I wonder how big the smiles on the faces of the signers of the Declaration of Independence would be if they could see what Friday was like for most Americans. In 1776 when that group of 56 men put their autograph on that famous document they were just 13 colonies scattered across the Eastern seaboard. Now, the country spans from “sea to shining sea.” And while this country is far from perfect, it is still a great place to raise our kids. It is still a place that encourages freedom and has fought for not only our people to have it but for other nations to enjoy the same. And through the years that has come with an enormous price. Of the 56 men who signed it five were tortured and killed and nine lost their lives before independence was ever won. Twelve of those men had their homes ransacked and burned by the British. Two had sons that died in the Revolution and two more had sons captured by the British. They lost their homes, businesses, health, and status as a result of signing that piece of paper. Somewhere between 25,000-70,000 died in the Revolution. Some of those died on the battlefield but many died from diseases that spread due to the war. In the almost 250 year history of this country over one million United States soldiers have died on battlefields across the globe since the Revolution. While we enjoy relative safety, our men and women of the armed forces have pulled on their boots and strapped on their gear to stand guard for our freedom. I hope we have lived our lives with an immense amount of gratitude for those who sacrificed because freedom is not free. It has been bought with their blood.
While on some level it would seem that one million lives would be the greatest sacrifice for freedom one could ever imagine, it actually pales in comparison to the spiritual freedom we have through Jesus Christ. None of the one million souls who died as a result of war were perfect and all of them were merely human. The one who came to save our souls was the Son of God and had lived a perfect life. The spotless Lamb of God not only endured a miserable death, but conquered the grave. It is because of the price that Jesus paid on the spiritual battlefield of Golgotha that we can experience freedom from our sins. It is the resurrection from the tomb that gives us hope of a new life now, and a resurrection from the grave when this life is over. And that freedom isn’t just for those who live in America. That freedom is for every person throughout the world that would submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.