Have you ever thought about what it’s like to be a Christian in other parts of the world1?
Indonesia, Nigeria- Christians are slaughtered for not conforming to Islamic law. In Nigeria, since the year 2000, thousands have been put to death.
Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states, North Africa, Mauritania, Iran, the Comorros Islands, Sudan- Direct persecution by the state is written into the legal code. Any non-Islamic or dissident Islamic religious expression is forbidden. Any Saudi who seeks to leave Islam faces the strong possibility of execution.
Egypt- The Coptic Church (which is somewhat similar to Catholicism in its roots and practices) has been the target of church burnings and local massacres.
Pakistan- In 1997, the Christian town of Shantinagar, was effectively leveled.
China, Vietnam, Laos, Belarus, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan- Generally, there is freedom to worship in state-controlled religious bodies, but any religious expression outside of these bodies is strenuously controlled or suppressed.
Roman Catholicism is outlawed because it accepts the authority of the Pope, who is from outside the country. Priests and bishops have been imprisoned. Hundreds of Protestant leaders of the underground church have been arrested and sentenced to jail and labor camps.
North Korea- Nearly every free exercise of religion is viciously repressed, and thousands of people have been sent labor camps for practicing their faith.
Burma- An organization called the State Law and Order Restoration Council brutally oppresses tribal minorities, which, in large part, are comprised of Christians. Their tactics include: massacre, rape, forced labor, and the use of children to clear minefields.
United States- Christianity is protected under the Constitution and is the majority religion in this country. We even have the right to legal redress if our religious liberties are infringed upon.
We can worship publicly with no fear of government, military, or other attacks.
We do not have civil rights (such as the right to vote, work, or own property) taken away from us simply because we embrace Christianity.
We have the right to proselytize (as long as we’re not harassing anyone), advertise and spread our religion.
Persecution is usually limited to people hurting our feelings when we witness to them, and social issues that offend our sensibilities.
We have beautiful, comfortable churches (as well as Christian schools, organizations and stores), complete with heat and air conditioning; comfortable pews; nurseries; indoor plumbing; Bibles, music, and materials in our own language; musical instruments; technology; and paid, and frequently seminary-trained, pastors and staff.
So what are we doing with all these blessings? Have we gotten so used to freedom and opportunity that we consider them a birthright rather than a precious gift from God that He has the prerogative to revoke if He chooses? He did it with the Israelites time and time again in the Old Testament: They obeyed God. He blessed them. After a while, they got comfortable with all the blessings and became lazy. They strayed away from God. He gave them over to oppressive rulers. They cried out in repentance. He delivered them and blessed them, and the cycle started all over again.
What will it take to shake Christians out of our complacency?
What will it take to shake Christians out of our complacency, humble us in gratitude for the opportunities God has given us, and motivate us to use the freedom with which He has blessed us to build His kingdom?
From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.
Luke 12:48b
1Insights on Law and Society: A Magazine for Teachers of Civics, Government, History & Law, Vol. 7.3 (Spring 2007); Published by the American Bar Association
Independence day is my favorite of the non-major holidays. Fireworks, picnics, barbecues, and what other holiday has such grand music that nearly the whole country can enjoy and sing together? It’s the one day of the year when we, as Americans, can set aside our political differences and bickering and celebrate our God-given freedom to have political differences and bickering.
It is good to thank God for the blessing of liberty. It is right to be patriotic and celebrate our nation’s founding. It is evangelistic to use Independence Day as a springboard for explaining to people how they can find real freedom in Christ.
And with that freedom – our freedom in Christ and our freedom as American citizens – comes great responsibility. Namely, the responsibility not to throw all of those things into the Cuisinart at once and turn them into an Americhristian smoothie with red, white, and blue sprinkles.
There is a vast difference between American political freedom and the spiritual freedom found only in Christ. But when we lift Bible verses out of their context and stick a flag behind them in celebration of Independence Day, we conflate the two. Weaker brothers and sisters in the faith who already muddle American citizenship with heavenly citizenship are further confirmed in their confusion. We should be making these distinctions clearer, not encouraging their commingling.
