You Are Not Your Own And That Is Freedom

You can be tired of religion and still be headed the wrong way. We sit with a tension most of us feel but rarely name: the craving to live autonomously while claiming faith in a God who says we were purchased and now belong to Him. If you have ever said “I’m done” and meant it, done with empty rules, done with performing, done with trying to earn God’s approval, this conversation is for you.

We open Luke 15 and slow down with the story of the loving father, the prodigal son, and the older brother. One runs hard into reckless living and ends up in a dry land of hunger and regret. The other stays close to home but lives like a slave, keeping score and resenting grace. We talk about why both rebellion and religious striving can create spiritual distance, and how each one quietly blocks peace, dulls our ability to hear God, and pushes us toward burnout.

Then we turn toward the way back: repentance that leads to restoration, covenant relationship instead of self-reliance, and daily dependence on the Holy Spirit. The Father’s heart is not to negotiate your return but to restore your identity and bring you home. If you want spiritual growth that is real, grounded, and relational, press play.

Subscribe for more conversations on Christian discipleship and spiritual maturity, share this with a friend who is tired of dead works, and leave a review so more people can find the show. What part of Luke 15 hits you the hardest right now?

Transcript

Welcome And The Autonomy Tension

SPEAKER_00 0:30

Howdy folks, I want to welcome you back to another episode of Life Around the Fire. We are a podcast that is devoted to spiritual growth. And what we mean by spiritual growth is this growth in our relationship, first and foremost with God, and then in our relationships with one another. What we'd like to do today in this episode is kind of pick up on this thing of autonomous living but us being bought by the blood of Christ, which means that we are not technically our own. But how can we be autonomous and still be in a place of operating as the temple of the Holy Spirit? I mean, w which is it? Right? And so I want to address that topic, but before we address it, I want to share a story from the scriptures that really sets the tone. And it's a story from the book of Luke. And in Luke chapter 15, Luke writes this one particular phrase to start the chapter out with. He said, Then Jesus, right, he would appear, and he would oftentimes be surrounded when he would show up at a place. People would follow him. And not only would they follow him, but they would come out of the woodwork, no matter where he went. And oftentimes in Luke chapter 15, verse 1, it says, Many dishonest tax collectors and other notorious sinners often gathered around to listen as Jesus taught the people. That's a pretty astounding statement, given the fact that these people were really looked down upon by the religious authorities in the area. Reason being is the religious authorities couldn't control them. You see, these people had reached a place as social outcasts where they really didn't care. They didn't care what the religious people thought about them because they were looked down upon anyway. And in that society, if you were in that category, you kind of stayed there. That was going to be kind of your place in life. And so either accept it or you know, just live a life that's full of ongoing misery, even if you are impoverished. I mean, it's a really wild arrangement, but still that was the way it was then. And you know what? It's not too different now. When you have the haves, the H-A-V-E-S, right? The haves and the have-nots. And in our world, the distinguishing line between the two is very thin. The middle class is being squeezed out of society, and sooner or later it's going to be you are either one of the people that have, or you're one of the have nots. And in this setting, the have nots didn't really care anymore. And I can tell you, before we go any further, that I myself have been one of the duns, the D-O-N-E-S, duns. I was done with religion. And you know what? Being done with trying to work my way into a good relationship with God is not a bad thing. Because that's a dead end road, and it is not an easy road anyway. But in the end, religious works aren't really what God is after. He's not after us doing mindless sacrifices in order to buffet our bodies. He wants relationship. God is interested in relationship. And the things that enhance relationship are the things that God is highlighting. And the things that don't, he's also highlighting. So that we can come to a place of resting in the assurance that He has purchased us with His blood. And when the realization of that takes place, when Holy Spirit