Acts 22:11-30 KJV
11 And when I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of them that were with me, I came into Damascus.
12 And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there,
13 Came unto me, and stood, and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up upon him.
14 And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth.
15 For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard.
16 And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.
17 And it came to pass, that, when I was come again to Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was in a trance;
18 And saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem: for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me.
19 And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on thee:
20 And when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him.
21 And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.
22 And they gave him audience unto this word, and then lifted up their voices, and said, Away with such a fellow from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live.
23 And as they cried out, and cast off their clothes, and threw dust into the air,
24 The chief captain commanded him to be brought into the castle, and bade that he should be examined by scourging; that he might know wherefore they cried so against him.
25 And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned?
26 When the centurion heard that, he went and told the chief captain, saying, Take heed what thou doest: for this man is a Roman.
27 Then the chief captain came, and said unto him, Tell me, art thou a Roman? He said, Yea.
28 And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was free born.
29 Then straightway they departed from him which should have examined him: and the chief captain also was afraid, after he knew that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him.
30 On the morrow, because he would have known the certainty wherefore he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him from his bands, and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear, and brought Paul down, and set him before them.

Abolitionist were just enslaved as black people in the days of slavery. It be like living under orders not to help people in need and told if you do, you could face the same type of punishment. For those of us in the south, not all of us were born to think people should be enslaved. In fact their were those that worked along side their slaves hoping for the day of freedom for all people. Some caring enough to begin to teach and educate those caught in slavery. Some knowing it was against the law and still did it anyway. Now I do not know if it was actual legal law or a law by word of mouth being by slave owners and act of abuse in itself. We can not forget those that were on the side of fighting for freedom of slaves of all races. We can not forget those that died for freedom for the cause, but to think that Abraham Lincoln freed the slaves and it took several years for news to reach Galveston, Texas, only leads me to wonder what was it coming by horse and buggy across the mountains of Virginia, Tennessee into the plain states, how long did it take to get there. In 1978 two hours from Washington it took 36 hours or there abouts to get from mid part of the state of Virginia to Fort Worth, Texas. Yet to get to texas by rider i suspect it took less then a month or more, and by telegraph maybe a week or less depending on how the telegraph office was working, yet it was through war torn states. Telegraph and train rails having to be fixed and established once again in some areas. Yet a rider it would take less time to get there. However it took over two years for the news to reach Texas. For whatever reason.

I know for a fact that sometimes things take time and years and even red tape in government and certain news in that day would of gotten a man shot, despite it was from the government. It still would taken union soldiers coming through. Even if the roadway was a clear shot which probably was not news on foot would of taken time. I am not excusing the passing of information from one point to another, but I got to think of some of the things I heard and it does not line up with history and other things we know about time and distance. However evidence to say otherwise and that what our nation is going by that the telegraph came and was not received by people of intergrity to pass along to set the slaves free.

Paul imprisoned and beaten more then once was fixing to face punishment again when he spoke up to the law that was fixing to torture him and spoke of another law concerning Roman citizens. Roman citizens were free men. Not to be punished without a trial. They could not punished by the kangeroo court but by law of Rome. He spoke up and said he was born free.

Freedom stops many things in our land. Enslavement causes many to not understand the laws of slavery verse that law of freedom. We are born to a yoke of sin, but we are set free by blood of Jesus. I can not change history on how people were treated in the 1800's and long before, if I could I be glad too. I can only make sure I do not treat another person like a slave. We all are enslaved to something or other, whether it be our job, or whether it be to our families and friends. We are enslaved today hopefully in a good way and not an evil way. Evil meaning, treated like inhumane. Slaves of the 1800s were not treated even as being human, nor treated with any respect in general of many slave owners and definitely not treated as good as their master horse. Those that consider people of enslavement as worthy of freedom, found themselves at odds with the laws of their state. Is Freedom a myth, an idea. If Christ set us free from sin why do we sin. If Christ blood covers all our sin, why is our strive not to live free from sin.

