Free (4) – Lawless

Welcome to CROLCC, we are so glad you are here worshiping with us. Today we are finishing up our series Free and we have been talking about that thing you don’t want to do but you keep on doing, yes, the word sin. We said that because we were all born in Adam, when Adam sinned there is a sense in which we all sinned, and because sin lives in us, we continue to do the thing we don’t want to do as we have no power. But when Christ died on the cross he broke the power of sin, so when you place your trust in Christ, sin will have no power over you because you are now in Christ.

I am sure this series has been review for a lot of us. When we hear these teachings we normally go, yeah, yeah, yeah, I have heard that before. What else is new? But as I observe the church and Christians in general, I don’t think we quite understand the impact of what that means in our lives. I have seen too many Christians still revert back to the old religious theme – you ought to . . . you don’t … you’re toast. It’s much easier to follow a religion and follow the rules, just tell me what to do and what not to do. But Jesus had something different in mind. He calls us to follow him, not the teachings of the church—follow first and obey later.

Moving Forward

The Christian life is not a life of imitation. It’s a life of impartation—Jesus’ life in you. At the cross, the power of sin was broken. You have been set free. “For we have died and Jesus is alive in us.” Jesus wants to live his life through you as you keep in step with his Spirit in you.

Accept your new identity. Embrace this new approach by asking God to bear fruit through you as you keep in step with his Spirit in you. Refuse to interact with God on the basis of rules. That’s not the kind of relationship with you that he desires.

Discussion Questions

1. Growing up, were you a rule-follower or a rule-breaker? How did your reaction to rules affect your relationships with your parents and siblings?

2. Did your family go to church when you were growing up? Was the experience more about following Jesus or obeying rules? How has that influenced your current view of church?

3. What do you find challenging about the idea that Jesus is more interested in you following him than he is in you obeying rules?

4. Read Galatians 5:17. How have you experienced this battle between flesh and Spirit in your own life?

5. Does living free by following Jesus seem attainable? What can this group do to help you begin to approach your relationship with God from the perspective of following instead of obeying rules?