I was asked yesterday why following Jesus had to be so complicated… why all the rules and guessing in the world – when the Bible states it so clearly and simply. “To be mature is to be basic. Christ! No more, no less.” -Colossians 1:28 (msg)

In my heart, I believe it’s because we reject His Spirit. We hear, “For even though they knew God [as the Creator], they did not honor Him as God or give thanks [for His wondrous creation]. On the contrary, they became worthless in their thinking [godless, with pointless reasonings, and silly speculations], and their foolish heart was darkened.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭1:21‬ ‭(amp) but we refuse to obey the Spirit, rejecting His Spirit – while deep down, we know He is Good. So we throw out the guidance of the spirit for ceremony and ritual, making it extremely complicated while we, in reality, are trying to ‘fake it’. Trying to make it look like we live our lives for God while not submitting to the Spirit that allows us to actually Live with God. It’s a poor substitute and is always revealed – not in a ‘ha gotcha’ manner – but a – “there is something so much better, trust me” manner.

“Those who think they can do it on their own end up obsessed with measuring their own moral muscle but never get around to exercising it in real life. Those who trust God’s action in them find that God’s Spirit is in them – living and breathing God! -Romans 8:5-6 (msg)