This post is more to inspire discussion than to expound on any particular subject myself...
On page 93 in his book, Hopkins writes, "God had sent him [Jacob] trials..." This got me thinking as I recently read through the book of James during January and I had a conversation with a friend about God's actions in I Samuel towards Saul. Here are the passages in question:
I Samuel 16:14 - "Now the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul, and a harmful spirit from the Lord tormented him."
James 1:13 - "Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one."
So I really don't enjoy proof-texting but for the sake of brevity that's what you get. You can go to the ESV's website (http://www.gnpcb.org/esv/) and look up the surrounding passages to get a better feel for the text, which I suggest you do. Regardless, we seem to have several opposing view points. First, God sends a "harmful spirit" to torment Saul. While it doesn't say the spirit tempted Saul, I can only imagine that it did in some way. Second, Hopkins states that Jacob was sent trials from God. Third, we have James telling us God tempts no one.
Is this a simple case of trying to create a disparity when none exists? If so, how the heck are we to make sense of a loving, good, perfect, and just God that sends a harmful spirit? Expound at length.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
God and Us
Colossians 1:1-14. Campaigner Lesson.
One of the first things that stands out to me that Paul calls himself an apostle by the will of God. It wasn't by his will or by a majority vote. Paul became God's ambassador to the Gentiles by the commissioning and sending of the LORD. That really puts into perspective what Paul has to say. Some may call him arrogant. Fine. But irregardless, he met Christ on the road to Damascus. I believe God is truly sovereign. Therefore, whatever is written is to be taken as divine revelation, not some trivial novel to be bruised and beaten for his tact or lack thereof. If God declares Paul an apostle, I think it's crucial that we scrutinize what he wrote, not for the purpose of declaring him inadequate or denying his authorship, but for the desire to abide in every last bit of Truth God speaks (intentionally present tense) through him.
One of the other things that struck me was the way Paul speaks about the Christian lifestyle. "And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light" (1:9-12).
Here, he states that he prays the we "be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding." Who's doing the filling? Certainly not us are it is spiritual wisdom and understanding by which we come to know God's will. We were dead inside till given life through Christ. Faith, this life, is a gift only from God. This is God's role in our lives to fill us with this spiritual knowledge and understanding. However, Paul continues on to say that this filling will allow us "to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord." This is our role. Now that we have been awakened and filled, we are to use this to walk in a manner pleasing to the Lord. How is this done? Love God with all our entire being, yielding ourselves as a sacrifice, and loving our neighbors as ourselves. James also has a nice quote about religion that is undefiled in his first chapter. What is the purpose of walking in a manner pleasing to God? It is to bear fruit. Do we produce this fruit. No. It is shown in our lives only because we are connected to the true Vine and abide in him. We have been grafted onto him so that he is in us and we in him. Tricky. A branch apart from the vine is dead, but when grafted on to the source of Life, it begins to produce fruit as it was intended to do. This is the life that is pleasing to God, fulfilling our intended purpose of glorifying the LORD.
Then verse 11 starts out by wishing the we would be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might. What better to be strengthened with than with all power? Makes sense to me. However, I look at myself and notice I am weak and fallible. Heck, I barely crack triple digits when trying to bench while others do it without any trouble at all. Weak indeed. Fallible? I really don't even need to expound on this. If this is the case, then all power does not come from me but outside of my control.
When we look at Exodus, we gain insight as to the source of this all power. During a showdown with Pharaoh during the seventh chapter, Aaron throws down his staff and it becomes a serpent. Not to be outdone, Pharaoh's magicians imitate this miracle by their own "secret arts." At best, the score is even right now. However, Aaron's staff, in the hands of God, swallows up the other snakes. This displays God's ultimate sovereignty over any and all powers of the world. in the Egyptian mind, swallowing your opponent represented total superiority. Pharaoh's magicians were the best in the world. Their secret arts were dominated by God. The snake represented the most powerful god in the Egyptian mindset. This, too, was swallowed up. Pharaoh, his magicians, and their secret arts represented sin and death. This was swallowed up by Christ in victory through his resurrection. Clearly, the power of God is greater than anything this world has to offer.
