Riding the Fence

I have used this term to describe my walk with Jesus in my younger years.  There was a comfort in sitting on the fence and not quite committing one way or the other to the Lord.  If I stayed in the middle and didn't make a strong decision to be obedient to God's word and serve Him, I could continue to live a life which reflected the world's standards and not His.   "But if you refuse to serve the LORD, then choose today whom you will serve." Joshua 24:15

What most of us don't realize is there is a battle going on inside of each of us.  A battle for our soul. "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." Ephesians 6:12  When we sit on the fence, we think we aren't really making a "firm" decision either way.  Unfortunately, we are. We are saying no to Christ.  It is like when two people are arguing and one of the two chooses silence.  Even though the person isn't saying a thing - they are making a statement.  They are saying very loudly - I'm ignoring you, I'm choosing to not respond to you, or I'm putting up a wall.  Our actions are always reflecting a choice. "You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ." Romans 8:9

Satan's most devious method is getting Christians to compromise.  If He wins, Christians are spiritually ineffective.  Some of us have one foot in church and one foot in the world.  I'm thankful for the foot in church, but the world needs us to be grounded in our faith - with two feet standing firmly.  We need to stand firm in what we believe. "But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do." James 1:6-8  Where is our faith?  Can others see it?  I have heard people ask the question on several occasions, "If it were a crime to be a Christian, is there enough evidence to convict you?"  Just believing and straddling a fence isn't enough.  God calls us to get off the fence.  Faith is more than believing.  "Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.   You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that —and shudder."  James 2:18-19  Let me make this scripture clear -----  even the demons of hell believe in Christ.  It's not just about believing.  Christ wants much more of us!  "Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." Matthew 16:24

One of the greatest concerns, when we straddle a fence is we have the tendency to fall off.    Remember the young girl I spoke of in beginning.  She thought she found comfort sitting in the middle of the fence trying to serve two masters.  However, she fell off on more than one occasion.  When she fell, the consequences of choosing the way of this world caused tremendous heartaches. "You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." Ephesians 4:22-24   Falling off wasn't bad.  It was the best thing that could have happened to her, because it was then she realized straddling the fence wasn't the place for her.  She now stands on solid ground.  "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you —unless, of course, you fail the test? " 2 Corinthians 13:5