Free From Gravity

I love verses like this... in just a few sentences they get down to the root of the issue. No muss. No Fuss.

"Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world - the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life - is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever." 1 John 2:15-17 ESV

Bam!

Those three things are the root of everything that is wrong. Our flesh interacts with a fallen world system at these three junctures... what my fallen body wants... what my fallen mind wants... and 'the pride of life' can be translated 'the boastfulness of biological life'. These three are then broken down in different ways and categories but at the root we have these three. The need for praise, control, sensual fulfillment, riches, revenge, boasting, lying, jealousy and even our need to perform so that we can have good things to say about ourselves all narrow down to this small group.

"But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy." James 3:17 KJV

Grace gives us free interaction with God's kingdom and that interaction is pure. Shalom is fulfillment. It does not need to steal to get it. It does not rob God of glory. Peace just is. Peace dwells in love.

All of that other stuff has an expiration date. Not love. God's love never expires.

We can't disconnect ourselves from the three operations by which the world interacts with people but God has disconnected us by giving us a new nature to function in when we believe. That new nature has nothing to do with those interactions.

"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you." Philippians 4:6-9 KJV

Daily death, burial and resurrection is the key to functioning in the new man and freeing us from the old one.

"For one who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace." Romans 6:7-14 ESV

I am confident that if the Gospel of Grace lives in me then the love of the Father will be in me also. Living in love is living in freedom. Heaven is free from the gravity that holds things down in the world.

Our freedom becomes a witness. Our peace and love shine a light that comes from God. Our words can then explain to others how they can have what we have.