Freedom

Freedom

In America we have fought and died for our freedom.  Freedom of speech, freedom of religion are just two of the important rights that we enjoy in this country.  We hold these freedoms dear to our hearts.

Is freedom to be without boundaries?  Most would say no.  It is generally agreed that a person is not free to yell “fire” in a crowded theater.  Most cities have ordinances against this.  Neither are we free to drive 200 miles an hour on this country’s highways.  There are laws prohibiting such things.  Why are such boundaries accepted by most people?  The answer is simple.  Such boundaries exist in order to protect the public.  Wise men and women have enacted laws in order to preserve life and to establish an orderly society.

Recently President Obama expressed his personal opinion that gay and lesbian couples should be allowed to marry.  He said that many years of thought, and his young daughters helped him come to this decision.

In this country everyone has a right to their own opinion.  I do not want the government telling me what to think.  But that raises the question, who does have the right to tell me how to think?  Paul said, “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things.”

Consider for a moment the freedom we have in Christ.  The freedom that Christians enjoy in Christ is freedom from sin, not freedom to sin.  Romans 6:18 says, “And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.”  God has said that those who do not obey the truth but obey unrighteousness will receive “indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, on every soul of man who does evil…” (Romans 2:8-9.)

Concerning homosexuality, the Bible says, “Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.”

Now, if the laws of this country allow a person to choose a homosexual lifestyle, but the word of God prohibits that choice; the question we must ask ourselves is this, whose law shall we follow.  The fact that president Obama has expressed his personal opinion will not sway Bible believing individuals.  But there is a bigger problem.  President Obama is indicative of so many in this nation who no longer consider God’s word the authoritative guide for their opinions [beliefs].

Proverbs 14:34 says, “Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a reproach to any people.”  But President Obama and many like him have come to believe that personal freedom to do as you please must take precedent over the boundaries that God has set for mankind in the Bible.  Sodom and Gomorrah threw off all restraint and received their reward.  What will we choose?