New Church Life July/August 2017 | Page 79

  The Ten Commandments mark the boundaries of freedom. The desires that arise in us from hell in our unregenerate states view the commandments as restrictive, frustrating and harsh. In heaven, though, they are a beautiful set of promises from the Lord to the angels that they will not commit the crimes they forbid but will remain safely in the opposite states of goodness. You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain! You shall not murder! You shall not commit adultery! You shall not steal! The angels, who would rather die than do these things, love these commandments, because they see within them a promise, a gentle reassurance, that they won’t do them. For them, keeping the commandments is the essence of what it means to be free. (WEO) “the truth shall make you free” These words, spoken by the Lord to His disciples, are well known and often quoted. But they are preceded by an important “if ” that’s often left out. The full saying is: “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:31-32) In order for the truth to make us free, we must know the truth. That much is obvious. If you’re trying to go home and find yourself at a crossroads in the middle of nowhere, the freedom you have to go north, south, east, or west is useless if you don’t know where home is and where you are. What you need is a map. The “map” here stands for the Lord’s Word, which was given by Him to lead us to our eternal home in heaven. But it can’t help us unless we know what it says, understand how to interpret it, trust it, and are willing to follow it. The Lord leads and protects His disciples by means of His Word, but for us to really be disciples we must have more than a passing interest in it. It must enter into our thoughts, words and deeds. It must define the parameters of our life. We must abide by it, and abide in it, so that it forms our mental abode, our spiritual dwelling place. Then we will be “disciples indeed,” who know the truth, and are made free by it. (WEO) the courage to pray We don’t think of going to church and saying the Lord’s Prayer as a call to courage. But when Leo Thorsness died this spring at age 85 in Iowa many people learned that his inspiring life was rooted in suffering, uncommon courage – and prayer. He lived his life with a simple credo: always do what’s 349