Freedom

Needing approval from others is a muck filled bondage-swamp in my life that sucks at my every step. It's an exhausting death march. 

Needing approval motivates me to serve others. Sometimes I do things for people because I know if I don’t they’ll be disappointed in me. Sometimes there is nothing worse than feeling another’s stinging disapproval.

Needing approval makes me work hard. I work hard preparing sermons and hope to hear, “good sermon."  Last Sunday, I was caught at a point where everyone leaving had to walk in front of me. Unintentionally, I entered the glorification of the worm ceremony that occurs when pastors stand at the exit shaking hands. The worm-ceremony began as people leaving made positive comments about the sermon. Sure it felt good. But more than that, it felt awkward. That’s the trouble with needing approval. I’m always skeptical about the sincerity of those who give it, yet I work hard to gain it. In the end, it’s a spiral of unsatisfying bondage that continually collapses inwardly like a black hole.

Need for approval makes me push people. Yes it’s strange but true. Here’s why. If I push what you think and you still land on my side, then I have gained “true” approval. Weird isn’t it? 

Gaining approval can drive all I do.

Bondage to approval concentrates the focus of life on me and creates bondage to needing more approval.

Needing approval from others doesn’t always dominate me, sometimes approval rules. Sometimes I serve, work hard, and push people’s beliefs from the position of security. It’s a much better option where mire gives way to rock. I’m not talking about self-confidence. I’m talking about grace-confidence. Sometimes I do what I do because I DON’T have to, because I DON’T need to. Those moments are freedom.

Doubting grace births bondage – believing in grace births freedom.

Grace Freak
Dan Rockwell
http://www.graceunplugged.org/

Demands

Christianity is not about demands it's about love and love can't be demanded.

 Life is filled with demands. Do…do…do, go…go…go, work…work…work. It’s never ending. I just finished a chat with a friend that made me think about grace again. And like corn flakes, I tasted grace again for the first time. I don’t know how my friend felt when he left. But, I know the melodies of grace began bouncing around in my heart all over again. The more I talk about grace the more I enjoy grace and the more I want to talk about it. I'm addicted. 

If a gift comes with demands then it isn’t a gift.

I've said in the past that grace can't obligate. It can’t obligate because grace is gift and the dictionary defines gift as "something bestowed voluntarily and without compensation." Gifts don't make demands. They are extended voluntaily. If a gift comes with demands then it isn’t a gift. It’s a trade, barter, or manipulation. Demands and gifts don’t mix. In addition, once we compensate someone for a gift it ceases to be a gift. Gifts exclude compensation.  We cannot compensate God for His grace in any way, at any time, or to any extent. We can only receive it by faith. Any attempt to pay Him for grace blocks it. What can we do?

For love to be love it must be expressed freely.

We can freely respond to his grace by loving Him freely. Here’s another reason why grace can’t obligate. For love to be love it must be expressed freely. We cannot pressure, force, coerce, bribe, nor demand that someone love us. Therefore, if God desires a loving relationship with us, and He does, He cannot force us to love Him. His grace CAN NOT obligate. Grace sets us fully free. And then, at last, in the freedom of grace, we can freely turn and freely love Him because He freely loves us. That's real life baby!

Think of God as a graceful dancer. Our maker dances His way to us. The melodies of grace permeate His presence. At first His dance is a graceful solo. All we do is take it in. We enjoy His dance. Then as the music begins to sink into our heart, He invites us to join the dance. He leads. He moves first. We follow.  We respond. It all starts and ends right here in the dance of grace. Grace can’t demand love.  Grace enables love.

Grace Freak

Dan Rockwell

P.S.  Grace frees us to follow my recommendations in the post below this, "Dry."  Those who don't believe in grace may be compelled to do more and worker hard when they feel dry.  ;-)

Stop

I clearly remember when I started learning about the grace life and it was painful. We were studying Roman’s at Good News Bible Church. By the time we hit Romans 3 and 4 my world was falling apart. I felt like someone had yanked the carpet out from under me. My old paradigm of the Christian life was under severe attack by a fresh and unsettling idea, grace.

By the time we hit Romans 3 and 4 my world was falling apart.

For much of my life I believed that obeying was the core of the Christian life. I believed we were saved by grace through faith in Jesus but I didn’t think we lived under the same principles of faith and grace. I was a legalist. Even though I don’t want to be one, in some ways I still am a legalist because earning God’s favor is more rewarding than receiving it by faith. Working to earn God’s favor builds my ego.  It's an attitude I keep rejecting to this day.

Obeying isn’t the core of Christian living.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for obeying. But obeying isn’t the core of Christian living. Trusting Jesus is. When it started dawning on me that obeying wasn’t the core of Christian living I felt disoriented. I felt like a squirrel running on a round exercise wheels. I was running but getting nowhere. Life felt destabilized. I wanted to find something to bring stability. The transition from working for God’s favor to receiving God’s favor by faith was painful but worth it.

I can always tell when grace-life ideas hit a legalist.  They respond like I did.  They are upset, disoriented, and even angry.  When we place confidence in works/behaviors/obeying and someone explains that our confidence is misplaced, its upsetting.  I can see a sincere legalist coming from across the room. (no offense intended to any legalist readers).  Just like I did, they are scrammbling to make sense of an idea that blows us up.

