Continuing from a previous post * To Jesus Christ Alone. . . Jerry Sittser wrote:
God lays claim to us and plans to transfer and plans to transform us until we become the creatures he always intended us to be. If Christ represents the perfect picture of what God wants us to become, then the commands of Scripture are like the directions that will get us there. There is nothing trivial and superficial about God’s plan. His plans are radical because his plans are perfect. He wants to make us new in every way. Such transformation will also set us free.
Jesus called this the “narrow gate.”12 It is not narrow as we often understand narrowness, as if Jesus were calling us to become hyper conservatives. His way is narrow because it squeezes all the selfishness out of us. It deprives us of the right to live for ourselves. Jesus demands everything from us, not because he wants to make everything miserable for us but because he wants go give us perfectness purpose and joy. He knows that real life is gained by giving our lives up to God.
Token obedience betrays an errant theology. We think that real life is gained by what we keep to ourselves, not by what we give to God. So we do the minimum in terms of obedience—just enough to get by—so that we have plenty of choices left over for ourselves. In our way of thinking, God’s commands are like paying taxes. They are part of the deal of being a Christian, but hardly a welcome part. So we fulfill our obligation to God and, once that is finished, start to enjoy life again.
But Jesus will have none of that. He rejects all token obedience. He keeps demanding more because he knows his followers will find true life only by obeying God, not by living for themselves. Thus, while the Mosaic law forbids murder, Jesus forbids hate. While the Mosaic law condemns adultery, Jesus condemns lust. The narrow way Jesus taught is the way of complete obedience, and obedience that leads to freedom from self and freedom to live for God.13
Artists and Athletes Have it Right!
Thus freedom as our culture defines it allows us to do anything we want. Freedom as the New Testament defines it, however, allows us to become what God, our Creator and Redeemer, wills. In rejecting the “freedom” of license and embracing biblical freedom, we experience the true freedom of being children of God. Both artists and athletes understand the nature of true freedom. They give up their freedom to do whatever they want, subject themselves to strict discipline and, in the end gain the freedom to perform at the highest levels of artistic or athletic achievement. Loss of freedom actually leads to freedom. It’s the freedom of obedience, gained by following a strict regimen of practice. ~Jerry Sittser, The Will of God as a Way of Life (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530, 2000, 2004), 61-62
