Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; each of you is to return to your family property and to your own clan.

• Leviticus 25:10

Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so.

• 1 Corinthians 7:21

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

• Galatians 5:1

In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

• Ephesians 3:12

They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for “people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.”

• 2 Peter 2:19

A couple of weeks ago, I had a belated flag day quiz.  But there are a lot of patriotic holidays over about eight weeks from late Spring into the Summer months.  Armed Forces Day is in May, celebrating those who are presently defending our freedom.  Then near the end of May there is Memorial Day where we remember those who defended our freedom and made the ultimate sacrifice.  Then there is Flag Day on the 14^th of June and Independence Day on the 4^th of July.

Since Liberty is only mentioned once in the NIV, this quiz is about verses containing the word “freedom”.

Freedom is mentioned 21 times in the Bible.  The questions are in biblical order.

The Questions:

	Question	Bible References	Answers
1	What must not be done when a man sleeps with a slave promised to another person?
2	In Psalm 119, the author says that he will walk about in freedom.  Why can he say that – the theme of this section of this psalm?
3	Isaiah 61 starts with four things in the first verse that He will do.  One is to proclaim freedom for the captives.  What is one of the other three?
4	Jeremiah reminded that God had made a covenant that every seventh year, they would free their slaves, but after Zedekiah had told the people to free their slaves, what happened after they did so?
5	When the people did the answer to question 4, how did God repay the people of Judah with “freedom”.
6	Why did Ezekiel instruct the people that a prince could give a portion of his estate to a servant, but in the year of freedom, the servant had to give the portion back?
7	When Jesus read Isaiah 61, what statement did He make that angered the people who had gathered
8	When Felix held Paul captive, what freedom was the centurion ordered to give him?
9	Creation is in a bondage of decay and Creation awaits what to be revealed, when Creation will also gain freedom?
10	What condition did Paul say was where there is freedom in 2 Corinthians?

The last of the quoted verses at the top explains the predicament that we are all in.  We are slaves to whatever has mastered us.

Might we define that a little differently?  We are slaves to whatever we define ourselves as.  Men usually start conversations with other men with “What do you do for a living?”  In that way, we define ourselves by our job, and often that job “enslaves” us when we are unable to move on to something better.

I have known people who defined themselves as a mother, a volunteer at the mission, or simply a couch potato.  The Apostle Paul starts out the book of Romans to define us as being sinful people.  He defines that the wages of sin is death.  And then he even admits himself to being trapped in this sinful flesh where he does not do as he ought and he does what he does not want to do.  But then, Romans 8 flips the narrative.  We are freed from the slavery of sin by Grace.

So many people do not want to become Christians because there are too many rules.  Many people think Christians are haters because they identify themselves with their sin and Christians call that act a sin.

And many Christians fall prey to legalism, trying to be perfect people.

But the entire concept of being a Christian is to love God with all your heart, soul, and strength.  In doing that, our desire changes because the Holy Spirit enters our lives, and one of those things the Holy Spirit does is fill us with love to share with others.  And at that point, our desire becomes to be more like Jesus.  It is not that we have to follow certain rules.  That attitude gets us nowhere.  God gives us freedom to live our lives with a desire to be more like Jesus.  Jesus just happened the follow those rules.  Thus, we are free to choose Jesus, or a life that is not productive.

Bible References:

