About

When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.And with these words the American colonists declared their intention to throw off the yoke of British oppression, launching the movement that would eventually establish the greatest nation on the face of the earth. It was all about FREEDOM.It was in August 1776 when a committee composed of Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and John  Adams proposed a design for a national seal. Each gave their own ideas, with Franklin and Jefferson proposing the image of Moses and the Israelites being rescued from the hand of Pharaoh and his armies. That design idea made its way to the final proposal, with the words: “Rebellion to Tyrants is Obedience to God.” Unfortunately, the red tape of government was conceived at the birth of the nation, and the idea of Moses and Pharaoh on the seal of the US was tabled - never to be considered again.BUT the idea of the story of the Biblical exodus validated and rallied groups that are confronted by an enemy greater than themselves. For the American colonists, success against the mighty British Empire would not be achieved without God’s help.You see, at the end of the book of Genesis God’s people had made their way out of Canaan to live in Egypt. There God fulfilled His promise to Abraham to bless them and to increase them in number. But the promise that they would be afflicted also came true. A pharaoh who had not been educated as to the importance of the Hebrews living in the land grew afraid of their numbers and decided it would be best to enslave them.The Hebrew people fell under oppression and slavery in the land in which they had once enjoyed freedom. They were forced to make mud bricks - filthy, miserable work - to supply their oppressors with the resources to build an empire.At the end of it all, God led His people out of slavery, to the mountain where the law was given, through a wilderness experience where they learned to obey, and finally to the land He had promised the patriarchs He would give to His people one day.The story of the exodus out of slavery into a promised land is the same story as those who have turned their lives over to the Lord Jesus.As Americans, slavery isn’t a part of our present reality, so if you were asked what enslaves you, you’d think that was an odd question. You might even get a bit defensive. This is America - land of the free, home of the brave!That would be pretty much the response that Jesus received from the Jews in John 8.