Bondage part 1
If you've been aware of the "grace message" for any length of time you've probably heard the phrase, "Grace is just a license to sin." And I really have to shake my head when I hear that. Because it's an argument built on faulty logic. Because if what you're looking for is a license to sin... if what you're looking for is the ability to do "bad stuff" without getting in trouble... then you don't understand what freedom is all about. See, grace is freedom TO sin, grace is freedom FROM sin. Now before we go any further I have to say that I don't believe "sin" is what you do. I believe sin is unbelief. If you define sin according to the Law of Moses, then you're in the wrong covenant. Jesus is the Lamb of God who TOOK AWAY the sin of the world. Now, did Jesus take away our actions? Of course not. We CAN do whatever we want to do. That's the measure of free will that we have. What Jesus took away was our unbelief. And how He did that was by giving us something (love)... someone (Himself)... to believe in! He gave His life as a ransom to many. And why did He have to ransom us? Because we were already under bondage! It's the story of the people of Israel, who were slaves in Egypt, being ransomed by the Passover Lamb! We don't seem to realize that before the cross we were in bondage. And then the cross freed us. Ephesians 2:1 says it like this, "And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins..." We were in a dimension where we didn't have a choice about what we did. Romans 7:19 explains it like this, "For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do." It's the struggle of wanting to be "good" but not being able to. And it's a struggle because it's the wrong tree. It's the tree of knowledge of good and evil. It's the old man nature. The beast nature. And that old man was crucified, died, and buried on the cross. And the new man was quickened, raised, and seated three days later! We don't have that nature anymore. We're not in bondage anymore. The fig tree (of human effort... trying to get enough knowledge of good and evil that we can do good and stop doing evil) was cursed by Jesus Himself because it couldn't produce any fruit. And Jesus grafted us into the other tree--The Tree of Life. He is the vine and we are the branches. He produced the fruit of the Spirit (which is love) and all we have to do is bear it (or carry it) to those who need it. And that's the difference between liberty and bondage. When we were in bondage--when we were dead in our trespasses and sins--we couldn't be a "good Christian" no matter how hard we tried. But not, because Jesus ransomed us, we can't be anything BUT. Now we are equipped and empowered to be who we really are. Not a sinner... but a saint. Not a slave... but a Son. A beloved Son in whom our heavenly Father is well pleased. Now the good that we want to do comes out naturally. Now the love that we want to share comes from inside-out, and not from outside-in. It's in there (and we know and believe it's in there) so it comes out all on it's own!