The Book of Revelations describes a “war in Heaven,” wherein “the dragon was cast out,” and has waged war for the souls of God’s children since that time. For those of us who accept the Bible as God’s word, we recognize the battle between good and evil; that because of God and Jesus Christ we have agency, or in other words, liberty or slavery, based on our choice to obey God or follow Satan. The scriptures detail a history of exercising choice—obedience to the commandments of God and retaining our liberty, or choosing rebellion and being brought into bondage.
In the time of Samuel the Prophet, the elders came to him and demanded a king to judge them, “like all the nations.” God said to Samuel, “They have not rejected you, they have rejected me.” For hundreds of years, the Israelites were subjected to rulers, both good and evil. As a result, many were taken captive into other countries, as well, and, unfortunately, most of them lost their faith in God.
Throughout the history of civilizations, we note the “cycle of pride.” People were in bondage and ruled by evil leaders. As they humbled themselves the Lord delivered them, and they obeyed His commandments for a time. Then, as they prospered and experienced freedom, they became complacent, immoral and corrupt – which lead them to bondage again.
So, what is the point of this? What does all this “history of religion” have to do with us today?
Freedom!
Throughout history, freedom has continually been restricted by the power of earthly governments – some well-intentioned and some not. Unfortunately, over the past several decades, we have experienced increased restrictions on our precious freedoms and way of life.
For example, in the 1960s, the U.S Supreme Court prohibited prayer and the reading of the Bible in our public schools. As a result, God was no longer welcome there nor in the public square.
In 1973, the abhorrent practice of abortion was “legalized” in our country. Proponents argued the murderous practice would be “safe, legal and rare.” As a result, more than 60 million babies have been killed since then in the United States alone!
Seeing these and the numerous other attacks on the family, the leaders of my faith released a statement in 1995 on the family, stating, “All human beings—male and female—are created in the image of God… that Gender is an essential characteristic of individual…identity and purpose.”
Twenty-five years later, look where we are now. Who could’ve imagined we’d have an alphabet soup of genders or that we’d see biological boys competing in girls’ sports? Who would’ve thought we’d see our public (taxpayer funded) libraries encouraging “drag queen” story hours for our impressionable children? Wow!
Is this progress? I think not!
Unfortunately, we have become a nation in bondage. We have allowed ourselves to become enslaved. As a result, our churches are no longer free to worship and practice as their conscience dictates. Instead, they must now follow restrictive laws imposed by “progressives” and “politically correct” bureaucrats or be subjected to punitive measures imposed by morally corrupt politicians with an agenda. What ever happened to America’s first freedom? You know, that of religious liberty, which is protected and guaranteed to all Americans under the first amendment to the United States Constitution, which states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”
Why do we allow our jurists and elected officials to follow and create laws that restrict us and place us in bondage, and ignore the laws that protect our freedoms?
We must be vigilant in protecting our Constitutional freedoms and natural rights. We need to stay in regular contact with our elected officials – at all levels of government – and hold them accountable for their actions, as well as their inaction. As we study our state and U.S. Constitutions, we must educate our friends, family, and neighbors. We need to seek out trustworthy news sources. Most of all, we must pray for our country and the election of wise, honest leaders.
Our country is at a crossroads, and we must decide. Do we allow further control and loss of our freedom to evil individuals who would be our masters, or do we stand with God and choose liberty? Do we hide and cower, or get involved and protect our great nation? In all reality, this is a battle between good and evil, between God and Satan. With whom do you side?