According to his glorious might could mean several things. First, it could be in line with or in accordance with. This would mean that we are strengthened to do exactly what he wills for us to do. A second interpretation holds that "according to" would be synonymous with "assigned by." Either this all power is controlled by God, meaning God is fully sovereign.
Paul continues on to state the purpose of being strengthened by God's might. We are not to sit around boast. Instead, it is so that we might endure and be patient with joy, "giving thanks to the Father." The word endure implies some sort of pain or suffering. We are to remain steadfast through this pain. As well we are to be patient. This simply means we have to wait. If we're waiting, then we're on the terms on someone or something else. Is that a god of this world or the LORD who has proven his superiority over sin and death? Either way, we're a servant. As for me and my household, we will serve the LORD. However, the key to this section, I think, is the prepositional phrase "with joy." Many people in this world are so self-consumed that they cannot endure suffering or be patient. Others look outside themselves enough to exhibit qualities or endurance and patience but they are not focused on God so their suffering and waiting is pointless and fruitless. Too much suffering and waiting will eventually break them because all humans have a breaking point. But for the one who is focused on God, it is possible to suffer, endure, and wait with joy, even giving thanks to God.
How is this possible? There are two responses to this query. First, we have been strengthened by God according to his glorious might. Therefore, it is no longer through our strength that we endure, but his. As God is infinite, he has no breaking point. The world cannot break God as he is completely superior, demonstrated by his victory in Exodus 7 and Christ. Second, our suffering has a purpose. As seen only a few verses earlier, we are to be bearing fruit and glorifying God. That is the purpose of our lives. The end result makes it possible to endure and be patient with joy. Not only that, but we give thanks to the Father. When a carnal person is suffering, its wisdom directs it to end the suffering and seek the easy path. When a spiritual person is suffering, we endure and be patient with joy and give thanks because we know God will be glorified through it. This reasoning is folly to the natural person because it is through God's might that we understand (1 Corinthians 2:14). Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world (1 Corinthians 1:20)?
So if we are to give thanks in suffering, shouldn't we be considered masochists? To borrow from Paul, by no means! We give thanks because what we gained through Christ is greater than anything we could suffer in this world. When I was younger, I loved amusement parks. One day, my dad told me we were going to Hershey Park. The car ride there was excruciating. It seemed as if it'd never end. However, it was worth it because in the end I got to enjoy the roller coasters and other rides. During the ride, although it was difficult for me and something I had to endure, I was filled with great joy and thanking my dad for taking me. For us, Paul writes our reasoning for giving thanks much clearer than I ever could so I will let him explain. We can give thanks to God in the midst of suffering because he "has qualified [us] to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." That grace, undeserved favor, is certainly worth giving thanks for in the midst of any suffering or excitement. It is the roller coaster at the end of the car trip. But again, we give thanks because it was given to us, not because we earned it.
In Colossians 1:9-10 and 11-14, we see Paul following the same pattern to illustrate the proper course of a life in Christ. It begins and ends with God. In the middle, God has allowed us to act and be a part of his perfect will. This, once again, is simply another example of the undeserved grace that we have received.
One of the first things that stands out to me that Paul calls himself an apostle by the will of God. It wasn't by his will or by a majority vote. Paul became God's ambassador to the Gentiles by the commissioning and sending of the LORD. That really puts into perspective what Paul has to say. Some may call him arrogant. Fine. But irregardless, he met Christ on the road to Damascus. I believe God is truly sovereign. Therefore, whatever is written is to be taken as divine revelation, not some trivial novel to be bruised and beaten for his tact or lack thereof. If God declares Paul an apostle, I think it's crucial that we scrutinize what he wrote, not for the purpose of declaring him inadequate or denying his authorship, but for the desire to abide in every last bit of Truth God speaks (intentionally present tense) through him.
One of the other things that struck me was the way Paul speaks about the Christian lifestyle. "And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light" (1:9-12).
