That Grace May Abound

The other night I was sitting with a student of mine who was expressing great disappointment in himself. He had had a rough day and didn't respond to others as gracefully as he needed to. He expressed feeling like he couldn't stay on track; that every time he did something really good he would instantly follow up with something terrible. One terrible day for every really good day, and the better the good day the worse the bad day would be.

This wasn't true, though I can relate to feeling that way. I know that there are many times when I feel that same way. I feel stuck or like I'm caught in an unending, undefeatable cycle.

After expressing these feelings he turned to me and, in a place of frustration and desperation to do things right, he said "Maybe I should just do bad things and then I'll do really good things instead!"

This called my mind to the letters of Paul. "Should we then keep on sinning that grace may abound? HELL NAH!" (Culturally equivalent translation applied).

It's a natural temptation, when we face the long war against sin, to want to give up, or even to adopt a poor theology of grace. I have even thought to myself "maybe I should just get it out of my system" (Theoretically the root origin of Mardi Gras). Though I know these are deceptions and my flesh trying to justify poor decisions, I still feel the pull of temptation. I understand where my kid is coming from.

We go through patterns in life where we are constantly fighting our sin nature, our inner darkness. No matter how long you have been a Christian, you continue to struggle and strive against it. That's ok. You can stop telling yourself "I should be free of this by now!" or "I should be above all this!" Don't give in to the lie that says your prayers aren't working, and don't let yourself fall into despair. Grace isn't to grant permission to sin, but abounds that you might pick yourself back up and try again.

We will often feel like the there is more Darkness in us than Light, but Christ lives in you and therefore you stand as a candle in the abyss. You shine as a shard of hope in the midst of despair. Though you might not be able to see far, get up and keep going. 

Staying Faithful

There are nights when loneliness is so thick that even the intimacy of strangers seems oddly enticing. Days come and go where the thought of abandoning my calling and seeking my own fulfillment and satisfaction lay heavy on my mind. I feel the wretched jealousy in my heart over things that I have chosen to reject for the sake of holiness; for the sake of a God who too often I do not feel or hear.

In the 26 years I have been upon this Earth I cannot remember a time when I did not believe in God, but I can think of many times when I did not trust Him, and even more when I did not believe that He loved me.

Even in the midst of those dark times I some how managed to stay consistent in my church attendance and in my prayers.

Truthfully I think this says more about God than it doesn't about me. I know too much of my own heart and the wickedness inside. While many think that I'm good man, I know differently. Yet somehow...somehow I stay in the Light.

Sin crouches and chases after my heart. It is only grace that keeps me from falling into it again and again. The hardest thing for me to admit recently was that there are sins I don't want to yield, that I don't want to hand over. I want to cheat on God. Yet it is my desire to stay faithful to Him that keeps me form doing so, even if it's just barely enough.

I imagine that this is what marriage is like for many. The great war of desire and the struggle to choose the one you love and committed yourself too over choosing your own selfish desires.

So once again I sit here in full acknowledgement of my wicked heart and my desire to live in sin and say, "God...forgive me and help me to love You. Have mercy on me and change my heart because I sure as Hell don't want to do it myself."

Grace and Peace,

Stephen 

Bloody Religion

A lot of people out there what Christianity to be nice, clean, and efficient, like the office of a major CEO. I used to be one of those people. Reality is, for most of us, that Christianity is anything but clean. It's a bloody operating table and we are just laying on it with our chest ripped open as we wait for the transplant that will rescue us from certain destruction.

It's not clean. It's not prim and proper. It's Christ pouring out his blood to cleanse and cover our mutilated souls that so very much prefer darkness over light.

As a kid I thought I could get by sitting in the examination room. Blinded by the demonic distractions of anti-ritualism and hyper-focus on spiritual encounters and "spreading the gospel" I missed my own desperate need. I didn't just need to be examined and be diagnosed. The diagnose had been in since I was born. I needed action. I needed change.

Don't get me wrong. I was a good kid. I was a faithful Christian even since I was young; my heart was caught up in the spiritual things of God and His scriptures. That might be the worst place to be in. There was a certain young ruler spoken of in the Gospels who wasn't so different. Hell, Saul (later Paul) was similar in this aspect. Though the law of God and the desire for things of the Spirit were
there, there was something missing for the three of us.

I may not have been a murderous, cussing little deviant, but I was broken nonetheless. I had sin in my heart and it manifested in very different ways.

