It's the Law

John 3:17 "For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world, through Him, might be saved."

Have you ever driven down the road and passed the police? They were coming from the other direction or sitting on the shoulder waiting for you, weren't they? It's scary. You instantly start thinking of everything that you've done wrong while driving at that moment. The speed limit--was I going too fast? My hands, 10 and 2--10 and 2!! Put down the coffee, signal when I change lanes, look around, etc. You may even start thinking of things that you are doing that aren't a traffic violation. Is the radio too loud? Did I turn leave my lights on? Your mind starts doing crazy things!! And what next? The worry, the focus on the rear view mirror! It's as if what is now behind you is more important then what is coming up in front of you!!! We do this even when we HAVEN'T broken any traffic laws! Why? Because the LAW condemns!

When we focus on the law we are constantly looking at ourselves. We re-evaluate everything we do wondering if it was right or wrong. We look back in our lives at the things that we've done and wonder about the consequences of those actions. We take our focus off of the straight and narrow path in front of us and lose direction! If you drive a car constantly looking in your rear view mirror you will eventually crash! This is true for our lives as well. If we are constantly looking at the Law behind us, wondering if it is coming to get us; we will eventually crash--and burn! And what does this focus on our mistakes do? It makes us break the Law even more!!! Just like driving a car, if you were speeding and slowed down, but now are focused on the rear view mirror, you may drift from your lane, run a stop sign, or forget to signal. Because you were so focused on the one little thing that you did wrong, you have now allowed that mistake to cause you to violate 2 or 3 other laws!! By turning our focus inward toward ourselves and where we have "gone astray", we in essence, have made ourselves into idols. We put ourselves above everything else in our lives, trying to right wrongs; trying to live a perfect life by obeying the Law. In doing so, we have broken the first commandment!

So what are we supposed to do? Well, we are to realize that no matter how hard we try, we will never fully live into the law. We need to realize that while we do not CHOOSE to break the law, we will at some point in time do just that. Speaking from a police point of view, I know that people will speed. Honestly, however, it's not the car going 5-10 over that's going to end up on the shoulder. We've all been cruising down the highway and looked down and had that "oh-crap!" moment. (let GRACE prevail) It's the car that's going 90 in a 55 that's going to get stopped. The people who get a ticket have typically CHOSEN to break the law. Our lives need to mimic our driving! We need to be aware of the rules and try our best not to break them, but realize that we will. We need to feel the conviction of the Holy Spirit in those "oh-crap" moments and CHANGE our behavior.

The Devil will try to tell you that you're not good enough. The Devil will try to tell you that your sin (alcoholism, anger, pornography, etc) is what's keeping you from God. Jesus, however, chooses to spend His time with sinners (Mark 13-17). The Devil will try to convince you that the Law is coming to get you and condemn you!! You tell the Devil JOHN 3:17!!

Jesus knows that we are sinners. He died on the cross to free us from the bondage and fear of the Law. Our choice now is to make Christ the focus of our lives, realize that we're forgiven, and accept the sacrifice. If the death of Christ on the cross was enough to satisfy God, surely it's enough to get you through too!