True Freedom

"In the past you have encouraged many people;

you have strengthened those who were weak.

Your words have supported those who were falling;

you encouraged those with shaky knees.

But now when trouble strikes, you lose heart.

You are terrified when it touches you.

Doesn't your reverence for God give you confidence?

Doesn't your life of integrity give you hope?"

Job 4:3-6 NLT

Job's friends started off on the right foot.  They supported their friend in silence, sitting with him in loving comfort while he grieved the loss of his children and wealth.  It was their intention to console him in his suffering.  So deep was his sorrow and severe his physical condition that they hardly recognized him.  They mourned with him and recognized his suffering as "too great for words" (Job 2:13).

Then they opened their mouths.  

The first to speak, Eliphaz, had the audacity to rob Job of his need to lament.  Even worse, he failed to empathize, minimizing Job's suffering.  Somehow, this insensitive, cold-hearted friend had come to believe that life would be peachy-keen as long as one does the right thing.  Unfortunately for him, he fell into believing the fallacy of the formula for a happy, carefree life.

Power.  Life is what you make it.  

              You are the author of your own life story. 

              "Believe in yourself.  Have faith in your abilities.  Without a humble but reasonable                  confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy."  Norman                        Vincent Peale

              "If you don't design your own life plan, chances are you'll fall into someone else's                     plan.  And guess what they have planned for you?  Not much."  Jim Rohn

I'm surrounded by worldly messages telling me to make my own way in life. That it's up to me whether or not I succeed.  I'm told that I have what it takes to make my life what I want it to be.  

Using this mindset, then, it follows that I have the power to live right, to plan my own destiny, to write my own ending.  Accordingly, it follows that it is up to me to go after the life I want without ever asking God what it is He has planned for me.  I end up applying my own limited capacity toward my efforts to be self-disciplined, trying hard to keep away from what is bad and stick to what is good.  Thinking I can conform my life into my own mold, I assume anyone who is experiencing hardship or trial must be doing something wrong.  All it takes, I reason, is for them to get back on track and things will fall into place.

In reality, I have neither the capacity to do good nor the ability to save myself (Romans 7:18-20).  I'm hopelessly lost without the God who graciously gives me each breathe I take (Acts 17:25).  Without Jesus, I am nothing and can do nothing of worth (John 15:5).  

Buying into the belief that I have the power to make something good out of my life denies God's sovereign power.

Pride.  "Look at this great city of Babylon!  By my own mighty power, I have built this beautiful city as my royal residence to display my majestic splendor" (Daniel 4:30 NLT).  Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon did not suffer from a lack of self-confidence.  He drew such pleasure in admiring his handiwork and liked to think it all came about by his own savvy planning, through the sweat of his brow and as a result of his hard-fought position and authority as king.

Then God set about humbling him.  After seven years of living like an animal in solitude among the beasts of the field, he acknowledged God's position, giving Him praise and glory (Daniel 4:28-37).  He came to know the hard way that, "those who walk in pride he is able to humble" (Daniel 4:37).

I often need a similar season of chastening.  I begin to think it was my hard work that got me where I am, that any success I enjoy is by the sweat of my brow, and while God may have opened the door, it wouldn't have flourished if it wasn't for my consistent effort.

The reality is that only God has the plan for my life and it is only His wisdom that can choose the right path for me.  Thinking otherwise drives me to judge others, determining that their struggle is due to a lack of focus or an unwillingness to apply common sense to their problems.  In other words, I begin to think I can fix anyone's problems by using my own formula for living.

In the same way that God placed Nebuchadnezzar in his position as king for His own purposes, He has a reason for placing me where I am (Jeremiah 27:4-7).  Once I begin to deny this truth, I start believing man has what it takes to direct his own paths (Proverbs 3:5-6). 

Buying into the belief that I have the wisdom to know which path is best for me denies God's purpose and unknowable plan (Jeremiah 29:11).

Penance.  It seems too easy.  There must be more.  Surely I can't get off Scott-free?  

Forgiveness for sins through faith in Jesus Christ does seem too easy.  Even though Jesus declared atonement finished and salvation secured as He suffered on the cross and gave up His life, I often think there must be some part I must play, a role I am required to fill, or a duty I must carry out (John 19:30).  After all, I think, it's my sin so I must receive some kind of punishment.  Right?  Wrong!

In dying on the cross out of obedience to His Father's plan, Jesus accomplished all that is necessary to cover my sins and usher me into my Father's holy presence (Hebrews 10:19-22).  It was His blood that cleansed me from all unrighteousness (Isaiah 1:18).  Forgiveness is already mine due to what Jesus has done (1 John 1:9).  There is nothing left for me to do but simply believe (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Oswald Chambers explains it this way.  "When I turn to God and by belief accept what God reveals I can accept, instantly the stupendous Atonement of Jesus Christ rushes me into a right relationship with God;  and by the supernatural miracle of God's grace I stand justified, not because I am sorry for my sin, not because I have repented, but because of what Jesus has done."

I often slip into the belief that I must suffer a bit for my sin, that there must be some kind of punishment due me for how I have fallen short, or that I am not worthy to receive forgiveness unless I make some kind of effort to do better.  This mentality leads me to project this lie onto others, refusing them the absolution that is freely theirs through faith in Christ.  Instead, I expect others to try harder, to get their act together, or to be truly sorry for their sin.  Instead, all it takes is simple faith in what Jesus has already done to secure their salvation. 

Buying into the belief that I have to perform some kind of penance in order to receive forgiveness denies the power of Jesus' blood to cover all sin.

It's easy to think my life will be fine as long as I work hard, do what is right, and make up for my sins through selfless service or some other form of penance.  This line of thinking is all wrong, though, as it denies God's sovereign power, His perfect purpose, and the power of Jesus' blood.  When I fall into this fallacy of the formula for a happy life, I'll soon find I'm projecting my faulty expectations on others.  Instead, it is my desire that I let God choose for me, trust in His plan for my life, and fully realize my dependency upon what Jesus has already done.  In these ways I'll walk in true freedom.  

As I begin this day it is my prayer that I can trust God fully with my life.

How do I attempt to control certain facets of my life in an effort to follow my own path?

When am I most at risk of thinking I am the captain of my own destiny?