We have been born under a Monarchy; to obey God is freedom.
~ Seneca (4 B.C. – 65 A.D.)
So they said to Him, “Who are you?” Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been telling you from the beginning. I have much to say about you and much to judge, but He who sent Me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from Him.” They did not understand that He had been speaking to them about the Father. So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing on My own authority, but speak just as the Father taught Me. And He Who sent Me is with Me. He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.” As He was saying these things, many believed in Him. So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
~ Jesus, King of The Universe, and free Man under His Father’s authority.
Oh beloved, it is true. We, those who are in the family of G_d, have become part of a great mystery. There comes with the name of a believer terms which are utterly true: Slave… Bondservant… Disciple… Servant… Messenger… Part… Instrument… Weapon… Tent… Vessel.
And to read these terms, a person would be tempted to think that becoming a Christian is to become the property of some Lord. And they would be right. For, the true believer has been bought out of the marketplace of sin and self itself. And the purchase has been made with currency that is beyond any concept we can conceive of value. We were bought with the very blood of the G_d of the universe.
And still, it goes even further. As the preacher, Francis Frangipane puts it:
Jesus said that no one can be His disciple who does not “give up all his own possessions” (Lk 14:33). Truly, our possessions are many and they are varied. And they are not only material things. Fear is a burdensome possession, as is pride, self-pity, regret and unforgiveness. Yet, whether our possessions are material, emotional or mental – whatever we would hold as a possession we must “give up.” How? We release each thing from our control and genuinely turn it over to God. Beloved, this is the way to the blessed life. For what we give over, God takes over.
It is almost as if G_d wants everything from us. And this too is utterly true. But in seeing this as a negative thing misses the point altogether. For, to believe that losing something is bad is to see things from the wrong side of the problem.
No, G_d wants to have us lay down all the things and thinking and actions we used to have, that He may replace them with things and thinking and actions that do. As we lay down our cracked little trinkets and stained garments, He begins to fit us with what we have always been looking for, but did not know what they are. We thought we wanted:
Money. He exchanges this for Self-control.
People to agree with us. He gives us Peace.
Things to go our way. He gives us Patience.
People to like us. He gives us Love for others.
Happiness. He gives us Joy.
Civility. He gives us Kindness.
A Comfortable life. He gives us Gentleness.
Talent. He gives us Goodness.
A strong will. He gives us Faithfulness.
And somewhere along the path He has set before us, something happens. We look at how He has fit us up, and we are amazed. We are dressed as warriors, and we are equipped as the same. A new balance has been woven into our gait. We are alive and real and strong and bursting with hope. There is a maturity to our thinking. We are becoming very much more sure of what we believe (Him), and at the same time more able to accept that others see things in other ways.
However, there is something we never expected. There is a desire growing within us. In coming to know Him, we find Him astonishing in His goodness. And we find that there is no other place we would rather be than right here, right now, with Him. We have become convinced of His Wisdom and Love and Joy and Purpose and Providence. And this reality yields within us an even deeper desire. We begin to want what He wants. We sense the very Heart of G_d and feel ours beating to the same rhythm. So along with this comes a yearning to simply say whatever He would say, and do whatever He would do – and to say and do these things only as they rise up from within His own great heart.
Can we see it? We are in Love. We have sensed the profound concern for our well-being of the One who Loves us with such a great Love. And in coming under that Love’s immense sway, we become concerned only for what He wants. For we know, really know, that His way is the Way and the Truth and the Life. But even beyond that, we have come to know a Person of such incredible quality and beauty and Love that our desires have become irrelevant (even silly) to ourselves. We are not constrained to obey. We are like lovers wanting to find ways to please our mate.
We are warriors singing the songs of victory as we know live in the very Weapon which will win the war. Love.
Wicked men obey out of fear; good men, out of love.
~ Aristotle (384-322 B.C.)
