OUR STATUE OF LIBERTY
Galatians 6:14
May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
The Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor has greeted generations of newcomers to the shores of the United States. The Statue of Liberty was presented to the United States as a gift from France in recognition of 100 years of liberty, as well as commemorating the alliance of France and the U.S. in the fight for freedom.
This 152 Foot figure stands on top of a 150 foot pedestal, and was shipped to the U.S. in 241 crates in 1885, and was erected, and dedicated in 1886.
It was renovated just before it’s 100th anniversary in 1986, and reopened with a great celebration.
Many eyes have looked to this Statue over the past 100+ years from boats, and automobiles, airplanes, and trains with a sense of awe, not so much by the statue itself, but by what the statue represents.
In 1976, Neil Enloe of the Couriers wrote a song that compared the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor to our Statue of Liberty, the Cross of Jesus Christ. This song won the 1976 Dove Award for the Song of the Year.
Oh, the cross is my statue of liberty,
For it was there that my soul was set free!
Unashamed I’ll proclaim that a rugged cross
Is my statue of liberty. —Enloe
© 1974, 1975 by Neil Enloe Music Co.
What is Liberty?
The state of a free person; exemption from subjection to the will of another claiming ownership of the person or services; freedom; -- opposed to slavery, serfdom, bondage, or subjection.
This is the week that once again we pause and celebrate our freedom as a nation and the Independence and Liberty that we now enjoy.
But today we not only take a look at the Liberty we enjoy as Americans, but greater than that, we take a look at the Liberty that was made possible through the death of our Savior, Jesus Christ on the Cross.
In a while we will pause and remember the death of Christ, as well as examine ourselves, and also we will look forward to the soon coming of our King who will once and for all liberate us from this world of sin, and provide an eternal home.
All of the blessings we enjoy as Christians could not have taken place without our Statue of Liberty, and our Savior who bled and died on it.
We are going to look at three aspects of this Liberty today, and they are:
1. The Monument of Liberty
2. The Message of Liberty
3. The Mystery of Liberty
First of all today, we see:
I. THE MONUMENT OF LIBERTY
As you know, in the Old Testament when important events took place in the lives of the people, a monument would be erected for the benefit of generations to follow who would ask the significance of the monument.
Joshua 4:4-7
So Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe, [5] and said to them, "Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, [6] to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ’What do these stones mean?’ [7] tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever."
The Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor inspires questions from children to their parents as to the meaning of the Lady with the Torch held to the Sky.
Parents and Grandparents alike are able to tell the story in the best way they know how, but usually there is the instilling of an appreciation into the child of the high price that was paid for the liberty we now enjoy.
A different monument towers over history much higher, and casting it’s influence much farther by offering freedom to spiritually enslaved people from every nation, and it is the Cross of Calvary.
This light shines much brighter, because the One who was on the Cross said He was “the Light of the World” - He is the light for red, yellow, black, and white, every nation, every tribe, and every background!
Far from being a scene that would draw the viewer in to inspiration and awe at it’s beauty, but when one stops to consider the message of the Cross of freedom from sin, and when one hears the cry of “It Is Finished” echoing through the ages, the Cross is a monument of beauty!
Words like “Father Forgive Them, they know not what they do”, speaks of the unconditional love of Christ even though he was reviled and rejected by those He loved.
I would venture to say that this nation would be able to survive without the Statue of Liberty, but I do not believe that our nation can survive without the Cross!
Through attack after attack on the Gospel of Jesus Christ, we realize today that the Cross of Jesus Christ continues to stand strong in the hearts and lives of millions of Americans and people around the World.
It may not be visible to the human eye, as far as the actual cross goes, (good thing too, because it would become an object of worship, instead of the Christ who died on it,) but we can see the effects of those who look to the Cross, as the one who was bound to alcohol has found a new drink! The one who was a slave to sin, is now a slave to Jesus Christ, and loving every minute of it!
When we are in need of healing or Salvation, we can look to the Cross, and the work that took place there for us.
In this age of “political correctness” be sure not to shy away from the Cross of Jesus Christ! It is still the Cross that is our Statue of Liberty -
While taking a prisoner from a Guelph, Ontario, correctional center to be arraigned on charges of attempted armed robbery, police constable John Bolton noticed a cross around the neck of the convict. Knowing the man was not religious, he took a closer look. The prisoner attempted to conceal something protruding from the top of the cross. When questioned, he said it was a good luck charm designed to look like a spoon for sniffing cocaine. But Constable Bolton was sure it looked like a handcuff key. By experimentation he found that the protrusion would open most handcuffs. The discovery led to the exposure of an attempt by prisoners in the correctional center to make a number of these cross-keys.
There is a cross that sets men free, free from the bondage of the law, and that cross is the cross of Calvary. Unfortunately many are more concerned about freedom for the body than they are about freedom for the soul. Whether inside or outside prison, all men need the cross that sets us free.
Not only do we see the Monument Of Liberty, we also see:
II. THE MESSAGE OF LIBERTY
Every day, the Statue of Liberty stands and preaches a message. No, it’s not out loud, but there is a message that is inscribed on it that says:
On the inscription there is a portion of it that goes like this:
"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
I don’t know about you, but when I read a statement like that, it makes me rejoice to be able to say that I was born in the greatest country in the World, and am a Citizen of that Country as well simply by being born here.
