Guiding Others to Freedom
AN UNEXPECTED SHIFT OF ATTENTION occurred during the presidential campaign back in the fall of 1988. Instead of the evening news focusing on the Democratic and the Republican candidates, all eyes were on two California whales up in Alaska, trapped in a breathing hole many miles from the ocean.
Strange as it may seem, Bush and Dukakis were upstaged by “Bonnett” and “Crossbeak,” the names biologists gave the whales.
It all started when the gentle giants of the sea overlooked the fact that winter arrived early that year in northern Alaska. This mistake left them trapped, stranded inland by the ever-increasing covering of solid ice that prevented them from swimming to freedom.
At first few bothered to notice . . . only a few compassionate Eskimos who decided the creatures needed help. In a rather primitive fashion they hauled their chain saws and dragged long poles to the site and began to gouge out ice holes, enabling the whales to breathe en route to open water. Crude, rugged, and tiresome though the work was, the Eskimos were determined to work their way toward the open ocean.
The weather wasn’t cooperating. During some of the days, the temperature dropped below zero. That meant the small band of rescuers had to add some water-churning devices to keep the surface of the water from freezing over, especially during the screaming winds of the night. Interest in the project intensified once it caught the attention of the media. Other volunteers joined in the rescue efforts. Because the original plan wasn’t moving along fast enough, in rolled an “Archimedean Screw Tractor,” an enormous eleven-ton vehicle that rode on two screw-shaped pontoons, resembling something taken from a sci-fi movie set. That clumsy behemoth would clear away the ice after it was broken up and push it aside inch by inch, slowly grinding out a pathway to the sea. But that was also too slow and tedious. Next came the National Guard, who brought in two CH-54 Skycrane helicopters that systematically dropped five-ton concrete bashers onto the ice, mile after mile, so the journey to freedom could be accelerated.
If you can believe it, the Soviets arrived next, having dispatched two of their ships to the scene. One was a mammoth twenty-ton, eleven-story-tall icebreaker, and the other a smaller vessel with similar equipment. Interestingly, two flags flew on the stern of the Russian ships. Perhaps for the first and only time, the United States’ Stars and Stripes flew alongside the familiar hammer and sickle. All political contrasts, economic differences, and military conflicts were set aside for this unusual mission . . . so a couple of whales could be free. Eureka! It finally happened at Point Barrow, Alaska. The world cheered as the exhausted creatures silently slipped out to sea.
Frankly, I found it a nice diversion from the presidential race. We got a chance to look at two new faces and see some unusual scenery. Instead of mudslinging, there was ice gouging. Rather than caustic comments, there was mutual cooperation. We felt good inside. There was something gallant and clean and beautiful about the whole thing. Even though it evolved into an expensive project—over $1.5 million during a three-week period—and even though the sixty-mile pathway was grueling, the shift in emphasis was refreshing.
It occurred to me a few days after the rescue project ended that we had been observing a strange phenomenon. I thought of the contrast between what we are willing to do as human beings for whales and yet what we’re not willing to do for one another. There they were, two huge denizens of the deep, with whom we cannot intelligently communicate, yet we will risk life and limb, spend an enormous amount of money, and expend tireless energy in subzero weather for as long as it takes so that they can go free—and that is all well and good. What stunned me was how little effort we are willing to put forth to help another human being find freedom in God’s family.
Truths Regarding Freedom
Breath Free in Grace
First Corinthians 10 centers attention on eating meat. In those days the premier taboo was not going to the movies or wearing cosmetics or dancing or playing cards. Back then the major question was this: Should Christians eat meat that had been offered to idols? That needs some explanation.
A funny thing happened to me at a previous church. One of the sound-and-light people at the church (a real character!) heard me teach on this subject. A couple of weeks later he pulled a gag on me. With an impish grin he said, “You had a birthday recently, didn’t you?” I nodded yes. He said, “You’re originally from Texas, right?” By now I knew I was in for something! “Yep,” I answered. He said, “Well, I have something for you.” He put a small can in my hand about the size of a can of snuff. It was a can of armadillo meat. I groaned. The label read, “Pure Texas Armadillo—sun-dried and road-tenderized.” The ingredients were printed on the other side: “Pure sun-dried armadillo, run over by a log truck three miles south of Pollok, Texas. Not over twenty percent hair and gravel. May contain foreign matter.”
