AS we scan the pages of history which tell of the struggles of mankind for some measure of liberty, we may recall the words of the centurion who, in referring to the price paid for the privileges of Roman citizenship, said,— "With a great sum obtained I this freedom." It is readily seen that freedom can never be obtained by mortals without the sacrifice of much that they count dear,—the pity is that so many pay a tremendous price for that which only disappoints in the possession, while the fact that the struggle goes on, that the quest continues, is proof that something deserving of the name really exists, and that it is worth all it may cost.
There are few who are willing to admit themselves bondmen, however imperfect be their sense of freedom, as in the case of those who resented and rejected Jesus' offer of the truth to set them free. Although they were at that very time the vassals of an alien power, they declared, "We . . . were never in bondage to any man." This was an utterance of the self-deceived mortal mind, which tells men that they are free to break God's law and to trample upon the rights of their fellows, a false belief that has no power to deliver those who credit it from sin and suffering, for Christ, Truth, alone can give freedom from, error and its results. The awful delusion and the consequence of seeking freedom in the wrong way is clearly shown in the allegory of Adam and Eve, who were in a state of innocence and happiness when the serpent suggested that disobedience to a divine command would bring them greater freedom than they possessed. They fell into the snare, and with their hapless progeny became the victims of evil,— sin, disease, and death,—and they were utterly unable to deliver themselves from this bondage.
The history of humanity clearly shows that bondage is inseparable from the acceptance of a false sense of being, and that the price of freedom is tremendous, even the surrender of every material consideration which would deny the supremacy of Spirit. The pathos of the situation in any land wherein the sense of liberty has long been stifled, no words can describe, for the slavery of false conditions binds king and subject alike; the only difference being that those who suffer most are soonest inspired by the heroism which is ready to lay self on the altar that others may be free.