Here, he states that he prays the we "be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding." Who's doing the filling? Certainly not us are it is spiritual wisdom and understanding by which we come to know God's will. We were dead inside till given life through Christ. Faith, this life, is a gift only from God. This is God's role in our lives to fill us with this spiritual knowledge and understanding. However, Paul continues on to say that this filling will allow us "to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord." This is our role. Now that we have been awakened and filled, we are to use this to walk in a manner pleasing to the Lord. How is this done? Love God with all our entire being, yielding ourselves as a sacrifice, and loving our neighbors as ourselves. James also has a nice quote about religion that is undefiled in his first chapter. What is the purpose of walking in a manner pleasing to God? It is to bear fruit. Do we produce this fruit. No. It is shown in our lives only because we are connected to the true Vine and abide in him. We have been grafted onto him so that he is in us and we in him. Tricky. A branch apart from the vine is dead, but when grafted on to the source of Life, it begins to produce fruit as it was intended to do. This is the life that is pleasing to God, fulfilling our intended purpose of glorifying the LORD.
Then verse 11 starts out by wishing the we would be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might. What better to be strengthened with than with all power? Makes sense to me. However, I look at myself and notice I am weak and fallible. Heck, I barely crack triple digits when trying to bench while others do it without any trouble at all. Weak indeed. Fallible? I really don't even need to expound on this. If this is the case, then all power does not come from me but outside of my control.
When we look at Exodus, we gain insight as to the source of this all power. During a showdown with Pharaoh during the seventh chapter, Aaron throws down his staff and it becomes a serpent. Not to be outdone, Pharaoh's magicians imitate this miracle by their own "secret arts." At best, the score is even right now. However, Aaron's staff, in the hands of God, swallows up the other snakes. This displays God's ultimate sovereignty over any and all powers of the world. in the Egyptian mind, swallowing your opponent represented total superiority. Pharaoh's magicians were the best in the world. Their secret arts were dominated by God. The snake represented the most powerful god in the Egyptian mindset. This, too, was swallowed up. Pharaoh, his magicians, and their secret arts represented sin and death. This was swallowed up by Christ in victory through his resurrection. Clearly, the power of God is greater than anything this world has to offer.
According to his glorious might could mean several things. First, it could be in line with or in accordance with. This would mean that we are strengthened to do exactly what he wills for us to do. A second interpretation holds that "according to" would be synonymous with "assigned by." Either this all power is controlled by God, meaning God is fully sovereign.
Paul continues on to state the purpose of being strengthened by God's might. We are not to sit around boast. Instead, it is so that we might endure and be patient with joy, "giving thanks to the Father." The word endure implies some sort of pain or suffering. We are to remain steadfast through this pain. As well we are to be patient. This simply means we have to wait. If we're waiting, then we're on the terms on someone or something else. Is that a god of this world or the LORD who has proven his superiority over sin and death? Either way, we're a servant. As for me and my household, we will serve the LORD. However, the key to this section, I think, is the prepositional phrase "with joy." Many people in this world are so self-consumed that they cannot endure suffering or be patient. Others look outside themselves enough to exhibit qualities or endurance and patience but they are not focused on God so their suffering and waiting is pointless and fruitless. Too much suffering and waiting will eventually break them because all humans have a breaking point. But for the one who is focused on God, it is possible to suffer, endure, and wait with joy, even giving thanks to God.
How is this possible? There are two responses to this query. First, we have been strengthened by God according to his glorious might. Therefore, it is no longer through our strength that we endure, but his. As God is infinite, he has no breaking point. The world cannot break God as he is completely superior, demonstrated by his victory in Exodus 7 and Christ. Second, our suffering has a purpose. As seen only a few verses earlier, we are to be bearing fruit and glorifying God. That is the purpose of our lives. The end result makes it possible to endure and be patient with joy. Not only that, but we give thanks to the Father. When a carnal person is suffering, its wisdom directs it to end the suffering and seek the easy path. When a spiritual person is suffering, we endure and be patient with joy and give thanks because we know God will be glorified through it. This reasoning is folly to the natural person because it is through God's might that we understand (1 Corinthians 2:14). Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world (1 Corinthians 1:20)?
