Liberty vs Freedom and Martin Luther King Jr

This week we celebrate a great American hero in the life of Martin Luther King Jr. Here was a man that believed and lived out a dream. A dream that was deeply rooted in the American creed that proclaimed: We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

Martin Luther King Jr. understood that God is the One who gives these “Rights” to every person and that without them, our freedom to live and pursue dreams would not be possible. He personally lived it! He showed all of us that freedom is never free, and that true freedom will always require sacrifice, responsibility, and a willingness to fight to obtain it! “Life,” lived in freedom, is only possible because of the “Liberty” that we have!

Today, most Americans are taught to think that liberty and freedom are synonymous. Many will interchange these words in their writing and speaking. They are similar, but they are distinct and not the same in their meanings. The following reveals this.

1. Freedom is defined as: “Independence, the license to do as one wants, the permission to do as you please.”

• This means you have the right to do something through granted authority and autonomy (self-will).
• It is a realization of self-determination and self-government.
• THE DEFICIENCY is that it is defined as only having a permission.

2. Permission is always granted by someone or something.

• This means that freedom can be revoked by that someone or something.
• Some think the idea of comparing liberty and freedom is a splitting of hairs since they mean much the same thing.
• THE DIFFERENCE and IMPLICATION of these words has everything to do with the source.

3. Thomas Jefferson defined Liberty in the Declaration of Independence.

• “All men are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights.”
• Liberty, second only to life, is a right given (endowed) by the Creator.
• This “Right” is a part of you-just as your mind, will, emotions, and spirit.
• It can never be taken away.
• It, Liberty, provides the protection for an individual’s rights and their capacity given by the Creator to self-govern.

4. Freedom is something that can be granted by a government; Liberty is something every person owns, and no government can take away!

• Freedoms can be revoked, and my rights violated.
• Liberty can never be violated or taken away by a person or government.
• Liberty is an endowment to each human being by God Himself.

*This is why Patrick Henry said, “Give me Liberty or give me death!”

• Life is to be lived in freedom because of Liberty!

5. Freedom is feeble(weak).

• Must always be fought for.
• It requires courage and discipline.
• Takes tenacity and responsibility to keep it.

Martin Luther King understood this better than most. For example:

• He led all Americans, not just Black Americans, with conviction and courage.
• He believed civil disobedience to government and failed justice was obedience to God.
• This has historical precedent. America’s proposed national motto in 1776 was, “Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God.”
• Even facing suffering and brutality they chose not to fight back.
• Their foundation was Liberty and they acted in freedom!

Almost one hundred years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed. Black Americans finally had the right to vote, have equal employment opportunities, and have the right to access all public accommodations and public facilities. They gained the right to be free!

The same year in 1964, Ronald Reagan gave this speech in reference to freedom.

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We did not pass it on to our children in the blood stream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”

David R. Ecklund