News flash: I still do.

Despite a degree in Christian Ministry and years of youth ministry work, I'm still very much a tainted soul. I wrestle with pride and selfishness constantly! I shows in my work, it shows in my struggle to get up on Sundays and celebrate Eucharist with my fellow believers, and it shows in my negative thought patterns.

I work so hard to combat the darkness in my soul and it's draining! Still I can't overcome, no matter how hard I fight to keep my thoughts captive or how much time I spend in prayer and meditation. Why? I'm relying to much on my own immune system to drive out the sickness inside, but I simply cannot do it alone.

As I pray, I am reminded of my need for Christ. That is one of the prime points of Christianity: I can't do it along, I NEED Christ.

Yes, we are required to put in the soul work, but even more importantly we need to yield ourselves to the cleansing work of Christ in us and let Him do the real work in us.

We do this by being in Christian community, by committing ourselves to spiritual disciplines, to actively choosing each day to live for others and not ourselves, and by participation in Holy Eucharist, by which the Divine Spirit comes and works in us with grace and power.

Though it is painful, until we yield ourselves completely to Christ we will never be free and sin will slowly eat away at our hearts until we are consumed in darkness.

So take me hand and squeeze tight. Get on the surgery table, brace yourself, and let go of your control. We will do this together...


Grace and Peace,
Stephen

Out Of Tune

Life is hectic! It seems like I'm always on the go and trying to accomplish some task or another. Half the time I haven't got a clue if I'm doing things right and I'm having to submit myself to a great deal of trial and error.

My spiritual life is no different. I am continually striving for greater spiritual growth and maturity, and I often do not feel that I'm living a life that pleases God. I am essentially stating that I am sub-par, valueless, displeasing to, and unloved by God. Yet I hold this double standard that God loves the very person I believe to be the worst and lowest of humanity. Messed up, no?

This is a significant lie that is interwoven into my thought processes. That is indeed what it is: a LIE. 

Sunday I was driving the school van and taking a handful of our kids to a local church. On the way there, my friend/co-worker reached over and turned on the radio to a local Christian station. As the music filled the car, I noticed something else along side the voice of the artist. It was the sound of one of my students sitting behind me; singing out confidently along with the radio. His voice cracked, he sang out of tune, and he didn't know half of the words but that didn't stop him from trying to sing every single line. With every error and with every inaccurate note I found myself smiling more and more as joy filled my heart. 

Then the Spirit struck my heart. 

I could hear the Spirit saying, "This is the joy I feel every day with you. I don't care that you sing it wrong, just keep singing." 

We have a goal that we strive for, but the truth is that we are human and we fail. In the words of Denzel Washington in the movie The Equalizer, "Progress...not perfection." 

Everyday we live out our lives in a struggle to overcome our brokenness and pain, every stumbling along the path to healing. Christ walks with us and listens as we, mere babes in the faith, seek to mutter the language of life and redemption; as we move from a crawl to a run. He does not look down on us with contempt at our stumbling over words or our tripping over our own feet. No, He looks upon us with great joy at every failed attempt because every failure means a lesson learned and an attempt made toward holiness. 

So keep singing out of tune. Sing out at the top of your lungs every misplaced note and mutter every forgotten word! Sing until you can hear the pitch changes and until the rhythm of holiness and grace have been integrated into your very soul. 

Grace and Peace,

Stephen

"I Confess..."

Silence. As I sit in the pew of a little brick church building on the outskirts of Savannah, GA I bow my head and let the noiselessness of the room fill me. Locked in a state of reflection, I prepare myself to be vulnerable, honest, and totally exposed. A man in robes enters the room and moves past me to the front of the sanctuary. He places a chair in the center of the altar and sits with his back to me; he quietly meditates and lifts his own prayers to heaven.

After a few more moments of reflection, I slowly approach the front. Kneeling just behind the man, I begin sharing the deepest and darkest truths of my soul in spoken prayer to God. As I render unto God all the sickness of my heart and soul that I can muster out of my memory, the man bears witness to my confession of sin. Then I speak the words signifying that I was finished and robed priest answers in response that I am forgive all my sins. After some words of encouragement, he leaves me to pray in silence as long as my heart would desire. After a time I took my leave, feeling like the weight of the world had been taken off my shoulders and full of life. And thus ended my first experience in participating in a formal confession.

