Set Free

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.” (John 8:31-38 ESV).

Seated proudly at the west end of Washington, D.C.’s National Mall, the Lincoln Memorial is one of the most beloved American monuments. It attracts millions of visitors each year. Perhaps more than any other accomplishment from, Lincoln’s term came in the form of the Emancipation Proclamation even though it didn’t actually free all of the slaves. Since Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation as a military measure, it didn’t apply to border slave states like Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri, all of which had remained loyal to the Union. Lincoln also exempted selected areas of the Confederacy that had already come under Union control in hopes of gaining the loyalty of whites in those states. In practice, then, the Emancipation Proclamation didn’t immediately free a single slave, as the only places it applied were places where the federal government had no control, the Southern states currently fighting against the Union. However, it was a turning point in the Civil War striking a mortal blow against the institution of slavery and paving the way for its eventual abolition by the 13th Amendment. Walking through the mall and seeing the memorial once again reminded me how impossible it is for man to provide any semblance of freedom to another. Jesus tells us in our reading for today that the only real freedom is to be found in him. It is the truth of the gospel that conveys the means of freedom which was accomplished through the finished work of Christ on the cross. We can only fully discover that truth through the Scripture. I often tell people who come to me for counseling or life-coaching that I use the Scripture exclusively in guiding them through their challenges. After all, it is the repository of truth, and truth will set you free. Lincoln was a great man and a visionary national leader; however, he had no real power to set people free. Only God can do that; and, he has chosen to do it through His only begotten Son, Jesus. Look to Him and you will be free!