A Juneteenth Allegory

President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862. It became effective on January 1, 1863, declaring that all enslaved persons in the Confederate States of America in rebellion and not in Union hands were freed!

More isolated geographically, planters and other slaveholders had migrated into Texas from eastern states to escape the fighting, and many brought enslaved people with them, increasing by the thousands the enslaved population in the state at the end of the Civil War.

Though Abraham had issued the law to set free all slaves, in Texas, word did not reach. Remember there were no TVs or Facebook to make news travel fast instantly. The Texas slaves discovered the news 3 years later, on June 19th 1865, when Major General Gordon Granger arrived and made elucidate this law that had been passed!

A year later, Juneteenth began being celebrated commemorating the good news of the arrival of freedom. It was also called ‘Jubilee’ day, gaining its origin from the day the Israelites received freedom from the Egyptians.

(A 1900 Juneteenth Photo from Wikipedia)

This reminds me of our lives as believers, how Jesus purchased our freedom, and signed our emancipation proclamation, but how many of us haven’t heard of this! Many people think Jesus has nothing to give, and yet they do not know that He signed a whole law that would enforce their freedom from addictions, pornography, alcoholism, and other evil.

Let’s be the General Gordon who will deliver this gospel to them! Many of us are afraid, but if you have a really good thing then you shouldn’t be afraid to tell it to those who don’t have it! Tell the world about Jesus. And don’t be ashamed of it (Rom 1:16), a slave out there needs to know that the devil isn’t their cruel master no more!

This story has another facet. In their new album, Jubilee Juneteenth Edition, Maverick City featured Lecrae on the opening track and he said,

“even though some of us have been removed from slavery in an instant, sometimes it takes a lifetime to take that slavery out of us,”

Lecrae in the next line used the word mentality, that this slavery mentality creeps on and stays on the inside of people. My father in the faith, Apostle Moses Mukisa, uses this example;

“that if were slaves and Jesus bought us into a mansion, and gave us free food to eat, many of us would still sneak portions of food into our pockets and take them on to our quarters just in case we wake up to find that there would be no meal the following day, but surprisingly, we find there’s an overflow.”

In Lecrae’s words, I believe some would quickly realise the food will be there, but other ex slaves will not believe this goodness! And that’s what many Christians are still battling; they still refer to themselves as ‘sinners’ (slaves) even when it’s clear that the new master has adopted them as sons (saints) (John 1:12)!

Obviously it takes different time durations for many to realise it. That’s why I preach the gospel on this platform on facebook and this platform on YouTube, so that as I both be the Gordon, I also be that servant that will teach ex slaves how to behave as kings and queens in ‘thee’ palace!

Hosea 4:6 says My people perish because of lack knowledge. The knowledge that they are free. The knowledge that they are royalty! Juneteenth reminds me of that. And I hope if you were once a slave (which we all were) that you don’t sit back on the sidelines and mock the fresh ex slaves who’ve just been brought in the palace, and laugh at their ignorance of how to act or dress or talk or walk like royalty!

Be a Gordon today!

Be a preacher of the good news!

Happy Jubilee Day