Today’s Podcast

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1. Thanks for joining me today for “A Little Walk with God.” I’m your host Richard Agee.
2. Have you ever considered just how many laws we must follow every day? Some are so old and archaic they don’t just border on the ridiculous, they fell off the cliff long ago. Here are a couple to consider: It is illegal to milk another person’s cow. The entire Encyclopedia Britannica is banned in Texas because it contains a formula for making beer at home. It is illegal for one to shoot a buffalo from the second story of a hotel. Talk about imposing on our freedoms!
3. Scripture
   1. John 8:31-32
   2. To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.  Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
4. Devotional
   1. In this country, we talk a lot about freedom. But I think sometimes we have a real misconception about what freedom really means.
      1. Definition: 1.the state of being free or at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint: He won his freedom after a retrial. 2. exemption from external control, interference, regulation, etc. 3. the power to determine action without restraint. 4. political or national independence. 5. personal liberty, as opposed to bondage or slavery: a slave who bought his freedom. 6. exemption from the presence of anything specified (usually followed by from): freedom from fear. 7. the absence of or release from ties, obligations, etc.
      2. We can define it, but can we really live within the scope of these words?
      3. Not without infringing on the freedom of someone else except for perhaps the first, at liberty rather than in confinement or under physical restraint
      4. All others are illusions if we live in community with others to maintain order and preservation of the community
   2. Look at definitions
      1. Exemption from external control – establish laws and regulations to govern our behavior for the health and safety of the community
      2. Power to determine action without restraint – laws and regulations restrain our actions, cannot do anything we want
      3. Political or national independence – no nation is completely independent in today’s society, we are interdependent because of the trade, commerce, migration of people from state to state, negotiate our freedoms to avoid conflict
      4. Personal liberty – we talk often about the loss of personal liberties: some speech today puts you in jail – hate speech; loss of religious freedoms; debates about what Second Amendment means; even where you live (codes), how much you can make (taxes), and more
      5. Exemption from the presence of anything specified (usually followed by from): freedom from fear – often an emotion that still lingers and we cover with some tools we’ve learned
      6. Absence of or release from ties, obligations, etc. – just as with laws and regulations, we will always live under some kind of laws as long as we live
   3. Man’s laws are fickle and always changing, difficult to understand and impossible to follow
   4. Follow God, His rules have never changed. Believe in Jesus for forgiveness and life. His spirit will live in you to help you live His within the laws He gives, freedom from the oppression and guilt of the laws that burden others.
      1. Know the rules
      2. Know the spirit of what God wants for your life
      3. Know the truth of who God is and what He wants
      4. Know freedom because of who you belong to and whose rules you fall under
5. If you want to learn more about my church, you can find us at SAF.church. If you like the devotional, share it with someone. If you don’t, tell me. I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow for “A Little Walk with God.”

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