Yesterday was is Independence Day – when Americans celebrated the 250 th
anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence by the
Second Continental Congress.
In that document, representatives of the 13 colonies declared that Great
Britain no longer had authority over those colonies. They stated that we had
certain rights that government could not take away – because they were
given by God.
The result of that declaration was that our founders created a country the
way a majority of them wanted it to be. That was groundbreaking. Other
countries had gone through periods of reformation or tweaking – but never
built a country from the ground up and founded on principles of liberty.
Ever since, we have celebrated the independent American spirit. We love
stories of people who have risen above their situation and taken full
advantage of the opportunities that come with the freedom to be successful.
I love to hear histories of your grandparents who came here for freedom –
freedom from tyranny, freedom from want, freedom to achieve.
And I share your growing concern that that more and more Americans are
developing a sense of entitlement – instead of taking advantage of their
freedom to be all that God created them to be. It is true that we as a people
are becoming less and less enamored of being independent and would like
more and more for someone else to pay our tab.
Some of us long for the days when your accomplishments were celebrated
as you made your own way in the world – you were a “self-made” man or
woman.
That is all well and good – up to a point. We should cherish the freedoms
that we have in the United States. But there is a danger of becoming – as
an old college friend used to say – “just a little too independent.”
The founders of our nation were aware of that – even though they did not all
share our traditional Christian beliefs. Some – like Benjamin Franklin and
Thomas Jefferson – were Deists who believed in an unspecified Higher
Power. But almost all of them had a strong sense of Something bigger than
themselves. They believed that Something (with a capital S) out there was
moving this Independence Experiment along – and was guiding them.
They never referred to Jesus Christ specifically in the Declaration of
Independence – but they did mention God four times: in the preamble, in
which they speak of “the laws of nature and of nature's God”; in the most
famous line, which declares that “ all men are created equal and are
endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights”, and toward the
end, where they appealed “to the Supreme Judge of the world”.
Then there’s the last line – which is the inspiration for today’s message – in
which they state that they sign the Declaration “with a firm reliance on the
protection of Divine Providence”.
They believed that God created, rules, and provides for His universe – that
God controls the events in creation – including the war with Great Britain
that was underway at that time.
What a great irony: the founders acknowledged their dependence on God,
even as they declared their independence from Great Britain.
So when we’re celebrating our independence – we should remember that
we have it only because we are in dependence upon God.
Jesus was saying the same thing when He sent His disciples out in Mark 6:
"Take nothing for the journey except a staff - no bread, no bag,
no money in your belts. Wear sandals but not an extra tunic.”
And stay in whatever home welcomes you.
Can you imagine taking a trip – without knowing where you’re going –
and without packing? We all know people who pack as much for an
overnight stay as others pack for a two-week cruise – they want to be
prepared for every type of weather, as well as a nice evening out on the
town, rock climbing, swimming, running, walking, Martian attack.
Jesus was teaching His disciples to be dependent upon God to provide
everything they needed for their work of sharing the Gospel. There was no
independence there at all. They were to trust God for every meal they ate,
every bed they slept on, every need they had.
God blesses that kind of dependence. But when we start believing that we
can do it on our own – becoming just a little too independent – we run into
trouble.
We can see it how we have legalized and even celebrated things that are
not in sync with God’s Word. In the way we turn our values upside-down –
making entertainers and sports figures our heroes and compensating them
accordingly – instead of our teachers, military personnel, first responders,
and others who dedicate their lives to caring for people.
We can see it in the way we rely on our own brilliance and cleverness and
ingenuity. We can see it in how we worship our endowments and our
401(k)s and put away stashes of gold or freeze-dried food. In the ways we
believe that the latest weapons systems and surveillance technology and a
few more TSA agents can keep us safe.
How many ads do you see or hear in a day that claim to offer “security”?
Contrast that with what the author of Psalm 33 wrote:
No king is saved by the size of his army;
no warrior escapes by his great strength.
A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
despite all its great strength it cannot save.
We think we can protect ourselves – but we cannot. I am not suggesting
that we do away with our military or police – the author of the Psalm knew
full well that Israel needed an army. But it is God who gives the victory. It is
God who delivers His people. So our reliance should be on God.
Our protection – and ironically, the preservation of our freedom – relies on
being in dependence upon God:
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord”
Most of our founders believed that. But what does it mean for the Lord to be
God of a nation?
It is dependence upon God. It is admitting that we cannot do it by
ourselves. It is turning from our self-reliance and turning to God.
It’s the same principle in the process of our salvation. God has done all the
work for us in Jesus Christ. When we acknowledge that we cannot save
ourselves – then we have it.
I fear – and you may share my fear – that we have become just a little too
independent. Have you noticed over the years that as our nation has
moved away from dependence on God, we have lost more of our
independence?
That’s a problem that has been developing for a long time – and it won’t be
resolved in a few days or in a presidential election.
But it can be resolved one believer at a time. Each of us must demonstrate
dependence upon God. In difficult situations, our response needs to be:
We wait in hope for the LORD;
he is our help and our shield.
We cannot give in to fear. We cannot lose our heads. Other people are
watching to see if our faith in God and our dependence upon God is real.
If we effectively model reliance on God – others may follow our lead.
That’s why Jesus sent His disciples out with only the clothes on their backs
and sandals on their feet.
Our strength as a nation is in our dependence upon God, in our faith in Him
– as individuals.
So may the last line of Psalm 33 be our prayer for Independence Day: “May
your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, even as we put our hope in you.”Amen.