Extremes

I've noticed that we are a people of extremes.

For instance, Thai people wish to be white in the same way Americans wish to be tan. They have whitening cream and they think people are in a higher value system who are lighter because it means they have better jobs in a building where they are not in the sun, whereas the people who are darker generally work outside in the sun. While we have tanning beds and bronzer and all else to make us darker. We always want what we don't have.

Even as girls and guys we tend to have extremes. Males are supposed to exhibit strength to the world. Sadly, this can be distorted into doubts of strength which can lead to either passive men who have given up or over-aggressive men and force their anger out onto the world. I have seen even cases where both are evident at one time.

Women are supposed to exhibit beauty to the world. Sadly, this can too be distorted, especially in the western culture. Self-worth has been deteriorating in our lives the more and more "perfect people" have been lifted up. Girls who struggle with self-worth normally go one of two ways. They either hide any inch of beauty from the world because they feel they don't have it or they throw themselves at men to cope with their feelings of self-worth. They try to find their self-worth in men over and over again.

In the Christian life there are extremes as well. I think the main trap Christians fall into is the Legalism or Lawlessness extreme. People normally fall prey to the legalism extreme when they have either just became a Christian and want to do it "right" or when they have had a revelation on a verse like Matthew 7:21 and see from then on in a totally different light. I sometimes fall prey to the legalism side because I want to do things exactly how God wants them to be done. Regardless of the fact that I'm neither Calvinist or Arminius, I still want exactly what He wants. :D But an important thing to remember for the Legalistic is that everything we do must come from a spirit of Love and not of Judgment. Those who struggle with this confuse condemnation for conviction...they often condemn themselves when they should just feel convicted and move on.

The other trap is Lawlessness....too MUCH Freedom in Christ. Often people found here feel they can do a lot of things because they have "freedom in Christ." They often go more towards the tolerance side and hate any ounce of "judgment". It often leads to weakening your testimony because you let too many things slide or don't stand up for what you believe because you don't want to "judge". People here also confuse conviction with condemnation. They feel that when they are convicted, they are being condemned and so automatically throw it away. This can be dangerous because before you know it, you can be sliding into sin.

Both can be dangerous traps to fall into and both are extremes. In the middle you find actual Freedom in Christ. There is a balance that we must find as Christians if we're really going to live like Christ and shine that light to those around us. There is a serious stance that we need to carry as believers that would be dangerous to let tolerance into. America especially has become all about tolerance. Now, a right dose of tolerance is right...tolerance for people in general...but when it comes down to it we as Christians need to know where we stand and stand firm in it. But an important factor comes in here: love. Everything that overflows from us must come from love and not judgment. But through that love we stand firm...there is a such thing as tough love and discipleship. "He disciplines those that He loves."

But the Freedom in Christ comes when we realize what the verses below really are saying. Yes, we must have a higher conviction then those unbelievers around us because we are set apart. But there is true freedom in Christ because in our weakness He is strong. Because of grace, should we go on sinning or living a lifestyle that is not pleasing to the Lord? By no means! But He comes to where we are and lifts us out of the pit, but there must be a response in us, a heart change, a realization of our need, our hopelessness without Christ, and then confess and turn away from that sin, giving everything to Him. It's more than a little prayer and more than God wanting to give you a bright future...He MUST be our future, without Him, we are helpless!

And these extremes become even bigger issues when they get into the Church. We've all seen churches that are all about Legalism...the preacher preaching about Fire and Brimstone, the congregation sticking up their noses at the "sinners", and the church staying as us 4 and no more. But the same is sadly true on the other side. I've seen churches that, I wouldn't go as far to say are lawless, but that are going more towards the tolerance side. This can be just as deadly as the Legalistic side, if not more. The reason this can be so deadly is because the more black and white turns to grey, the more lines become unseen and the more anything goes. The more the focus becomes on bringing people in, the temptation to become carnal becomes greater. And why can this be so dangerous? Because it can tamper with what the Gospel really says and therefore tamper with the heart change God brings, because without a complete reliance on Him we simply can't be dead to sin, alive to Christ.

This isn't exactly where I was headed with this but it's important to state nonetheless. This is why I have such a heart for the American church because I see brothers and sisters in Christ falling prey to one side or the other. It's actually scary how close to home these two extremes are for me. But I believe that when we find the middle, real restoration can happen - first with Christ and then with each other.

Freedom in Christ will also provide freedom in our thought life and in our identity. Normally extremes aren't a good thing in humans, but the freedom found in Christ will restore the hopeless and mend the broken, tattered pieces of our hearts and minds.

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1 John 1:5-10 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

Romans 6:15-16 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under the law but under grace? By no means! Don’t you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey—whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?

Romans 8:1-4 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Romans 14:3-9 The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. ⁴ Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

⁵ One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. ⁶Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. ⁷ For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. ⁸ If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. ⁹ For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. (This is Christian to Christian, keep in mind!)