We were walking along a beach promenade and came across a sign that listed about nine different things that were not allowed, No fishing, No swimming, No music, No bicycles, and so on. It basically felt like you couldn’t do anything at that spot and should hurriedly move on. How many people view religion like this. It’s just a list of all the things you can’t do, a list of “Thou shalt nots”. It’s restrictive and best avoided. Yet while this may be how some portray religion, this is the opposite of what God intended. He sets the tone with the very first command to humankind: “And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;” what an incredible offer of freedom. Everything is yours to enjoy. He then continues, “but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (Genesis 2:16-17). Everything is available with just one restriction. This is the opposite of the restricting beach sign. This is freedom within a boundary. God is inviting us not to a list of what we can’t do, but to a life of freedom and abundance, framed by laws that protect us. “My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit” (Galatians 5:16). (Craig B) Open Bible – https://bit.ly/Gen2v16-17, bit.ly/Gal5v16-18
