Book: Openness Unhindered

This book is a must read.  Rosaria's personal history combined with a solid theology makes for important insight.  This book is both theologically insightful as well as personal.  No abstract to stogy theology here.  This book beautifully connects the dots between grace, shame, temptation, identity, sin, repentance, and sin.

So here's what I learned:

When I became a Christian, I noticed a lot of struggle with the Law.  There were those that supported theonomy, the application of the Mosaic law to current society.  There were those that said we didn't need the law, that Christ fulfilled the law.  There were those that said some parts of the law were important and others no longer applicable.  People generally felt confused by the law.  Others fought with the law.  What came through in this book is that I'm no longer in conflict with the law.  The law is my friend and my tutor, teaching me who God is and what He wants.  I suddenly felt free by that.  Don't need to get wrapped up in the details of what applies, doesn't apply, how, etc.  I just let the Holy Spirit do the teaching.

We need to be looking at our lives from God's perspective, not ours.  We tend to get our own experience confused with what God is saying.  God says it's sin, but we're feeling okay about it - is it sin?  Yes.  It is.  What necessarily flows out of that is our need for obedience.  But it feels right - it's who I am.  Is it who you are?  If God says it's sin, then it's not who you are, but rather temptation.

We are made right with God by believing that Jesus has taken care of our penalty before God, but we continue to sin.  Repentance is the key between that act of sin and God's grace.  I've heard people go on and on about how they're trusting in God's grace, but secretly I know they're struggling with shame and guilt.  Repentance is the key.  This is where we live out Jesus' command to take up our cross daily and repentance is key in that.  Then there are people that say their trusting in God's grace, they feel the awful affects of sin, and aren't repenting because they want to blame other people.  The cycle is terrible and will leave those involved devastated.  Because there is no repentance.

Rosaria drives home again and again the importance of community and the need for repentance in the community.  Not for punitive reasons but so people can see that repentance is important and learn how to repent.  For support in temptation through prayer and counsel.  For a witness.  In a YouTube video she talks about how the church today is on a starvation diet of fellowship.  When people see that, they react that they don't want to live like that.  Our witness is ruined.  

I would strongly encourage reading this book.  There is so much heart and substance here, that you'll walk away well fed.