brings you to a place where relationship with Jesus is what's on the table, and not religion, you're in a good spot. And so in Luke chapter 15, there's a story about the loving father and the prodigal son and the oldest son. That is really an interesting story. And in Luke chapter 15, beginning at verse 11, all the way through verse 34, and I'm going to read that story. I'm giving you the address so that you can look it up for yourself and read it later and study it and meditate on it because it carries a real message in it that will touch your life. And uniquely enough, it has a way of touching each person's life in a little different way. The Word of God has that ability. It's multifaceted. And so Luke writes, Then Jesus said, Once there was a father with two sons. The younger son came to his father and said, Father, don't you think it's time to give me my share of your estate? So the father went ahead and distributed between the two sons their inheritance. Shortly afterward, the younger son packed up all of his belongings and traveled off to see the world. He journeyed to a far off land where he soon wasted all he was given in a binge of extravagant and reckless living. With everything spent and nothing left, he grew hungry because there was a severe famine in that land. So he begged a farmer in that country to hire him. Then the father hired him excuse me, then the farmer hired him and sent him out to feed the pigs. The son was so famished he was willing to eat even the slop given to the pigs, because no one would feed him a thing. Humiliated, the son finally realized what he was doing, and he thought, There are many workers at my father's house who have all the food they want with plenty to spare. They lack nothing. Why am I here dying of hunger feeding these pigs and eating their slop? I want to go back home to my father's house, and I will say to him, Father, I was wrong. I have sinned against you. I will never again be worthy to be called your son. Please, father, just treat me like one of your employees. So the son set off for home. From a long distance away, his father saw him coming, dressed as a beggar, and great compassion swelled up in his heart for his son who was returning home. The father raced out to meet him, swept him up in his arms, hugged him dearly, and kissed him over and over with tender love. Then the son said, Father, I was wrong. I have sinned against you. I could never deserve to be called your son, so just beat me, let me be. And the father interrupted and said, Son, you're home now. Turning to his servants, the father said, Quick, bring me the best robe, my very own robe, and I will place it on his shoulders, bring the ring, the seal of sonship, and I will put it on his finger, and bring out the best shoes you can find for my son. Let's prepare a great feast and celebrate, for my beloved son was once dead, but now he's alive. Once he was lost, but now he is found, and everyone celebrated with overflowing joy. Now the older son was out working in the field with his brother when his brother returned. The older son was out working in the field when his brother returned, and he was approached, and as he approached the house, he heard the music of celebration and dancing. He called over one of the servants and asked, What's going on? The servant replied, It's your younger brother. He has returned home and your father is throwing a party to celebrate his homecoming. The older son became angry and refused to go in and celebrate. So his father came out and pleaded with him, Come and enjoy the feast with us. The son said, Father, listen, how many years have I worked like a slave for you, performing every duty you've ever asked as a faithful son? And I've never once disobeyed you, but you never thrown a but you've never thrown a party for me because of my faithfulness. Now once you have not never once, never once have you given even me a goat that I could feast on and celebrate with my friends. As this son of yours is doing now. Look at him. He comes home back after wasting your wealth on prostitutes and reckless living, and here you are throwing a great feast to celebrate for him. The father said, My son, you're always with me by my side. Everything I have is yours to enjoy. It's only right to rejoice and celebrate like this, because your brother was once dead and gone, but now he's alive and back with us again. He was lost, but he is now found.

Rebellion’s Hidden Spiritual Costs

SPEAKER_01 11:54

And you could have heard a pin drop after Jesus shared that story, that parable, that teaching. Because it spoke volumes concerning the heart of God, the ways of rebellious people, and the ways of those who feel as though God is a hard God to please. And they are the older son, the religious ones.

