More on 1 Corinthians

So pretty much I sat in class today and felt like I had been kicked in the face. I know that may sound dramatic...but it's honestly how I felt. I have never been so consistently convicted in my life in so many BIG ways. And it's one of those mixed emotions....it's great to see the Spirit working....and it's like, "Wow, I REALLY REALLY suck. Guess the only thing to do is depend on God cuz I got nothing good in me." (For lack of emphasis, I used poor grammar.) And that has just pretty much been my life lately. It's the end of the semester and life is full of tests and projects and 20 hour papers along with cleaning up the dorm and the regular school cleaning job and saying goodbye to my church family here and friends. It's such a busy time of the year and honestly, I will be completely grateful for the "break" that I hope to get at home. Yes, it will be busy, but it will be nice to have time to process what I've been learning more.

We've been talking about liberties and freedoms in Christ for the past few days and it's pretty much been a wake-up call....especially mixed with the talk about living in light of eternity. How many of my day to day decisions are lived that way? It's scary to think about all the rewards I've lost. But Christ set us FREE...we are FREE in Him. Many people see the freedom as it is...as a freedom. We are no longer under condemnation and are free to make choices as we please; they have no standing on our position before Christ. BUT, why did Christ set us free? Ah, and this is the question no one asks...the question I'm not sure I asked before a few days ago. Christ set us free so that we would be free to serve others. Think about Israel. They weren't free to serve others however they pleased. They were under the Law. But we are not! We are free from the Law and free from condemnation. FREE! How awesome is God's grace? So incredible. :) SOOOO, if we are free from the law and we have the freedom to serve others, we must be careful to not become a SLAVE to our freedoms. Here's the thing about the flesh: a) it never goes away or diminishes in the least AND B) it has the power to pervert things God intended for good. That means that my flesh and living with a carnal attitude can pervert the fact that I am free. WHOA! What a crazy thought. It's only by walking in the Spirit (and what does that mean? well...I'm learning...and I'll share it with you either as you ask or as I have more time to write later) that we can not fulfill the desires of the flesh. And that, my friends, has been a revolutionary thought to me. I have the freedom to LAY DOWN my freedoms for the sake of others. I count the cost of my decisions (or I'm supposed to) in order to evaluate which choice would save more souls, would give me an inroad in someone's life, would further the gospel in some ways. Paul laid down some of his BASIC rights...rights that here in America we FIGHT for people to have, we hold so strongly to our rights, we are so proud of them....yet Paul laid them aside. He laid aside the right to food...not just fancy food...but FOOD...WOW. This stuff just blows my mind and challenges my heart. God is good.