I was very nervous about doing a confession, but it was something that been on my soul to do for quite some time. While I know there are many of my friends and family who will be quite taken aback by my having done this, I believe that it was something impressed upon me by the Holy Spirit to do. So in the confidence that my honesty would be kept secret (and that it was something I need to do) I let my heart pour out and I showed no restraint. In that prayer I spoke of things that I had shared with no living thing.

I know that many will argue about the theology of confessing to a priest, and that's all good-just leave your opinion in the comment section below. I'm writing to share my experience, not to convince anyone of it theologically. Even if you don't believe that it is a necessity to confess to a priest (or pastor, if you're into that sorta thing), you will never know the beauty and relief of having shared your sins with another human being and being accepted regardless of your darkness.

The beauty of going before someone of greater spiritual maturity who has devoted his life to caring for the souls of humanity and sharing the deepest and darkest parts of your being. To stand before God together like a child going before his father to tell him about the window he broke; having his older brother right there beside him to encourage him. And then having both the father and the brother hold him and say "all is forgiven. Let's go fix that window!" That is the beauty and glory of confession.

From this I find relief. Not only in knowing that I have been accepted and given grace by a spiritual director, but also the reality of God's acceptance and love by extent. In seeing that in a human being, I was able to walk in greater certainty of God's forgiveness and grace! In turn I believe I now have a better understanding of humanity and greater capacity for showing grace to fellow humans.

This is my experience and I am incredibly grateful that I yielded myself to the Spirit's leading despite the discomfort and difficulty that I faced in doing so.

Grace and Peace,

Stephen

Simply "Just"

I have noticed a pattern in my thinking when it comes to my thinking about life and in my practice of self-examination. Whenever I have a problem and I am trying to work out a reasoning or solution, I have consistently used the word "just" in my statements. I will saying thing like 'Oh, it's just _____" or "I'm just being _____" or "I need to just do _____ and everything is fine." I consistently give in the temptation to over simplify by saying "just".

The issue of my word usage goes a step further. In my usage of the unjustly used word "just" I not only just simplify the issue at hand, but also diminish it's importance or significance! This is hindrance to my problem solving as it very deceptive in nature. The question I must now ask is, in what other ways have I done this? In what ways have a over simplified or diminished the importance of? Sadly, I think there are many ways that I have done this. Even more so, I think I'm seeing this pattern in American culture, and even in the Church. 

We see this flaw in a lot of the "soul care" that is performed by many of our pastors. Many telling those under their care that they "just need to pray and read their Bibles" or that "it's just a sin issue" and they "just need to repent of that sin", while many times there is a much deeper need that isn't being met. Our families even fall prey to this dark reality in the way parents might address family issues and in training their children. 

We must be careful not to allow ourselves to underestimate the significance of the difficulties and temptation we face, not that which our friends and family members face as well. To not give proper attention and energy to a matter is an injustice, and even sinful, way of treating ourselves and others. Additionally, we must recognize that solutions are rarely ever simple. They are almost always complex and will take time to overcome or solve, if either is ever actually achieved at all. It is a part of the incredible, multifaceted journey to sanctification and wholeness that we all must undertake as followers of the Christ. 

As ministers of the souls of humanity, let us strive not to look down upon the struggles and difficulties of our brothers and sisters, but instead let us hold them with grace; bearing the patience and grace to listen, and to listen well. Lives are at stake; souls that need wholeness and the Light of Christ. 

Simplicity has it's place and it's beauty. Simplicity is real and even needed, but the we must not lose truth and logic in our desire to simplify. It is nice to think that solutions are easy and can be quickly conjured, but if we allow ourselves to think this way then we hinder our healing and restoration as well as the healing an restoration of others. Recognizing that wholeness is often a difficult and complex journey is important for us to accept if we are to carry on and endure the hardship; to resist the weight of discouragement and the sorrow of slow progress. 

I pray that we may all grow to help others and to give ourselves in love, and listen with sincerity and intent to those around us who also suffer from the darkness of sin and it's consequences. 

Grace and Peace,

Stephen

Justified Christian Racism?

"And love your neighbor as yourself..."

A few years ago I had the incredible privilege of traveling to the glorious country of Jordan and living among Iraqi refugees and teaching English to Jordanians and Palestinians. In my being there, I learned so much about culture, history, and humanity! Upon my return, however, I began to see an aspect of Christianity that I had never experienced before: racism justified by theology. 

