John 8:31-32 – Jesus said to the people who believed in him, "You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
Of the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence, their stories were not without a price paid.
Five signers were captured by the British as traitors and tortured before they died.
Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.
Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army.
Another had two sons captured.
Nine fought and died from wounds or hardships of the Revolutionary War.
Norris and Livingston suffered loss of property and life.
Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter, saw his ships swept from the seas by the British Navy. He sold his home to pay his debts and died in rags.
Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in Congress without pay, and had his family kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and he died in poverty.
Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.
At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr., upon finding that the British had taken over his home as headquarters, urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.
Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.
John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his mill were laid to waste. For more than a year, he lived in forests and caves, returning home to find his wife dead and his children vanished. A few weeks later, he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.
During this Independence holiday weekend, rejoice for your freedom. Take time to solemnly remember there is a cost, a price to be paid for freedom and for liberty. Be thankful and take a day off from watching FOX and MSNBC. We are greatest when we are united.
Finally reflect that Christ has paid your price for liberty and freedom. Remember, when all that we touch on this earth has passed, we are eternally free from the shackles of slavery and sin because of Christ, the signer of the Greatest Declaration of Independence. Because of that signature, the ransom He paid has set you free. Praise God for our Independence.
Stay healthy and have a blessed weekend!
~Dean Burnetti
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