The Source of Liberty

So, I was thinking of the 4th of July, the Declaration of Independence, fireworks, democracy and celebrating liberty. I found myself wondering how many people understand the source of their freedoms. Does government grant them? Does the constitution? In a word, no; Government doesn’t grant rights, rather it tends to diminish our rights with each law it passes. The constitution was never intended to grant rights, only to acknowledge some of them and to limit government from denial of them. That is only as good as the peoples’ attentiveness to the lawmaking process. Government will never default to observance of the constitution on its own, the people need to constantly be watchful and keep government in its place. It is up to us to restrain the government from acting out of turn. In other words, we, the people are the government.
The founding fathers clearly intended to create an environment in which people would be free to live as God had intended and to have a minimal government operating in the background to ensure that end. Not quite how it’s working these days. Even amongst those who acknowledge Liberty as having been granted by God, there exists a certain capitulation born of apathy toward government when those same “God given rights” are infringed upon. This phenomenon was more aptly phrased in the declaration of independence; “all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.” This is especially prevalent in younger people that are new to being away from their parents and self sufficient, but that’s another whole topic.
As important as the question of who gives us our rights, is why. If the government allows us our freedoms, then why does it? You can be assured many congressmen have given that a lot of consideration. Might they be calculating how to rescind those rights? Judging from history, we must conclude, some are and not just government either. Many very wealthy and otherwise influential people are dabbling in their own version of the way and degree to which we should be governed.
What is the function of freedom then? Anyone could say it’s good to be free but, do we need to be free? We could sacrifice some of our liberties for security, right? There’s a lot to consider there. Indeed there is some room for argument. Therein we find the left wing front of the assault on liberty. Much of the erosion of our freedom comes under the heading of ‘sacrifices for the greater good’. The U.S. Constitution says “(to) promote the general welfare”; not “enforce the general welfare”.
The confusion about liberty, specifically, who has what rights and when, begins when God is taken out of the equation.
Liberty and Rights are given by God for a purpose. Liberty is a part of God’s plan and as such, would be of great interest to Satan and others who would seek power for themselves.
Jesus said “no one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). So, we need but to choose to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior in order to be saved. Neither Satan, nor anyone else, can take that away from us but we have the right not to choose that path. I somehow feel that will be one right that will never be denied us by any government. Since Satan hasn’t the power to force us to choose death, how then can we be made to choose the obviously losing side of the battle? The answer to that seems simple in hindsight, of course, through lies and trickery.
So much is said about freedom with regard to America’s leading role in democracy in the world. I’m reminded of how America’s promotion of liberty is misrepresented; it is sometimes viewed as a solely political endeavor and at times even a simple jingoistic ideal. It seems to me that America is glorified for freedom as though it is itself, the prize. That liberty, for its own sake is worth fighting and dying over. To some that may be the case but as I’ve stated, liberties are God given and our choice to accept Jesus as our savior means that we must strive to do as our Lord instructs. No earthly punishment is so terrible or reward so tempting as to make them worth rejecting that. Satan has many tools to use against us but they are all designed to cause us to choose failure. Remember the old adage “failing to plan is planning to fail”? Well, the same applies here too. Failing to choose (to accept Jesus) is choosing to fail. We need to know we can choose Jesus and we need to make sure everyone else knows they can too. We cannot allow any government, cult, radicalized religion or tempting offer to make our decisions for us.
The United States of America always stood for liberty and could be counted on to help those who needed refuge from tyranny. This is why America can be proud and this is why we send our boys to the far reaches of the world to fight and die in defense of freedom. Let’s not forget that liberty, given by God to all mankind is none the less, a deeply personal gift. So this freedom, this liberty is for our salvation. This choice is for our soul. Each time we choose could be our last. This needs to be our next choice and our last choice. Whether we choose to join the military to defend freedom with force, to vote out a rogue senator or simply to be faithful to our wives and children, the real choice is within each of us. Is our liberty for our next pleasure or for God’s glory? We need but to choose.
Do we choose to accept Jesus or….