Generally, when one hears the word "racist" they think of a white guy hating on a black guy because the color of his skin, or against a Hispanic for not speaking English very well. What I experienced, however, was very different and arguably worse. I spoke to someone about the possibility of going and being a part of YWAM (Youth with a Mission) and with a big smile he said "Great!", but then suddenly turning to a hard, grim face he said "just don't learn Arabic...don't learn Arabic." 

This was not the last time I heard something like this or experienced this kind of hateful disposition over my having worked with Arabs or desiring to learn Arabic. This distasteful attitude came out of some with incredibly Zionistic trends in their theology and overall worldview. My qualm is not with Christian Zionism, but instead with what is a very common side effect of that tradition: the belief that the enemy of the state of Israel is the enemy of the Church universal. 

There is a strange elitistic belief concerning Jews and Israelis, and more specifically messianic Jews. In my living in Knoxville, I have met people who believe that Messianic Jews are superior in Christ's Kingdom, and this disheartens me greatly! What makes it even worse that I myself used to believe this way and didn't realize it! It is sad that anyone should think less of any ethnicity simply over political issues and theological disposition that glorifies ancestry over the Gospel! Even if they are Christian, they may find themselves being tossed aside by their American brethren because they are seen as anti-Israel (such as the Palestinians in exile). 

The beauty of the cross and the Kingdom of Christ is that it transcends political and geographical borders. It goes beyond genetics, ancestry, dynasties, and time itself! 

One Christ, one baptism, one Church. 

The prejudice of the Church in America far exceeds mere Zionistic hatred of non-Israeli middle easterners. This is merely one way that I have personally experienced and continue to experience form time to time. My tendency is to shy away from confrontation, but I find myself unable to step back from this issue and to not address the unjust, unbiblical, and unChrist-like attitude. 

It is WRONG! Pure and simple. We are to love God and love our neighbors as ourselves, and that means ALL of our neighbors, especially if they are those within the Kingdom of Christ. Kingdom citizenship supersedes all other nationalities and racial backgrounds at all times and all places!

Let us examine our lives (as well as our theological beliefs) to ensure that we are living with Christ above all and that we are honoring the King whom we represent on this world full of racism and hatred between the peoples of the earth. 

Grace and Peace, 

Stephen

 

The Beauty of Ruins

My favorite type of games to play growing up are what are known as "real-strategy games." My brother and I both played these games, but we had very different ways of playing. While he would do what he could to build up his forces quickly and wipe out his opponent without mercy and without patience, I would often do the opposite. I was defensive in my strategies. I loved building up walls and structures and creating strongholds. I wanted to make cities of refuge and flawless defense. Nothing was to get through. I would become frustrated whenever my walls fell or if I experienced invasion. Inevitably, I would lose a match because I would spend all my time and resources trying to keep the walls intact and perfect instead of taking action.

I am but dust...

Turns out that my strategy for playing video games was not so different than my strategy for life. I've lived my entire life as a wall builder and a perfectionist, desperate to keep control over what people see and don't see about me. Wanting to keep myself impenetrable and free of hurt. Wanting to make myself safe and to appear perfect and whole, even when I wasn't. My efforts proved to be in vain time and time again, and yet I never changed my strategy. I followed through with my building castles and fortresses, and over time my walls have been breached, burned, and found wanting.

I am but dust, and to dust I shall return...

What I have realized recently is that God has been playing a significant part in the destruction of my defenses. Why? Because locked away behind my castle doors I would have died of starvation and disease
. I need my defenses destroyed so that I might grow and that I might know Him more. I needed to be free of my own trap and begin living a different life.

I have been humbled. God took my self-perceived perfections and laid them bare. He took the things I was proud of and shattered them before me, revealing the flaws and showing me who I really am...a sinner; a flawed human being in need of grace. He has seem it fit that I might suffer for the sake of being made pure. To not be caught up in perfection and the safety and comfort of control, but instead to be real and to be vulnerable in the ways He wants me to be. Vulnerable that I might provide love, healing, and shelter for others who are in pain and in need. I can't reach out to other and run to their aid when I'm too busy cowering behind my whitewashed walls.

 I am but dust, and to dust I shall return. Lord...

I have found beauty in the ruins of my soul. In my destruction I am being made into place of refuge. My greatest defense must be God, not my works and my efforts; not my reputation or in opinions. My greatest good is God and my perfection is Him and Him alone. Let the storm come; let the walls be obliterated and my ivory towers break. I know It is for my strengthening and my purging. Let them fall. I know my God is with me and He won't abandon me. Take what I have, I deserve none of it anyway.