So if we are to give thanks in suffering, shouldn't we be considered masochists? To borrow from Paul, by no means! We give thanks because what we gained through Christ is greater than anything we could suffer in this world. When I was younger, I loved amusement parks. One day, my dad told me we were going to Hershey Park. The car ride there was excruciating. It seemed as if it'd never end. However, it was worth it because in the end I got to enjoy the roller coasters and other rides. During the ride, although it was difficult for me and something I had to endure, I was filled with great joy and thanking my dad for taking me. For us, Paul writes our reasoning for giving thanks much clearer than I ever could so I will let him explain. We can give thanks to God in the midst of suffering because he "has qualified [us] to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." That grace, undeserved favor, is certainly worth giving thanks for in the midst of any suffering or excitement. It is the roller coaster at the end of the car trip. But again, we give thanks because it was given to us, not because we earned it.
In Colossians 1:9-10 and 11-14, we see Paul following the same pattern to illustrate the proper course of a life in Christ. It begins and ends with God. In the middle, God has allowed us to act and be a part of his perfect will. This, once again, is simply another example of the undeserved grace that we have received.
Come and See
Campaigner Lesson. John 1:41-53.
Small groups:
- Highs?
- Lows?
- What was the last scripture read and what did it teach you?
READ John 1:43-51
- campaigner; have them listen
READ John 1:43-51
- me; have them underline
Summarize
- What happened?
Why did Philip go to Nathanael?
- Excited about Christ; wants others to know; knew Nathan had to know
Compare 1:43 and 1:45
- v43: “He found Philip and said to him…”
- v45: “Philip found Nathanael and said to him…”
- What does this say about Jesus’ command to follow?
How does Nate react?
- disbelief
- Nazareth = redneck, backwater, nothing good ever came from here, Perry County
Did he want to go?
- No, but he went anyways
- Why?
Would he have come without Philip?
- No
- Christ could have done this but chose to use Philip
- Philip was willing to risk rejection and did get rejected; but didn’t take no for an answer
How did Nate react when he met Jesus?
- Excited, total perspective change
What does Jesus promise Nate?
- promises of greater things
- all he did was come and see and Christ is already changing his life
- both will see these things because of their friendship
Who do you trust? Why?
- They’ve proven themselves trustworthy
- LotR: think the fellowship trust each other?
- didn’t start like that
- what changed?
Same goes for God
- how is he going to prove himself trustworthy if we refuse to let him?
- faith is trusting that Christ is all we need; it’s actively lived out
- many believe in God; few have faith
- if there is no relationship there is no trust
- relationship comes through putting time and effort in
- praying, reading scripture (pray, read twice, underline, apply, pray)
- we’re called to have faith, not just believe
- Pharaoh believed, demons believe but they don’t know God
Monday night
- How’d it go?
- Invite anyone?
- What’s the purpose?
Connection with passage?
- What are we inviting them to see?
- Will people come without us risking?
- like Nate, they’ll reject us initially, you know this
- Christ calls us to follow him, which means follow his lead
- saved and called
- how do we trust God?
- build the relationship, learn what God says
- Christ changes people, not us
- use connections
- Why did Philip go to Nate? They were friends
- talk about it now
- rides to friends/freshmen
- stay after practice/school
- lunch room
- hmwk times
What is a huddle?
- team, learn the play
- play is being intentional
- HUDDLE!
- affirm and lift them up
- here, we’re a team
- Col 1:17, we’re held together by Christ
- games not won in huddle, but on field
- from here we go out and trust
- team has to trust each other or play will fall apart
- our part of the play is to build relationships
- Christ will change lives
- PRAY
- break huddle
- do it
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Freedom
Evan H. Hopkins. The Law of Liberty in the Spiritual Life: Chapter Four.
- "The essence of well-being is freedom in life"
- "Liberty consists in the unrestrained activities of life."
- "Freedom is not the end but rather the condition of Christian conflict--of true victorious warfare."
- "For this it is necessary that life...should be in its true and appropriate element...Restoration consists in both the quickening of the spirit and its introduction into its appropriate environment...Spiritual liberty can be known, therefore, only by those who have life and are abiding in Him who is the true sphere of life."
- "There is a threefold emancipation we may notice in connection with our experience of true freedom: liberty for the mind, conscience, and the will."
