247 years ago, on July 4, 1776, fifty-six brave men made a declaration. They wrote and signed a document known as the Declaration of Independence, declaring the 13 American colonies were free from the rule of Great Britain. But the declaration alone wasn’t enough. It also required sacrifice — the blood of thousands of individuals who believed in a better tomorrow and, in their words, "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
Because of this bold declaration and the willingness to make the ultimate sacrifice, we can now live in freedom in the United States of America. Freedom is always the result of sacrifice. And most often, it is the result of someone else’s sacrifice.
In America, we enjoy so many incredible freedoms not found in other countries. But are we really free? Even as Americans, we can be so bound — enslaved to fear, depression, busyness, offense, and the list goes on…. We can live in a free country, but still live a life bound to darkness. And for this, there is only one solution.
2,000 years ago, another declaration was made. Jesus, fully God and fully man, was living here on the earth. One Sabbath day, Jesus went into the synagogue and announced, "The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to PROCLAIM FREEDOM for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed FREE (Luke 4:18, NIV).
Then just three years later, Jesus would sacrifice everything for our freedom. As He took His final breath, He declared, "IT IS FINISHED!" That statement — those three little words are our spiritual Declaration of Independence. Jesus brought an end to spiritual bondage. He broke the grip of sin and sickness off of humanity and gave us an opportunity to enter into true freedom.
I once heard the testimony of a man who was incarcerated for many years. While in prison, he heard about Jesus and got saved. Following his salvation, he still had five years left on his sentence, but he said, "I spent five years in prison as a free man!" True freedom isn’t external. It’s internal. It’s not based on an external position, but rather on an internal condition. True freedom is found when Holy Spirit fills us and sets us free from the inside out!
2 Corinthians 3:17 says it best: "Now, the 'Lord' I’m referring to is the Holy Spirit, and wherever he is Lord, there is freedom" (TPT). Notice what the verse says: Wherever Holy Spirit is LORD, THERE IS FREEDOM.
Wherever you make the Holy Spirit Lord, there is freedom. That means the level of freedom you are experiencing is directly connected to the level of lordship you have given Holy Spirit in your life. If there’s an area in which you are not experiencing full freedom… maybe, just maybe, the Spirit is not fully Lord in that area. It’s one thing to call Him Savior, but it’s another thing to make Him Lord.
The word "Lord" in the Greek means "authority." It also means "a person exercising absolute ownership rights" and "a person who has the power of deciding."
When Holy Spirit is Lord it means surrendering your free will to His perfect will. Letting Him decide right from wrong. Letting Him decide good from best. Letting Him lead and guide. This might seem limiting or constricting, but that is one of the biggest lies from the enemy. Making Holy Spirit Lord doesn’t box you in, it gets rid of the box! Instead of being boxed in by the enemy, you now can live within His boundary lines that have fallen in pleasant places (Psalm 16:6).
It’s a place where there is abundant life and complete fulfillment. A place where there’s nothing missing and nothing broken… a place overflowing in righteousness, peace, and joy. It’s a place where you can be all He has created you to be. It’s living in true freedom! Not the counterfeit kind the enemy is selling, but the true kind Jesus declared and purchased with His own blood.
America declared her independence in 1776, but it wasn’t formalized until September 3, 1783 when the Treaty of Paris was signed. Then it took until 1863 for slavery to be abolished. But even with these freedoms established in America, there has continued to be dozens of other battles, including two World Wars, that have threatened our freedoms. It’s one thing to get free, but it’s a whole other thing to STAY free.
We get free because of what Christ did. But we stay free through the choices we make every day. The Apostle Paul tells us to "work out your salvation [that is, cultivate it, bring it to full effect, actively pursue spiritual maturity] with awe-inspired fear" (Philippians 2:12, AMP). It’s the good fight of faith. It’s the daily decision to make Holy Spirit the Lord over our mind, will, and emotions.
As the Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Galatians, "Let me be clear, the Anointed One has set us free—not partially, but completely and wonderfully free! We must always cherish this truth and stubbornly refuse to go back into the bondage of our past" (Galatians 5:1, TPT). Get determined to live free no matter what. Jesus declared it. Jesus sacrificed for it. Now it’s up to us to live in it by keeping Holy Spirit the Lord of our lives.
The Declaration of Independence closes with this statement: "And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor." What a beautiful reminder of how we stay free. We don't have to do it alone. May we have a firm reliance on Divine Providence — that is a firm reliance on Jesus, our Lord and Savior. Freedom, true freedom, is found in no other place.
Freedom is always the result of sacrifice. And most often, it is the result of someone else’s sacrifice. Just think about our country. Just think about the cross.
What about your life? What about the sacrifices you make? Your sacrifice creates space for someone else’s freedom. Because the Spirit of the Lord is on YOU. He has anointed YOU to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent YOU to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release of darkness for the prisoners (Isaiah 61:1).
You might be the first and only person in your family that is following God. Freedom starts with you. Or you might be one of many in a long list of believers. Freedom continues with you. Every generation must do their part. What you do with today creates an opportunity for someone tomorrow. "History has its eye on you" (Hamilton).
Make the Holy Spirit Lord of your life… live in His freedom… and you’ll set the stage for someone else to do the same.