SPEAKER_00 12:43

God is the father. And we as people typically fall into one of two categories. One is the fact that we are realizing that we have really wasted a lot of our lives on things that are empty. In fact, they are destructive. And there are others who feel that they have lived their lives in such a way that they've done nothing wrong. And yet God is not pleased or doesn't show pleasure toward what they're doing. And they get angry at the younger brother who seems to be treated by God with greater favor. But there's also a dilemma with being rebellious. Because this rebellious lifestyle, taking on the attitude that you are your own boss and disregarding God's will, is characterized in biblical teaching as rebellion, pride, and self-will, which ultimately leads to spiritual, emotional, and practical negative consequences. You know, while it may offer a short-term sense of autonomy, remember we talked about that in the beginning, being autonomous, it does provide that sense of autonomy. This approach is described as a sad trade-off. It's a trade-off that separates an individual from divine guidance and peace. And it has some spiritual consequences. Separation and distance. You see, when you take on this attitude that I'm my own boss, and I really, you know, I really don't need all this religion. And you're right. But in doing your own thing, sometimes you sacrifice relationship. You cut off your nose to spite your face. And in the end, you're the one who ends up hurting yourself, and you're aided by the powers of darkness in the process. And there are consequences to that attitude. It creates spiritual separation and distance in the relationship with God. Ignoring God builds a barrier, separating you from His presence, from His guidance, and from His peace. Ignoring God builds a barrier. Rebellion is the same as idolatry. Rebellion is equated to the sin of divination or sorcery, actually, and stubbornness as iniquity and idolatry as it elevates self above God's authority. It elevates our own opinions, limited opinions, over God's view, his perfect grasp of the situation. We elevate our own thoughts above that when we are living in that attitude that I'm my own boss. Spiritual blindness and hardness is a consequence. Continued rebellion leads to a hardened heart, making it difficult to hear God's voice or recognize his prompting, leading to spiritual darkness.

unknown 17:02

Right?