For restoration to occur, my spirit must be enlivened and within the appropriate and healthy environment. This freedom occurs once the three areas of a person's being mind, conscience, and will are free. In the same way, now that my mind has been transformed in must be within its proper environment. This, according to Hopkins, is truth. I, specifically my mind, must abide in Christ who is known as the Truth. But what does it mean for this to happen?
Very simply, it means that my mind must be focused on spiritual matters, that of Christ and necessarily the Truth. To abide and take refuge in Christ is to be constantly training my mind's eye on Christ. When that occurs, liberty is realized because my mind is no longer restrained. I am not fighting off lustful thoughts--which I know are wrong--because my mind has been set free from the law of sin and death. Instead, I am under the Law of the Spirit of life in Christ which means my mind is achieving the purpose it was intended for, to glorify the LORD. My decisions are no longer restrained by the law of sin but instead I freely choose the correct path because my mind is abiding in Christ. These choices glorify God and not myself.
This is what the apostle Paul spoke about when he said that the law itself is good. Indeed, the Law that God gave us is holy and Christ came to fulfill the law, not destroy it. However, through the law, sin gained a stronghold in our lives that condemns us. No one is righteous by the Law, which due to sin's corrupting effects became the law of sin and death. We made decisions based on sin not based on God's glory and grace. . Our options are limited and restrained. We struggle to maintain a godly standard. Sin can only constrain and burden. Only Christ and God's grace is capable of freedom. Now, the law of the Spirit of life, realized only through abiding in Christ so that no man may boast in anything except Christ and him crucified, is making unrestrained choices based on God's glory. We are not longer limited by sin, but set free by Christ.
The moment I begin to take pride in myself for those choices, I have taken my mind off God and am no longer abiding in Christ. I may be making the right choice, but it is done so by the law of sin and death, not the law of the Spirit of life in Christ. To abide means to exist in. It is a constant presence. I must continually be consuming my mind with Christ, counting all else loss, lest that self-focus may return.
My mind has been transformed. Just as a plant without good soil, air, sun, and water will not live, my mind if not in its proper environment will not survive. That environment is in the Truth of God and no where else. What does this look like practically? Paul helps us in this endeavor but exhorting us to pray and give thanks constantly. Why do we pray? To recognize our dependence on God. Why do we give thanks? For getting something we did nothing to earn. Both cases show that God was responsible, not us. This puts us on our knees before God. In that position, pride cannot exist. Additionally, simply spending time in Scripture alone (reading, memorizing, meditating, praying) and together (discussing, praying, sharing, learning) properly places our mind in its created environment of the Truth.
The second area in need of liberation is the conscience. Sin wrecks our lives as its only power is to destroy. Its effect is seen in the guilt of a conscience. On one hand, the guilt is the recognition of wrongful actions or thoughts. It shows the quickening of the soul. However, it also shows that the soul of that person is not free as it is weighed down by the turmoil caused by guilt. Actions are chosen out of fear of future guilt, not out of purified desires in Christ. The conscience's true environment is then peace. When the conscience is at peace, it no longer dwells on past failures but is enlivened by the redemption and non-condemnation found in Christ. Practically, this is a matter of placing our focus on God and his Truth. Each of these areas does not exist on its own island but instead is joined together in the liberation or bondage of the soul.
The third area is the will of man. According to Hopkins, our will is not free. It is enslaved by fear and desire. With the soul being given life, a person may know the right actions but yet not take part in them. The question is then why is this? It is because the person's will is controlled by fear of the earthly ramifications or it is controlled by carnal passions. The person knows the actions are sin and struggles against it, but humans can only follow their strongest desire. So while we may know the right action, we do otherwise because our passions are stronger than our will. However, our will can never be strong enough on our own accord to overcome these passions. Christ can make our will strong enough, but our passions still exist. So while we may eventually perform the right actions, the passions still exist. It is only through the freedom from these passions that the will becomes totally free. With the passions gone, the will has nothing left to contend for supremacy but the desires of god.
