On July 2, 1716 the Continental Congress of the 13 colonies wrote the Declaration of Independence. This was approved on July 4, 1776. This document declared the colonies would be free from the rule of the king of England. The people had been oppressed by the monarch and further taxed by this king. Soon the Revolutionary War would be fought to maintain the freedoms that were called for in the original document. Much blood was shed to finally obtain this freedom from the British.

Today the blood of our Savior, Jesus Christ, pays the cost of our freedom in Christ. We are free from the dread of death by the gift of God—His only begotten Son (John 3:16). We are freed from sin by the blood of Christ. We have the liberty that Christ has made possible—the freedom from sin (Galatians 5:1). We have the freedom to choose our path in this life and the life to come (Matthew 11:28-30). Although we have this freedom to choose, we are not immune to the consequences of our choosing.

We have the freedom (in our country) to proclaim the Gospel of Christ. Indeed we have the obligation to proclaim the Gospel: “And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned’” (Mark 16:15-16).

So, as always, with our freedom in Christ (redeemed by His blood), we are obligated to live for Him and do His will.

Only by steadfast determination did our forefathers gain the independence our Nation has enjoyed for these many years. We are obligated, because of the price Jesus paid in His death—His blood, to continue His work by living and preaching the Gospel. We fight in a spiritual battle, but it is a fight. It is a war against all wickedness and sin that the devil places against us.

We rejoice in the freedoms we presently have in our United States of America. We pray that these freedoms will continue for our generations until our Lord comes again. We pray that God will bless the U.S.A.!

We rejoice with the spiritual blessings we have in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). Let us seek first the Kingdom of God so that these spiritual blessings will continue to be ours (Matthew 6:33).

–Glenn B. Ramsey