Looks like my husband isn't feeling well today and so he is staying home from work.
It's a cooler day. So maybe I will get a little more outdoor work done. I must be careful though. My low back and rib has been causing me a little grief. The chiropractor helped yesterday and I don't want to undo what progress she made. I will be mindful of how I lift and move things.
Sounds like someone is using a jackhammer in the neighborhood. Could be a noisy time outside today.
My Quiet Time
Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, (Touch not; taste not; handle not; Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men? Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh. (Colossians 2:20-23 KJV)
Here Paul asks why Christians continue to be enslaved to legalism when they are set free from all of this through Christ. Many Christians continue to live by a list of do's and don't's because it is easier to feel holy and worthy to God if they can check off the items on their list and compare themselves to their fellow Christians.
This isn't how we are to live the Christian life. We are to live our lives for the glory of God. That means we have make daily decisions based on what will glorify God, not based on an arbitrary list of rules that the church hands out, or based on doing better then the other Christians in your life. Too often, we unwittingly communicate to our children and others that adhering to a set of rules makes one a Christian. "We don't chew, dance or go with the girls who do." I'm not advocating that these are things to do, but just saying that too often there is so much emphasis on rules for Christian living that I fear some might be led to believe this is how one becomes a Christian.
I think we need to be careful to emphasize that works have nothing to do with salvation. It is all of God's grace through faith that one becomes a Christian. Once one has been saved by God's grace, there will be things that God will impress upon his/her heart through the reading of Word and prayer that they should not do or be involved with. This may not mean the activity is sinful, and others may participate. The main things is this:
1. Can I do it and still be glorifying to God in this.
2. Will this activity present temptation to sin to me?
3. Can I resist that temptation or should I avoid the activity so that I will not be tempted with possible sin?
4. Will I trip less mature Christians up if I participate in this activity?
It's a cooler day. So maybe I will get a little more outdoor work done. I must be careful though. My low back and rib has been causing me a little grief. The chiropractor helped yesterday and I don't want to undo what progress she made. I will be mindful of how I lift and move things.
Sounds like someone is using a jackhammer in the neighborhood. Could be a noisy time outside today.
My Quiet Time
Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, (Touch not; taste not; handle not; Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men? Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh. (Colossians 2:20-23 KJV)
Here Paul asks why Christians continue to be enslaved to legalism when they are set free from all of this through Christ. Many Christians continue to live by a list of do's and don't's because it is easier to feel holy and worthy to God if they can check off the items on their list and compare themselves to their fellow Christians.
This isn't how we are to live the Christian life. We are to live our lives for the glory of God. That means we have make daily decisions based on what will glorify God, not based on an arbitrary list of rules that the church hands out, or based on doing better then the other Christians in your life. Too often, we unwittingly communicate to our children and others that adhering to a set of rules makes one a Christian. "We don't chew, dance or go with the girls who do." I'm not advocating that these are things to do, but just saying that too often there is so much emphasis on rules for Christian living that I fear some might be led to believe this is how one becomes a Christian.
I think we need to be careful to emphasize that works have nothing to do with salvation. It is all of God's grace through faith that one becomes a Christian. Once one has been saved by God's grace, there will be things that God will impress upon his/her heart through the reading of Word and prayer that they should not do or be involved with. This may not mean the activity is sinful, and others may participate. The main things is this:
1. Can I do it and still be glorifying to God in this.
2. Will this activity present temptation to sin to me?
3. Can I resist that temptation or should I avoid the activity so that I will not be tempted with possible sin?
4. Will I trip less mature Christians up if I participate in this activity?
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