and influence, leading our Founding Fathers to base our Declaration of Independence on godly principles. These truths are exactly why we each have been given the right to worship God freely and without reserve.
Freedom Brings Unity
But as the New World grew, England’s King George ruled with a heavy hand, oppressing the citizens and cultivating a widespread desire for them to be free from his control. His oppression led to the Revolutionary War that led to the Declaration of Independence and the creation of the United States of America.
Behind this movement was the Church, consisting of Congregationalists, Anglicans, Catholics, Deists, Quakers, Dutch Reformed, Baptists, Lutherans, Puritans, and Presbyterians who came together to pray, overlooking their own denominational differences to unite 13 colonies together for a common goal.
Dennis Prager, an American conservative radio talk-show host and writer, explains, “Ultimately, they wanted people to be free to practice their religion and relate to God in their own way. They all knew God is the source of liberty.”
Freedom’s Ultimate Sacrifice
As Christians, we know freedom comes through Jesus’ sacrifice.
As 1 John 2:2 explains, “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”
Likewise, sacrifice led the way for our nation’s freedom, too. Retired Judge Darrell White describes, “In a nutshell, our founders sacrificed their prosperity for their posterity, us. They pledged to give their entire lives, their fortunes, their reputations and their sacred honor to secure our blessings of liberty.”
Because Jesus loved us, freely laid down His life, we have been set free from sin.
John 3:16-17 Amplified Bible
16 “For God so [greatly] loved and dearly prized the world, that He [even] gave His [One and] [a]only begotten Son, so that whoever believes and trusts in Him [as Savior] shall not perish, but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send the Son into the world to judge and condemn the world [that is, to initiate the final judgment of the world], but that the world might be saved through Him.
This foundational freedom, this foundational truth, strengthened and led the way for men and women before us to sacrifice of themselves, lay down their lives so that we might live in a nation founded on liberty for all. As Dr. Jerry Newcombe, Executive Director of Providence Forum, explains, “We are free in large part because many others sacrificed on our behalf that we might be free.”
Thank You, God! Happy 248th Birthday – The United States of America!
In the name of God, the Father, and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 22:27-28 Amplified Bible
27
All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord,
And all the families of the nations will bow down and worship before You,
28
For the kingship and the kingdom are the Lord’s
And He rules over the nations.
Dear Father, King of Eternity, thank You for the freedom You give to us through Jesus Christ, Your Son. Help us, as United States citizens, publicly and privately give thanks to You for the freedom we have as a nation. Lead Americans across our nation to be grateful for what You have given us and to recognize that true freedom is a gift from You. Let our hearts overflow with thankfulness to You for the true freedom our nation offers us because its foundation is based on the freedom we receive from You. Lead us in teaching our children, and our children’s children, to have hearts full of gratitude to You for providing the way to freedom through Jesus. Inspire future generations to treasure freedom and treasure You and to see that it comes from You and You alone.
Today and every day, we are freely able to celebrate the freedom You give us and how it laid the foundation for our nation to be free. Thank You for the freedom You give to us through Your Son, Jesus Christ. Because of You, true freedom is possible and stirs the hearts of Americans and people around the world. Let Your name be glorified in our celebrations. Help us celebrate in ways that bring You praise and honor. Remind Americans how You divinely led Christians to set sail and settle this land for Your glory. Show us, too, O Lord, how to be grateful and respectful to the men and women who came before us, sacrificing their lives and futures, braving and suffering hardship, to establish this land for Your glory so future generations could live free. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 