Oh, Now you've crossed the line

Have you ever noticed that everyone seems to be looking for “the line”? That imaginary space that divides what “is OK”, from what’s “not OK”. The first one that comes to my mind is, “Is drinking alcohol wrong?” Someone always says, “The bible says that we should not, ‘become drunk on wine’” (Ephesians 5:18). To which another responds, “yes, but Jesus drank wine. He even turned water into wine for a party” (John 2:1-11). Then… it happens. Someone establishes the line. So, it’s OK to have some wine, but not enough to be drunk. OK cool we’ve got that now, but wait… does that apply to whiskey too because I don’t like wine. And, how do I know when I’m drunk if I’ve never been drunk, and I’m not supposed to be drunk. Oh no, Maybe I have been drunk I didn’t know it. I’ve been accidentally sinning this whole time.

Anyway, I hope you get my point here. We love to establish a Sin Line so that we know how much we can satisfy out flesh without quote, “sinning”. Then we like to manipulate that line. In the alcohol example above, we have invented words line, “Tipsy,” or “Buzzed,” to push back the, “don’t get drunk,” line. All this does is make us feel better about it. At the end of the day we have fallen into the same line of thinking that has cost God’s people so much over the course of history.

It all started with Adam. The entire point of Adam’s existence was to be with God. God didn’t tell Adam to name all the animals and then leave. He wasn’t a regional manager that checked his progress notes every quarter. He lived, walked, and worked with Adam. When Adam wanted to know what was a good idea or bad idea, he asked God and was told. Do you think that Adam and Eve just knew what they were supposed to do every day? Do you think they knew how to be together? No. They walked with God daily, hourly. Everything that needed to happen was decided upon together. This was God’s design. This was his plan. There was only one rule. There were no ten commandments or 600+ Jewish laws.

“Don’t eat this fruit. Everything else is cool and we will talk about it.”

What happened after that? The enemy asked that question, “Did God really say…?”, “What’s the line?” This was essentially what Satan did. He convinced us that God’s way is boring and restrictive. He urged us to push the line. A line that God never established. And one that only serves to separate us further. Satan drew a line in the sand. On one side is everything from perfect holiness to “at least I’m not on drugs.” On the other side is everything from, “yeah I probably shouldn’t have done that,” to murdering rapist.

That’s it. Satan made it simple for us. You don’t have to talk to God or worry about relationship. You can do everything self-serving thing you want. Just don’t cross the line. If you cross the line you belong to me and you might as well just keep sinning. Satan created an easy, simple way to control God’s people no matter which side they were on.

And, it worked. After Adam and Eve things were tough. Humans weren’t willing to walk with God anymore. We were far from him, separated by our sin. Speaking with Him was difficult and caused us to have to lay down the fleshly desires that now ruled us. Noah lived in a world that flat out refused to even believe in God, much less follow him. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and on, nowhere was a set of rules and regulations established. Those that heard from God and listened were blessed. They were the ‘heroes’ of the story. Those that refused, They were destroyed and cursed.

Then comes Moses. We all know that this is where the Ten Commandments came from, but we need to understand the story. We need to ask ourselves the question. Were the Ten commandments part of God’s best plan for us? Were they necessary? Do you really think that God would set Abraham and his descendants up for failure like that? Like, “Hey Abraham, in several hundred years I’m going to give people a list of rules to follow so that it’s easier, but uhh you don’t get them so good luck. Hope you don’t end up in hell.” I don’t think so. God led Abraham the way He intended, by one on one communication. Through relationship and brotherhood.

“And God said unto Abraham.”

Let me ask you a question. If you need an answer to something, would you rather have the God of the universe, the one who made everything and knows exactly how it works, answer the question as fast as you can ask it. Or would you rather open up the encyclopedia and try to extrapolate the intent of a 50,000 year old text? It’s not a trick question. These things were translated from languages that don’t exist anymore. Who can truly interpret the heart behind these besides the one who inspired them? And, He speaks English.

Yup. This is exactly what I mean.

So, when we read Exodus we find that it wasn’t God who wanted the Ten Commandments but the Israelites. Moses told them to come into the presence of God with him, and they said no. They were afraid of Him. The truth is, they didn’t want to be accountable. They didn’t want to put in the effort to know someone and have to speak to him and learn from him. They just wanted to know the rules (the line). They get the commandments and eventually produce the 600+ Jewish laws. This was God giving us a chance. Before it was either follow him or die. Now, at least there some basic rules to follow. It wasn’t the best, but it was better than sending most people to hell.

So there it was. The people finally got what they needed to do what God wanted. A simple list of rules. Now, we could be good enough for him. But, that didn’t really work either.

Skipping through the Bible real quick, if the laws were all we needed to please God, why were there prophets, judges, kings, leaders? Why did we need these people to tell us God’s will if all we needed were the rules?

Easy answer, because the rules don’t satisfy.

Fast forward some more. Jesus comes and is asked, “What is the greatest commandment?” He doesn’t answer one of the ten or any other law. He states, “To love your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength.” (Matthew 22:36-40). Loving someone with all of your strength takes action. Almost like you have to be in a relationship with them a follow them.

I’m going to call this trend out for what it is. Devoting oneself to the rules or the line is Religion. It is Man’s way of being good enough for God. It is a demonic spirit and a stronghold in many of our lives. The truth is, most people only want to know where the line is so they can press up against it as close as they can without going over. The problem with that is that humans change the lines all the time. Smoking used to be good for us remember? It was prescribed for asthma. Coca Cola was good once too. What about Marijuana? How can you say it’s OK to drink a little alcohol, but it’s not OK to smoke? They both do the same thing eventually. It was easy when it was illegal but now…who knows? Did you ever ask God what’s best for you? What does he want YOU to do?

We have to accept the fact that God doesn’t deal in rules. He doesn’t deal in right and wrong, Good and Evil. We bought into that idea when we ate the fruit. God deals in truth. So it’s not about whether it’s good or bad, but rather does it bring you closer to God? Is it his will for you? (John 14:6)

Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you. Plans to prosper you, not to harm you”

It doesn’t say that he has established rules for you to follow. It says he has a plan. Maybe some people can handle something where others can’t. Maybe one person is built for battle where another person would break. You can’t make the blanket statement that joining the army is good or bad. It is based on who God made you to be, and only He can show you that. This holds true in the Bible as well. David was, “A man after My own heart” (Acts13:22). And yet, he was not allowed to build the temple because he had too much blood on his hands (1 Chronicles 28:2). Did David screw up? Was he wrong? I’m pretty sure that God sent him to war. God didn’t punish Davis for being obedient. He simply did not make David to build the temple. It wasn’t for him.

Some are called to war, and some to make peace. Some are called to music, and some to work stone. Some are called to heal, and others enterprise. Some are called to adventure, and some to solitude. Some lead many, and many lead some. The Lord has given us each a plan. The plan does not come with a laid out grid of rules to follow to get there. It is not dependent on you. You simply follow him and he makes things happen. Some policemen commit crimes, and some convicts save lives. It is not about rules.

Rules present us with restrictions and bondage. (do not, can’t, not allowed, Bad, evil, etc…)

Relationship frees us from bondage. (I don’t have to smoke or drink. I don’t have to lust.)

So, I conclude with this. Let us stop searching for the line my friends. Let us stop looking at our brothers and sister and judging them based on what works for us. Let us take time to know the person, and more importantly, let us take time to know the Lord. For only he can lead us to truth.