Calvin Synod Herald, 1983 (83. évfolyam, 2-4. szám)
1983-04-01 / 2. szám
CALVIN SYNOD HERALD — 6 — REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA that would have meant to lose his freedom. He confirmed his freedom within the God-given limits of human and earthly life. He knew and respected God’s truth. His truth is that man needs air in order to live. Therefore, he must preserve the cleanness, the purity of air or else he dies. But in the pure air he is free. He must not tolerate the slavery of any kind of air pollution. Again, when a person stuffs himself with more or other than the necessary amount or kind of food and drink, alcohol, drugs, other narcotics, claiming that he is “free” to use them, he actually subjects himself to slavery, losing his freedom. We become slaves to indulgence, and that goes for everything else. It goes for the sex life of man, too. Every kind and form of sexual aberration contradicts the will of the Creator who out of His great love set up definite limits for human sexuality. When those limits are ignored, punishment (pangs of conscience, illness or death) follows in one form or another. I do not now want to elaborate on this subject, but only state that in this respect, too, it is wrong to lose one’s beautiful freedom. “The American Way of Debt” (Time, May 3, 1982) is another way to give up one’s freedom. People live beyond their means, heap up debts and become slaves to their debts, actually to their own greed or irresponsibility, simply because they did not want to observe the limits of their means. There is this craziness when so many people just want to gobble up everything, saying that they want to “enjoy life”. Instead, live within the achieved limits of your income, perhaps the step by step increasing income, and then you are indeed free and can enjoy life. Where is freedom? What is freedom? We can be free only while we respect, accept, and observe the created limits, the truth, of life on earth. If we do not, we become miserable slaves in one way or another. This is valid, for instance, in regard to our tongue, too. We must creatively use our tongue according to the law of truth and love, or else, as the apostle James wrote (3:6), “the tongue is a fire ... an unrighteous world among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the cycle of nature ... a restless evil, full of deadly poison.” And how great is the number of the slaves of their evil tongue! Well, there is no need to try to continue proving the truth that we can be free as we observe the created limits, the created purpose of life. “You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free,” as Jesus said. 3. And what is truth? “I am the truth,” Jesus said. That is, our limitation is the Christlike man. The VACANCY OHIO SUBSCRIBERS The Winnipeg Hungarian United Church Is looking for a bilingual pastor. Please write to Jenő Nagy 10 Hansford Road, Winnipeg, Man. Canada R2J 2J4. Among the Hungarian churches of Ohio Cleveland West Side is leading with 330 subscriptions. It is followed by Fairport Harbor with 190. Columbus has 125. Cleveland East through the kind support of Dr. Joseph Piri receives 100 copies. The other Ohio churches have the following number of subscribers: Dayton 65, Lorain 30, Toledo 30, Elyria 25, Conneaut 15 and the Presbyterian Church of Cleveland 5. Christlike life is the limit for the whole mankind. Instead of hate, “love your enemies!” Instead of usurping or oppressing others, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” (Gal. 6:2.) Where these Christlike limits are disregarded, there come terror, torture, woe, annihilation, subjugation, humiliation, death. And that is not the divine purpose for this earth! The divine purpose is freedom, the knowledge of the truth which “makes you free” and a happy child of God. The truth is that we can be great and first as we heed the advice of Jesus, “If anyone would be first, he must be ...servant of all.” (Mk. 9:34) The really great leaders were and are those who instead of lording over their people, served them, served their best interest according to God. The truth is that every individual, and nation, is somewhat different than all others and must be allowed to live his particular life, as long as he does not harm others. Otherwise he cannot live a full life, cannot be a whole person or nation. The suffocation of his particular individuality, — religious, political, economic, cultural —, enslaves him, and sooner or later will revenge itself. So, the truth is what Jesus expressed in this way, “Whatever you wish that men would do to you, do so to them.” (Mt. 7:12.) Let them have their human rights, their freedom! This excludes exploitation and oppression. The exploiter or oppressor sooner or later must pay a bitter price for his crime, as history proved that time and again. The writer of Proverbs 14:34 said the truth, “Righteousness (truth) exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.” Freedom to serve makes a person and a nation strong. Usurpers and oppressors are basically weak. Those who help, serve, promote, and create, are basically strong, for otherwise they would not have the freedom to serve. They have the freedom and strength to give! This is what Jesus did. “The son of man came not to be served but to serve” (Mt. 20:28), he said and demonstrated, and through the freedom of giving he had the greatest life ever lived. He lived within the limits created by God, within the limits of the laws given by God, and that freedom made his not only the greatest life ever lived, but by his resurrection it overcame death. The resurrection overcame the limitations from the finite earthly life, it gave freedom from death, it opened for man the door of eternity. So whoever wants real freedom, let his life be filled and directed by the word and spirit of Christ who said, “If the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed ... If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” Now, these are the three points I recommend for our consideration on this July 4th: 1. Let us appreciate and be grateful for the freedom we have in this country, helping others to attain similar religious, political, economic, and cultural freedom. 2. Let us observe the created limits of earthly life and be free within them. 3. Let us be first by service to others, like Jesus who, “came not to be served, but to serve.” Amen.