Covenant Over Self-Reliance

A Father’s Harsh Mercy Story

Prayer And How To Reach Us

SPEAKER_00 17:02

The prodigal son separated himself by his actions from his father, thinking that he could probably go about doing things better than what he had when he was living with his father in a relationship that was close. Instead he went off to a faraway place where he couldn't hear his father's voice. It was a consequence. And the enemy works more. Neglecting God makes you vulnerable to the enemy, allowing your career and your plans to produce thorns and thistles, symbolizing struggle and lack of fruit. You have personal and life consequences. The dry land experience. The rebellious are described as dwelling in a dry land, characterized by emotional instability, lack of fulfillment, and often a prodigal son experience of ruin and destitution. There's burnout and stress, relying solely on your own strength rather than resting in God's lead. Right? When God leads, it's better because our own efforts lead to burnout, mental blocks, and anxiety. There's a loss of future benefits. Disobedience can lead to missing out on the blessings and purpose God had intended, resulting in a life of if-onies. If only I'd have done this, if only I'd have done that. If only I wouldn't have done this, if only I wouldn't have done that. You know, fill in the blanks, right? If only. Let's not live a life of if-onies. We've made a statement here, and it's this we want to grow up before we grow old. Meaning we want to mature in our relationship with God, but also in our way of life. That we are demonstrating the ways of the kingdom because we have this unique thing called an earth suit, our body. We have a legal right to be here because we have a body. And we can covenant with God, and in that covenant, what's his becomes ours, and what's ours becomes his, and we can function in his kingdom as citizens, and in a relationship with him as sons and co-heirs with Christ. That's powerful. There's long-term and ultimate results that go along with this notion that we're our own boss. We are our own boss. We're going to do things our way, and regardless of the results, we're just going to do things our way. We don't think about the results too much when we're in that mindset. But there are long-term and ultimate results. Divine discipline is one of them. God disciplines those he loves to bring them back to righteousness, which can manifest as harsh corrections. Harsh corrections are part of living a rebellious lifestyle. And sometimes we don't even call it rebellious. We just call it that we're doing something that we feel we need to do for ourselves because we owe it to ourselves to do it this way. Regardless of whether or not it's God's way. Eternal consequences. Persistent unrepentant rebellion is warn to lead to eternal separation from God. Now you're gonna have to wrestle through what that means. But there is a result that is an eternal consequence when we do things our own way. An ultimate failure comes from doing things our own way. The Bible states that those who harden themselves against God do not prosper. So despite these consequences, the Bible emphasizes that repentance and turning back to God leads to forgiveness, purification, and restoration. The goal is to move from self-reliance to relying on God's wisdom and will, which leads to a restful and liberating life. Hallelujah. And we find that to be true in the story that Jesus shared concerning loving father, the prodigal son, and the oldest son. And the oldest son typified the religious lifestyle. And the religious lifestyle was no different than the rebellious lifestyle. In the sense that they both were leading to separation from God. So if you're religious, it is time to repent from being stuck. In that cycle of trying to earn favor with God when he's already earned it on your behalf. You don't have to try to earn it. Now is the time for you to accept it. As the Holy Spirit leads you into seeing Jesus as he truly, really is. And for him to reveal what he truly did on your behalf. It's amazing. It's powerful. Now, when I was 17 years old, which would have made it 1976, I wanted to go out with my friends one evening, and my mother, I was still living at my mom and dad's house. And so I was under my parents' rules. But uh my mom said no, she didn't want me to go out that night, and it really made me I got upset. And she stood in the doorway, she blocked my way from leaving, and I told her in no uncertain terms, you better step off, or I'm gonna put you through that door. And she said, Go ahead, and she let me go. And it was roughly two o'clock in the morning when I came back home, and the lights were all out, and I thought, great. And I snuck in quietly, ready to go up to my bedroom, which was upstairs. We had a two-story house, and all of a sudden the lights turned on, and there was my dad standing in his long johns without a shirt on. And he just quietly came walking up to me and calmly put me up against the wall, put his hands around my throat, and lifted me up off the ground and pulled back his, cocked his arm like he's gonna punch me. I closed my eyes and I thought, here it goes, he's gonna hit me hard, man. Better close my eyes. And he dropped me from my precarious position and let my feet come back on the ground. I opened my eyes and he looks at me and goes, I made a vow never to hit my children with a closed fist. But if you ever treat my wife, your mother, that way again, I will break my vow. Now go upstairs and go to sleep. Ah I had a change of mind and a change of ways as a result of my dad's harsh mercy. And you see, sometimes what seems harsh, like, oh boy, here it goes, is actually just an understanding that we need to have concerning who it is that we're really addressing when we're saying we're going to do things our own way. And I'm saying this because I know for a fact that there are people that are right now struggling with this issue because you just don't want to do dead religion anymore. You're just sick of it. You're sick of the same old thing, day after day, week after week, the same old thing, and it has no presence of God, has no power of God, it's just empty dead works, and I'm sick of them. Hallelujah. So am I. But I was also sick of rebellion because I tried doing things my way, just like I tried doing them that way when I was a kid. Man, my dad showed me, you think that you all that? And that was a human experience, let alone God, the creator of the universe. Who is it that we are addressing? And we say we're gonna do things our own way. Or no, no, no, no. I'll do it. I'll do it even though it's hard. I'll do these hard rules. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I don't need anything from you, God. I'll I'll do it. I'll do it, I'll do it my way. I'll this this religion will work. This way of doing things will work. No, the blood of Jesus, the blood of Jesus? You see, God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, and the son said he would do it, and the spirit said, I'll be right there. God, the creator, before creation, already loved us, already knew us, already saved us before creation. And it's ours to accept. It's yours to accept. It's yours to say, yes, I want to be in covenant with you. Covenant. Not just I want to do things in your name. Covenant. Covenant with him, relationship with him. Set aside the rebellion, set aside the religion, relationship. And he shows you how. And it's daily, daily walking with him by his spirit. Holy Spirit, who is a real, real, real member of the Godhead. Just like Jesus was, just like the Father is, the Spirit is the same. And he, Spirit of God, Holy Spirit is here to lead us in all of the truth concerning Jesus, to reveal him to us and what this covenant is all about, what citizenship is a k in his kingdom is all about, what life with God is all about, and it's all about relationship. Learning relationship with God and walking in his ways of his kingdom. Hallelujah. Now, before we die, and even more so at the resurrection. Hallelujah. Wow. I could go on, but right now, let's just take a moment and pray. Father, I thank you so much for who you are and for how you're doing things, why you're doing them, where you're doing them, all that you have in store for us. I thank you. I thank you for the relationship that you've established in our lives. Hallelujah! Thank you for life in Christ. Thank you for life in your kingdom. Thank you for life in relationship with you. We honor you. We give you all of our praise and worship, and we stand here in the name of Jesus and we say amen, amen, amen. Amen. Hallelujah. Folks, we love you. And if you have any thoughts, questions, concerns, please feel free to drop us a line at life around the fire at gmail.com. That's life around the fire at gmail.com. That's our email address. Or you can just type in life around the fire and look us up on the web. We would love to hear from you. In the meantime, God bless you. And adios, amigos.