When I was 16, my family went on a church camping trip in eastern Oregon. The campground was situated on a bluff overlooking Lake Billy Chinook. There were two ways down to the lake: a long winding road to the marina and a 200-foot cliff that dropped straight down to the highway.

One afternoon, bored with parent-approved activities, I found myself in the company of a half-dozen other boys of similar age. Our parents probably thought we were at someone else’s campsite and we found ourselves blissfully and dangerously unsupervised.

The cliff was located about a half-mile outside the campground, with a six-foot high chain-link fence guarding the last 20 yards or so before the drop-off. The fence, of course, was simply a beacon daring us to cross, which we did, and then began daring one another to see who would walk closest to the edge of the cliff.

Luckily, or more likely by God’s grace, we survived that afternoon and went on to find even more entertaining ways to endanger and injure ourselves. Now 25 years later, I look back over my life and realize that I’ve continued playing a version of that perilous game, seeing how close I could walk to the edge of the precipice.

Now, I simply do it spiritually.

I often find myself in that gray area between the fence that God has put up for my safety and a crumbling edge that leads to the long fall. Always pushing the boundaries, always justifying my behavior with verses about “all things being permissible” and “enjoying my liberties.”

Always teetering on the edge of the abyss instead of being content to walk on the safe side of the fence.

What I need to ask myself is, “Why do I want to do this, and what is the probable outcome? Is the likely consequence God’s glory, or my own destruction?”

It’s about the spirit that’s motivating us to action, not just the action itself. When Jesus was confronted by people who wanted him to define the boundaries for them, to tell them how close they could get to the edge, he invariably brushed aside the direct question, skipped the rules, and cut right to the spirit of the question.

The spirit of the question isn’t, “Am I allowed to do this?”

It’s “Why do I want to do this, what good will it serve, and whom will it glorify?”

“I want to drink alcohol, when I’ve promised that I wouldn’t. Why do I want to do this?”

“I’m about to speak unkindly to my spouse. What good will it serve?”

“I’m tempted to tell a lie. Whom will it glorify?”

When I’ve given an honest answer to those questions, the original question becomes moot. The spirit of the question reveals to me whether my desire is based in spirit or in flesh.

Of course, there’s a sure-fire, never-fail, 100 percent guaranteed way to keep yourself from slipping over the edge: play a different game. Jesus encourages us to live every day seeing how far away from the edge we can walk, not because of a list of laws and rules, but because it’s the safest place to be.

Philippians 4:8 tells me “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

Is the answer to my “why” noble? Is it pure? Is it admirable?

Where the boundary lies is irrelevant now that I know why I’m asking where the edge is. Will I choose sin, or won’t I?

Let’s be honest here. Just as it was with the folks who questioned Christ, my questions are usually just a spiritual filibuster to avoid the answer the Holy Spirit has already communicated to me. If I really want to tell that lie, I keep rewording the question until I find an answer that justifies my actions.

But deep down, we know the truth.

Jesus tells me that “the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”

So that little voice in my heart that asks, “Why, what, and whom?” That’s the Holy Spirit, the revealer of truth. That voice in my head that asks, “How close can I get to the edge?”

That’s me . . . . and do I really want to trust someone who was foolish enough to play, “How close can I get?” |L

OTHER COLUMNS:
October 18, 2009 - Watch what you say
October 4, 2009 - Proposing a new proverb
September 20, 2009 - Fear and trembling
September 6, 2009 - Elwyn
August 23, 2009 - Where did the Bible go?
August 9, 2009 - The public school: a local mission field
July 26, 2009 - Astonishing the judges
July 12, 2009 - Letting the past go
June 28, 2009 - Line up
June 14, 2009 - The path to spiritual growth
May 31, 2009 - A tribute to one of my heroes
May 17, 2009 - Silent soldier
April 19, 2009 - Operation Resensitization
April 5, 2009 - The temptations of ministers
March 8, 2009 - Conversation over shoes
February 22, 2009 - By their plurals you shall know them
February 8, 2009 - What is missing from your retirement plans?
January 25, 2009 - Turn the page
December 28, 2008 - Abba, Father
December 14, 2008 - Elementary truths
November 30, 2008 - The illusion
October 19, 2008 - Acting like a toddler
October 5, 2008 - Don’t miss this
September 21, 2008 - Foolish schemes
September 7, 2008 - God’s hand is everywhere
August 24, 2008 - The dance
August 10, 2008 - Strange land
July 27, 2008 - God’s amazing grace
July 13, 2008 - A best seller
June 29, 2008 - My grandfather’s clock and worship
June 1, 2008 - Reclaiming the name
May 4, 2008 - God is not our fairy godmother
April 6, 2008 - Success: what is it and who can measure up?
March 9, 2008 - Need to know
February 10, 2008 - The top three myths of singleness
January 13, 2008 - By invitation only
December 5, 2007 - Yes, Abbie, there is a Jesus
November 18, 2007 - 10 Ways to be a good Christmas customer
October 21, 2007 - The dividing line
September 23, 2007 - What do you fear?
September 9, 2007 - A life well lived
August 26, 2007 - To murmur, or not to murmur
July 29, 2007 - The cross and the Christian
July 15, 2007 - Turning the other cheek: still a valuable biblical principle
July 1, 2007 - Why the tie?
June 3, 2007 - The death of a son
May 6, 2007 - A prayer for the dying
April 8, 2007 - The omnipresent God
March 11, 2007 - Do the Amish have superheroes?
February 11, 2007 - What’s your black history?
January 14, 2007 - The split branch
December 31, 2006 - The house of regret
December 10, 2006 - The redemption of the innkeeper
November 26, 2006 - Too many choices
November 12, 2006 - Break the bashing habit: Learning to love the unsaved like Christ does: November 12, 2006
October 15, 2006 - Be ‘salt and light’ this Christmas!: October 15, 2006
September 17, 2006 - Who is a legalist?: September 17, 2006 Issue 38
July 23, 2006 - God speaks through our brokenness: July 23, 2006 Issue 38
June 25, 2006 - 'What I am looking for in my church leaders'