We often talk about Giving our whole lives over to God. We sing about, preach it, we constantly jabber on about 'Living for Jesus'. Yet we back it with a life style, with actions, that suggest otherwise. This isn't a call for us all to invade the nearest monastry, claiming selibacy and vowing to silence, poverty and other extreme measures. Religious fervour never led to intimacy with God. This isn't a call either for us to have no zeal or hunger at all in our lives (Galatians 4:18).
If I am honest I'm getting a little fed up of singing such cliched lines as 'I live for You' or 'I'm on fire for You' etc. Paul writes in Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me." I think it's time to take 'I' out the equation completely so its no longer
However as I mentioned in the previous post (Inspiring Churches), this is not about forcing ourselves into changing our entire behaviour because someone said we should. We have to realise that Christ came so we could have freedom (Galatians 5:1). In church we often take this to mean we have freedom from sin and shame, that we can walk free from nasty situations. Yes the freedom we have in Christ does give us these great things, but it goes so much deeper.
We have freedom to be ourselves, we have freedom to be God's chosen people, we are free from religion (Galatians 5:4), so much so that this should change the whole way we see church. I really want people to get this! We have freedom in church. Simple. Therefore if we are walking in freedom we don't have any feelings of obligation, duty, commitment or otherwise to the church. My love for my church is simply a by-product of my relationship with God. It naturally flows out so therefore I never feel pressured to grow in church. I want to grow. This is freedom. No pressure, no condemnation, no jumping through hoops I don't agree with.
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