Freedom...Legalism...Grace

I have a lot of friends who are non-believers…and I love it. I love that I am still living real life with real everyday people. I love how the Lord has called me to shine His light in the midst of darkness. And I love how it reminds me that we were all lost at one time.

I love these people for so many reasons. They challenge me in my walk with the Lord; they hold me true to seeking God’s Word and studying for myself the living Truth. It keeps me from basing my whole relationship with Jesus on some emotion or feeling and instead it encourages me to seek the substance and to expand the limitations of my faith.  

These relationships hold my feet to the fire and keep me sensitive to the gentle breeze of sweet grace blowing ever so lightly against me. They make me cling onto the fresh, living Word of God that speaks to my heart like no other. I am mesmerized and in love with humanity even more. And I am encouraged by the challenge and the purpose that God gives me through each of them.

I often wonder what it is that turn people away from wanting a real relationship with Jesus. I see so many wonderful and amazing things that are being done today amongst the world and within our churches. I experience so many things first hand that leave me with no other explanation other than God himself. But then I turn on the news or TV show or a movie then it isn’t hard to see why things are going so wrong.

Tolerant…we are all expected to be absolutely tolerant of whatever goes. And don’t even think about disagreeing, for if you do you must be hateful or judgmental or insensitive and wrong. I heard a friend speak the other night and she said, “Not liking the sin usually has nothing to do with not loving the individual. We can still love you and hate the sin.” That isn’t hate that is freewill.     

I have really talked with God a lot about this lately trying to discern where we as Christians may be going wrong. This isn’t going to be a bash session over where I see our shortcomings as believers. This is more of me asking God what we can be doing to be more effective. How can we draw people closer to the Lord and not push them further away.

Sunday, during our worship time we sang Chris Tomilns, “Amazing Grace”. As I listened to the chorus I became greatly aware of a few things.

Chorus:
My chains are gone
I've been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy reigns
Unending love, amazing grace

As we sang those words something came over me. I grabbed my notebook and jotted down these 3 words.

Freedom…Legalism…Grace

I may or may not be onto something here but I can’t help but wonder if these three things may be the culprit of what turns non-believers away.

Freedom: We as Christians sometimes take advantage of it. We are free because of what Christ has done for us by the Cross and because we are children of God. However, we are wrong to abuse it. I saw this sign the other day, “You are FREE to choose but you are not FREE from the CONSEQUENCES of your CHOICE.” Wow, consequences have no favoritism do they… and show no mercy.

Legalism: Man, this one is easier to fall into than what you think. It steams a belief system that says we are saved by our works and our deeds. WRONG... Legalism is one of the ugliest things a non-believer can witness in the life of a believer. It also shows no mercy for failure and is quick to condemn the faults and short comings of others. Umm hello…it’s mirror time people. We don’t have it all together either.

Is there godly discernment and concern? Of course there is, who would we be to stand back and silently watch a train wreck unfold and not give loving advice and warning. But to judge just to judge and to condemn because we think we are better, than that is wrong.

Grace: Oh sweet grace. The most precious, costly gift and it is ours for the taken. It is free and irreversible and all you have to do is accept Jesus as your Savior. There is not a single thing that you can do to earn it and not a single thing you can do to lose it. It was paid for on the cross and we are covered by the blood that was shed. This is one of the very first things that you learn about and yet at times we are so flippant about it.  

We don’t deserve the grace that is poured out on us and we certainly should repent anytime we abuse it. It is not a free ticket to live life as we did before. Along with salvation comes the decision to live within the will of God, and no longer your own. I don’t know if it takes living so far on the opposite end of the spectrum to really grasp the significance of grace or not. Maybe it is by the power of the Holy Spirit within us that it becomes evident and clear. I do know that I cringe to see those who claim to follow Christ but choose to live a life that reads so differently. Sometimes, I wonder how God doesn’t kill us (myself included) dead in our tracks when we act in such a way. It must be because God loves people.

We also need to learn how to offer Grace better. Boy, do I struggle with this one at times. My personality really struggles with this one. I was talking to a friend the other day and she said, “you know sometimes I have to bite my tongue until I choke on it.” Me too, sister, me too.  

As a non-believer looking in what a joke it must be at times. I have watched Christians, myself included, fall so many times. We give into pre-meditated (chosen) sin and make a complete fool out of ourselves. To the onlookers it must make them think that we serve a weak or unimportant God. I know that there isn’t a thing that we can do or not do to change who God is. He is who he says he is whether we chose to believe it or not. But we have to know what effects our actions have on the ones watching us. I promise you they are watching. The saying is true that to some we are the only Bible they have to read. Scary isn’t it?

As believers we all have had questions about salvation and the Bible. Just the other day my eight year old asked me why God sent Jesus to die on the cross, he didn’t understand why it could not have been done some other way. I hugged him and smiled, I did my best to explain the fulfillment of the prophecy and law. How God is Righteous and Sovereign and how the penalty of sin is death. I am so thankful that he has the mind and the freedom to ask those questions. Our society and the enemy plants so many pre-conceived notions of tolerance and things that are simply not truth.

