A paraphrase of the quote above might go like this: "Want to be free? Then man up and get to work!" We live in a culture that increasingly loves ease and pleasure. We also have those in our culture who have recognized how to leverage the love of ease and pleasure to enslave others. They have worked their way into government and have successfully implanted the idea that people deserve free healthcare, free education, free cell phones, and free services of every kind. The success of this scheme can be seen in the fact that 84% of Democrats under age 30 in the 2016 Iowa Caucus voted for Sanders, an open socialist promising just about free everything. This spells trouble for the future - not to mention the present.
Yes, there is a time and a place for receiving help, but dependency is the issue here. He who depends upon free goods and services is not free. It is an unchanging principle, the dependent is ruled by his provider. The Bible puts it this way: The rich rules over the poor, And the the borrower becomes the lender's slave.
- Pr 22:7 (NASB)
The fact is, free stuff isn't really free. Government entitlement programs are really more like a loan that we pay back for the rest of our lives. The price we pay for free stuff is our freedom. America is unique to the rest of the world because freedom gives everyone the opportunity to be rich. There may be many levels of "rich", but anyone who is self-sufficient is rich - and to be self-sufficient is to be free. So how can you and I be rich? On a personal level, we must accept the truth that riches and freedom are not free- they require work. On a governmental level, we must accept the truth that, for government to be good, good people must be involved. To reap the blessings of freedom, we must accept the work of maintaining it. Government is supposed to protect our freedom, not undermine it. We must take government back and that requires work. Where are the real men (and women) who will take responsibility for themselves and their government? Who will stand against the culture of slavery when the going gets tough? Where are those who value their freedom enough to work for it?
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If you are looking for a way to work for freedom, consider the Knowledge Is Power Project.
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