WAR OF THE WORLDS – Part 5

Letting Go of the X’s

The Christian life can never be lived by being a slave to our X’s. Let me explain. Too many (most of us) have gone through periods in our lives where we think we can please God by what we do or don’t do. We make many resolutions and vow to keep them, only to see them crumble like dust at our feet. If we would only understand this picture Paul gives us in Romans 6-8 we would begin to live in the freedom Christ intended rather than living in servitude to our past mates, i.e. the Law.

Paul says in chapter 6, we're free from sin positionally. Chapter 7, he says we're free from the law. He talked about it as a marriage -- we're married to a new person. He said before you became a Christian you were married to the Law and under its condemnation. But you're not married to the Law anymore, now you're married to Christ. You don't have to please the Law any more. It's like saying, I really love my wife and therefore I'm going to go do a lot of nice things for my ex-wife. That wouldn't make sense.

There are two ways to try to live the Christian life: one, under the Law -- I'm going to try to keep all the rules and regulations in my own willpower. You're doomed to failure. The other is to relax in God's grace and let Him live through you. Don't be surprised when you make a resolution and you don't live up to it in your own effort. All our best intentions are not good enough. That's what Romans 7 is all about. The Law was never intended to change your life. There's only one thing that can change your life -- God Himself, His Spirit.
Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17 (ESV)

Don’t serve the X’s – the Law – the former legalistic way of trying to get and keep what only can be freely received and released!