Humans have two choices; one is to be free and the other is to bow to enslavement at the hand of other humans. Some would argue that following God and Jesus Christ is a form of enslavement that stifles the natural human urges. That is true that following God and Jesus is a form of slavery, but it is a different kind of slavery than that of being a slave to men. And it is true that following Jesus and through the power of the Holy Spirit natural human urges to sin won’t be the main focus of life.

The in the KJV Bible, the English word servant translates the Greek word dou=loj (slave) which means to serve another willing under bondage or unwilling under forced bondage with penalties for not serving as the other requires. In Romans 1:1 Paul wrote, Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God.  The word servant (dou=loj literally slave of God) indicates that Paul was willing serving God through his being called by faith in Jesus Christ. No one forced him to serve God through Christ. It was a willing bondage to his Savior. Now, let’s apply that thought to the people of the United States.

Whereas Paul was a willing slave to Christ, the colonies became unwilling slaves to the English Crown and King George III. He demanded loyalty in all aspects of their lives, including their worship of God. That and other issues brought rebellion which was set forth formally in the Declaration of Independence, culminating in the Constitution of the Republic of the United States.

Under the United States Constitution, rather than the citizens being the subjects of government and its rule, the Constitution placed government under the rule of law created by the people acting in compliance with the Constitution. In other words, the government is limited by the Constitution and by it the people choose by elections those that will serve them. In one sense, those who hold elected and appointed public office are the slaves of the people who place them in those positions. The people are the masters of the politicians etc. But both the slaves and the master citizens are limited by the provisions of the United States Constitution and the constitutions of the respective states. The problems begin when the documents are ignored.

Over the years the roles have been reversed. Instead of the government serving the people under the rule of the Constitution and the laws made pursuant to it, those elected and appointed to office have become the masters and the people the slaves to an increasingly dictatorial and tyrannical government. As the government populated by those who refuse to follow God’s way and the Constitution, the freedom of the citizens from the government meddling decreases and slavery to the powers that be become greater. Thus liberty is diminished and everyone is less free. As a result, the people have become individuals (slaves) bound to government rule rather than being individuals who rely on God, their God given abilities and limited government.

Recall the opening Bible verses off Part I, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; 32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. (John 8:31-32)  The truths in those verses can be applied as principles for our republic, its people and its government. The truth is that a return to the Constitution and limited government will free the people from those who want to be masters to make the citizens their slaves.

Yes, know the truth, follow it, practice it and be free. The words of Jesus not only apply to human salvation, the principles also apply to salvation of our republic.

© 11-07-2011 DEC