I was just taking a few minutes today to ponder what Independence Day means to me. It certainly means many things, but mostly I guess it represents the liberty we enjoy as Americans and the terrible price that liberty costs. For some reason, most of us go through life seldom if ever thinking about the costs of the freedoms that we enjoy each day. They are freedoms that MOST of the world simply does not know.
But what struck me most was I started to think about the whole concept of independence. I was struck by the thought that if we are not careful we might be tempted to transfer the whole concept of independence into our spiritual lives.
You see, in our physical world independence is a sign of growth, maturity. It is a sign that one is able to cast off on their own, fend for themselves, handle life on their own apart from their parents. Not so in the spiritual realm. Independence is a sign of immaturity, not maturity. Independence is a sign of rebellion against our Father not a sign of intimacy or trust.
For followers of Jesus, the more we grow in our relationship with him, the more dependent we become, not the more independent. So enjoy your day with family and friends, have a grilled hotdog on me. But be careful from taking the precepts of man and ascribing them to the precepts of God. It can be a dangerous thing. The wisdom of man is folly next to the foolishness of God. We’re not even close!
