“All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.” (I Corinthians 6:12)
Today we discuss how our actions affect others. Oh goodie! I remember having arguments about this over the years with other believers. It goes back to the Christian parent who would say to their child as they left the house for school or whatever, “Remember who you are and who you represent.” It was a way for the parent to re-establish and re-define for the child certain boundaries beyond which they were not expected to wander. This was mainly for their protection; however, it extended to their influence over those around them. They were expected to be the pace-setter, the leader, the example of propriety in the face of peer pressure.
Sadly, for the majority of my life I have been the fence kicker, the one who walked the perimeter of Christianity seeking a loophole or a hole in the fence. Finding such a place in my belief system I would boldly charge and escape, justifying in my mind that this was God granting me permission. How many years have been wasted in the lives of Christians who choose to live such a lifestyle! When challenged I would use the old cliché that “it is easier to get forgiveness than permission.” Foolish man that I have been.
In the natural, my grandfather was a farmer. A VERY SUCCESSFUL farmer, I might add. He had thousands of acres of farmland which he and my uncles farmed. Before I was born I am told he had up to twelve farmhands that he and grandma employed, they fed, and they took very good care of them and their families. It was a hard life in some ways, but oh how blessed he must have been! By the time I came along, he still had most of it, but their main farmhouse was on a spread of about 250 acres through which a prominent creek ran. There were woods for hunting, the creek to play in, cliffs to climb, and land for miles to ride three-wheelers on. He had a big old barn in which he stored hay for the livestock – which doubled as a playground for us grandchildren. The road that went down to the creek doubled as a sled-riding track. Grandpa was very blessed indeed.
But around his land he had strategically placed fences that needed to be mended constantly. They were mostly wire fences at that time. And there was an electric fence that encompassed a couple of his fields. I could entertain you for awhile with stories about his electric fences and the encounters we had with those. Those fences were there, however, to keep the cattle and the hogs in. Naturally predators could penetrate them in certain places and we would walk the fenceline to be aware of those places so they could be closed up. The fencelines weren’t put there to punish the cattle or the hogs for something they had done; instead, they were there to protect them from whatever would harm them.
Jesus told His disciples “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” (John 10:9). He was referring to something they could all relate to – sheep, shepherds, and folds. The shepherd would find a good grazing place to feed his sheep with a source of fresh water nearby, lay down a stone boundary around the area, leave a place for them to come and go in and out of the fold, and he personally would lay in the doorway after they were all in. He was their protector, their provider, their healer if they got injured, and their security. They knew his voice and would follow him wherever he went because they came to recognize that he only wanted the best for them. It was a very intimate relationship between the shepherd and his sheep.
So it should be with our Shepherd. It took me years to realize that He wasn’t depriving me of things, that He only wanted the most bare and wanton life for me. He was looking out for my safety, He was providing me with the very best provisions, He healed me when I got wounded, and that He wanted an intimate relationship with me. Jesus wants to establish boundaries in our lives that we might live a healthy, happy, secure, loving life with Him. He isn’t some austere school marm or taskmaster that drives His sheep; instead, He is a loving, gentle Leader Who wants to show us and provide for us the best. True, if we get out of line He may have to correct us and discipline us but that, too, is for our good. Paul wrote in Hebrews 12:11 that no chastening (discipline and correction) feels good at the time, but those who yield to it (learn from it and adjust their lives accordingly) will enjoy a life of righteousness (right living, good standing with the Father, and blessings). I’ve had it all wrong through the years. God’s discipline is not His punishment; it is, in fact, His love.
Paul understood this when he wrote our key text today. When God establishes boundaries in our lives it is for our protection, for our good. Oh how recently I have had to re-learn this lesson! It is not just for us however. It is for those around us. We are to be a shining example of what it means to be one of God’s children. We are to exemplify a life of righteousness (of right living and good standing with Him), we are to display openly how God blesses us – how He protects us from the harm in the world around us, how He provides for us even in desert places, how He heals us when we get hurt by things in our lives, and how He is our security.
Today my friend, it is my prayer that you know this kind of relationship with God our Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. We are not externally led – by physical boundaries and laws that would bind us; instead, we are led by His Holy Spirit that lives within us, teaching us His ways, revealing to us His love, and keeping us safe in a dangerous environment. Through the leading of the Holy Spirit we hear the voice of the Father guiding our choices and directing our paths. I pray that is your experience today.
Be blessed.
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