June 28, 2026
Have you ever said, “I have the right to do whatever I want!” We all like our independence! Has someone ever told you, “I have the right to do whatever I want!” Maybe they were angry at you! That doesn’t feel good. It’s nice to live peacefully. Today we’re going to talk about where our rights come from, and how do we respond when others claim their rights?
Our country will soon celebrate 250 years! It’s amazing! We often miss how important Christian faith was to the founding of United States. The founding fathers believed in the separation of church and state. They said the government cannot promote any religion. That can seem harsh, because we’re Christians and we like religion. But if you lived in Europe at that time, your king or queen could tell you what religion you will have and not allow you to be part of any other religion.
The founders of the United States, said, we are not going to do that! You decide for yourself about your faith. You have freedom of religion.
This does not mean the founding fathers were against religion. They were pro religion, they actually thought about religion a lot. In fact, God is in the Declaration of Independence four times! There’s a famous line in the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator, (by God,) with certain unalienable rights.”
The founding fathers felt strongly that they, the colonists, had rights, including the right to independence from the king of England! You might think the rights we have as Americans: free speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, freedom of religion, etc. are given to us by the government. But the Declaration of Independence says, no, its God, God is the onewho gives us certain unalienable rights. God gives rights not just to us, but to all people. God gives everyone rights.
It’s not the case of, I have my rights, I demand them, and I don’t care about anybody else. If God gives rights to everybody, then God wants me to care about the rights of others, because he gave them their rights too. We need to balance other’s rights and our rights. The rights we have are gifts from God, for us to use with grace.
John Adams was the first vice president of US and the second president. He contributed to the writing of the Declaration of Independence. John Adams wrote a letter to the Massachusetts militia in 1798. A quote from his letter is in the bulletin.
John Adams said, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” Adams thought that if Americans don’t try to follow God, if they don’t do good deeds, and they don’t live justly, if they are disrespectful of others, if they value money and wealth above all else, then the Constitution, and our democratic government isn’t going to work! We need to be a moral and religious people, looking to God for guidance and seeking the good of all. If we don’t, John Adams said our democracy will fail!
George Washington said something similar in 1796, when he was leaving the presidency after serving two terms as president. In his farewell address he said, “Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, religion and morality are indispensable supports.”
In our country, rather than a king or queen ruling us, we have a democracy! We have a say. We all have power. We all have rights.
We have rights, but the government alone can’t make us act responsibly. You can’t make enough laws to force people to be good when they just don’t care or want to do harm.
The problem with laws is there are always loopholes. My dad was a lawyer. He had a client who was in her 80s. She was in a car accident and went before a judge. My Dad told the judge, “This is my client’s first car accident.” Here she was in her 80s, and this her only accident! The judge was impressed! She got off with a lighter punishment. But the truth is she got her license for the first time 3 months before! The job of the lawyer is to find a loophole.
We all look for loopholes. What can I get away with? How low can I go? How far can I exceed the speed limit and not get a traffic ticket? What can I get away with on my taxes? Laws can’t make people do the right thing. Traffic laws don’t create courteous drivers. Assault and battery laws don’t make a man a good husband. A marriage license won’t make a woman a good spouse. Your right to free speech won’t make you kind. Laws can’t inspire us to do good. Our legal system is not connected to a sense that we have a responsibility to do good and answer to God. That’s where religion and morality are needed! Our democracy depends on people who follow God and seek to do good.
In the Scriptures, the apostle Paul wrote a lot about a problem with the Old Testament law. In his letter to the church in Galatia, Paul responds after someone has told members of the church and convinced them you have to keep the Old Testament law, before you can follow Jesus. Someone told them the men must be circumcised, and all the Christians have to keep the dietary laws of Judaism, what food is kosher and so on. Paul says that’s not true! We are not justified and saved by the law. We are saved by the grace of God, through faith.
In Galatians 5:13-15Paul says, “You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.”
Paul warns the Christians in Galatia to love one another, or they’ll destroy each other! It’s a warning from John Adams and George Washington as well. They believed that the United States of America will continue only if we move beyond selfishness, and instead, do to others what we hope they will do for us. You can’t use your rights just for your benefit alone and forget that you’re part of a community.
John Adams and George Washington wrote that church is important for the health of our country! The church can encourage us to have an attitude of, “I’ll use my freedom in order to protect your freedom.” I’ll do what’s just, instead of what I can justify. I’ll be responsible and not do whatever I want. I’ll look to God’s standard.
My challenge for you this week is to pray for your fellow Americans, especially for those you don’t agree with!
We have inherited our democracy from founding fathers who were not perfect! For instance, they permitted slavery. But they recognized that God gave rights to all. The founding fathers risked their lives to form our nation. They did not assume the United States would last 250 years! They knew it was up to moral and religious people to do the right thing. The Apostle Paul said, “Do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather serve one another humbly in love.” Our democracy depends on people who follow God and seek to do good. Let’s love one another and make our founding fathers proud! Amen!
Maureen Duffy-Guy's blog 