Following Jesus isn’t something that we are persuaded to believe in without proof or purpose and we certainly aren’t bound by rituals like some cult. We are simply bound by His Grace.

Sunday, our Pastor preached on the Top 10 Questions people ask about the Bible. Question #4 asked this, Aren’t there a lot of contradictions in the Bible? The answer was this. The Bible has continually been affirmed as scientifically accurate, historically accurate and prophetically accurate, over and over and over again. So often science has to catch up and when it does there are always excuses being made.

Why any of us would believe something just because we were told to is beyond me. But when you are given so much evidence and substance that breeds so much accuracy and truth, how could you not? Believe me, this is why I spend so much of my time studying and sharing all of this.

My point in writing all of this today is this. We are all sinners and every single day we fall into some portion of sin. We have to make sure that we stand firm in the freedom that Christ has given us and at the same time not to abuse it.

We have to know that there are standards that we as Christians are to live by, but need to not get pulled into a thought process of legalism. This is beneficial not only in our life but in the life of others.  We have been given godly discernment and we need to utilize it correctly. If our goal is to always be right then we will more than likely not lead a soul to Jesus. But if our heart is to live the life that God has called us to live out, then by our actions and our love many will come forth.

We should daily ask God for the wisdom to fully understand Grace. God has given each of us the freewill of choice. We are free to choose how we are going to live out this life here on earth.  If we choose to abuse that choice, there will be consequences.  Just the same we must accept the Grace that Jesus paid for us, if not then how does that look like to God? What a precious gift given at a precious cost.

I thank you for jumping on here today and allowing me to pour out my daily struggles and triumphs that I experience. When I felt the Lord calling me into some type of writing/speaking ministry I knew right away that if I were not willing to be honest about my shortcomings, past and struggles then there would be no need for me to ever open my mouth. I think people want realness, I know I do. We are all an open book to others (believers and non-believers alike). Some seal chapters that no one will ever see, and others don’t care and reveal too much. Either way we are all in this together.

I want to be an open book at how my life is not perfect. I struggle so much at times and fall short so often. The beauty about it is that by the grace of God we are set free. We are to love others and we are to serve. We are to live out the experiences that the Lord has for us by His Grace and Mercy that he pours out over us. We are to press on and persevere, and when we get discouraged or fail then we are to get on our knees and repent and be ready to experience the redemption that He sets forth.  

I wish that in a snap of my finger I could lead everyone that I know to Christ. But then I remember my journey in finding Him. We need to be a part of that journey for others but not the guide. The Holy Spirit will go before us…be accountable in your walk and to the part you are entrusted with and always, always, always pray.

Philippians 1:3-11

³ I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, ⁴ always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, ⁵ for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, ⁶ being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; ⁷ just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, in as much as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace. ⁸ For God is my witness, how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ.

⁹ And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, ¹⁰ that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, ¹¹ being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

 

Out with the Old

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

Well, here we are, the 8^th day of 2014 and just over our shoulder is another year behind us. I am grateful for the year to end but sad to see it go just the same. There is something about a new year that feels so wonderful. It’s fresh, a clean slate, a do-over, a new beginning. 

 I, myself, have cleaned and organized closets and scrubbed the house from top to bottom. I’ve set out the new books (that I never read last year) positioned just so on my nightstand and dusted off my devotional, the same one that I have clung to for the last 3 years, and moved my page marker to the beginning.  I’ve opened the pages in my new planner, which I received as a gift for Christmas, and placed my new favorite pen inside it. The pages are just begging to be filled with all of the crazy schedules and adventures of what this new year will hold for us.  I’ve prepared and organized with much anticipation and keep waiting for this feeling of newness and accomplishment to overtake me. Yet here on this 8^th day of 2014 I feel the same, and honestly it hasn’t taken all that long for all of the old “stuff” to start creeping back in, eight days to be exact.

I specifically remember telling a friend last January that 2013 was going to be MY year for Freedom. It wasn’t that to say the least, more like a year of perspective. I’ve seen things that will be burned into my sight forever, some beautiful, some gut wrenching. I’ve also had to face some things in my own life that were freeing in a sense and yet some other things that when brought to the surface were humiliating.  I have walked through and along some things that tested my faith in such a way that hurt my bones and yet I know the LORD and love the LORD even more because of them. But to say that 2013 met my expectations in the Freedom department is a complete understatement.

Just recently, I have had this amazing experience by being challenged to look at the idols of the heart, my heart, and I have to tell you that layer by layer the freedom bell is starting to sound.  It’s in the distance, maybe even long distance but I hear it and I am closer then I have ever been. You may be wondering why in the world I am even telling you this, why would you care whether or not I am walking in freedom or perspective or anything else for that matter?