This message has brought hope to lives that have suffered in communist countries for their faith, or just the right to protest the injustices of a tyrannical government.
Years ago, in the uprise at Tiananmen Square in China, many people paid with their lives just to feel a taste of liberty.
But the message of the Statue of Liberty says “Give me your tired, poor, huddled masses yearning to breathe free!”
What a powerful message! Many upon seeing the Statue of Liberty have been moved to openly weep as their emotions overwhelm them as they see the Lamp lifted beside the golden door.
But I believe today that there is a more powerful message that came from the Old Rugged Cross and the perfect, sinless, man who hung there.
Not freedom just from physical bondage, but a message of freedom that goes deeper than that: Father Forgive Them
Luke 4:18, 19
"The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
to preach the acceptable year of the Lord
The Cross is all about a message of Freedom from the captivity of sin, and slavery that has held the sinner in it’s grasp!
Basically, the message of the cross says as well to the world, “Give me your tired, poor, huddled masses yearning to breathe free!”
Come on out of the polluted sin-filled atmosphere of the world, and breathe deeply the clean air that God has to offer!
Job 33:4
The Spirit of God has made me;
the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
So now, we have this breath given to us by God, and a new freedom that we never had before, what are we supposed to do now?
What is our primary purpose? How do we find fulfillment, and use the breath that He has breathed upon us?
Psalm 150:6
Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord.
This message is a life-giving message! It is a message of freedom and liberty! It is a message that when fully realized will lead one to shouts of praise and worship!
Our problem is that we often take our freedom for granted!
It seems by reading the message on the Statue of Liberty, it’s about receiving the poor, rejected, huddled masses. Of course, anyone is welcome, but it must be proclaimed that all are welcome.
I’m here to say today that the Cross gives the same message, only it goes deeper than that! There are no custom borders to go through, no green card applications, no tests to take... Just a clear confession of faith in Jesus Christ, and the forgiveness that he so freely gave at Calvary!
Actually, when it comes to the Kingdom of Christ, there are no Illegal aliens! While all are welcome, they still must go through the proper entrance into the Kingdom, and it is the door of Jesus Christ.
John 10:9 - I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
When we do that, we become citizens of a greater country, and of a city whose builder and maker is God!
What a gift! What a liberty! What Freedom! What a Mystery!??
That moves us to our next point, and that is
III. THE MYSTERY OF LIBERTY
What is it about liberty that causes great men to give their lives in battle? Why would someone fight for something they in fact will never enjoy on their own?
The sacrifices of those who are fighting now, and have fought in wars of the past are simply an amazing thing, and at times, even a mystery.
We could ask many of our veterans to venture an explanation of this mystery, and many of them would come back and say to us, “it’s all about others!” It’s about the liberty of others, the freedom of others, and I am willing to die to bring this freedom to others!
Many of us may not know for sure who said these words...
"Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery?" but we know Patrick Henry who followed up with the words "I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death."
Col. 4:3
And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains.
Amazing! What is it about this mystery that would cause a man like Paul to risk his life, his religious reputation in the community of that day to follow Jesus Christ, preaching about the mystery of the Gospel, and willing to go to rat infested prisons, and even to give his very life as he was eventually beheaded by Nero in Rome?
The “mystery” of Christ is the Good News of Salvation! That God should love a sinner such as I, although it meant his death on Calvary, nor rest till he had planned to bring me nigh, how wonderful is love like this!”
But I’m here today to say that this is no “unsolved mystery”!!
We read in Col. 1:26-27
the mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations, but is now disclosed to the saints. [27] To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
The false teachers in the Colossian church believed that spiritual perfection was a secret and hidden plan that only a few privileged people could discover.
Their secret plan was meant to be exclusive.
Paul said that he was proclaiming the word of God in its fullness, not just a part of the plan. He also called God’s plan a “mystery that has been kept hidden for ages and generations,” not in the sense that only a few would understand, but because it was hidden until Christ came.
Through Christ it was made open to all.
God’s secret plan is “Christ in you, the hope of glory”—God planned to have his Son, Jesus Christ, live in the hearts of all who believe in him—even Gentiles like the Colossians. Do you know Christ? He is not hidden if you will come to him.
You will never experience the true freedom of Christ in your life until you accept by Faith what He did for you on the Cross of Calvary.
In 1863 the Emancipation Proclamation was proclaimed in America. The word spread from Capitol Hill down into the valleys of Virginia, and the Carolinas, and evens into the plantations of Georgia, Mississippi, and Alabama. The headlines read, ’Slavery Legally Abolished!’ However, the greater majority of slaves, in the South, went right on living as though there had been no emancipation. They went on living like they had never been set free. In fact, when one Alabama slave was asked what he thought of the Great Emancipator, whose proclamation had gone into effect, he replied "I don’t know nothing about Abraham Lincoln except they say he set us free. And, I don’t know nothing about that neither." How tragic. A war was being fought. A document had been signed. Slaves were legally set free.
Yet most continued to live out their years without knowing anything about it. They had chosen to remain slaves, though they were legally free. Even though emancipated, they kept serving the same master throughout their lives. Yet, so it is with many believers today. They have been set free, yet they have chosen to remain slaves to the same strongholds that have gripped them all of their life.
Have you been to your Statue of Liberty?
John 8:34
Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.
John 8:36
So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
