Three Rules for Freeing Up Your Life    Audio     MP3     Download

Achieving Peace and Contentment: 3 Rules for freeing up your life.

These are called the Laws of Least Effort as they free you up from vast amounts of wasted energy.

They are the rules of Responsibility, Acceptance and Defenselessness.

Responsibility:  Do not blame others or yourself for your situation.  You stand before God and His Law alone.

Acceptance: Do not waste energy seeking to control or change other people.  Be it you, the church or the ministry, none has the power to convince anyone of ANYTHING spiritual.

Defenselessness:  Relinquish the need to convince others that you are right.  If you ARE right, the righteousness will do the convincing.  If we are talking about spiritual righteousness—God will do the convincing.

Let us look at the scriptural references for each of these three rules.

Do not blame others or yourself for your situation.

Galatians 6:1-6

1 Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
2 Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.
3 For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.
4 But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.
5 For every man shall bear his own burden.
6 Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.

Jeremiah 17:10
The LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings. 

Romans 2:5-9

6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds: 7 To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: 8 But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, 9 Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile;

Romans 14:10-12

10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
11 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.

1 Corinthians 3:7-8

Now he that planteth and he that watereth are one: and every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour.

2 Corinthians 5:10-11
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
11 Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences

Note:  Regarding "blaming of yourself":  This is speaking to the negative connotations of instilling the emotion of guilt and/or giving oneself justification for what he did.  The blame can become an excuse or a letting oneself off the hook.  The point of this rule is to take responsibility for your actions.  If one is blaming himself for an action because of a perceived shortcoming in one's character, he is shifting the blame rather than taking the responsibility.

Do not waste energy seeking to control or change other people. 

Romans 14:1  Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.
2  For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs.
3  Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him.
4  Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.
5  One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
6  He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.
7  For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.
8  For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's.
9  For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.
10  But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
11  For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
12  So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.
13  Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother's way.
14  I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean.
15  But if thy brother be grieved with thy meat, now walkest thou not charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died.
16  Let not then your good be evil spoken of:
17  For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.
18  For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God, and approved of men.
19  Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.
20  For meat destroy not the work of God. All things indeed are pure; but it is evil for that man who eateth with offence.
21  It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak.
22  Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he alloweth.
23  And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.

Romans 15:1  We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
2  Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification.
3  For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me.
4  For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.
5  Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus:
6  That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
7  Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.
8  Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made unto the fathers:
9  And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name.
10  And again he saith, Rejoice, ye Gentiles, with his people.
11  And again, Praise the Lord, all ye Gentiles; and laud him, all ye people.
12  And again, Esaias saith, There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust.
13  Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.
14  And I myself also am persuaded of you, my brethren, that ye also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another.

Romans 12:18  If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

Psalm 34:14  Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.

Psalm 133:1  A Song of degrees of David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!

Matthew 5:9  Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

Mark 9:50  Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.

Relinquish the need to convince others that you are right.

1 Samuel 2:3--Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy come out of your mouth: for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.
 

Psalm 12:4  Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us?
 

Proverbs 8:13  The fear of the LORD is to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate.
 

Notice the commentary on this verse:
 

Pride and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate; these are the particulars of evil, which Wisdom, or Christ, declares his hatred of. "Pride", which appears in men in thinking too highly of themselves, in speaking too well of themselves, in despising others, in setting up and trusting to their own righteousness for salvation, and in crying up the purity and power of human nature; this is very contrary to the spirit of the meek and lowly Jesus, and must be hateful to him: "arrogancy" differs little from pride, and the two words in the Hebrew are very much the same, very little differ; it is an ascribing that to a man's self which does not belong to him, whether in things natural, civil, or spiritual; when men attribute their justification and salvation to their own works, it is arrogancy, and must be hateful to Christ; who been at so much pains and expense to bring in everlasting righteousness, and work out salvation for men: it is the height of arrogancy in a man to conceit he a power to regenerate, renew, and convert himself.  –Gill
 

Isaiah 13:11  And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.

Job 9:20  If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me: if I say, I am perfect, it shall also prove me perverse.

Job 35:2  Thinkest thou this to be right, that thou saidst, My righteousness is more than God's?

Proverbs 12:15  The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.

Proverbs 20:6  Most men will proclaim every one his own goodness: but a faithful man who can find?

Proverbs 21:2  Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the LORD pondereth the hearts.   Notice the commentary:

Proverbs 21:2  The Lord pondereth the hearts - Every man feels strongly attached to his own opinions, modes of acting, etc.; and though he will not easily give up any thing to the judgment of a neighbor, whom he will naturally consider at least as fallible as himself, yet he should consider that the unerring eye of God is upon him; and he should endeavor to see that what he does is acceptable in the eye of his Maker and Judge. –Clark

2 Corinthians 10:12  For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.

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