I am but dust...
And to dust I shall return...
Lord, Make haste to save...

Joyful Lament: Preparing for the Season of Advent

We are but a week away from the month of December and from the liturgical time of Advent! In the midst of overwhelming commercialism it is easy to lose the beauty and meaning of this holiday season. It's unfortunate that the holidays have too often become about selfishness and greed.

In the upcoming cold and desolate month we will be buying gifts, hanging ornaments, verbally and emotionally assaulting each other over costs and item availability, stuffing our faces, destroying our teeth, and complaining about getting the wrong color for the iPod Touch we asked for. It's incredible that the symbol of Christmas is a Bishop/Saint and yet the Church often goes unremembered and Christ is neglected.

Christmas and Advent is, and will always be, a Christian holiday. People get angry when politicians have "holiday" trees instead of Christmas trees. If they aren't Christians then they can call them whatever they want, the holiday has no real significance or importance to them anyways.

The giving of gifts is a beautiful tradition of Christmas. I am by no means saying that gift-giving should be eliminated from this holy day since it is the day God gave the greatest gift of all: His Son...Himself. We live in the realm of ungratefulness, never remembering the true beauty of Christ's coming. Advent is to be a time where we celebrate and rejoice in the greatness of God and His love for us, but it should also be a reminder of the darkness that was before Christ came into our lives. This reality should also bring our minds to the harshness of sin that still remains in the world and all that is yet to be brought into full subjection to Christ. There are still millions of people who have yet to even hear of Christ!

That said, Advent should be a time of lament, but it should also be a time of repentance; remembering that the reason Christ came was to save us from the sin that destroys our society, culture, economy, and
government. He came so that He would die and usher in the age of the Church, and God forbid that we eat and drink in celebration of His coming without first falling on our knees in humility and fearful trembling in the revelation of our sinful state.

May we all be fasting and praying as we approach the day set aside in memorium to Christ's birth.

Grace and Peace,

Stephen

The Darkness Within

A friend of mine recently introduced me to a band called "Imagine Dragons" and I immediately fell in love with three songs in particular. I would advise listening to their songs "Radioactive" and "Bleeding Out", but the song that I am currently most compelled by is the song "Demons." As a courtesy, I have add the link to the song via youtube for your listening pleasure, as well as a point of reference to what I am now writing about.

This song pulls upon my desire for perfection and reminds me of the overwhelming reality that I simply am incapable of reaching perfection. I am full of darkness and I am prone to greed, pride, deceit, and failure. This is the reality of the human condition; we are ever seeking greatness but always falling short because of the sin that taints our souls.

Those of us who have been Church leaders (whether voluntary or paid staff) can deeply relate to the words of this song as is screams of a need to be there for others and the "need" to hide the demons that lay just beyond the surface of our skin. Church leaders are often too concealing of the faults and sinful natures for a variety of reasons. While it is not possible for a Priest, Church leader, or volunteer to be completely transparent about their sinfulness, it is necessary that a certain level of transparency be maintained.

Despite the fact there is always going to be a measure of sin within our hearts (until the final purification, at the end of all beginnings) we can stand in the comfort that the True and Holy One knows and understands all and has deemed it is a meet and right and joyful thing to shower grace upon humanity and upon His redeemed. We can never be perfect, but that does not mean we are not useful or that we have lost our value as God's special creation on Earth!

I hope that you listen to the lyrics of this song and that it moves you in such a deep and wonderful way; that you will allow the Holy Spirit to speak to through the words of another.

Be intentional in all action, attentive in daily encounters, and be present in life.

Peace be with you,

Stephen 

A House Divided

"The truth resolves somethings, and adds difficulty to others."                                              -A.W.Tozer

The last couple of days has been quite the emotional trip, but this morning I read this quote and was given a measure of hope. It seemed like it was just the thing i needed to hear to help my troubled mind. You see, a great number of people within my overall community structure have been at war over "getting out the truth" and engaging in (sometimes heated) debates over what should or should not be exposed. At first I wanted to name this post "Give me Justice or Give Me Journalism!", but then I decided that that is not the route I wanted to take with my post. Besides...what was done in the name of journalism can hardly be labeled as such. That's beside the point.

