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Proclaim Liberty!

THE FIVE BILLIONTH person on earth is said to have been born on July 7, 1986. What kind of future must this five billionth human, and indeed all humans, face? Is there any possibility that billions of mankind may someday enjoy true liberty? Confidently, we say yes. But what are we to understand by “liberty”? Does it mean license to do anything that one pleases? No, for as the 19th-century English novelist Charles Kingsley wrote: “There are two freedoms, the false where one is free to do what he likes, and the true where he is free to do what he ought.”

Man will gain true liberty only by doing “what he ought.” And what ought he to do? When Jesus was here on earth, he stated simply that there are two great commandments​—the first, to love God with all one’s heart, soul, mind, and strength, and the second, to love one’s neighbor as oneself. (Mark 12:29-31) Real liberty is to be attained only by those who in truth demonstrate such genuine love​—love of God and of fellow humans.​—John 8:31, 32.

Does the world today display that kind of love? Sadly, no. Without love, the false kind of liberty prevails. It breathes a selfish, independent spirit. It insists on ‘doing its own thing,’ with no regard for God or neighbor. This spirit extends beyond the individual to communities, races, and nations. While the me-first attitude persists, the foundation for any liberty, any peace, any happiness on this earth, must be a shaky one. Remember, Jesus said, “You must love your neighbor as yourself.” Such neighbor love is essential to the enjoyment of true liberty.

The United Nations organization was formed to liberate mankind by replacing the scourge of war with “peace and security.” On its 40th anniversary, the UN proclaimed 1986 to be the International Year of Peace. But has this amounted to a proclamation of liberty with sure guarantees of peace? Have the appalling expenditures on armaments (amounting now to more than $1,000 billion a year) been curtailed? Have terrorism and car bombings decreased? Have the religion-based slaughters in Northern Ireland, the Middle East, and Asia abated? Religious leaders are getting into politics and talking much about peace. But the dove of true peace appears to have flown far out of reach of the UN and the world’s religions.

Is there any group today that has renounced the violent, me-first ways of the world? Yes, there is! The foretold “Prince of Peace,” Jesus Christ, has gathered lovers of peace ‘out of all tribes, tongues, peoples, and nations.’ (Isaiah 2:3, 4; 9:6, 7; Revelation 5:9; 7:9) They rejoice that God’s Kingdom by Christ is about to wipe out all wickedness and bring in an earth-wide paradise of peace, where true liberty will prevail. This group is known as Jehovah’s Witnesses. (Daniel 2:31-35, 44; Isaiah 43:10, 12; 65:17-25) Unitedly, these Christians share in a jubilant proclamation foreshadowed by features of the Jubilee arrangement in ancient Israel. In each of 200 and more lands around the globe, they joyfully obey God’s command: “Proclaim liberty in the land to all its inhabitants.” (Leviticus 25:10) Have you heard and heeded that jubilant shout?