Galatians 2:19-21, The Message

What actually took place is this: I tried keeping rules and working my head off to please God, and it didn't work. So I quit being a "law man" so that I could be God's man. Christ's life showed me how, and enabled me to do it. I identified myself completely with him. Indeed, I have been crucified with Christ. My ego is no longer central. It is no longer important that I appear righteous before you or have your good opinion, and I am no longer driven to impress God. Christ lives in me. The life you see me living is not "mine," but it is lived by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I am not going to go back on that.

Is it not clear to you that to go back to that old rule-keeping, peer-pleasing religion would be an abandonment of everything personal and free in my relationship with God? I refuse to do that, to repudiate God's grace. If a living relationship with God could come by rule-keeping, then Christ died unnecessarily.

In a group discussion tonight on how our Church community can become more like Christ in character and ministry, we discussed these verses above. These verses are a great definition of my key word, authentic. Christians can get hung up on following the rules and "being good," but that's not grace, that's not what Christ did on earth. Christ, while being obedient to His father, broke all the rules, went to the bad places and talked to the people covered with shame. He wasn't cool and He wasn't selfish. He was humble and gentle, strong and outspoken, honest and tempted. Our lives as Christ-followers should not be based on the opinions of others or our appearance, but strictly focused on following Christ as He followed the Father and encouraging others to follow our example to become disciples of the mighty Lord.