One of the most beneficial things we can learn as believers is how to establish godly boundaries in life. The world in which we live is out of order, and it seems there are no absolute boundaries for many.
Whether morally or ethically, boundaries seem to be a thing of the past for a great number of individuals, of which some are in places of authority. But we as followers of Christ must establish boundaries that agree with and line up with God’s Word.
The Father has called you and I to a higher standard than the world’s way of doing things. Yes, though we are citizens of a particular country, we must always consider the Word and ways of God to be our benchmark for living. Of course, we are to obey the laws of the land as long as they do not conflict morally or righteously with the Word of God. Jesus said,
"Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they marveled at Him. Mark 12:17b
When the early apostles were faced with a decision to cower to the threats of the religious leaders of their time, or continue to obey the Lord Jesus Christ, and preach the gospel, they chose the latter. Their decision to obey Christ at all costs, is what allowed the Word of God to spread rapidly throughout their known world (See Acts 4:1-22).
These disciples had made the decision to follow the laws and dictates of the land as long as they did not infringe upon their obedience to spread the gospel message. Their top allegiance was to Christ and His commands, then to the governing bodies of the nation.
In the book of Revelation we are told there will be a time when men and women will not be able to buy or sale without the mark of the beast, a wicked ruler who opposes God and all that is good and morally right. He will demand the world to swear allegiance to him and his image or be killed (See Revelation 13).
This is a mirror image of what the children of Israel faced while in exile under Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon. They were told to bow down to his idolatrous image or be cast into a burning furnace. They respectfully responded to the king by saying,
"O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up." Daniel 3:16-18
To gain a better perspective on this story, you should read the entire 3rd chapter of Daniel. These men were not defying the king’s orders arbitrarily, they had already determined to obey God at any cost. They had set boundaries in their heart as to what was right and what was wrong, and what they would allow or disallow.
Establishing boundaries comes from making decisions about what to allow or not allow; what to approve or not approve; what to accept or not accept; what to agree with or not to agree with. These decisions must be made even with good things, because we all must set limits on how much we eat, sleep, exercise, talk, work, spend time with others, and so on.
People without boundaries are not grounded spiritually, mentally or emotionally. They may lack backbone or have not made a decision to set boundaries, or they have let go of all restraints and are on a destructive course to be completely out of control.
We will continue to look at boundaries in our next post. Until then, may God our Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, richly bless and keep you.
James Brown
CST 08/16/2024
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