The Greatest Freedom of All

 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

John 8:36

Today is Veterans Day, and you will no doubt see countless posts and articles written about how we should honor and thank the veterans of the United States military who walk among us and remember the sacrifices of those who gave all in service of their country. I agree with them wholeheartedly. Romans 13:7 says that we should render "honour to whom honour" is due. I even wrote a post on my hockey history blog on that myself in which I recalled the deaths of Frank McGee and Hobey Baker as they gave their lives in the service of Canada and the United States respectively.

In this post  however, I'd like to allow Veterans Day to point us in a different direction if you'll allow me to do so. Say what you will about the collapse our society has gone through in recent years, but there are few places on earth that offer anywhere near the amount of liberty as the United States does. I'm very thankful to be an American. But by the grace of God, I could have been born in China, Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, or any other one of countless countries that oppress their citizens. Right now, the population of the United States is about 322 million, whereas the entire population of the world is just shy of 7.3 billion. If you do the math, you'll find that if you choose a random person from the world's population there is only about a 4.4% chance that person is an American. Yes, I've been very blessed.

As great as that is, I'm blessed in a much, much bigger way. I'm blessed in that I'm saved. Even better, this is a blessing that is available to all. It also reveals a greater sacrifice than any person could ever give. The greatest love that any man can display is to lay down his life for his friends. On the cross of Calvary, Jesus Christ laid down His life for His enemies.

As wonderful as it is that the sacrifices of our military have given us freedom in our everyday lives, it is much more so that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ has given us freedom from sin. I cherish my liberty in America, but when I've passed from this life, it will no longer be of consequence. But, the liberty that I have in Jesus Christ is an eternal liberty. It's a liberty that frees me from the bondage of sin in this life and from an eternity in a lake of fire in the next.

By no means to I intend to disparage the contributions of our military veterans or those of any other country who have served the cause of freedom, so please don't take this post in that way. What I do challenge you to do is to allow their giving to remind you of One who gave all to give us the greatest gift possible. If you're saved today, it is because of a Veteran of the battlefield against principalities. It is because God Himself paid the ultimate price. This is truly the greatest freedom of all.