Not many choose Freedom

Matthew 13:18-23

If you are a Citizen of the United States of America, July 4, 1776 is a very special day; the day we declared, as a people, we would no longer live under tyranny, that we believed liberty was of more value than life.  A small but important part of the declaration sent to the king of England, states the following: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness; that, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness.”  The majority of the people were not for this, in fact, it was only a very small percentage that were willing to put everything on the line to be a free people.

From the time Adam and Eve chose to rebel in the garden against the authority and will of God, mankind has been under the control of sin.  But God was not taken by surprise, He was not unaware, and on the day they chose to sin, darkness came into the soul of all who would be born of Adam.  All includes you and me, but the all does not include Jesus, who was not born of man, but of God.  So after mankind had been given a new beginning with Noah and the flood, they once again rebelled against God’s authority, and he chose Abraham to lead them back to Him, but that also did not go well.  God let them run to Egypt, and they became slaves for 400 years and yet God has never forgotten His people, and God picks Moses, not only to lead His chosen people out of Egypt, but God gives Moses a declaration called the Ten Commandments.  In obeying these Commandments the people of God would find peace and freedom, but guess what, only a small group believed in the God of Abraham, only a small group wanted to risk their life for freedom from Egypt.  So God sent His only Son, the one referred to in John’s gospel as the Word. 

This is the introduction to the Word: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”  (John 1:1-5)  Jesus the Word, said, “I have come that they may have life and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10b)  And Jesus tells the parable of the Sower at the beginning of chapter 13 of Matthew’s gospel, but now in verses 18-23, He explains what happens to many in the church today.

Earlier in one of the papers, I disclosed that I am a gardener and as a gardener I spend a lot of time improving the soil, for without good soil your life or your garden will be a big mess.  Jesus tells us in Matthew 13:23, just believing in Him will not be a life of production, but to hear and apply the Word, to look to it and follow it’s leadership.  The apostle Paul in his writings to the Roman church declared our Independence from Sin; “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.” (Romans 8:1-2)

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice