"FREEDOM!!!"- Acts 13:38-39

"FREEDOM!!!"

Of course that one-word line as screamed from the lips of the nearly dead William Wallace as played by Mel Gibson in Braveheart, is one of the most powerful lines in a movie. Of course that's just my opinion, but if you disagree, then you either haven't seen the movie or you are just plain wrong;) (I guess I should go back and re-read the definition of an opinion, shouldn't I?)

Whatever your favorite line, I think if you've ever seen this one, you would agree at least that it is a pretty powerful moment. It's powerful, not because it was such a clever line- it's only one word- but because it sums up the entire motivation for the movie...and really for all of life. It resonates with every person who has ever struggled under anything that they desired desperately to be free of. It's powerful because the mangled body of William Wallace is on display for everyone to see. You can see his torture and almost feel his pain. And as you are worried that his torturers have finally convinced him to lose his resolve, everything gets quiet as he gathers his strength to say something. And then he yells, "FREEDOM!!!"

You could watch any number of epic movies and most of them will be centered somehow around the theme of freedom. We are proud to be Americans because we are so proud of our freedom. We believe every individual has the right to be free so we try to spread our belief systems around the world. But no matter how many battles are fought, no matter how many people sacrifice their lives, no matter how many people stay the course and remain true to their cause of freedom from...whatever or whomever, there is only ONE who has ever granted true freedom. There is only ONE freedom that really matters in the end. And there is only one path to that freedom.

Of course, the freedom that I'm talking about is the freedom from sin. And as Paul is wrapping up his Old Testament history lesson about all the ways God had worked for and through his people, the Israelites, he states in no uncertain terms, that the law of Moses was never able to obtain the freedom that is found only in Christ.

The truth is that if Paul were preaching today to us, he might point out a lot of other ways people try to find justification and through that justification, forgiveness of and freedom from sin. He might say that wealth was never able to justify. Or popularity. Or behaving children. Or a good job. Or financial stability. Or whatever else we search in vain to find "freedom" in. There is NOTHING that can make us able to stand in front of the all-righteous God...nothing to justify us. Because there is nothing that can completely take away our sins so we are able to stand in His presence. Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

But in Him, in His blood, we can be freed! We can be forgiven! We can be justified! We can finally realize the only freedom that will actually matter 5 seconds after we quit breathing.

Would to God that the world would be moved by the picture of the tortured body of Jesus as he uttered one of His last remarks before he died. "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." In the movie, William Wallace inspired a revolution because of his life and the way he died. In real life, Jesus inspired a revolution because of the way he lived, and died, AND ROSE FROM THE DEAD! But the revolution he inspired was not so we could be free from other people. It was so we could be freed from the eternal consequences of the taskmaster Sin.

Do you really believe that? Do you live like you believe it? May we realize that freedom from sin does not just mean forgiveness from consequences. It means freedom from sin! And may we fight on God's victorious side to claim the victory that he has already given us with his death and his resurrection! May we join the revolution!

What's preventing me? Acts 8:36

I have 2 four year old little girls. My wife and I are trying hard to teach them the importance of obedience and respect. If you have any advice, I'm all ears. All in all, I think we're pretty blessed. They are great girls...and that has a whole lot more to do with just the way God made them than the way we are raising them. I'm just thankful for God's grace, because we sure make a lot of mistakes!

Anyway, back to the point...

They are pretty good girls and most of the time they are good at obeying and being respectful. Of course, we are still using both rewards and punishments as needed to mold their behavior. Those are by far the biggest reasons for their good behavior most of the time. But every once in a while, one or both of them will come up and just ask what they can do to help or they will clean up their toys without being asked just so they can run and tell me to come look. I can't tell you how happy that makes me when that stuff happens!

On a different page, lately, I've been reminded that a lot of teens seem to have a concept of list keeping and guilt in Christianity. In other words, in some minds, the life of a Christian is really about being sure to do the things that need to be done and leaving undone the things that need to be left undone. And when something is left undone that should be done, or something is done that should not be done, a tremendous amount of guilt follows along with a lot of questions about whether or not the offender is still worthy and capable of receiving God's grace and salvation. If I'm honest with myself, I know that I often fall into the same trap of thinking. In fact, I have to believe that teens are not getting these ideas all by themselves. I suspect we adults have helped shape their thoughts based on our own, whether consciously or subconsciously.

Oh what I would give to simply forget all about any doomed-to-fail ideas of list-keeping in Christianity based on rewards and punishments and to have the heart of the Ethiopian eunuch who simply came to a realization of what needed to be done and wanted immediately to do it!

What a different attitude that is from mine so often as I weight the pros and cons of every decision and have to decide if the end justifies the means. How much guilt and worry about salvation could be left behind if we had hearts that understood God's grace well enough to quit beating ourselves up over things that we have not yet learned, and instead simply responded with joy and obedience as we encounter truth every day!? I'm not sure I'm being clear, so let me give an example.

If a Christian is walking in the light, then he has fellowship with God. That is because of grace...which by the way, is a completely free gift. It cannot be earned. But let's say that Christian has a history of telling half-truths. And let's say that they are so good at it and have done it for so many years, that they do not even realize they are doing it. They feel no guilt and no remorse when they commit these lies because they do not even realize they are sinning. But what if something someone says one day...or something they've read in scripture...or some prompting of the Holy Spirit leads them to finally see the error of their ways? That person now has a few choices. They can: 1. Ignore the truth and continue in their deceitful ways. 2. Feel so much shame and guilt over all of the mistakes they are now convicted of that they become paralyzed and fearful for their very soul. 3. Feel proper Godly sorrow for what they have done, thank God for pointing it out to them, and joyfully set about to make amends knowing that God has just helped them to become more like the Savior they are already and still following.

