Whose Rules?

Now you are free from sin, your old master, and you have become slaves to your new master, righteousness. Romans 6:18

There is a tendency for men and women to make up their own rules, regardless of the consequences. C. F. Kettering, father of the automobile’s self-starter, has a story upholding the theory that ignorance is bliss.

“We had a convention of household electric plant distributors in Dayton some years ago,” he relates. “Each man was required to tell how much it cost him to wire a room. Finally one big breezy fellow named Bill, from Texas, got up and said, ‘Why I can wire a room for half of what these fellows are talking about.’

“The next day we took him to a room and told him to wire it his way. To our amazement he merely fastened the wire to the walls with staples.

“ ‘But you can’t put up electric wiring that way,’ I said to him when he was done. ‘It’s against the fire underwriters’ code.’

“ ‘What’s that?’ asked Bill.

“I gave him the code book of the underwriters and told him to study it overnight. The next morning he laid the book on my desk.

“ ‘The more a fellow knows in this country,’ he ruefully commented, ‘the less liberty he’s got.’ ”^a

Of course, Bill’s conclusion is ridiculous. The code was written to protect people from faulty wiring, and this electrician’s renegade approach would have been disastrous. In the same way, following God’s Word brings safety, direction, effectiveness, and confidence. In a word, you gain freedom when you follow his plan. When you ignore his plan and make up your own rules, things will eventually fail.

Whose rules will you follow today?

Jesus, thanks for the freedom truth brings to my life.