Having a Heart in a Sometimes Heartless World
Scripture focus: Legalism is helpless in bringing this about (referring to the previous verse about the fruit of the Spirit). It only gets in the way. Among those who belong to Christ, everything connected with getting our own way and mindlessly responding to what everyone else calls necessities is killed off for good – crucified. Galatians 5:23(b) – 24 The Message
Against such things (the fruit) there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Galatians 5:23(b) – 24 NIV
Here’s the deal. When it comes to living the abundant life – there’s simply no way to codify, legislate, compel others to comply, or even instruct each other effectively on how to live it. Simply put – the abundant life is, has always been, and will always be – a God thing. This is why.
We can’t anticipate all the wild and crazy ways that God can and will use a person who has been willing to have their sinful nature killed off. We can’t legislate things like kindness, gentleness, and goodness. They are spontaneous responses to spur-of-the-moment encounters. Like the guy who motioned me ahead (with a polite wave and a smile) in the parking lot today – after I rudely pulled out in front of him. Or my favorite mechanic, who came to my rescue last week when my car battery died at an inconvenient time on a day when I was emotionally fragile. Or the nice lady in line at the subway station, who helped us figure out our connections so that we got to Little Italy and didn’t end up in Harlem or Times Square or Central Park inadvertently. Each of us have moments when we must decide how to respond to attention-deficit drivers, or ladies who show up crying when their car won’t start, or tourists who can barely figure out how to come in out of the rain. This kind of courtesy can’t be coached. That’s why it’s called a gift! God gives us the gift of the fruit. We are charged with the duty of whipping it out of our spiritual backpacks and sharing it with others.
One word of caution before we proceed: When Galatians says that we’ve “crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires” – the emphasis is not on the eradication of passions and desires. What has been crucified is our sinful nature. Get it? It’s saying that we continue to have passions and desires. Instead of responding to them from the perspective of people “trying to get their own way all the time” – we are committed to living “God’s way” – and that changes HOW WE RESPOND TO OUR PASSIONS AND DESIRES.
So if we want to have God moments, we better get busy figuring out how to live life God’s way. As usual, this is going to require a big heart!
Recommended reading: Isaiah 15 and 16 in the morning; Isaiah 17 and 18 in the evening
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