This weekend America turns 250 years old.

That is a remarkable milestone. Two and a half centuries ago, a group of imperfect but courageous leaders dared to imagine something new in the world. They believed that government did not have to flow down from a king, but could rise up from the consent of the governed. They believed rights were not handed out by rulers, but given by God. They believed liberty was worth sacrifice, self-government was worth the risk, and freedom was worth defending.

We often call it “the American experiment,” and that is the right word. America was not born finished. It was born as an experiment in liberty, responsibility, virtue, and hope.

That is why the 250th birthday of the United States should not simply make us nostalgic. It should make us thoughtful. It should lead us to give thanks for what is good, tell the truth about what has been broken, and ask God to make us faithful in our own generation.

John Adams once wrote that Independence Day “ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty.” He also imagined the celebration would include “Pomp and Parade,” “Bonfires,” and “Illuminations.” In other words, Adams seemed to think July 4th should include both worship and fireworks. That feels about right.

George Washington understood that political freedom could not survive without moral formation. In his Farewell Address, he warned that “religion and morality are indispensable supports” for political prosperity. Washington was not saying that government could save the soul. He was saying that freedom requires something deeper than law. A free people must also become a virtuous people.

John Adams said something similar when he wrote, “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” His point was not that America would be perfect. His point was that liberty without character eventually collapses under the weight of selfishness.

That is still true.

Freedom is a beautiful gift, but freedom is also a dangerous idol. When freedom becomes “I can do whatever I want,” it eventually enslaves us to appetite, anger, pride, greed, and fear. We can be politically free and spiritually chained. We can live in a nation with rights and still be ruled by sin. We can celebrate independence while remaining captive to bitterness, comparison, addiction, anxiety, or self-righteousness.

That is why the deepest freedom is not found in a founding document, as precious as that document may be. It is not secured by a flag, as meaningful as that flag may be. It is not guaranteed by a court, a party, a president, or a military. The truest freedom is found in Jesus Christ.

Paul writes in Galatians 5:1, “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.”

That verse reminds us that Jesus does not merely improve our lives. He liberates us. He frees us from sin’s penalty, sin’s power, and one day, sin’s presence. He frees us from trying to earn God’s love. He frees us from the crushing need to prove ourselves. He frees us from shame over the past and fear of the future. He frees us from the lie that we belong to our worst mistake, our loudest critic, or our strongest temptation.

In Christ, freedom is not permission to indulge the flesh. It is power to walk by the Spirit. It is not autonomy from God. It is joyful surrender to God. It is not the absence of limits. It is life under the loving lordship of the One who made us, saves us, and calls us His own.

That kind of freedom changes how we celebrate America.

We can celebrate without worshiping the nation. We can be grateful without being blind. We can honor sacrifice without ignoring sin. We can love our country without confusing it with the kingdom of God. We can thank God for the American experiment while remembering that our ultimate citizenship is in heaven.

Christians should be among the best citizens because we know freedom is never meant to terminate on the self. Freedom is for love. Freedom is for service. Freedom is for truth. Freedom is for neighbor. Galatians 5 goes on to say, “through love serve one another” (Galatians 5:13). That is the shape of Christian liberty.

So as America celebrates 250 years, light the grill. Watch the fireworks. Sing the songs. Tell the stories. Thank God for the courage of those who came before us. Remember the men and women who sacrificed for the freedoms we enjoy. Pray for our leaders. Teach your children that liberty is a gift to steward, not a toy to waste.

But most of all, look to Jesus.

The American experiment is unique. It is worth celebrating. It is worth protecting. It is worth improving. But even at its best, America can only point toward a longing it cannot finally satisfy. Every human heart aches for a better country, a truer liberty, and a King whose reign is perfectly just and eternally good.

That King is Jesus.

And the freedom He gives is not fragile. It is not seasonal. It is not up for election. It cannot be repealed, revoked, or overthrown.

“For freedom Christ has set us free.”

That is freedom worth celebrating.