I’ll tell you why, because a strong dose of perspective always comes before freedom. We have a choice, we can hang onto perspective and attempt to barter our way with God for as long as we physically can. But there will come a time that the ball will drop and then the thing that we have dreaded the most will come to pass. I’m not meaning that all of our irrational thoughts, fears and worries of this life will be confirmed, that would suggest that we hold the power to prevent them or reside with them. What I am suggesting is that God will be faithful to give you ample opportunity to experience perspective through life and circumstances whether it be in your life or through others. However, until we choose to let God into the areas that we swore were too invasive or stretches way too far out of our comfort zones then we will cling on to the power that we have so falsely given ourselves.  

Sounds offensive, doesn’t it? Even ridiculous when looking at certain things in our life. It has taken me awhile to process this and to have a true heart change over it but when you have tried it all and still no change has occurred it may be time to dig deep into the idols that we may be harboring in our heart.  

Of course this doesn’t mean that just because you surrender you will never have to look through the eyes of perspective again, I personally am grateful for it. I believe it is one of the sweetest gifts that God gives us, it helps us with our feelings of entitlement (how I hate that word) and feelings of self-righteousness and if we are open to it, it softens our hearts to love and serve far past our fleshly abilities.

What it showed me today was this, as I began to grumble in the thoughts of all of the goals and freedom that had not been accomplished from the previous year I became very discontent with the way some things have turned out. Hopeless almost, discouraged and for lack of better words, tired.  Then these words echoed in my mind, but He makes all things new…

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

I cannot explain to you why God chooses to set you free from something or not. I can tell you from my experience it is usually something that I am not willing to hand over verses something that God is not willing to give me, make sense? Basically my ability or inability to truly surrender it all to Him is more than likely the key that will unlock the doors that I have wedged between us. Maybe it has nothing to do with ability, more like willingness.

It comes down to this, because of Jesus we are set free. Let that sink in. We have read it, we have said it and many of us have even belted out the words through songs. But the real question you have to ask yourself is do we really believe it? Isaiah 1:18, says ¹⁸ “Come now, and let us reason together, ”Says the Lord, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool.

Jesus has given us this amazing gift for a new, clean, fresh start. It isn’t something that we can accomplish with goals or New Years Resolutions, we aren’t trying to slap on a fresh coat of paint hoping to cover the spots and blemishes. As many of us know a fresh coat of paint just makes the rest of the house look bad. Jesus says, if you are in Me, you are a NEW creation and the old things have passed away.

I still look forward to this New Year being a year of whatever God has in store for me. My request is to get my hands on that freedom bell but if that is my only focus to conquer freedom then I have somehow manifested that desire into just another idol.

My heart is to be willing and open to whatever it is that God brings our way this year. Of course I will pray for good health and safety for my family, but I am choosing to ask God to draw us closer to him whether it is through circumstance or perspective. After all what does freedom mean if you do not have to fight for it. It would lose its importance, its substance and it would no longer have the value to be received as a precious gift. It would be more like something we feel entitled to and expect or something that we just conquer and control.

I do not have all of this figured out but I just wonder if any of you ever feel this way. Freedom is so much more than just having a relationship with the Lord. It is about surrendering and walking in obedience. It is about expanding the limitations of our faith while we walk through this crazy life and down the path that God leads us to. It is about serving Him and not our flesh, it’s about trust.

I read Psalm 103 today and wanted to share it with you. Be blessed and be renewed! Embrace the gift.

 

Psalm 103

Praise for the Lord’s Mercies

A Psalm of David.

103 Bless the Lord, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
² Bless the Lord, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
³ Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,
⁴ Who redeems your life from destruction,
Who crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies,
⁵ Who satisfies your mouth with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

⁶ The Lord executes righteousness
And justice for all who are oppressed.
⁷ He made known His ways to Moses,
His acts to the children of Israel.
⁸ The Lord is merciful and gracious,
Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.
⁹ He will not always strive with us,
Nor will He keep His anger forever.
¹⁰ He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor punished us according to our iniquities.

¹¹ For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
¹² As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us.
¹³ As a father pities his children,
So the Lord pities those who fear Him.
¹⁴ For He knows our frame;
He remembers that we are dust.

¹⁵ As for man, his days are like grass;
As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
¹⁶ For the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
And its place remembers it no more.^[a]
17 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting
On those who fear Him,
And His righteousness to children’s children,
¹⁸ To such as keep His covenant,
And to those who remember His commandments to do them.

¹⁹ The Lord has established His throne in heaven,
And His kingdom rules over all.

²⁰ Bless the Lord, you His angels,
Who excel in strength, who do His word,
Heeding the voice of His word.
²¹ Bless the Lord, all you His hosts,
You ministers of His, who do His pleasure.
²² Bless the Lord, all His works,
In all places of His dominion.

Bless the Lord, O my soul!