The point is that there has been a line drawn and people have taken sides. Who's right? Who's wrong? Well, if we looked at it honestly and without bias (not an easy task mind you), and tried to look at the whole situation holistically...the answer to both questions is...well..."both" haha. Both parties are right...and both are wrong.

Now before someone leaves a comment saying this is a cop out answer or yells "What the *bleep*?" at me, let me explain.

Granted, I think that one party is more "right" than the other, but if we all would just shut up for just a moment and let down our barriers of pride and self-righteousness...then we could begin to see a little more clearly what the other group is saying.  Both sides have at least one valid point to make and something that can be learned from the other.

I think that key things for us to learn here are:

• Respect for those we have put ourselves under/God has put over us. 
• Respect for those who have a differing opinion and the decency to listen well before making a rebuttal. 
• Realization that just because someone has the right to do something, doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. 
• Sin breeds sin.
• Grace breeds grace. 
• Christians are supposed to live in a 200% reality in which they are 100% about grace and 100% about justice. 
• We don't always see everything, so we shouldn't ever act like we do. 
• and that Jesus clearly said "blessed are the peace makers" 

When do something for the sake of doing it, then we aren't doing it with purpose. We should be people who think things through before acting and ask questions like "What will this accomplish?", "Are there consequences and do they affect more than just me?", "Is it beneficial?", "Does my not doing this have repercussions or benefits?", and ultimately  "Does it glorify God?" 

I think that if these questions had been asked by BOTH parties...a lot of strife could have been avoided this week. I love you all and I pray that God will do a work in all our hearts and that things like this will bring about unity in the end (as my Arabic friends say Enshallah). 

Peace be upon you all, 

Stephen 

"Why not?!"

Everyone knows that Christians are just weird conservatives who just like imposing their rules and stupid regulations on others. I mean, that IS what they are right? Just a bunch of rules...stupid things that make no sense and are just "anti-fun"! Why in Jupiter would I want to follow these rules?


This seems to be the mindset of many people I have interacted with over the years, including some of the youth that I've had the privilege of serving these last several years. Some even find the law and salvation to be contradictory in the Bible. I had one of my most beloved youth once say to me that he knows that "the Bible says that if you believe in Jesus you will be saved, but as I keep looking I see more and more rules and restraints" and somehow this causes tension for him. There are many who want salvation without rules, and many say that they can not see how we are saved if we still have to follow rules. 


The first error is a misunderstanding of salvation, and the second is a misunderstanding of the "law".

According to scripture, salvation is Christ redeeming us from the bondage of sin and from the "curse of the law." It is the bestowing of grace form the hand of a sovereign God to His non-sovereign, yet free-will enabled, creation. Salvation is given to the elected humanity that respond to the Spirit of God as He calls him or her out of darkness.

The law of God is another situation altogether. The "law" seems harsh, difficult, and even contradictory to the doctrine of grace and salvation. To those who stand on the outside looking in, or simply have a misunderstanding of the law, it is cruel and stands like jagged spires waiting to shred the souls of all who dare draw close. Yet, to those who have been graced with salvation and draw near to the goodness of God, the law encircles the mind, heart, and soul of the believer and provides a place of shelter and rest.

We follow the law because ultimately sin will destroy us. Sin is contrary to our original design and is contrary to the divine nature of God. We do not sin because God said so, but He did not just instate rules and regulations to "suck away our fun." He did it for our protection, our prosperity, and our health physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. The "Ten Commandments" alone provide regulations for society and for economic growth. Theft, envy, and lying will break down any economic system and lead to suffering. Socially, the same three cause suffering and break down community due to lack of trust. Common sense tells us that worshiping God and ONLY God will foster spiritual growth and a closeness to God almighty. Not a single law that is given is done so without a purpose or meaning, and as gentiles living under the New Covenant we are awakened to the beauty of the "Spirit of the law" as opposed to the "Letter of the law." We must be awakened to the freeing power of the law for us as believers.


Freedom is not living with the complete lack of rules and regulations, but instead it is living within the rules and regulations that fit with the persons nature and provide liberty. For those who are non-redeemed, the law does not provide liberty because their nature is tainted and flawed by sin; therefore, they hate the law and are unable to fulfill the law, for it seems impossible, cold, and as if it desires to destroy all "pleasure" and "fun" in one's life. For us who are experiencing the transforming power of the Holy Spirit, our natures are being restored and we can, therefore, live in the joy, peace, and rest that the law instills within us.