Daily Reading
Daily Thought
The Law of God is a good thing, a picture of righteousness. The problem is, our hearts are rebellious and we do not like to be told what we can and cannot do. “We were held captive under the law” (Galatians 3:23), writes Paul, and we don’t like fences.
Lucy, our basset hound, is a city dog. She stays indoors and sleeps in a kennel in the corner of my office. Lucy is a city dog and she does not roam free. She is not allowed to. She is confined, but she longs to run. Every so often, a door is open, unwatched. Lucy breaks for freedom and away she goes and does not return. Fortunately, our neighbors know Lucy and bring her home. Lucy obeys our rules until she thinks we are not looking. Unless something changes, we are like a city dog.
The Law does not and cannot make us righteous, rather, “the righteous shall live by faith” (Galatians 3:12), and through faith comes the change we need, a change of heart from rebellion to love. “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20), and with faith in Christ comes freedom to live. The best obedience is doing what I should do, not because I have to, but because I want to.
Faith is the life of the country dog. My cousins live in the country. Maggie, their Golden Retriever, is free to roam, and she does. Wherever she wants, whenever she wants, doing whatever she wants. Maggie is a country dog. Sometimes she leaves in the morning and returns at night. But return she does, every night. Maggie can sleep anywhere she wants, and she does. She sleeps on the back porch. That’s where she wants to be. She is happy to be home. And free.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. ~Psalm 23:6
Daily Prayer
Father God, You have set me free from the burden and bondage of sin. Thank You so much! I am now enslaved to love, a willing servant of Your goodness and grace. Forgive me, God, when I turn my liberty into a religion of do’s and don’ts, or I turn my freedom into a license to sin.
I love You, God, not from force or fear, but because I desire You so much. I follow You, because this is where I find life, a life abundant and good. With You, I am at home.
Amen
Daily Question
Are you more free before or after you become a Christian? Explain.
