Author: dpatrickcollins

I wonder why the apostle Paul, in response to the church at Corinth claiming they had a right to do anything, did not say, “No, you don’t.”

The Corinthian church was taking full advantage of their freedom in Christ since their sins were forgiven; they were, by all standards, a wild and reckless bunch. Why not tell them they do not have a right to do anything? Why not tell them (putting it in the words of the New King James or Amplified Bible) all things are neither lawful nor permissible?

I think there is only one answer: it is because they did have the right to do anything. That is what it means when your sins are no longer held against you.¹ It means as far as your state of righteousness is concerned before God, you have the right to do as you please.

Of course, this does not mean doing as you please will produce the life you want, much less the life God wants. It may even produce suffering and death. In your righteous state, you can make a rather big mess of your life, hurting others and creating for yourself a personal living hell. This is what Paul seems to be getting at. He is saying the question is no longer what we can or cannot get away with, but instead what will produce fruit that will last. Life for the believer is an opportunity.

In such statements there is great freedom, and as a general rule, we fear freedom. Some of us would rather have just enough fear of God’s condemnation and disapproval to keep our behavior, and the behavior of those around us, in check. And I, like many of us, am all for good behavior. I happen to believe holiness is the whole point of the Christian life, even more than God making our lives comfortable. But the thing is, fear of God’s condemnation is not what leads to holiness; understanding the full extent of our forgiveness is. It is not until we realize how forgiven and loved we are that our lives begin to change.

So do not put a throttle on God’s power. Do not temper what he has done on the Cross with fear you are still not worthy. Do not think it is better to ensure your own righteousness through good behavior than his own life laid down for you. Let the love of God, not the fear of him, lead you to the place of deep repentance.

1. Psalm 32:1-2 ↩︎

It was the Fall last year. I was at the Healing Rooms at Bethel Church in Redding, California. Bethel is my former church and though I now live six hundred miles away, I still consider it home in many ways. As we sat in the waiting room for the healing room session to begin (the healing rooms consist of three phases: a small teaching, a prayer and worship service, and then actually receiving prayer from a team), the coordinator asked if anyone had pain in their wrist. I raised my hand and he came over, touched my wrist, and began asking for Jesus to heal me.

Suddenly a profound peace came over me, almost tangible like a weight resting on my chest. And then a sensation I can only describe as liquid love broke through and began filling my heart, causing me to weep. I had experienced the love of God before, but this was more profound than I had ever experienced. It was also something I had been praying for in the weeks leading up to this encounter with God, prompted by the scripture verse where Jesus says to his disciples, “Wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”¹ The experience increased as we made our way to the sanctuary for worship and prayer. I was weeping uncontrollably.

In the weeks and months that followed, I continued to encounter God’s love in this way during my times of personal prayer, experiencing an intimacy with him I had not experienced in decades. Ironically, my wrist was not much better! But I really did not care. God’s love was all that really mattered. And in a way, it is the only thing that matters for any of us. Though we may go through many trials this side of heaven, God’s love is the one thing we cannot be separated from, and it is the one thing that does not disappoint.

1. Acts 1:4-5 ↩︎

Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy.

1 Corinthians 14:1 (NIV)

The other night at midweek Bible Study, we practiced prophecy. Though common in charismatic churches like the one I attend, it was new for many of us, since there are a lot of newer Christians at our church.

For the uninitiated, prophecy is communicating what God is saying. Without context, that may sound odd. But when one considers we believers have the mind of Christ¹ and also an anointing from the Holy One who leads us into all truth,² and further that we are sheep who hear his voice³ that we might follow Him, it is not odd at all. If we accept what the Bible says that we hear God and receive truth from him, prophecy is no more than hearing God on behalf of another.

Some wonder why prophecy exists at all. They say, “Why do we need prophecy when we have the Bible?” The answer I suppose is that the Bible is the very thing that tells us we need prophecy. If you read what the apostle Paul has to say in his letter to the Corinthian church, it is clear prophecy is vital and that we should practice it. Saying “Why do we need prophecy when we have the Bible?” then, is sort of like saying, “Why do I need to make coffee if I have the espresso manual?” You need to make coffee for the benefit and pleasure it brings, and the manual tells you how. It is the same with prophecy. We practice prophecy, just like we practice prayer or worship, because the Manual tells us it is vital.

Still others are uncomfortable with prophecy because it can be misused. But I have always found the best way to ensure something is not misused is by getting good at using it properly. It is for this reason I drive a car to work every morning.

But prophecy to some believers remains a source of deep concern, as though it were a form of sorcery. And God knows no upright believer wants to be found practicing sorcery. They are quick to quote the verse that there will be false prophets in the last days,⁴ which is true. But the very fact Jesus warns us about false prophets and calls them false and tells us we will know them by their fruit is because there is such a thing as true prophets; otherwise, He would have just said watch out for prophets, and that we would know them by their prophecies.

We should not practice sorcery, of course. But at the very least, we should probably do what the Bible says and practice prophecy. God is speaking all the time. And since he is good, He has very good things to say.

1. 1 Corinthians 1:16 ↩︎
2. 1 John 2:20 ↩︎
3. John 10:4-5 ↩︎
4. Mathew 24:24 ↩︎