Freedom to Live in Love

“Justin Boots ALCS Back to Texas”

Sorry. That’s the best I can do with a corny headline from yesterday’s Game Five. You’ve gotta hand it to him, Verlander was amazing. And Ceej was not. Not at all. I’m still not sure why Wash left Wilson in for that whole sixth inning meltdown. To restore the bullpen? Maybe. But Verlander will make the start again for the Tigers if they force a Game Seven, which makes tomorrow’s Game Six a must-win for the Rangers. They will have no excuses. Everything’s set up. They’ll be in Arlington. It’s a night game instead of a day game. Holland’s had plenty of rest. And Beltre’s poised for another couple of homers. I’ll be shocked if Texas doesn’t put it away Saturday night. And scared to death.

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“You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: Love your neighbor as yourself.” ~Galatians 5:13-14

Love God and love neighbor. Old Testament and New Testament. Moses, the prophets, Jesus, and the apostles. All the commands, all the guidelines, all the restrictions we’re under as children of God are summed up by the command to love.

Human beings are created by God to live in relationships of love. God is love. God’s perfect law for his creatures begins and ends with love. Love is what sets us free. It’s what makes us alive. It’s the thing that gives us hope.

But love demands sacrifice and service. It calls for selflessness. It’s characterized by giving. It’s risky. Love is hard.

Strange, huh? Perfect life and freedom is found in love. But love involves giving up your life and sacrificing your freedom.

To those outside the Lord, those who have not submitted to God or his commands, his laws are the enemy because they announce condemnation. To legalistic believers, God’s law is oppressive, it’s a harsh master that does rob them of their freedom. But to those children of God who have grasped the significance of God’s mercy and grace, his law is a servant that actually helps us see the character of our Father. The commands reveal to us our God and exactly what he’s doing in Christ.

God commands us to love because he loves. He demands that we forgive because he forgives. He tells us to value every human life because he values every human life. The royal law, these love commands, give us our perfect freedom to become everything we were made to be.

Obeying God changes you. God’s not looking for your formal fulfillment of what he says. He’s looking for you to eventually realize your created potential, to eventually be transformed into the perfect image of his holy Son.

Peace,

Allan

2 Comments

  1. dbbyrnes

    Wash watches as Wilson gets rinsed for the cycle.

  2. Allan

    No way you didn’t steal that from somebody or somewhere else!
    Very nice. Consider me duly impressed.

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