Here is my advice to those struggling to embrace graceful living.  Stop!  Stop doing all the things you think Christians are supposed to do until God's grace overwhelms you.  Please note, I'm not saying go join "Christians gone wild."  I'm saying it's more important to receive and enjoy God's grace than it is to do something for God.  Actually our doing frequently blocks God's grace.  Then, once God's grace grips you again, and only then, begin doing the things Christians do.  You will have begun living the Christian life.

Grace Freak,

Dan Rockwell
http://www.graceunplugged.org/

Sinning doesn't matter?

Today, Oct. 30, 2009 a person asked:  "I once heard you say a few years ago, “If anyone leaves here feeling like they can sin, then I know I’ve done my job,” or at least something close to that. I was hoping that you could explain your reasoning on this."

It's a great question so I took the time to respond.

Here’s what I do and most likely did say. “When people hear the gospel of grace they can get the idea that sin doesn’t matter.” Or, “If you leave here wondering if Dan thinks sin doesn't matter, I’ve done my job.”  It's a statement I make to jar people's thinking.

The gospel can give people the idea that behavior doesn’t matter.

Here's why I say that. The Apostle Paul addressed the same issue. The gospel can give people the idea that behavior doesn’t matter. (I regularly hear that concern) If you aren’t getting the impression, when hearing the gospel, that behavior doesn't matter then you aren’t hearing the gospel. Romans 4 is one of many places where righteousness apart from behavior is explained.

Romans 4:5b And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, 6 just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works...  (Don't forget that David was a bad man)

One can read Romans 4:5ff and make the following conclusion. Since righteousness with God is faith-based and not behavior-based then our behavior doesn't matter.

Paul’s concern about this reasoning is expressed in three rhetorical questions listed in Romans 6 and 7. Why is he asking these three questions? He’s asking because he knows his readers at Roman are thinking them.

1. 6:1 - What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?
2. 6:15 - What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace?
3. 7:7 - What then shall we say? That the law is sin?

If those hearing the gospel can't ask, “Is it ok to sin all we want?” (Paraphrase of question #1) then they aren’t hearing the gospel that Paul preached.

When was the last time you heard a preacher step back and say, "I bet some of you are thinking that I'm saying it's ok to keep sinning all we want?"

Grace Freak
Pastor Dan Rockwell

Pastor's Confession

My heart hurts for believers grappling with sin, frailty, and failure. I am one of them. I think we all wish there was a magic pill or secret formula that makes all the bad stuff go away. If I could just click my heels three times maybe I could get home? To make matters worse, some Christians wrongly believe that overcoming sin is the norm. The “over comers” give me this not so subtle message that there is something wrong with me if I haven’t overcome deception, lusting, coveting, greed, anger, worry, hate, selfishness, vengeance, stealing, slander, gossip, bitterness, guile, pride, jealousy, dissention, envy, etc. etc. etc. … on and on … gag me with a spoon. And those aren’t the “worst” sins.

What’s worse is, I do not love God with all my heart, soul, and mind. Sometimes I don’t even think about Him. And I definitely do not, I repeat, do not love my neighbor like I love myself. That’s just too much to ask. “Who is my neighbor anyway?” Oh, and don’t forget this little gem, “do everything without grumbling.” Are you kidding? Grumbling is one of life's compensations.  Oh no, when I typed, “Are you kidding,” I think it was grumbling. Ka-ching on the sin-o-meter!!


Don’t misunderstand the intent of this post. I’m not suggesting we just give into the dark side. But I am getting something off my chest. I’m exposing the dirty little secret that’s frequently swept under the carpet. Sinning is a problem that doesn’t have a magic solution. It keeps coming back like a bad rash. Overcoming sin in my life feels like trying to catch a herd of greased pigs. Eventually catching and corralling one doesn’t help much because the rest of the herd stands around jeering at me. And to make matters worse, while I’m trying to coral the next greased oinker, the one I just caught gets away … again!

Spending time obsessing about my sins, failures, and frailties is a serious bummer and an expression of my sinfulness. Frankly, I've got something much better to think about.  So I’m turning toward grace and learning to walk by faith again today. Damn the pigs, I'm moving on.

Dan Rockwell
http://www.graceunplugged.org/

Pastor's Blog - Freedom

Woke up this morning at 4:00 a.m. and started thinking. That's a bad thing to do if you want to sleep till 6:00. Started thinking about the goal of my teaching at Good News. I think I can say it in one word, freedom.

I want believers and unbelievers alike to be set free. The bondage breaking statement I can make for believers is Christian living begins when obligation to live it ends.

Jesus wants a love relationship with us, not a law relationship. One thing that characterizes love relationships is freedom. For example, my wife doesn't want my fidelity because of a vow taken years ago. She wants my fidelity because I freely choose to cherish her today. Anything less is unsatisfying. When we follow the rules dominated by a sense of obligation, we are good moral people but we aren't living the Christian life.

Grace Freak Dan