The first Adam was given freedom to enjoy the fruit from all of the trees in the garden but he wanted the fruit from the one tree that God warned him not to eat from! The principle of freedom of choice within revealed limits was clearly part of the Creator's design from the beginning. Our beaches have clearly marked areas within which it is deemed safe to swim. Within the flagged zone swimmers can bob, float, body surf or swim. Swimmers do not need to ask permission about what they can do between the flags.
The flagged zones are analogous to staying within the moral will of God. His moral will is all about who He is. God will never tempt a person to swim beyond the flags. Obedience is always constrained by His love for us. He first loved me. He first rescued me. He rescued me from the rough zone, well outside of the flags. Now that I am "between the flags" I am content and in fact free to enjoy His Presence. Why would anyone want to spurn the Lifesaver!
Boundaries give us scope for growth. The story is told of an experiment that was conducted to observe the behaviours of children in a school play ground. The fences were removed from the playground area. Children were observed to play in the centre of the ground, well away from the perimeters. But when the fences were returned, they observed that the full area was used by the children. In like fashion,moral boundaries promote our growth and well being.
When we "swim between the flags", we can enjoy the benefits of free choice. It is also important however that we take responsibility for our own choices. We need to be free to NOT exercise choices if they are not beneficial to others. (1 Cor. 10:23-24) We also need to make sure that preferences are not used to manipulate or control. For example, the Bible gives no clues that God's individual will determines about whether people ought marry let alone who they ought marry (1 Cor. 7: 6-9).
This blog is based on a message by Ross Smith, The Vine church, Logan City, Queensland, Australia on 17th July 2016. The full message can be accessed by podcast from www.thevine.org.au/teaching
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