Free to Glorify God

Reading: 1 Corinthians 10: 23-33

“Mom, may I eat all my Trick-or-Treat candy now?”

“I think I’ll only play one more computer game, and then I’ll…”

“I probably shouldn’t buy the most expensive model, but I really want it.”

These are all examples of what Paul, in the verses for today, says are not “unlawful.” He goes on to say, however, that while these things may be permissible, they may not be useful or constructive or edifying. In other words, we may be free to do many things, but our choices need to be guided by whether they will bring glory to God. As believers, should not our chief goal be to give the One who bought our freedom the glory and honor He so deserves?

Rather than spending time inspecting our every action to see if it’s “permissible,” our rule of thumb might be the question, ”Does it glorify God?” Rather than just getting by, doing things because they are allowable (eat all the candy, play computer games, buy that model), we ought to want to live well.

So, what does “living well” look like for us as believers? First, remember that we have been set free – free to do God’s will, free to love Him fully, free to love others as we love ourselves. Then, we do what is most beneficial for others, we help others live well, and we do what might help ease the way for others to see and want the freedom that we have in Jesus.

Living well in freedom, we are most certainly glorifying God!

“I will give thanks to thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart, and I will glorify thy name forever.” (Psalm 86: 12)

Gripped by Grace

Galatians 5:1 (NIV)  It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

Before we began our walk with Jesus, before the personal relationship with Jesus, we were lost and in chains.  We remember the angst in our being, the knot in the pit of our stomach.  We never want to go back to that life.  There was such darkness but we didn't see it then; that is because we viewed everything through the eye of a slave.  One bound to the earth with no heavenly hope.

Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all.  Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.  You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. (Galatians 5:2-4)

Having experienced Grace why would one ever go back to law.  To embrace law and return to the old way is to reject Jesus and his Grace. That would be like living as though we can save ourselves.  Like a mother walking with her child, holding on to his hand with a firm grip and having the child yank his hand free and holding it himself.  If he veers into traffic there is no saving him.  It is only the strong, loving hand of the mother that will save the child from tragedy.

The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. (Galatians 5:6)

It is through faith we are saved by grace, there is nothing we can do to save ourselves. This should be a freeing thought for it takes the pressure off.  Just as the child feels safe and protected in his mother’s firm grasp, we can experience the same assurance from our Heavenly Father when our hand is securely tucked into His.

Galatians 5:1-6

Slaves no more!

Jesus: If you hold to my teachings, you are really my disciples.  Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.

Jews who had believed:  We are Abraham’s descendants and never have been slaves of anyone.  How can you say that we shall be set free?

Jesus:  I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.

How is it that we can be slaves and not know it?  Sadly, it happens all the time.  It happens when our sinful nature is bound by chains we cannot touch and by captors we cannot see.

Money – though mere paper, metal and virtual transactions – is nevertheless a master that demands complete allegiance and, in exchange, leaves us unsatisfied and hungry for more.  Lust, itself, has no human form, but those who harbor it are forced to watch as, without mercy or conscience, it destroys lives, marriages and families.  Some dance with alcohol only to remain trapped in its liquid grasp long after the music stops.  Fear, arrogance, cowardice, envy, hatred … on and on and on goes the list of oppressors that, while unable to hold a gun to our heads or shackle us in irons, nevertheless abduct and torment our sinful nature as though they did.

But the Son of God – truth incarnate – set us free from enslavement to sin (John 8:31, 36).  He did so not by changing our sin nature, but by breathing into us his sinless nature that never has been enslaved to sin and never will be. That’s what being born anew is: the Spirit births Jesus' eternal life into us.  He becomes our life, his spotless nature becomes our new nature and we are free.

Yes, we are free as Christ is free.  Christ is not bound by fear, so Christ in us is not a slave to fear.  Christ is not held hostage to unforgiveness and, with his Spirit living in us, we need not be chained up in grudges, either.  Money has never mastered Jesus and, through the power of him in us, we are no longer locked up inside its suffocating vaults.  Jesus is love, righteousness, power, mercy, truth, strength, soundness of mind ... and this Jesus is our life, the substance of our new eternal nature.  His life is our life, so we are free as he is free.

It is so important, then, that we not be deceived into thinking sin holds power over us.  Our sin nature is what it is – ugly and unchangeable – and it will hang onto us like an annoying, useless appendage as long as we walk this earth. But we need not serve sin anymore.  For we are no longer slaves outside of the family of God, rather we live freely as members in it.

Truth has set us free.  Christ has set us free.  Today, let us choose to live in our new nature ... in the family of freedom.

Jeremiah 31: 31-34

Saved By God’s Grace

They say, “Nothing in life is free.” It is not clear just who “they” are, but they certainly are not in tune with our God. Grace is FREE, and all we have to do is accept it. There are no strings attached and no expectations for perfection. We are not able to earn it and it certainly is not something we deserve. None the less it is ours for the taking.

The basis for calling the second part of the Bible the New Testament is founded on this message from the Lord. He promised a New Covenant unlike the one before. In Jeremiah 31: 32 it is clear God was disappointed, yet ready to once again offer undeserved wings of freedom to His people; “It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant though I was husband to them.” In Jeremiah 31: 33 the Lord declared, “I will put my law in their minds, and write it on their hearts. I will be their God and they will be my people.”  This time He was not planning to inscribe His laws onto hard stone as he did the Ten Commandments, but instead to use the soft tissue of the heart to communicate his message of unfailing love, forgiveness, and hope.

Jesus was sent as the sacrificial Lamb to make an impact too incredible to cast aside. Then the Holy Spirit followed, entering the hearts of all, giving them and us the ability to begin anew. Jeremiah 31:34 reminds us; “For I will forgive their wickedness, and will remember their sins no more.”  

The New Testament illustrates a new chance at life, offering another opportunity to live the will of the Lord. We were saved by God’s Grace. It’s up to us to decide what we will do with that gift. Are we going to put it into the closet along side the many other unexciting or minimally useful gifts we have received, or will we wear it proudly, allowing our hearts to feel His Grace and share it with others? Accepting and giving Grace is a very powerful thing!

Listen/Read Jeremiah 31:31-34