Yet this is exactly what happens on Christian web sites, social media, and even in our churches as the 4th of July draws near. Sisters, this should not be so.
None of the verses in the Bible which contain words like “freedom” and “liberty” are referring to American political freedom. None. The verses containing these words are usually speaking of freedom from sin in Christ, freedom from Mosaic Covenant law, or freedom from literal slavery. We must use and understand them in context, or we are doing violence to the text and treating God’s holy Word with apathetic irreverence.
Here are the top 10 Scriptures I’ve observed being twisted on the 4th of July.
1. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is,there is freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17
Most of the memes using this verse omit the first phrase, because even including those six extra words tends to give too much context to the verse for the person trying to make it about American freedom. If you read all of chapter three, or even just verses 12-18, you can see that this verse is about being set free in Christ from the demands of the Mosaic Covenant. Although 2 Corinthians 3:17 was misused by many, the first place I saw it was was from Lysa TerKeurst’s Proverbs 31 Facebook page – emblematic of why Christian women should not receive Bible teaching from anyone associated with this organization.
2. For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1
Most incorrect citations of this verse include only its first phrase. Indeed, Christ has set us free for freedom, but freedom from what? English tyranny? Political oppression? No, as the rest of the verse goes on to say, Christ has set us free from the yoke of slavery to the Law. In Christ, we are free to stop striving to be good enough to earn right standing with Him, and to rest in His finished work on the cross to clothe us in His righteousness. That’s way better than American constitutional freedoms because that kind of freedom is available to anyone, in any country, at any time in history who repents and places her faith in Christ for salvation.
3. For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. Galatians 5:13
This is a great verse that Christians can live out in service to our families, our church families, and even our fellow Americans. But we need to understand that when this verse says we were “called to freedom” it’s not talking about the rallying cry of the American Revolution. The freedom we were called to – as with Galatians 5:1 – is the freedom from striving to obey the Law to obtain righteousness. But just because we’re no longer under the constraints of the Law doesn’t mean we can go out and sin at will, or indulge the flesh by doing whatever we feel like doing. That’s antinomianism. Instead we’re to use our freedom from the Law as an opportunity to deny self and serve others.
4. if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. 2 Chronicles 7:14
I’ve written at length on this verse in my article Is 2 Chronicles 7:14 God’s Promise to American Christians Today? The short answer is “no,” it is not about America. Although there’s plenty that Christians can learn from this verse, it is a promise to Israel, as the surrounding context clearly indicates.
5. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. John 8:36
Even adding just two verses (34-35) to this one gives us enough context to help us understand that Jesus is talking about being freed from slavery to sin through the salvation only He can provide – the salvation that is about to cost Him the agony of scourging and death on a cross. It is appalling that this verse – spoken by our Lord Himself, about the earth-shattering, awe-provoking amazingness that is the forgiveness of sins by the grace of God in Christ – should be so lowered and sullied as to try to make it refer to American freedom.
6. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. 1 Peter 2:16
The context of this verse is similar to Galatians 5:13 (#3 above), but it adds a couple of extra facets. If you read verses 9-17 of 1 Peter 2, you’ll notice the same instruction to live as people who have been set free in Christ and to use that freedom in Christ to serve others. Why? “…So that when [the Gentiles] speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God… For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.” (12,15) When we use our freedom in Christ to serve and do good, it is a testimony of the gospel to the lost. This passage also exhorts us to be subject to our government and our political leaders. And if you know anything about the first century Roman Empire, you know its Christian citizens (Peter’s audience) knew nothing of the political freedoms American Christians experience.
7. Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage! Psalm 33:12
In the immediate context and application of this verse, “nation” and “the people” is referring to Israel. Examining verses 10, 16, and 17 alongside verse 12, it’s a safe assumption that the psalmist had observed some part of Israel’s history that included war against neighboring nations. And, certainly, any Old Testament Scripture referring to the people God “has chosen as His heritage” could only be speaking of Israel. America didn’t even exist at that time, nor has God, at any point in Scripture, said that America is His chosen people or His heritage. If you want to think of a New Testament “nation” or “people” God has blessed and chosen as His “heritage,” that would be the church- the worldwide body of born again believers. While, ostensibly, any nation whose God is the Lord would be blessed, we have only to look back at Old Testament history to see how unlikely it would be for America’s God to be the Lord. Israel was God’s chosen people and heritage. They were “the nation whose God is the Lord”- literally. They were a theocracy – under the direct rule of God Himself – yet they rejected Him in favor of earthly kings and repeated cycles of idol worship. And we think America is capable of becoming “one nation under God”?
