May 26, 1999
GRACE& PEACE:
Remembering the price
that was paid for freedom
___"Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery" (Galatians 5:1).
___We Baptist Christians in the United States tend to take our freedom for granted, almost as if it had always existed and always will. Of course, freedom has not always existed. A high price was paid to allow us to live as free people. And there is no guarantee that freedom always will exist. Eternal vigilance--and sacrifice--are the price for freedom.
___On Memorial Day, we focus on those in the military who paid the price for freedom.From the Revolutionary War to today's military actions, multitudes have died; a visit to a national cemetery with the thousands of grave markers of military personnel brings home the extent of death. Others have been maimed by war's devastation. Many suffer the emotional trauma the horror of combat brings.
William M. Pinson Jr.
Executive Director
BGCT Executive Board
___People in other avenues of public service also pay a high price for our freedoms, such as law enforcement officers. A veritable army of people has suffered for specific freedoms, such as those who have participated in the civil rights movement, the struggle for the right to vote for women and the effort to eliminate slavery.
___Baptists and others holding similar convictions about religious freedom through the centuries have paid with their blood that we might enjoy the freedom to worship God--or not to worship--according to the dictates of conscience. Baptists have believed the true worship of God cannot be forced, either by church or by government. Worship, to be genuine, must be freely entered into. Likewise, forced conversion by the sword or other pressure of church or state is not true conversion, which must be the result of a personal relationship to Jesus Christ through repentance and faith.
___For these reasons, Baptists fought against the tyranny of a state-established and -supported religion. Believing a free church in a free state--or put another way, separation of church and state--provided the only sound biblical relation of the two, Baptists endured the wrath of both government and church officials who, primarily for purposes of power, desired a union of church and state. It is not surprising that the Baptist Faith and Message statement adopted by Southern Baptists contains a strong endorsement of religious freedom and its corollary, the separation of church and state.
___However, the greatest freedom to be experienced is the freedom from the penalty and power of sin. Only Jesus can provide that. Through his death on the cross, he has made it possible for us to be free. He died that we could live as free human beings. The Bible warns that we are not to use that freedom selfishly but rather realize that it brings responsibility, including sharing the good news of Jesus in order that others can be free who respond by repentance and faith to Jesus' invitation, "Follow me."
___This Memorial Day, let us remember all those who paid such a great price that we might enjoy political, social and, most of all, religious freedom.
___Please pray thanking God for the freedom that is ours in Christ Jesus the Lord. Pray that we will never take freedom for granted nor use it irresponsibly. Pray that through the sharing of the gospel we may see a multitude set free in the months and years ahead.
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