Restricting freedoms

God once called on Peter in a dream to eat anything presented before him on a rug. The things on the rug were all things that are deemed "unclean" within Jewish Law. Peter refused saying, "Surely not, Lord! I have never eaten anything impure or unclean." God answers Peter with, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." (Acts 10)

The point of this story is to show that God has made many things clean now with redemption of the world in Jesus Christ. But that's not the whole story. If that is all you knew of the Bible than you would think that as a Christian you can do anything because it has been redeemed. And knowing that later in scripture the concept of asking for forgiveness is available to everyone all the time, then why would we ever obey any rules/laws from the Old Testament or now. This is where a point from 1 Corinthians needs to come into play.

1 Cor. 10:23-24: "'Everything is permissible' - but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible' - but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others."

The 'everything is permissible' quote is referencing a common concept within the Corinthian church. So the moral of the lesson is that everything is neither beneficial nor constructive. Our goal should not be doing whatever we want to gain what is best for us, as followers of Jesus Christ we are meant to care about others before ourselves. It is undeniable that Jesus lived a life dedicated to and for the benefit of the lives of other people. You don't withstand spiritual temptation, being completely socially ostracized, beatings, full spiritual separation from the Father and death because it is good for you.

Many of the things we do in our lives need to be filtered through whether or not that thing is going to help or hinder others. For example, when around a recovering alcoholic choosing not to drink would be the best option. Though you may think there is nothing wrong with having a glass of wine with dinner is okay, enjoying that wine in front of someone battling an addiction to it would be putting undue temptation in the face of that person.

So my challenge is for everyone to start filtering their actions through a screen of 'what is best for those around me.' This should not be done to the fault of people pleasing, but your own desires and good should not be enacted to the detriment of others. If more business owners and executives followed this example, would we have our current financial crisis? So why not try to do it everyday in our own lives?

Freedom

I read somewhere that the iconic theologian JI Packer once said that "any Christian worth his salt read the whole Bible, every year." Whether this is an actual quote of his or something just accredited to him doesn't matter because the thought in itself makes sense. And it is in this concept that I embarked on a reading of Bible from cover-to-cover in 2010.

One thing that hit me with such great importance from my reading of the first few books of the Bible is that we have incredible freedom. After God calls the Israelites out of Egypt and declares to them 'Be Holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.' (Lev. 19:2) God then goes on to show this new nation how to do so. He gives them Laws and procedures to follow. Everything from food production, to clothes to wear, to renewing cleanliness (necessary to be a part of the community) has a law governing how it is to be done.

Often times I have heard Christians talk about how much they wish God would just give them a list of things to do, a proper way to handle problems, or generally just make life easier. It became very apparent to me through the early books of the Bible (the Torah to Jews) is filled with just that and I am glad that we are not governed fully by those Laws anymore.

Jesus remarks, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished." (Mt. 5:17-18) Thus nothing has changed, but rather our interaction with the Law has changed. For instance, sacrifices to atone for sin is no longer needed because Jesus is that sacrifice. And many other things have been made permissible to those that are members of the family of Jesus Christ.

I am reminded of Acts 10 where God, in a prelude to his saving act of the centurion Cornelius, shares with Peter that it is wrong to call unclean what God has called clean. Peter here is given the freedom to eat anything (disavowing the Jewish food laws) and to go into the house of a gentile (also against Jewish law) to complete what God has called him to do.

All of this is to say that I am very happy and excited to live in blood of Jesus Christ. Certain things, like having clothing made of different cloth (against Jewish law) aren't thought about much but are definitely permissible to us now. And who doesn't like a good poly/cotton blend? I also love my steaks medium-rare (against Jewish law) and the ability to use the bathroom in my house (Jewish law dictates that you have to leave the communal areas for such purposes). I am glad that we have freedom. But there is a restriction to those freedoms, and that will be reserved until next week.

Reflections of auditing

Recently I have gone back to school. Not in the way that would win my brother the family bet on how fast I would go back to school (sorry Chris), but rather I have gone back to audit a class. For someone like me - a lover of learning - this is perfect. I get to read the books, take part in the class, and not do all the other work. I highly suggest this to people who want to learn something, but hate writing papers and taking tests.

I also want to say that Dallas Willard is incredible. It's day 1 of a 5 day intensive class and my brain hurts. My soul is also alive with the truth and insight I have been hearing for the last 4 hours. It only gets better from here. And I'm glad I took the time to come to this class, because it has already been worth it and we are just barely beginning.

My suggestion to everyone is to find a topic, a teacher, a school, or anything and learn more about it in a formal setting. Not that there is anything wrong with watching a Discovery channel special on it, but the depth of what you learn will never be the same. We are made to be life long learners and all too often we stop after high school or college. A man with a leg in a cast has muscle atrophy in that leg. The brain is the same way. If we don't stretch it, expand it, work it, we will loose it. So find ways to keep learning.