8. And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to his property and each of you shall return to his clan. Leviticus 25:10
It’s pretty easy to see why only the phrase “proclaim liberty throughout the land” is lifted out of this verse. It is obviously talking about Israel’s Year of Jubilee which has never been practiced in America because we are not, and never have been, under the Mosaic Covenant. Even Israel doesn’t observe the Year of Jubilee any more. The use of this verse is simply a case of someone looking for a Scripture to attach to a patriotic meme, doing a concordance search for the word “liberty,” and whittling away everything in the verse that is obviously un-American.
9. The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, Luke 4:18
Except for the fact that this verse includes the word “liberty” or “free,” depending on your translation, it’s incomprehensible to me that anyone would see this as a verse to use in the celebration of Independence Day. This verse doesn’t even make any sense when applied to America. It’s not about a country, it’s about a person: Jesus. Jesus spoke these words. He’s quoting Isaiah 61:1-2, which is a prophecy of the Messiah to come. If you read a mere three more verses of Luke 4, you’ll see in verse 21 that Jesus says, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” Meaning what? Jesus is saying, “You know that Messiah you’ve been waiting on for centuries, Israel? I’m it. I’m here.” And the liberty or freedom He’s talking about? Once again, it’s freedom from sin and freedom from the Law. Because that’s what Jesus came to give us.
10. Out of my distress I called on the Lord; the Lord answered me and set me free. Psalm 118:5
Nope, this one isn’t about American political freedom either. A couple of things to notice: first, this is clearly set in the context of Israel’s Old Testament history, as verses 2-3, with their references to “Israel” and “Aaron”, indicate. Next, look at the personal pronouns, not only in verse 5, but also in verses 6-7: “I,” “me,” “my.” This verse is not about America being set free from England, or even about Israel being set free from one of its enemies. This is a descriptive passage about an individual – the psalmist – being in some sort of distressing situation, and God answering his prayer for deliverance. Have you ever prayed that God would deliver you from a difficult time in your life? If He did, do you think that unique situation is applicable to anyone else, much less an entire country? This passage is kind of the same thing. The psalmist is sharing something God did for him, not commenting on politics or even assuring other individuals that God will do the same for them.
Memorial Day Bonus: Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13
Memorial Day is a solemn and precious day to honor those who have laid down their lives for our freedom as Americans. Every male member of my immediate family has served or is serving in the military, and I know just how blessed I am that they have all returned safe and sound. It takes a special kind of person to make the ultimate sacrifice for his country, and I certainly don’t want to take anything away from that. But as meaningful as that is, it can’t – and shouldn’t – compare to Christ laying down His life to make sinners His friends. And that’s what this verse is about. For twelve verses, Jesus has talked to His disciples about abiding in Him because He loves them so much. In verse 13, He talks about the proof of His love for them: He’s about to give His life as the atoning sacrifice for their sin. He wants them to love each other the same way – that for Christ’s sake, in Christ’s name – they would be willing to die for the sake of the gospel. Eleven of the twelve of them would go on to do so. When we use this verse in reference to Memorial Day – as deeply consequential as that day is – it tarnishes the infinitely more important sacrifice of Christ by comparing a mere man’s offering of his life for temporal, earthly freedom, to God’s offering of His sinless Son to purchase for eternity the redemption of sinful rebels.
I’m proud and grateful to be an American. I’m thankful for this nation and the freedoms we have as citizens. But for everyone who’s a citizen of the Kingdom of God, our loyalty and reverence must lie with Him first and must surpass all other loyalties – to family, to friends, and even to country. That means we reverence God’s holy Word by being good students of it and handling it correctly, by preserving and standing up for its meaning and intentions, and by refusing to manipulate it for our own lesser purposes- even such a noble purpose as patriotism.