He told me that since I was such a believer in grace, I was free to eat it. I thought, Whoa! This will gag a maggot! My point? Because of grace, my friend can eat armadillo, and I can eat armadillo. It’s okay. It’s fine if he wishes to, but it so happens that God has led me not to eat armadillo. (It’s that “foreign matter” that concerns me.) But if you want to eat armadillo, that’s great! Personally, I have my own list of dietary don’ts (which includes armadillo). You may not have that on your list, so in good Texas fashion, “git at it.” I promise, I will not slander you or judge you as you munch on all that hair and gravel.
What in the world is all this about? Let me give it to you straight. Don’t give me your personal list of dos and don’ts to live by! And you can count on this: I will never give you my personal list of dos and don’ts to follow! Being free means you have no reason whatsoever to agree with my personal list; nor should you slander me because it isn’t exactly like yours. That is one of the ways Christians can live in harmony. It is called living by grace . . . and it is the only way to fly.
Now you say, “Well, what if we find a list in Scripture?” That is a very different issue! Any specified list in Scripture is to be obeyed without hesitation or question. That’s an inspired list for all of us to follow, not someone’s personal list. Let me encourage you to guide your life by any and all Scripture with all of your heart, regardless of how anyone else may respond. But when questionable things aren’t specified in Scripture, it then becomes a matter of one’s personal preference or convictions. I’ll say more about that later
First Question
As we’ve already discovered, the first question has to do with those who fail to live in freedom. They choose sin as their dominating master. Those Christians who live like that every day are overly conscious and sensitive to sin. They fear failing. Shame dominates their thinking. In essence, they focus so clearly on sin that they set themselves up for failure. Instead of concerning themselves with the positive benefits of serving Christ and enjoying the liberty He has provided, they continue living under the domination of their old nature.
By living like that, we develop a worst-case mentality. That is like my taking my keys and handing them over to one of my teenagers who just got a driver’s license and saying, “Now let me remind you, you’re going to have a wreck. So the first thing you need to do is memorize the phone number of our car insurance agent. That way, when you have an accident, you can be sure to call the right number. But here are the keys. Hope you enjoy the drive.”
Second Question
This question may look the same, but it is quite different from the first. This one asks, “Shall we deliberately sin now because we’re not under law but under grace?” In other words, why not just go full-bore? Pull out all the stops? “Not under law” must mean “I’m strictly on my own. Why not eat, drink, and have a blast? I’m under grace!” Some have misread it to mean just that. As a result, they rationalize their way around deliberate acts of disobedience. I have seen folks go off the deep end so far they convince themselves it is okay to disobey specific scriptural statements or principles, dissolve their marriages, walk away from prior commitments, and choose another partner. When asked how they could justify such irresponsible behavior, almost without exception they refer to grace, as though it is the God-given, pervasive covering for whatever they please. Twisting Scripture to accommodate our desires has nothing to do with grace.
Such rationalization is freedom gone to seed, liberty without limits, which is nothing more than disobedience in another dress. Some may see it as amazing grace; I call it abusing grace. Those who do so not only live confused and get hurt, they confuse and hurt others. And that’s what the latter half of Romans 6 is about: being so determined to fly free that you abuse the very freedom you’ve been given. We are wise to think of grace as a privilege to be enjoyed and protected, not a license to please ourselves.
Careful Warning to all Who Are Free
Why, of course! Submission to a master is tantamount to slavery to the same master. And what are the alternatives?
There are only two: “either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness.” Every day we live we have a choice to do what is right or what is wrong. When we send our young children off to school, we tell them, “Now, sweetheart, you need to know that Mom and Dad won’t be there to make your decisions. You will find some kids at school who will encourage you to do what is right, and you’ll find others who will lead you to disobey and do what is wrong. Make the right choice. Select your friends carefully. Be smart.”
Life is like a menu in the Grace Restaurant. In this new establishment you are free to choose whatever you want. But whatever you choose will be served to you, and you must eat it. If you choose the wrong food and realize later just how badly your body reacted to it, don’t think that grace will protect you from getting sick. There is good news, however. God’s grace does hold out the hope of acceptance before the Father. He will welcome you back into His fellowship if you deal with the wrong, repent ofit, and get back on track.