Boundaries that don’t do their job

Col 2:20-23 Since you died with Christ to the basic principles of this world, why, as though you still belonged to it, do you submit to its rules: 21 "Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!"? 22 These are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings. 23 Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence. NIV As a parent, you sometimes know when something bad is about to happen. Something is about to happen when the kids in the car become quiet for no apparent reason. When you hear your kids start daring each other with words like “You won’t, you won’t,” something bad is about to happen. It is good to have boundaries, but rules don’t always keep us from sin. Rules can, at times, draw us toward sin. A sign that says “Don’t look” can be an invitation to look. A sign that says "Don’t touch” can act as an invitation to touch. How many times have you been guilty of ignoring signs? When it comes to our Christian walk and pursuit of The Holy, we need to spend more time working on the things to be and less time coming up with the rules other people should be following. Christ is seldom seen in our rules, but He is easy to see in the life that has been transformed from the inside out. In Him J. Tom Washburn