I am so grateful you have gathered for worship on this holiday weekend. We thank God for the privilege of living in this nation. The occasion of celebrating the anniversary of our American Declaration of Independence reminds us of our citizenship as Jesus’ followers in the Kingdom of God. We proclaim our freedom from sin and guilt and the kingdom of darkness as we pledge our ultimate and complete allegiance to Christ Jesus, our Lord.

This paragraph from our church’s adopted confession of faith may help you celebrate the religious liberty God has granted:

God alone is Lord of the conscience, and He has left it free from the doctrines and commandments of men which are contrary to His Word or not contained in it. Church and state should be separate. The state owes to every church protection and full freedom in the pursuit of its spiritual ends. In providing for such freedom no ecclesiastical group or denomination should be favored by the state more than others. Civil government being ordained of God, it is the duty of Christians to render loyal obedience thereto in all things not contrary to the revealed will of God. The church should not resort to the civil power to carry on its work. The gospel of Christ contemplates spiritual means alone for the pursuit of its ends. The state has no right to impose penalties for religious opinions of any kind. The state has no right to impose taxes for the support of any form of religion. A free church in a free state is the Christian ideal, and this implies the right of free and unhindered access to God on the part of all men, and the right to form and propagate opinions in the sphere of religion without interference by the civil power.

Commenting on this paragraph, Herschel H. Hobbs writes, “Religious liberty is the mother of all true freedom. It is rooted in the very nature of both God and man created in God’s likeness. It implies the competency of the soul in religion, and denies to any person, civil government, or religious system the right to come between God and man.”

Today in America, we are free to share our faith in Jesus Christ, “the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” Will you? We haven’t exercised that freedom until we actually tell someone about Jesus. Only in Him can men and women and boys and girls be truly free!