“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” 
John 8:36

If you live in America, you can’t help but note the approach of Independence Day. The stores and streets (and maybe your own kitchen table) are adorned in red, white, and blue. The flag is being flown everywhere you look. Cities sponsor parades where the veterans march, high school bands play, and everyone indulges in hot dogs and homemade ice cream.  

It is good to remember and celebrate.

It is good to acknowledge the freedom we have, and to thank the American soldier from each generation who renews that blessing for the next.  

In the Macfarlan Homeschool, children learned the preamble to the Constitution and the principal (Dad) read the Declaration of Independence aloud on the 4th of July. We need to spur our children on to know our country’s history, to value our freedom, and to be grateful to those who made it possible.  

But our American freedoms are not the ones we hold most dear. They are not the ones we will carry with us into eternity. John 8:36 reminds us that our ultimate freedom is found in Christ. Our sin places us in bondage. Jesus sets us free from the consequences of that sin—in this life and in the life to come.

This month’s Write the Word verses all contain the words “free” or “freedom.” As you write each out, I pray you acknowledge the One who died to make you free.  

Real freedom has nothing to do with where we live, but who we know. You and I, as followers of Christ living in a free society, enjoy political and physical freedom, but also spiritual freedom.

We have brothers and sisters around the world who are in bondage physically but have ultimate freedom: freedom in Christ. Pray for them. 

As you plan your holiday cookout, don your favorite patriotic t-shirt, and wave your flag at the parade, be sure to praise God for the privileges of living in a free society. Find a solider and thank him or her for their service. But please also pause to acknowledge your ultimate, eternal freedom found in Christ. If your identity is in Him, then you are free indeed! 

 

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Write The Word: FREEDOM - S.O.A.P. Bible Study Pages

 

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