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Every year on the Sunday closest to the 4th of July, our worship service turns very patriotic. All of the hymns and worship songs are replaced with patriotic songs like God Bless America, America the Beautiful, and the National Anthem. The choir and whoever is singing a solo that day sings a patriotic song. A color guard marches in with the American flag and we say the Pledge of Allegiance. Sometimes the sermon is even on a patriotic topic. It makes me uncomfortable because I think the worship service should focus on God, not America. What do you think?
Independence Day is one of my favorite holidays. I love the fireworks and picnics, the bands, and watching my favorite musical, Yankee Doodle Dandy.
I’m as red, white, and blue, rah rah America as the next guy, but there’s a time and a place for all that, and the Sunday morning worship hour isn’t it. You’re correct. The worship service is exactly that: worship and service. And who are Christians supposed to worship and serve when we go to church? God.
We are to sing to, and about, God. The pastor is to preach the Word of God. We pledge our allegiance in prayer, worship, and confession to God. Our thoughts are to be focused on God. Every element of the worship service – songs, symbols, readings, offerings, prayer, praise, everything – is to draw our attention to God. He is the only One worthy of our worship.
Patriotic songs, the Pledge, and all of those other things can take the focus off God and put it on something lesser. Sometimes God gets pushed aside in favor of what we want to focus on. That’s a very man-centered attitude in the very place and time when everything is supposed to be centered on God.
And really, if you think about the main reason America was founded – freedom of worship – what better way is there to honor our forefathers and celebrate the gift of freedom God has given us than to exercise our First Amendment right to worship God? Certainly, we could use the 4th of July as a reminder to take some time in corporate prayer to express gratitude to God for our country and our liberties and to pray for our country. Scripture tells us to present our requests to God with thanksgiving. We could also dedicate some time to praying for our governmental officials as 1 Timothy 2:1-4 instructs us to do. There’s a biblical, worshipful way to be thankful for the freedoms God has blessed us with and intercede for our country and our governing authorities. And it shouldn’t be limited to one Sunday a year.
But when it comes to patriotic hoopla, we can set aside another time for that and still celebrate with our brothers and sisters in Christ. If your church family wants to celebrate America’s birthday together, that’s great! Have a church-wide cookout on the 4th. Schedule an Independence Day patriotic sing-along or choir pageant. Meet up and head out to the county fireworks show together. Fellowship! Have fun!
But when it’s time to worship, let’s make sure we’re reserving that time for worship of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. It’s fine to love America, but let’s demonstrate that we love Christ more by not letting anything take His place in His church.
If you have a question about: a Bible passage, an aspect of theology, a current issue in Christianity, or how to biblically handle a family, life, or church situation, comment below (I’ll hold all questions in queue {unpublished} for a future edition of The Mailbag) or send me an e-mail or private message. If your question is chosen for publication, your anonymity will be protected.
Thank you for all of your prayers and kind comments last week. I just needed a break and y’all were very gracious about it. I never expected such an outpouring of sweet comments and messages. My followers are the best, and you are so much kinder to me than I deserve.
One of the things last week finally gave me the time to do was to sit down and prayerfully think through the daily pressure of maintaining an online presence. It takes a lot of time and work to…
post blog content five times a week
study, research, and write original articles and content 3-4 times a week
write podcast scripts
maintain a daily presence on seven social media platforms
create original memes
prep and travel for conferences
do guest appearances on other podcasts
…and whatever else I’m forgetting at the moment. Don’t get me wrong – I’m not complaining. I love this ministry and what I do. I just don’t have enough hours in the day to do all of those things with the level of excellence I’d like to. And meeting all of those deadlines – mostly self-imposed – puts a lot of pressure on me (again, mostly self-imposed1). That’s been nagging at the back of my mind for a while, but I’ve been so busy doing all of those things and meeting all of those deadlines that I haven’t really had time to contemplate it.
