Jul14 Written by:Nathan Williams
Monday, July 14, 2008
I wonder how many people have the idea that, were they to become a Christian, they would be so limited in the things they could do. In other words, they see faithfulness to God as the last nail in the coffin of the fun and exciting things they enjoy in life. How limiting is a life with Christ, anyway?
If you think back to the Garden of Eden, God did limit Adam and Eve. He said they were not allowed to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Many people would look at that command and think, "I can't believe I'm NOT ALLOWED to eat of that tree! That's such a confining rule." That's exactly what Satan wanted Adam and Eve to think. He wanted to think they were being boxed in, that there was so much more out there they could try and experience - but God was being mean and wouldn't let them! Never mind the thousands of varieties of fruits all around the garden which they were ALLOWED to eat. Don't focus on that, focus on our limitations, says Satan. Reminds me of the Reba McEntire song "Is There Life Out There?" about a married housewife who is wondering how much she's really missing by staying home with the kids and being a home maker.
Recently I looked at Matthew 14:22-33 with the church at Clay during their VBS last week. This is the account of Peter walking on the water towards Jesus. Consider this: would the thought of stepping out of his boat onto the surface of the water (during a storm, no less) ever have occurred to Peter if he hadn't seen Jesus walking on the water? I doubt any sane man or woman would ever consider getting out of the boat to walk on water, even during calm weather. What does this teach me? Jesus creates opportunities in places we would never DREAM. Instead of limiting us by confining us to some arbitrary set of rules, God seeks to FREE us to limitless possibilities through His power. If men continue to operate by their own power, by their own guidance, they will never reach a very high potential. But God wants us to be better than we can be by ourselves. He wants to help us do things we could never do without Him! Peter did walk on the water that day because He saw a possibility through the power of his Lord.
Jesus doesn't limit us - Jesus expands our possibilities.
God bless,
Nathan
Tags: