2.23.2009

Dead end

Some very dear friends of ours have a teenage girl whose life over the last few years is a great picture of Romans 6. She has been in a constant state of rebellion towards God and her parents. She finally admitted to me a couple of weeks ago that she will be happy when her parents just do what she says and let her do whatever she wants. In other words, she wants freedom. Freedom to live as she pleases with no boundaries placed on her by those troublesome adults living in that house with her. Along with many other words of advice and Truth, I shared with her that if her parents chose to give her all the freedom she wanted, as soon as poor choices and consequences caught up with her, she’d be blaming them for not making her follow rules and so on and so on.

This is exactly what Paul is talking about in our reading today. Freedom outside of God isn’t really freedom because it leads to nowhere good. In fact, it leads to death. We, as humans, need God’s boundaries so we don’t stray off the path of righteousness. And God knows that. But He allows us to make that choice so we truly appreciate His grace and the freedom of living….now and forever with Christ.

And don’t you just love the beautiful picture of baptism that God gave us symbolizing this very thing? Every summer Scottsdale park and rec sponsors a mud fest at Chapparel Park. Ever been? There is mud everywhere. Mud piles, mud obstacle courses, mud, mud, and more mud. I took my kids ONCE. Before they could even get in the car, I made them strip down as much as they could and sit on towels in the car, then straight to the bathtub they went. We all know what it feels like to be covered in filth, then washed clean with water. You think you’ve never felt cleaner. That’s the picture of baptism—to be washed cleaner than ever, whiter than snow. To be buried to your old self, then raised with new life. Sin no longer is your master or has a hold on you, although Satan sure tries.

What old sin has been trying to retake you? Today, think back to your baptism. Remember that “you” died to live in Christ. Sin is a dead end, but life in Christ is ever new. Live as proof that you have life abundant.

1 comment:

  1. Insensitive. I need the means of Grace to grow in that area. Please pray for me.

    ReplyDelete