Our enability to be so structure to not be enslaved by sin means we are not disciplined enough to not yield to temptation of the yoked that was our sin nature after faith in Christ Jesus. To have our sin nature's authority in our life being ever more important then to have Christ in the center of our human nature ruling on the thrown of our heart, mind, and Spirit. I would love to be able to claim I never had evil thought, but I be a great liar if I did. I would even be a greater liar if I never acted on desire that was beyond my control. However when we turn those desires over to Jesus, his authority is going to reign.

Paul found himself in trouble, but he got free by laws of Rome. Laws that could not bind him because of the authority it had in the legal realm of the land without hearing him first. If we under God's authority, he going to listen to the ropes and chains that are binding us to set us free. God of the Bible not always our government. God definitely at the time of Paul was not in authority of Rome. In fact Christianity was about to reach the hierachies of Rome through Paul's journey there. Paul was under house arrest in Rome, but not here in this story.

Paul was doing his best to set the Christians free from persecution. Only way to do this is tell the story of Jesus. To share the Gospels of faith. To preach and to teach it to all that would hear even in government. Paul experience a lot of red tape, but the Gospel got spread in the process. The question is when Christ set you free from the yoke of bondage to sin, what part of your body, brain and soul did not hear the word freedom. What part did understand that Christ blood was apply to those sin areas, and sin was no longer yoked to the brain and other parts of the body. Texas had not heard that blacks were no longer to be enslaved. Our body parts are no different upon salvation.

When Lincoln freed the slaves it was not just one state it was the whole country. It did not apply to one are of our nation but our whole nation, but our nation was still enslaved to confederate laws, because man had not given up those laws or those wrongs in their heart. I sometimes wonder how long the white race will be in bondage due to enslavement their ancestor had inflicted on the black race. If all are truly free then the punishment of injustice on all people must be for all people.

If sin is no longer to be yoked to our bodies and our brain, then we need to tell it. We need to tell the person that saved they are no longer yoked to their sin, but to Christ Jesus. The one that set you free, has made you free indeed. No longer going to be punished by death into eternity, but set free into eternity into those pearly gates called freedom/Beulah land. A place of sinlessness. A place of one leader being God(Father, Son and Holy Spirit) A world rich in love and the grace of God. A land not like our own, where sin still surrounds us despite our words no. And no more. Yet we do not need to be entangeld to a yoke of slavery.

One of the things the slaves that were set free had to deal with is pay. Some still not consider worthy of their pay, nor finding a job in which they could work and earn money to change their life and their families. It would be a process to one day see people of color in our nation's executive branch of office. Not that it did not exist but not as commander and chief and vice commander and chief. It would take years over a hundred to be exact. The bigotry still floods are nation and yet their hate on both sides of the line. With people in gap of race world saying if you do not pay them equal you be paying them in the food line and they be sitting on couches and not in the work force despite race.

The USA as bigots that say just wipe the other race out never considering their inability to see there own humanity being destroyed too with hate. They have to find something to hate if one or the other was gone. It worse then a football game where two teams are at war instead of healthy competition. There is healthy and unhealthy competition. When it comes to sin though there only be one healthy side to be on and that is the side of Jesus. God's only begotten Son. Yet those that are different are not be treated in evil manner but in the same love Christ showed all people including the saved, Gentiles and Jews alike.

Love is the abolitionist way, but even abolitionist as humans had to work within the law, just as Jesus did and when they step across with the first line by education of a black man to read and write, with more to follow, some would face persecution. Not only persecution but some even death and hanging. Let us not forget those men and women and people that had to spread the equality of race in our land. Not always a safety endeavor not even today in some areas. Let the freedom of Christ for all people be spread because he did not die for just God's people but all humanity making us all know we were equal from the beginning in God's eyes.

Dear Heavenly Father, I can not imagine how many tears you have cried over the world we live in, over the bigotry and hate of our fellowman, whether sinner or race, that has not provoked you to correction of all people in general. Thank you for sending Jesus who demonstrate your love to all people both Jew and Gentile. Thank you for sending your Son to die for all people. Lord help us all be free from sin and no longer yoke in bondage of sin through faith in Christ Jesus, who made us free at last. Send the abolitionist of faith to the people in need. In Jesus precious name, Amen.

Continual Scripture Study: Galatians 5:1-6 KJV
1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
3 For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.
4 Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.
5 For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.
6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.