	Question	Bible References	Answers
1	What must not be done when a man sleeps with a slave promised to another person?	Leviticus 19:20
2	In Psalm 119, the author says that he will walk about in freedom.  Why can he say that – the theme of this section of this psalm?	Psalm 119:45
3	Isaiah 61 starts with four things in the first verse that He will do.  One is to proclaim freedom for the captives.  What is one of the other three?	Isaiah 61:1
4	Jeremiah reminded that God had made a covenant that every seventh year, they would free their slaves, but after Zedekiah had told the people to free their slaves, what happened after they did so?	Jeremiah 34:11
5	When the people did the answer to question 4, how did God repay the people of Judah with “freedom”.	Jeremiah 34:17
6	Why did Ezekiel instruct the people that a prince could give a portion of his estate to a servant, but in the year of freedom, the servant had to give the portion back?	Ezekiel 46:17
7	When Jesus read Isaiah 61, what statement did He make that angered the people who had gathered	Luke 4:18-21
8	When Felix held Paul captive, what freedom was the centurion ordered to give him?	Acts 24:23
9	Creation is in a bondage of decay and Creation awaits what to be revealed, when Creation will also gain freedom?	Romans 8:19-21
10	What condition did Paul say was where there is freedom in 2 Corinthians?	2 Corinthians 3:17

The first song below is an instrumental, Hymn to Freedom.  It is performed by Oscar Peterson, the person who composed the music, but, in this performance, he shows why he is rated among the top jazz pianists, noted for his “ornate filigrees” and being a “dexterous improviser.”

Here are the lyrics to Hymn to Freedom, written by Hariette Hamilton

“When every heart joins every heart and together yearns for liberty,
“That’s when we’ll be free.
“When every hand joins every hand and together moulds our destiny,
“That’s when we’ll be free.
“Any hour any day, the time soon will come when men will live in dignity,
“That’s when we’ll be free.
“When every man joins in our song and together singing harmony,
“That’s when we’ll be free

• Hariette Hamilton, Hymn to Freedom

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The Answers:

	Question	Bible References	Answers
1	What must not be done when a man sleeps with a slave promised to another person?	Leviticus 19:20	They must not be put to death (the penalty for adultery), because she had not been granted her freedom.
2	In Psalm 119, the author says that he will walk about in freedom.  Why can he say that – the theme of this section of this psalm?	Psalm 119:45	Literally “sought out your precepts” but the theme is to obey God
3	Isaiah 61 starts with four things in the first verse that He will do.  One is to proclaim freedom for the captives.  What is one of the other three?	Isaiah 61:1	to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,
4	Jeremiah reminded that God had made a covenant that every seventh year, they would free their slaves, but after Zedekiah had told the people to free their slaves, what happened after they did so?	Jeremiah 34:11	They had a change of heart and put the slaves they had freed back into bondage.
5	When the people did the answer to question 4, how did God repay the people of Judah with “freedom”.	Jeremiah 34:17	They were given the “freedom” to fall by the sword, plague, and famine.
6	Why did Ezekiel instruct the people that a prince could give a portion of his estate to a servant, but in the year of freedom, the servant had to give the portion back?	Ezekiel 46:17	The prince’s estate belongs to the sons of the prince.  No one should have their land taken away by inheritance.
7	When Jesus read Isaiah 61, what statement did He make that angered the people who had gathered	Luke 4:18-21	“Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”  He went on to say that a prophet is not accepted in his own town.
8	When Felix held Paul captive, what freedom was the centurion ordered to give him?	Acts 24:23	His friends were allowed to take care of him.
9	Creation is in a bondage of decay and Creation awaits what to be revealed, when Creation will also gain freedom?	Romans 8:19-21	In verse 19, when the children of God are revealed.
10	What condition did Paul say was where there is freedom in 2 Corinthians?	2 Corinthians 3:17	Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.

Whether you did well on this quiz or, ummm, not so well, for the first video, here is Oscar Peterson playing Hymn to Freedom.  Ray Brown on bass and Ed Thigpen on drums.

But, I provided the words earlier, and you might want to see how it sounds all put together.  And what better way of doing so than with The Vocal Majority (from the Barbershop Harmony Society) singing Hymn to Freedom. The conductor explains the origins of the hymn.

And here is Justin French singing Freedom Hymn.

And here is Anchor Hymns singing O Freedom.

Let us never take our freedom lightly.  Let us be mindful of those who wish to take our freedom away.

But let us praise God that the freedom that He gives us can never be taken away with Him in our hearts.

If you like these Saturday morning Bible quizzes, but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Saturday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.