4th of July Dilemma

I have been praying and looking up stuff this morning, but keep getting sidetracked.  My mission was to find a way to blend in a bible study with the BBQ this afternoon at Rick and Kathy's.  I have failed miserably, so far.  A party is supposed to be fun.  Entertain. Be relaxing.  Have a good time.  I realize that lots of people do not 'have a good time' when they "study the Bible".  It is certainly that way with most non-Christians* I know--they just don't get into their Bible like others who really enjoy reading and studying about our final destination(s).  So, how do we incorporate biblical lessons into a celebration of this holiday today?  I am not sure, but let's talk about that for a bit.

What is the 4th of July?  What does it represent?  The actual Declaration of Independence was not signed until August in 1776, but the vote by the 13 original colonies to accept the draft written by Thomas Jefferson was conducted in the late afternoon of July 4th that year.  As a side note, only 9 of the 13 colonies voted for it, 2 opposed it, 1 abstained, and 1 was undecided.  In July of 1777, the first 'celebration' of the Declaration was conducted, celebrating the birth of America, and release from the 'tyranny' of King George III.  Also, as a side note, we oft times hear of the separation of church and state, and think that this came from the Declaration of Independence.  It did not....the word church is not used once within that Document, although "God" is mentioned once.  Without deep research (and Internet is not deep research), I believe that the phrase "separation of church and state" first appeared in a letter that Thomas Jefferson wrote to the Danbury Congress in 1802, but was addressing a different kind of issue.  But, that aside, this phrase did not appear in the Declaration of Independence, nor did it appear in the First Amendment to the Constitution, as it is often also thought.  The First Amendment reads thus: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;".  Okay, enough of the U.S. History 101.  Suffice it to say, the 4th of July is celebrated each year to remember the birth of our nation, free from the rule of England---a new start.

Well, if the 4th is a celebration of a new start, then let's look at other 'new starts' in our Christian lives.  I guess you could look back to the day that Jesus was born (Sometime in the Spring? of the year "0") (Some folks think that AD stands for "After Death", but in actuality it comes from the Latin words Anno Domino, or "year of the Lord", or ---the year Jesus was born).  OR, you could look back to AD 33 or 34 (years most commonly believed to be when Jesus was crucified, died, buried and resurrected).  Or, you could look back to the day that YOU were reborn (baptized).  Whatever day you choose to 'look back at', think of it as a day to be celebrated.  A day of liberation from tyranny. A new start.  Jesus' birth brought wonder and fear into the governing authorities in 0.  Later on, in about 30, Jesus' teachings brought anger, and within just 3 years, resulted in His death.  THAT, is not cause for celebration.  However, within 3 days of His death, He came back to life, proving His teachings.  That most certainly IS, cause to light fireworks.  Just imagine.  HE CAME BACK TO LIFE!  Talk about a new start.  And for about 40 days He proved this miracle to many believers and non-believers, who started carrying His message to the entire world.  THEN, at the conclusion of that time, as recorded in Luke's book we call "Acts", Jesus startled us once again---He went to Heaven by rising up into the air, but not before promising us a chance to get to HIS home, Heaven.

Ribs, hot dogs, southern style beans and other tantalizing delicious foods will be consumed all over America today, as people pause to celebrate their new beginning resulting from the declaration of separation from tyrannical England.  I suggest that when we do that, we incorporate a little "church and state" here, and celebrate our new beginning.  We love our independence---we tout it worldwide as THE way to live--the American Dream, Freedom.  Martin Luther King taught about it. Presidents have pushed it into faces of other nations for centuries (at least two now).  We enjoy the ability to live our lives in this manner because of certain Rights we have.  Well, let me tell you this.  As Christians, we also have much better rights.  We have inherited the 'right' to go to Heaven.  NO, we do NOT deserve this, and it is not a RIGHT, per se.  But because Jesus DID die about 1972 years ago, we CAN go to Heaven.  Along with these rights, however, comes a large responsibility.  Not a requirement, because we can not earn what God gave us, but a responsibility to carry the message of our rights to the remainder of the world.  As we show our neighbors how much we love our country by flag waving and inviting them to BBQs, we also need to show them how much we love our Lord by 'Bible Waving' and inviting them into our homes, hearts and lives.

I am still at loss on how to blend in our patriotism with our ecumenism today at the BBQ.  I pray as I close this email that the Holy Spirit will be with us this afternoon and will show us the answer.

Happy 4th of July, but more importantly, Thank You, Jesus!

*non-Christians --- We use this term too literally and too often.  EVERYONE is a Christian, as EACH OF US has Christ in us as God is in us all (That's what LIFE is!).  The degree of each person's Christianity, however, compels us to draw the line, separating one from another.  If we take a scale from 0 to 10, we could identify people by how much 'Christianity' they have in them.  But, when we do that, we start separating ourselves from each other.  Even in the church, we do that.  We need to stop.  Everyone is a Christian, but the degree to which he or she is, depends upon a myriad of things.  We can influence, with the help of the Holy Spirit, those will less 'Christianity' within them (those who profess to not know God, and even denounce Him.  those who profess to not believe the entire bible.  those who don't believe that Jesus is Lord.  those who feel embarrassed by professing openly their love for Christ.  those who don't understand the responsibility that comes along with the Grace each one of us can accept.)  It all comes down to people's thinking.  We need to influence those on the 'lower portion of my imaginary scale'; and what better way to do that is to openly celebrate our freedom from the tyrannical rule of satan? 

Mac