The Control Crisis

The Control Crisis

by Grant Gaines

Let me start out with a simple but profound observation: we are all controlled by something. Some people are controlled by a serious addiction to substances such as drugs or alcohol. Most are controlled to a lesser degree by some sort of “treasure” whether that is a car, a relationship, the desire to be the best, or a hobby. The list goes on and on of what we tend to be controlled by, and not all of our “masters” appear to be bad…at least on the surface.

However, when we allow something other than God to control us, we are being controlled by an idol which is a big no-no in God’s eyes (the first commandment God gave the Israelites in Exodus 20:3 states, “You shall have no gods before Me.” (NIV)).

So in this day and age when so many different outlets beg for our attention, what are we as Christians to so focus on that we allow ourselves to become controlled by it? God offers us a clear answer in 2 Corinthians 5:14 when Paul writes, “Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life” (NLT).

Before we look at what being controlled by Christ’s love looks like, let me first use an illustration to show what Christ’s love does NOT look like.

My childhood dog growing up was a massive Chocolate Lab named Maverick who was 145 pounds of energy and love. For a good portion of Maverick’s time on earth, he outweighed me which made him fun to play football and wrestle with, but not as much fun to take him on a walk. Besides the David and Goliath size differential between my mutant puppy and I, I am fully convinced that Maverick thought he was an Iditarod husky by the way he would strain with all of his might to drag me through the neighborhood. But do you know what happened when we got to an intersection or needed to cross the street? I would dig in my heels and pull on the leash with all my strength and despite Maverick outweighing me in both weight and desire, Maverick would be rendered helpless and would have no option but to stop.

I had control over Maverick but I don’t believe that is the control God wants His love to have over us. Sometimes it may seem like that because we wander away from the Lord and try to carelessly cross a busy road when suddenly, yank, God pulls us back in line to protect us. We are told in Hebrews 12:6 that, “God disciplines those He loves…” (NIV) just as a parent would discipline their children to protect them.

But Paul says that allowing Christ’s love to control us does not look like an angry God yanking on a leash all the time. Instead Paul writes in the very next verse that allowing Christ’s love to control us looks like this: “And [Jesus] died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for [Jesus] who died for them and was raised again” (2 Cor. 5:15, NIV).

How do we apply the lesson learned from 2 Cor. 5:14-15 into our lives? Instead of merely going through the motions of just flipping the calendar dates and living on auto-pilot, with Christ’s loves controlling us we go about our days with a sense of purpose because we no longer live for ourselves but for God. Now that long line at the grocery store is not a nuisance but a divine opportunity to show Christ’s love to those in the line around us. Instead of attending another run of the mill board meeting, we see the chance to live and communicate as a light for others to see that God loves them.

Allowing Christ’s love to control us transforms our thoughts, feelings, attitudes, even our very lives. It is, in a sense, realigning our desires with God’s desires. The routines of daily life then become opportunities to point other to the Lord.

So what is it you are being controlled by? Is it a “treasure on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19, NIV)? Or are you being controlled by Christ’s love by the way you live out your life?

God is calling us to be controlled by His love, will you join me in answering His call?

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©Grant Gaines 2013