Freedom or Lawlessness

The other day, I overheard a conversation between two non-Christian men. The discussion was about drug use and abuse in our society, and particularly among young people. They came to the conclusion that while, in their opinion, drug use was a personal choice for teens and young adults that should not be judged by society or regulated by government, there are certainly some negative impacts from it. They posed the question to one another, “Since law never works anyway, can’t we just educate people to the point that they would always choose to use moderation in their drinking and drug use?”

This whole line of thinking really got me thinking about several things. For instance, isn’t it interesting that education is the world’s best solution to all the ills of society? Since they have rejected God, God’s wisdom, and man’s need of a Savior, they have to fall back on something they can do themselves. Since they believe that the mind or intellect is the highest part of man, they neither understand that the root problem is spiritual, nor see the solution.

While education is vital for a number of reasons, it falls woefully short in making any long-term change to our behavior–making us better people. The Bible teaches us that we humans are three-part beings – spirit, soul, and body. Only when the spirit is brought out of spiritual death and darkness, and reunited with the Holy Spirit, can we experience true transformation that first changes who we are, then produces new behavior.

If we choose education, without a relationship with God, as our primary tool for creating better behavior, we are relying on a fallen and broken part of man for positive change. No matter how much we learn about the negative impacts of sin, it is the Holy Spirit, not the knowledge alone, that empowers real, permanent, change. Education alone still relies on the flesh to carry out what we may have learned, and we all know that the flesh and its desires simply do not produce Godly behavior.

I also found it ironic that although both of these gentlemen would absolutely reject the idea that God exists, or that “religion” is a valid choice for anyone (I know this because I have had many discussions with them on the subject), here they were trying to find some way to get people to make better life choices. They reject God’s work in the heart, but then have to go searching for something else because their belief system produces quantifiable bad results. Hmmm….

Finally, both of these men talk frequently about how much they dislike government and law. They see that law alone never seems to actually fix the problem, but they refuse to acknowledge that the real problem with law lies not in law, but in the fallen nature of mankind. Jesus didn’t come to abolish the law, He came to fulfill the law, and to write God’s law on the human heart in the form of a relationship with God.

As I pondered this, it struck me that I agree with these men’s assessment of law. While I know that, because of the sin-nature in mankind, we will always need laws, I also know that they will never solve all the problems on earth. The message of the Gospel is that Jesus came to set us free–free from sin and free from the law. God in Christ has made it possible for us to live a life of transformation that produces Godliness, rather than a life of restraint that will always fall short. So I agree that law, while necessary, is not the real solution to the sin problem.

But here’s the thing; I hear a lot of this talk from people who, on the one hand, want to live in what they call “freedom,” but who do not want to deal with any of the negative consequences of their lifestyle. By “freedom” they mean they want to live a self-determined life. They want to do what they want to do when they want to do it without any responsibility or accountability. They don’t like laws primarily because laws are restrictive for them. They would rather live by a worldview that says there is no such thing as right and wrong, or that just because something is wrong for you, it may not be wrong for me. In other words, there is no such thing as an absolute (which of course is in itself a statement of an absolute).

They want to believe that enough education would eliminate the need for regulation inward or outward. But what is the real motivation behind this distain for law? Is it really that society would actually work better without law? History says otherwise. Or is it that they simply want a social framework that allows them to do what they want to do?

It seems that in many cases the cries for freedom are there, not because living with no moral or ethical framework actually produces better results, but because people don’t want any boundaries on their own behavior. In other words, I will champion freedom, because I don’t want anyone judging or restricting anything I do. Even within Christianity, if I speak of a socially acceptable, but Biblically condemned, behavior as sin, I am often accused being legalistic.

As I pondered all of this, and especially the fact that I fully agreed with these men’s sentiment that you can’t legislate morality, the Lord spoke this simple truth to me. “There is a big difference between avoiding legalism because you love freedom, and avoiding “legalism” because you love lawlessness. Only in Christ is there a freedom from both sin and law, because only in Christ can the human heart become clean and selfless. In Christ, God’s deepest motives, desires, and passions become our own. As a Christian I don’t live under law but under grace. But, the grace of God teaches me to say no to ungodliness, and to live an upright and self-controlled life in Christ (Titus 2:11). Freedom? Absolutely. Lawlessness? Absolutely not.

LIVING WORSHIP

I was standing there in church the other morning enjoying our time of worship. I love gathering with my brothers and sisters in Christ (yes, that does specifically mean people who have believed on Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior – John 1:12 – ‘nuff said) and worshiping God together as a congregation. I have some wonderful time in the presence of God on my own, but there is something very special about the gathering of God’s family in worship.

As I walked back and forth and talked to the Lord, I noticed that the music and vocals were absolutely wonderful. Sure, music tastes are personal, and all flavors of music have their place, I guess, (I can think of a couple of exceptions in my opinion, but let’s not get distracted), but I am so grateful to live in a day that allows me to worship with electric guitars, keyboards, awesome drums, and a fabulous sound system. It’s my culture, and I love it.

I also noticed the lights. These days, we enjoy some beautiful lighting in our sanctuaries that, if used skillfully, helps embody the tone of the worship. I also noticed the backgrounds behind the words on the screen. We have some very talented people at RMCM that find and use some beautiful backgrounds that also help direct our attention to God.