This freedom is found in the love of God. Freedom of the will means we do whatever we please. The fully redeemed will is holy and therefore pursues the will of the Creator. These actions are not only right in the physical sense, but we take pleasure in doing them. It is no longer a struggle to perform them. We love those around us because it is the will of God and we find pure delight in that. This love is not from us, as our carnal, sinful nature only causes destruction and self-pleasure. It is a divine love that only comes from God. Truly, we can love because he first loved us. It is through this love that right actions are no longer based on duty to the law. Duty is motivated by fear of the consequences. Love (which casts out fear) is motivated by God. We may know our duty through faith but love is what makes it live-giving. Love removes the sense of duty and replaces it with Christ. We have been given faith and love as a gift from God. It is God's love that frees our will to love others and even God himself. His love allows us to love; it becomes our love.
When these three areas are fully emancipated, the soul experiences freedom as well. The restrained duty of the Christian life, plagued by fear, guilt, and passions, becomes of a life of liberty that lives out of the freedom found in truth, peace, and love. It is in this liberty that spiritual warfare must be conducted. Only when we are free can we truly partake in the battle on the side of Christ. If we are still restrained and struggling, we may be alive spiritually but we are still in a state of rebellion as we fight the desires and passions of our members. Where there is rebellion, there is no peace. Christ's yoke is truly light when we have full liberty because we delight in doing what is right. When it feels heavy and burdensome, we are struggling against sin. It is the love of God which frees our will, clears our conscience, and brings Truth to our minds that.
"But do you ask, How am I to get this love? 'Love,' one has said, 'cannot be produced by a direct action of the soul upon itself. A man in a boat cannot move it by pressing it from within.' It is not by straining and struggling that this blessed condition is brought about; it comes by a very real dedication of ourselves to God for this very purpose," Hopkins writes. We must pray and fully submit in all parts of our lives, trusting in God's sovereignty and love. As James says, we must ask with the expectation that God will give, being steadfast in the request, not for our own glory but for the LORD's.
- "The essence of well-being is freedom in life"
- "Liberty consists in the unrestrained activities of life."
- "Freedom is not the end but rather the condition of Christian conflict--of true victorious warfare."
- "For this it is necessary that life...should be in its true and appropriate element...Restoration consists in both the quickening of the spirit and its introduction into its appropriate environment...Spiritual liberty can be known, therefore, only by those who have life and are abiding in Him who is the true sphere of life."
- "There is a threefold emancipation we may notice in connection with our experience of true freedom: liberty for the mind, conscience, and the will."
For restoration to occur, my spirit must be enlivened and within the appropriate and healthy environment. This freedom occurs once the three areas of a person's being mind, conscience, and will are free. In the same way, now that my mind has been transformed in must be within its proper environment. This, according to Hopkins, is truth. I, specifically my mind, must abide in Christ who is known as the Truth. But what does it mean for this to happen?
Very simply, it means that my mind must be focused on spiritual matters, that of Christ and necessarily the Truth. To abide and take refuge in Christ is to be constantly training my mind's eye on Christ. When that occurs, liberty is realized because my mind is no longer restrained. I am not fighting off lustful thoughts--which I know are wrong--because my mind has been set free from the law of sin and death. Instead, I am under the Law of the Spirit of life in Christ which means my mind is achieving the purpose it was intended for, to glorify the LORD. My decisions are no longer restrained by the law of sin but instead I freely choose the correct path because my mind is abiding in Christ. These choices glorify God and not myself.
This is what the apostle Paul spoke about when he said that the law itself is good. Indeed, the Law that God gave us is holy and Christ came to fulfill the law, not destroy it. However, through the law, sin gained a stronghold in our lives that condemns us. No one is righteous by the Law, which due to sin's corrupting effects became the law of sin and death. We made decisions based on sin not based on God's glory and grace. . Our options are limited and restrained. We struggle to maintain a godly standard. Sin can only constrain and burden. Only Christ and God's grace is capable of freedom. Now, the law of the Spirit of life, realized only through abiding in Christ so that no man may boast in anything except Christ and him crucified, is making unrestrained choices based on God's glory. We are not longer limited by sin, but set free by Christ.
The moment I begin to take pride in myself for those choices, I have taken my mind off God and am no longer abiding in Christ. I may be making the right choice, but it is done so by the law of sin and death, not the law of the Spirit of life in Christ. To abide means to exist in. It is a constant presence. I must continually be consuming my mind with Christ, counting all else loss, lest that self-focus may return.