I'm begging you to see that only option 3 will allow us to continue walking in the light in fellowship with God!!

The first choice is willful disobedience and their would no longer remain a sacrifice for our sins (Heb. 10:26). The second choice is actually worldly sorrow and leads to death (2 Cor. 7:10). But the third option is exactly what John describes and expects from followers of Christ (1 John 1:9).

The same scenario could be applied to spiritual disciplines that have not been practiced before, good deeds that have not been done before, relationships that have not been pointed towards God's love before, and any other number of things that we have somehow blown past without noticing until God finally makes us notice.

The point is this...when the Eunuch was aware of what he needed to do, he obeyed...immediately. And he went on his way rejoicing (Acts 8:39). I want to live like that. I want to teach teens to live like that from the moment they first obey the gospel until the moment their faith is finally finished as it becomes sight.

Of course, the question the Eunuch asked needs to also be applied in a different way for us if we are not living like that. He asked, "what prevents me from being baptized?" And, of course, the answer was nothing so he commanded the chariot to stop and they went down into the water!

But is there something that prevents you from obeying? If you have not been baptized yet, why not? What's keeping you? Is there some lifestyle that is worth more to you than Christ? Is there a misunderstanding of God's love? Is there a controversy about doctrine because of all the different divisions inside Christianity? The simple truth is that baptism is found all throughout scripture. What could possibly prevent you from wanting it if you have seen God's love through Jesus in the gospels!?

If you have been baptized and are not obeying in some other area...what's keeping you!? What prevents you from obeying? Is it fear? Is it pride? Is it selfishness? Is there anything at all that you want more than to know and to please your Father!? If not, then what prevents you from obeying!?

There is almost nothing in this world that fills my heart with joy more than when my daughters look for ways to please me simply because they love me. Not because I will reward them, because sometimes I don't immediately. Not because they will be punished, because eventually I won't be right in front of them to monitor their behavior. But simply because they love me and want to please me. If that motivation were always their motivation, I wouldn't have to make a single rule in the house other than to treat people with love. Everything else would take care of itself.

Hmm. That sounds familiar, doesn't it? What prevents you from obeying?

Covenant Eyes- Matthew 5:27-28

 

 

 

“You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery'...

 

Is it any wonder that when Jesus turned his attention in the Sermon on the Mount to the practical right and wrong choices of day-to-day living, the first two subjects addressed were uncontrolled anger and sex? Can you think of any two other things that have destroyed more lives, damaged more young children, and alienated more families from each other?

I could press the point about how saturated our society is with sex, but I know I don't need to. You've already had the point made loud and clear many times today as you drove past billboards, turned on the radio, changed the channel, and surfed the web. Not to mention the clothing worn at school and at work that is specifically designed to flatter one's body shape in order to gain attention. 

I can't help but think of Job's words from centuries before Jesus ever lived as a man.

"I made a covenant with my eye not to look lustfully at a young woman....Does he not see my ways and count my every step?...If my steps have turned from the path, if my heart has been led by my eyes, or if my hands have been defiled^, then may others eat what I have sown, and may my crops be uprooted. If my heart has been enticed by a woman, or if I have lurked at my neighbor’s door, then may my wife grind another man’s grain, and may other men sleep with her. For that would have been wicked, a sin to be judged. It is a fire that burns to Destruction; it would have uprooted my harvest."

 - Job 31:1-12

 As he did with anger, Jesus started with the absolute right and wrong of the matter of adultery. But he explained that in God's kingdom, it is more than just the restraining of the actual physical act that matters to God...it is the heart of the person. And regardless of what I might or might not do based on the consequences of my actions and the fear of "getting caught", if my eyes are wandering because my heart is inclined toward other women, then I have already violated my relationship with my spouse (or future spouse for those who are not yet married), and with my God.

I want to be careful here because this area is one that is especially double-edged. On the one hand, Satan has kept the second-rate cheap version of sex in front of our minds and eyes so much, that it is possible to completely lose sight of Jesus' ideal of a pure heart and not think twice about a lingering look filled with illicit desire. On the other hand, Satan has also employed the weapons of worldly guilt to keep boys, girls, young and old men and women alike absolutely crippled in their desire and pursuit of Godliness because they cannot shake the "dirty" feeling that comes from this most personal of sins.

So today, I simply want to ask a question and remind you of a truth...

1.You have already made a covenant with your God. Most of you have already made a covenant with your spouse. Have you made a covenant with your eyes such as Job did? If not, then why not? 

2.  If you have, then when you think about your past and are overwhelmed with guilt, or you think about your present or future and are overwhelmed with fear, then I want to remind you that as with anger and everything else, Jesus began this sermon by calling us to a righteousness that surpasses that of the Pharisees and teachers of the Law. AND THAT RIGHTEOUSNESS IS YOURS INSIDE CHRIST! It is not yours if you can manage the strength to live up to it; it is yours because you have trusted in the One Who did! So quit falling to that sin over and over again because you don't feel worthy of forgiveness and keep returning to the mud like a pig returning to its wallow, and start living with the confidence and strength of someone who has been bought with the blood of Christ and redeemed from the old way of life...and lust.

To focus on the sin is to put yourself in a position to fail again. You cannot change your heart by legislating your eyes and hands any more than we can change the heart of the nation by legislating laws. The laws of the nation will merely reflect its heart.

No...focus on Christ who will teach you how to overcome and change you from the heart out. And as you do, I think you will find along with all of God's saints who have done so throughout the centuries that God's perfect law of liberty that is legislating your eyes and your hands will more and more perfectly reflect the heart that is in you.