SEEKING TRUE FREEDOM
     Tim Hardin sang a song popular many years ago that said, "Come and sing a simple song of freedom; sing it you've never sung before.."  Today we have a simple song of freedom that can be sung but there are those who are trying to complicate the simplicity of this freedom.
     The song we sing is that of Moses and the Lamb (Rev. 15:3).  These songs speak of deliverance.  For Moses (Israel) it was deliverance from Egypt (Ex. 15).  For us it is the deliverance from the bondage of sin. When God delivers His children it is a true freedom they enjoy, and no freedom is greater than that of being freed from our sins.
     Some are seeking to destroy that freedom by telling us that no one church has a monopoly on truth.  Of course the purpose behind this proclamation is to get us to believe that one church is as good as another, since all churches have at least a partial amount of truth associated with them.  Some will go so far as to say it is impossible to know the perfect gospel.
     There is a major problem with this supposition.  The problem is that truth did not originate in any church.  Truth comes from God so we must believe God's truth is perfect.  Understanding that God's truth is itself perfect leads us to what our response is to be.  We must accept God's truth and be obedient to it if we are to truly become free for the church was established on the truth of God's word.  This is why only God can add us to the church (Acts 2:47).
     Why people stumble over this is due to the lack of teaching concerning the covenants.  Many want to hold to the old covenant (Law) under Moses while retaining portions of the new covenant established by Christ.  This can't be done for Christ has taken the first out of the way, nailing it to the cross (Eph. 2:13ff; Col. 2:11-15).  God alone establishes the covenant and its conditions, and  man responds.  Doing so is the basis of obedience and faithfulness.
     Jesus said "You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free" (Jn. 8:32).  John later writes we can know we have eternal life (1 Jn. 5:13), and that knowledge is based upon knowing God.  Truly knowing God is possible only through obedience to His word (1 Jn. 5:2).  When man seeks to change what God has set forth he has left the righteousness of God (Ro. 1:16,17) and, in turn, has established a righteousness of his own (Ro. 10:2-4). 
    It is possible to know the perfect gospel for the perfect God, our Father, has revealed it.  It is simple and easy to understand for those seeking God's truth.  Becoming truly free in obedience to that truth allows us to sing that simple song of freedom.  Rodger