The Liberty of Love

Had it been possible to take away the Lord Jesus’ moral liberty—which was not possible—it would have been by preventing Him from obeying the will of the Father.  This was the very food that He ate (Jhn 4).  As a perfect Man, He lived by every word which came forth from “the mouth of God” (Mat 4:4).  He chose to die, to drink the bitter cup which the Father had given Him, rather than not obey Him, and glorified Him in drinking it.
 
Christianity is the liberty of a new nature that loves to obey, and to do the will of the Father.  It is true that the flesh, if not kept in the place of death, can use this liberty to satisfy its own desires, just as it used the law which had been given to convict of sin.  All law is fulfilled in one word, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.”  The believer can do still more*—he can give himself for others; or, at least following the direction of the Spirit, he fulfills the law of love.
 
The new life loves to obey, loves holiness, and the Lord Jesus is its strength and wisdom by the Holy Spirit.  The flesh is indeed there; it lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit lusts against the flesh, to prevent man from walking as he otherwise would (Gal 5:17).  But if we walk in the Spirit, we are not under the law; we are not as the main in Romans Seven, where, impelled by the new nature, the will desires to do good, but, a captive to sin, he finds no way of doing what he desires; for the law gives neither strength nor life.  Under law, even if the new life is there, there is no strength; man is the captive of sin.
 
It is not the Father’s way now to seek to produce holiness in the flesh through the law, for the flesh is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.  He gives a new life in the Son, and the Spirit, to produce fruit which is acceptable to Him; and against this fruit there is certainly no divine law (Gal 5:23).  The Father cannot condemn the fruit of His own Spirit.  It is the new creation, the new life in the Lord Jesus, with its fruit by the Holy Spirit, which alone is acceptable to the Father.
 
-- J C Bayley
 
 
Poster’s Notes:


*”The believer can do still more”: loving others as yourself is limited in comparison to loving others as the Lord Jesus loves (Jhn 13:34), the prior being within the covenant of Law (conditionally); the latter within the covenant of Grace (unconditionally).  The difference between these two Covenants (“Old” and “New”) lie within who the covenants, or testaments (i.e. 2Co 3:14; Mat 26:28) are between.  The “first” is between man and God, and the “second” (Heb 10:9) is between God and His Son (Heb 13:20).

1corinthians 13
"If I speak in the tongues^[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. ² If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. ³ If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,^[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.
⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
⁸ Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. ⁹ For we know in part and we prophesy in part, ¹⁰ but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. ¹¹ When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. ¹² For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
¹³ And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."

Coming into the knowledge and conscious awareness of God's Love can be a painful process...but well worth the tests and trials that may come. Many are discouraged by them at first and run or stray, many under-shepherds omit this fact/truth.
Perseverence in running the race is tantamount...endurance, patience, not speed or athletic prowess, nor ecumenical prowess but obedience, is that not so?
https://justhappeneduponthis.wordpress.com/2014/11/28/a-parable-of-a-man-and-an-immovable-rock-a-re-post/

https://justhappeneduponthis.wordpress.com/2015/01/12/parable-of-the-life-saving-station/

theunknownpoet wrote:

Coming into the knowledge and conscious awareness of God's Love can be a painful process...but well worth the tests and trials that may come. Many are discouraged by them at first and run or stray, many under-shepherds omit this fact/truth.
Perseverence in running the race is tantamount...endurance, patience, not speed or athletic prowess, nor ecumenical prowess but obedience, is that not so?

Hi TUP - Amen, God may give us to apprehend His love, but not to comprehend its fullness here!

"O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out" (Rom 11:33).


"Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ" (Eph 3:8).


Obedience is the work of God (Phl 2:13; Gal 5:17) in the regenerate, which is evidenced in one degree or another in all who are reborn.


God's blessings to your Family!

Thanks for the response, in and of itself...is an initiative that speaks volumes regardless of differences. What is lacking in all of these Christian forums (and I am not singling out this one, it seems a widespread epidemic of dispassion) is the participation, the engagement, the opportunity for growth. We are all just puzzle pieces to the whole, The ONE.
God Bless.

theunknownpoet wrote:

Thanks for the response, in and of itself...is an initiative that speaks volumes regardless of differences. What is lacking in all of these Christian forums (and I am not singling out this one, it seems a widespread epidemic of dispassion) is the participation, the engagement, the opportunity for growth. We are all just puzzle pieces to the whole, The ONE.
God Bless.

I understand your concern, and God is always addressing the lack of growth in the Body.

I believe the last 50 years of Christendom has been at a disadvantage concerning the Scriptures, in which many have not been exposed to sufficient spiritual growth doctrines, but I believe this is being addressed as God is giving the believers a Word-hunger for His truths.

Seems like we are all too B.U.S.Y., with texting, video games, t.v., etc.
You run into someone who attends your very own church at a supermarket or some other public place and they can't place the face. Though they sat next to you in a pew not so very long ago.
B.eing U.nder S.atan's Y.oke. 
Look at the reply box to the left of all of your posts and tell me where that "Word-hunger" is?
ZERO's.
So sad:(

Not so much a concern, it's all in God's hands but more of an observation (sign of the times).

It is said that in Jesus' tomb was found His burial cloth neatly folded after His resurrection...why?
Why would He take the time and trouble to do this, what was the significance of this custom?

theunknownpoet wrote:

It is said that in Jesus' tomb was found His burial cloth neatly folded after His resurrection...why?
Why would He take the time and trouble to do this, what was the significance of this custom?

Good inquiry!  It's Jewish custom to crumble the napkin and place it on the table if you were finished, and to fold it means your not finished.