My mind has been transformed. Just as a plant without good soil, air, sun, and water will not live, my mind if not in its proper environment will not survive. That environment is in the Truth of God and no where else. What does this look like practically? Paul helps us in this endeavor but exhorting us to pray and give thanks constantly. Why do we pray? To recognize our dependence on God. Why do we give thanks? For getting something we did nothing to earn. Both cases show that God was responsible, not us. This puts us on our knees before God. In that position, pride cannot exist. Additionally, simply spending time in Scripture alone (reading, memorizing, meditating, praying) and together (discussing, praying, sharing, learning) properly places our mind in its created environment of the Truth.
The second area in need of liberation is the conscience. Sin wrecks our lives as its only power is to destroy. Its effect is seen in the guilt of a conscience. On one hand, the guilt is the recognition of wrongful actions or thoughts. It shows the quickening of the soul. However, it also shows that the soul of that person is not free as it is weighed down by the turmoil caused by guilt. Actions are chosen out of fear of future guilt, not out of purified desires in Christ. The conscience's true environment is then peace. When the conscience is at peace, it no longer dwells on past failures but is enlivened by the redemption and non-condemnation found in Christ. Practically, this is a matter of placing our focus on God and his Truth. Each of these areas does not exist on its own island but instead is joined together in the liberation or bondage of the soul.
The third area is the will of man. According to Hopkins, our will is not free. It is enslaved by fear and desire. With the soul being given life, a person may know the right actions but yet not take part in them. The question is then why is this? It is because the person's will is controlled by fear of the earthly ramifications or it is controlled by carnal passions. The person knows the actions are sin and struggles against it, but humans can only follow their strongest desire. So while we may know the right action, we do otherwise because our passions are stronger than our will. However, our will can never be strong enough on our own accord to overcome these passions. Christ can make our will strong enough, but our passions still exist. So while we may eventually perform the right actions, the passions still exist. It is only through the freedom from these passions that the will becomes totally free. With the passions gone, the will has nothing left to contend for supremacy but the desires of god.
This freedom is found in the love of God. Freedom of the will means we do whatever we please. The fully redeemed will is holy and therefore pursues the will of the Creator. These actions are not only right in the physical sense, but we take pleasure in doing them. It is no longer a struggle to perform them. We love those around us because it is the will of God and we find pure delight in that. This love is not from us, as our carnal, sinful nature only causes destruction and self-pleasure. It is a divine love that only comes from God. Truly, we can love because he first loved us. It is through this love that right actions are no longer based on duty to the law. Duty is motivated by fear of the consequences. Love (which casts out fear) is motivated by God. We may know our duty through faith but love is what makes it live-giving. Love removes the sense of duty and replaces it with Christ. We have been given faith and love as a gift from God. It is God's love that frees our will to love others and even God himself. His love allows us to love; it becomes our love.
When these three areas are fully emancipated, the soul experiences freedom as well. The restrained duty of the Christian life, plagued by fear, guilt, and passions, becomes of a life of liberty that lives out of the freedom found in truth, peace, and love. It is in this liberty that spiritual warfare must be conducted. Only when we are free can we truly partake in the battle on the side of Christ. If we are still restrained and struggling, we may be alive spiritually but we are still in a state of rebellion as we fight the desires and passions of our members. Where there is rebellion, there is no peace. Christ's yoke is truly light when we have full liberty because we delight in doing what is right. When it feels heavy and burdensome, we are struggling against sin. It is the love of God which frees our will, clears our conscience, and brings Truth to our minds that.
"But do you ask, How am I to get this love? 'Love,' one has said, 'cannot be produced by a direct action of the soul upon itself. A man in a boat cannot move it by pressing it from within.' It is not by straining and struggling that this blessed condition is brought about; it comes by a very real dedication of ourselves to God for this very purpose," Hopkins writes. We must pray and fully submit in all parts of our lives, trusting in God's sovereignty and love. As James says, we must ask with the expectation that God will give, being steadfast in the request, not for our own glory but for the LORD's.
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