It’s no big whoop, I just need a little more time and a little less pressure. So I’m going to make a few changes. Some of them, the vast majority of you probably won’t even notice, but some of them, you will.
Effective immediately:
I’m tinkering with the blog schedule. We’re going to give this a go and see how it works, and I might change my mind later, but right now, what I’ve decided to do is to cut back from blogging five days a week to three, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
The Mailbag will move from Mondays to Tuesdays (and you don’t know how it’s killing me that Tuesday doesn’t start with an M for the alliteration – we might have to appropriate some Español and make it the Martes Mailbag :0)
Wednesdays (during the non-summer months), we’ll alternate between the next lesson in the current Bible study and either an original feature article (what I used to run on Fridays – articles on false teachers, biblical topics, current events in evanglicalism, etc.) or other original content (movies, upcoming speaking engagement information, etc. – what I used to run on Tuesdays).
Throwback Thursday will remain the same.
If I have some extra content I want to share with you in a given week, I might throw that in on a Monday or Friday. (Like this post you’re reading right now.)
The best way not to miss anything is to subscribe to the blog via email. If you’re using a computer, you’ll find the subscription box in the right sidebar. On your phone or tablet, scroll waaaaaay down. It’s near the bottom, between the “Good News” video and the picture of the piggy bank. (If you have trouble subscribing, click here for some advice.)
I’m going to stop posting on my MeWe, Parler, and Gab pages. I’ll keep them open in case I ever need them (i.e. if I ever get kicked off the major platforms), but I’m no longer going to post content or interact. If you want to see my content on social media, I’m sorry, but you’ll have to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, (I’ll also continue to post first-run content on Pinterest) or subscribe to the blog via email (see above).
I’m going to stop posting to my stories on Facebook (but not on Instagram). It’s the same content I post on my Facebook page, anyway.
I’m going to cut back on the frequency of original memes I create and post on social media.
I will most likely not post blog content during the days I’m traveling for speaking engagements.
I’m going to take days off from posting content more frequently than I do now: when I’m prepping for conferences, when I just need a day off, etc.
That’s pretty much it for now. I’m toying with a few other minor ideas (there’s one thing I actually want to add if I can figure out how to do it), but I’ll give you a heads up on those when I make up my mind.
Thanks again for your understanding, your kindness, and your loyal readership and social media following.
1I say “mostly self-imposed” because I’m not under financial or contractual obligation for most of my ministry. I don’t earn any income (from advertising or anything else) for blogging, podcasting, etc. The only remuneration I receive is from speaking engagements, and the handful of followers -whom I deeply appreciate- who donate through PayPal and Patreon.
Aren’t these lovely? This bush was all abloom right outside our hotel in Anaheim. Are they yellow hibiscuses? Maybe one of you botanically gifted people can tell me. :0)
Y’all, I’m sorry. I had every intention of getting back to blogging this week after the Southern Baptist Convention, but I’m afraid I need another week off.
In case you haven’t heard yet, issue-wise, things almost could not have gone worse. Tom Ascol, Voddie Baucham, and Javier Chavez all lost to other candidates. Rick Warren read a 6-minute ode to himself and his “accomplishments,” and the majority of the room gave him a standing ovation. Practically everything those of us on the doctrinally sound side voted for was defeated, and practically everything we voted against passed. Doctrinally sound Christians at the mics proposing biblical changes were interrupted, reprimanded, cut off, and had their microphones turned off by the leadership on the platform. The liberal contingent in the Convention has made it crystal clear that Christians who stand for fidelity to Scripture aren’t welcome in the SBC. (More on all of this later. I think.)
It was very bad, and to be sure, it was genuine spiritual warfare. Well, you don’t just walk off a battlefield without some injuries. The last several days (in addition to some things going on in my personal life) have left me more spiritually wounded and exhausted than I’ve ever been in my life, and, to be honest, I just don’t have anything to give right now.
I don’t mean to sound dire and dramatic. I just need to spend a little extra time by myself with the Lord this week, and I’ll be fine. Pray for me, if you think about it.
I hope all of you have a wonderful week, and I look forward to being back with you soon.
Michelle Lesley 