Free Because of Christ.

Being a believer is not about what I do or don't do, it is about what God has already done. It is not about being good, it is about relationship. It is not about law living, it is about grace living. It is not about being religious, it is about being in Christ and Christ being in us. Therefore, it is not about our trying to please God by doing good deeds and not doing bad deeds. Not only is striving to keep the law unnecessary, it is impossible. Until this truth is realized, to enter His rest will not be realized.

Jesus is the only one who could please God regarding our ability to rest in God and He has already done it, so we need to understand what it is that He has done and rest in the understanding of His finished work.

I am not advocating that holiness is not important in the life of a believer or that we care less about holiness. But if we cared as much about our relationship in Jesus as we do in striving to live holy, holiness would be much more realized because we would appropriate His righteousness rather than our self-righteousness which is as filthy rags. When we put our trust in Jesus and His Grace, we are made righteous. The only way to keep the law is to be in Jesus.

Doing good deeds is good except, when you do them to achieve righteousness and right standing with God...they then become sin! There is only one way man can be righteous and that is because God is righteous and man can only be righteous as He trusts God to make Him righteous. Working to make yourself righteousness is a futile endeavor.

God's first priority regarding people is not to fix our behavior...His first priority is the people themselves...loving people is His main concern. Living outwardly like the people we are inwardly because of Christ dwelling in us, good works is fitted in their right place.