Saving Faith

My type A, organized, rule oriented readers will understand....that uneasy, guilty feeling you get when you feel like you're breaking a rule...being type A is both a blessing and a curse. Rules are good, and they are meant to be followed...well, most are anyway. Rules are typically put in place for safety purposes....as a teacher, the children in my classroom have rules that must be followed in order to stay safe. The ones who can reach the faucet knobs at the sink know they have to wait for a teacher to help them so they don't accidentally burn their hands. They know that chairs are for sitting and not standing. They know not to dive head first over our classroom balance beam. They know that when leaving the classroom teachers always go first and lead the line safely down the hallway. These rules help keep them safe so that I can send them home at the end of the day in one piece.

My kiddos painted with their feet at school!
(It was secretly a disaster though...)

Philippians 3:9

"I no longer count on my own righteousness through obeying the law; rather I become righteous through faith in Christ. 
For Gods way of making us right with Him depends on faith"

When it comes to Kingdom rules, we have to recognize that the Lord gives us boundaries (rules) to keep us safe. A boundary is a line that marks the limit of an area; a dividing line. Although these rules are good and set in place for our good, in and of themselves they cannot save us and that is where faith comes in....the saving faith of believing in Jesus and relying on Him for our eternal safety....our salvation....it is not by following a long list of rules...do this...don't do that...as Paul reminds us in Philippians to rely on what Christ has done for us and to put no confidence in human effort. We can try all day long to measure up...to be a "good" Christian and still find that we fall short...that in essence, we will never be good enough to save ourselves and that working our heads off to please God won't actually please Him...it's our FAITH that pleases God, not just merely our works. Now don't get me wrong or twist what I am saying, God has called us to good works and created us to do them, however, they cannot be a substitute for saving faith. 

Plus, rules should not hinder the advancement of Gods kingdom. 
I remember dealing with a specific situation a while back and the Lord spoke to me saying, 

"If you're too rule oriented, 
you can't be Christ oriented"

I was absolutely floored...because for a type A, rules are RULES and there is no bending them. Not now. Not tomorrow. Not ever. Rules are rules! But sometimes, we as believers also have to question whose rules we are following....Gods rules? or man made rules created by the church to keep our christian faith in a neat little box? We are not called to be cookie cutter Christians, we are called to stand out...to let our light shine OUT OF darkness. So, if you're feeling weighed down and burdened by a long list of rules and standards you can't measure up to....you're not alone. 

Matthew 11:28
"Then Jesus said, "Come to me all of you who are weary
 and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest"

And then....I think about the religious rules that Jesus himself broke. Eating with all the wrong people He was. Healing on the Sabbath. Touching the Lepers. Talking to women. (Men were not supposed to talk to women they didn't know back in Jesus' day)....but Jesus did not allow that social rule keep Him from engaging and talking to women who needed to know what true, unconditional love really was...like the woman at the well who was sleeping around with multiple men...Jesus spoke with her, engaged her in truthful, loving conversation. He did not shun her or push her away because of some crazy rules....instead, He met her in her mess right where she was at and offered her a drink from His well...the well of His love and grace.

So, cheers to saving faith! 

Xoxo,
Beth