Sermon: America: A Celebration of Liberty

Today’s sermon is a patriotic celebration of those things that make America unique such as our Revolution and the God-given principles of Liberty and Equality This sermon was developed from material graciously provided by the producers of the movie America, Gerald Molen, the Academy-award winning producer of Schindler’s List, and Dinesh D’Souza, the creator of 2016: Obama’s America.

Summary:

The writings of some of the founding fathers shows that they were God-fearing men and created a nation based on the self-evident truths of God. As Thomas Jefferson wrote in the opening of the Declaration of Independence:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Everything about America seems to have been touched by God. Unlike most revolutions, instead of bringing economic disaster, inequality, and tyranny, the American revolution brought liberty, equality, and greater rights to all citizens such as was unheard of in the known world of the time.

These truths were “self-evident” because they are the eternal, inerrant truths of God. Liberty is the freedom to choose but, more importantly, the God-given power of the Holy Spirit to choose right, not for selfish pursuits but to serve one another, humbly, in love. Equality, which means that all persons are treated the same in the eyes of the law, in the eyes of each other, and in the eyes of God.

We have much to be proud of and our great country deserves our patriotism. Let’s each do what we can individually and together to stand up for righteousness. As Alexis de Tocqueville said, “Not until I went into the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, she will cease to be great.”