One of my favorite things to do as a kid was open up the news paper to the comics and read Calvin and Hobbes (anyone else miss the joy of flapping open a giant newspaper?!). I vividly remember how sad I was when Bill Watterson stopped writing. I was almost 11 when the strip ended and over the next few years I bought most of the books I could find. One of my favorite things Calvin invented was a game called “Calvinball.” If you are not familiar with Calvinball, here are the basic rules: “Calvinball has no rules; the players make up their own rules as they go along, so that no Calvinball game is like another. Rules cannot be used twice (except for the rule that rules cannot be used twice), and any plays made in one game may not be made again in any future games.”
Calvinball became the basis for many entertaining events while I was a youth minister, but I digress. The reason I bring up Calvinball is because it would be incredibly infuriating to play. We actually like rules and structure. We want to know where we stand, and in many ways we want to know that by following the rules we are winning. Rules help us measure success and know our standing. Many people say they do not like rules but that is mostly because rules are an inconvenience to what they want to do. The reality is, we all need structure to thrive in life.
In preparation for Sunday’s sermon, I’ve spent time reflecting on Galatians 5 and Ephesians 4 and what Paul says about living life in the Spirit. These passages trip us up in our quest to be Spirit filled people. Galatians 5:18 says that there is no law for people who are led by the Spirit. This verse hits us weird and makes us a little uncomfortable. Maybe this is a one time thing for Paul with this specific church? He repeats the sentiment in 2 Cor. 3:6 and throughout Romans 8. There seems to be a tension between creating laws to follow and being led by the Spirit. This often makes us uncomfortable because it is hard to evaluate whether or not we are “right” when we are being led by the Spirit but we know that what we do is “right” when we clearly lay down lines we have to follow.
This has been an issues in churches for ages and isn’t unique to our own tradition. Even the more “charismatic” churches who lay claim to being “Spirit led” often fall into the trap of laying down rules for how the Spirit works. I had a friend once tell me that I was not a true Christian because I do not have the evidence of the Spirit in my life, aka speaking in tongues. We put rules in place to help us evaluate our good standing and the good standing of others in regard to their relationship with Christ. Romans 8:14 tells us that “those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.” So, what does it mean to be led by the Spirit? Is there a need for rules in our lives? How do we balance these things?
I read a book a few years ago that really challenged me, “Falling Upward” by Richard Rohr. This book stretched me and has continued to encourage me to live in the tension of the balance between living within the structure of well-defined rules and being led by the Spirit. Rohr is one who continually stretches me, challenges me, and even makes me uneasy at times. The basic premise of the book is this. There are two halves of life. The first half is focused on building structure and the second half is focused on living beyond the structure. The first half helps you discover who you are, establishing boundaries and structures to help provide definition. The second half is not a midway point per se but comes when crisis shakes the very core of who you are and forces you out of the structures that you feel you can control. In the second half of life, you learn to let go of control and follow God into the darkness. One of the major points about the second half of life is that you learn more by doing it wrong than by doing it right. Making a wrong step, coming back to God, and allowing him to help you make the right step into the darkness helps you walk better in the light he gives. To put this within the framework of our working metaphor for the Holy Spirit series, you best learn to sail by getting in the boat, lifting the anchor, hoisting the sails, and sailing.
The problem we run into in the Christian walk is that we fail to move beyond the first half of life, and we begin to worship the structure rather than the God who has called us to live a dangerous life of following him. The harbor is secure, but boats are not made for the harbor. A life lived in the Spirit’s guiding is not a game of Calvinball. It is a game well played within the parameters of the Spirit’s guiding.
Spend some time reflecting on Galatians 5 and Ephesians 4:
What does the Spirit do in your life to move you?
What does life look like for someone who spends time listening to the Spirit?
Based on these passages, how have you grown in the Spirit over the last year?
What areas of your life do you need more guidance from the Spirit?