Freedom or Independence?

The independent group of men gathered in a room the last evening of the 1996 Men in Ministry Conference and realized that the freedom to experience the conference had changed their lives. Many spoke of the changes that had started days or weeks earlier. It was time to take stock of themselves. Did they have the character necessary to fulfill their obligations? Did they possess the traits needed to bring forth the fruit of the seeds just sown?

A common trait began to surface among them. When first exposed, it appeared to be a very manly quality. It was a virtue upon which our county seemed to be founded. It was the primary character trait in the majority of our ancestors. The particular characteristic was so obvious that one might take it for granted. The name of that quality was independence!

One person saw a vision of a man in a round cage. It allowed the individual to move about freely, like those plastic balls gerbils use. However, it prohibited the man from interacting with others. It prohibited others from assisting him. The independence that separated the men was not virtuous. Once that particular interpretation was exposed, the group prayed for the breaking of that cage of independence. Henceforth, all of the individuals could benefit from the freedom of interacting with others.

So the question arises, “Why do we, as Americans, feel that independence is a state that we so desperately desire?” Like most words in our vocabulary, independence is defined by the worldview we possess. Perhaps we see the word written on the other side of our worldview window. Let’s look closer; on which side of the window did our forefathers write the word?

The history of the founding of the American colonies is filled with what appears to be independent souls searching out their destiny. Whether it is Columbus, the Pilgrims, or the Minutemen, each story gives the impression of individuals struggling for independence. But were they? Was Christobol Colon actually trying to be a non-dependent, or was he searching for a way to create a unique system on this earth whereby men could be dependent upon each other for their freedom? Did the Pilgrims go through all the trials leading up to the Mayflower landing just so that they could independently worship God? Did the Minutemen struggle, see their properties lost, fight and die all for the benefit of being independent? Or is there a different basis for this history?

If you look from the different perspective represented by this thought, then perhaps all of the preceding history of the U.S. falls into place. The covenanted Pilgrims, united for the glory of God, settled New England. The Cavaliers of Virginia settled Jamestown for the purpose of independent wealth. You can see why the survival rate of the Pilgrims far outpaced the survival of the Cavaliers. One group covenanted together for their freedom to worship God, the other group searched for ways to be more independent. Independence cost the Cavaliers twice as many lives.

When the Constitutional Convention convened in 1787 it was attended by a number of men well educated in law, rhetoric, and Christianity. They were willing to risk everything they owned to establish a country whose purpose it was, not to be founded upon independence, but upon freedom and liberty. They knew that no state could long survive being independent. The Federalist Papers gave a good account of all the problems associated with being independent states. The convention turned an ineffective document, the Articles of Confederation that governed 13 independent colonies, into one where the liberty of a united, free group of people would be served.

So where does independence lead us today? Are we such a proud and arrogant society that the freedom of covenanting together is unthinkable? Can we be accountable to each other, responsible for each other, subject to each other’s open love and care? Are we caught up in a world that has such a skew on life that understanding love, in a Godly sense, is impossible?

What influences can we attribute to this fall from freedom? Socialism has been increasing within our government. Has our dependence upon Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and welfare left us with a feeling of independence, or dependence upon the government? Is that the freedom for which so many of our ancestors fought? Is this liberty? In a speech in Washington, D.C. on October 25, 1996 J. Steven Wilkins, author of America: The First 350 Years, a tape series, stated, “Liberty is not being able to do what the government tells us to do!”

If we base our freedom upon the misconception that people wanting to be independent founded our nation, then we miss a very large part of this country’s heritage. Because of the availability of freedom and liberty, a great many men and women have been able to do things that could not have been done elsewhere. Other people of the world look to America because the freedom, shining so brightly, gives them hope.

Be not deceived. The independent minded among us are typical of the men described in II Peter, Chapter 2. Those of us with such a mind that refuses to hear the truth will reap the benefits promised the unjust in this chapter. At verse 17: “These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to who the mist of darkness is reserved for ever. 18: For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lust of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. 19: While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage.”

As we learn through Christ, our liberty and freedom are dependent forces granted when we covenant together for the righteous purpose of serving one another in God’s kingdom. When we serve God in this nation, dependent upon one another to fulfill His vision, our nation shines. When we once again become dependent upon God, we will be given all of the liberty and freedom that independent man will never know.

Copyright Oct 1996