Now, I say I took notice of all of this, and this brings me to a couple of points. We have a conviction about worship at RMCM that says worship is not music, it isn’t even about music, but it is often expressed through the vehicle of music. The Bible makes it very clear that worship is an attitude of heart, which can be expressed through actions. While the term worship can speak of an action, it is only really worship if it is an action that comes from a worshipping heart. We can play Christian music all morning, we can sing every song along with the worship leader, we can lift our hands, bow, and lay out before the Lord, but if it is not from the heart, it is meaningless.

It is also important to remember here, that many of our daily expressions of worship are choices that we make, rather than words that we say. For my daily purposes, I think of worship as an outward action that reflects, or expresses, an inward adoration of, and submission to God. In that context, worship can take many forms. Having once had a big problem with alcohol, choosing to drink a coke instead of a beer is an act of worship for me. Choosing to watch an old Andy Griffith rerun, instead of Sex And The City (which, for the record, I have never seen) might be an act of worship for me. Choosing to forgive instead of holding a grudge – worship. You get the picture; any time I choose a life-giving course rather than a worldly course, it is an expression of worship.

Worship is however often expressed through music and song. David was the first person that we know of that designed and built instruments, and gathered gifted individuals to serve as musicians and song writers, specifically for corporate worship. Music stirs the emotions and helps the worshipper express the worship that is in his or her heart. Music, video, images, and lighting, can all help to capture the mood that the worship leader senses from the Holy Spirit. Our goal in corporate worship is simply to follow the direction of the Holy Spirit. All of this technology is wonderful and should be enjoyed, but the bottom line remains that worship only exists where there are worshiping hearts.

I say all of this because we live in such a media driven culture that it is really easy for us to become confused about the role of all of these elements that surround worship. We are so used to music videos, concerts, light shows, and musical entertainment, that it is easy for us to think the bigger the show the better the worship. It just isn’t true – the two are not even related. Bad music can certainly distract from a worship experience. Bad lighting could do the same. But good music and spectacular lighting done for the wrong reason can just as easily distract.

This is something that my wife Karen, our Worship Pastor, emphasizes to the team all the time–and I am pleased to say that our team gets it. They know what worship is about. They hone their musical skills, NOT so that they will be noticed, but specifically so that they will disappear and the Lord will be noticed. The members of our light and projection teams all understand this idea. What they work so hard to do is help people see the Lord face to face and not see their art. See, that’s why I had to pause the other morning to on purpose notice the music, the lights, the screen, because they were all being used well. They were not a distraction–what they were doing made it easier to focus on God and express my worship.

I’ve been in “worship” settings where the people on stage are clearly there to show their talent. The quenching of the Holy Spirit’s presence in those settings grieves the heart to no end. Now, to be fair, if I come in with a distracted heart and mind and I don’t get that right with God, any worship setting anywhere can feel distracting to me. If I am used to a different “worship culture,” it might take me a little while to engage, but where hearts are pointed to God I can get there in any setting.

This is one thing I enjoy about our midweek worship. Our midweek service is generally a very small group. Usually we have a short time of worship at the beginning to get our focus out of the busy week and onto God. It is usually just Karen and her guitar. Once in a while we have one or two other musicians involved. The lights are simple, there are usually no words put up on the screen, by modern standards it is bare bones. This is a wonderful time to remember that deep, fulfilling worship does not require much outward support. It comes from the heart, the worshipper gives it freely, and it is about God and nothing else. When we find ourselves unable to connect with God without a full band, it is time to unplug. When we find ourselves put off by a full band and a few lights, it is time to plug in.

So, I am grateful for the worship that we experience together at RMCM. I love our team, I love our atmosphere, I love the worshippers that bring worshipping hearts into church each week and are not afraid to express themselves. I love our loud times, and our quiet times, I love my alone times, I love worship, I love the fact that God meets us every time right in the middle of all our stuff. Worship – living, powerful, engaging worship, filled with the presence of God – what a deal!!

The Little Things That Say I Love You

With Christmas morning just hours away, I find myself reflecting not only on the extravagance of God's grace that is reflected in the gift of His Son, but on the goodness of God that we see in His attention to the smallest details of our lives.

Tomorrow morning people all over the world, Christian and non-Christian, will open gifts given by their friends and relatives. Gifts are always displays of love to one degree or another. Often, the most precious gifts we receive are not the most expensive, but the ones that in some way communicate that the giver really knew our inmost desire. It is the gift that says "I love you enough to listen to your words, to watch your life, to know your true desires," that brings the greatest and most lasting joy to our hearts.

How many times do we hear of situations where a husband, sorry guys but we seem to do more of this than the ladies do, gets an elaborate gift for his wife, only to discover that it was not at all what she wanted? On the other hand, the husband who listens, who reads between the lines, who finds a way to communicate his care through a gift, will be richly rewarded-not that that is our motive!

When we think of the gift of God's own Son, sent to carry our sin, shame, sickness and poverty, of course we are overwhelmed by this act of love. It is an extraordinary thing for which we are eternally grateful. But what amazes me, maybe not more, but in a different way, are the many times each year that God brings something much smaller into my life that tells me that God Almighty is paying attention to, not just my needs, but my desires, my hopes, my dreams. He goes so far beyond what is necessary for salvation, He touches our lives the most intimate fashion.

So I pray that your Christmas is filled with joy; joy over your salvation, joy in the purpose that God has given to your life, joy in your family and friends, and yeah, joy in what you give and receive. But I hope that in 2011, all of us make a habit of frequently and purposefully recognizing ALL the gifts that our Father gives. Let's spend a lot of time bragging on Him, sharing His love, cherishing our interaction with Him.

Merry Christmas, and happy New Year.