Here is a truth that is so hard to comprehend and internalize: we are free from the Law, free from the spiritual consequences of sin and free from eternal death. Oh, in our humanness there is a tendency to want to go back to what we have known, even though it is a yoke of slavery, burdensome and exhausting. This is the inevitable debilitating failure of striving through self-effort. We are told to stand firm against that. Jesus wants us to experience and enjoy our freedom in him. This is what he has for us because of what he has lovingly done on our behalf. Nothing we can do beyond accepting his love will cause him to love us more, make us more righteous, bring us closer to him, ensure our eternal life--nothing. He did it all and it is enough.

During my time in my original church I twisted verses and their meanings into verbal and contextual pretzels to make them say what the teaching of the church was. My desire to be intellectually honest chipped away at much of the teachings. Finally, only a very few teaching remained but they were really being held on to for the sake of not completely letting go of the church. Finally, when my struggle of trying to blend the gospel of grace with the remaining law became obviously futile, I had to make the hard decision to leave.

So, when our acquaintance from our former denomination discovered we were no longer part of it, her reaction was very understandable. Paula and I were heavily invested in the church growing up and people could reasonably expect we would never leave, especially for theological reasons. While it may have seemed sudden to some, it was a many years’ long journey. Here’s a sketch of how it happened.

We all have significant questions for which we seek reasonable answers. Is there a God? If so, what is God like? What does God have to do with me? Where/how do we find answers to these and more similar questions?