----"He must increase, but I must decrease. --[John 3:30]
---"Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom (liberty)". (2 Corinthians 3:17)
--When we talk about people being "detached," we usually mean they're indifferent or apathetic. The word often evokes a sense of coldness, distaste, or disdain toward others. But what if not all detachment is bad? What if there was a version that could even be consider part of godly character? The early church had a name for this kind of detachment---It's what referred to as apatheia.
--In Greek, apatheia means without suffering," but over time, society, came to interpret the word as meaning "without feeling" --apathy. While the concept of apatheia has origins in ancient philosophy, the early church used the term to mean freedom from our disordered emotions, urges, evil thoughts, addictions, or obstacles that prevent us from fully experiencing the Lord. Through the healing power of Jesus in the Holy Spirit, we come to a place of no longer being affected by what once controlled us, triggering sinful responses. As Paul wrote, "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom" (2 Cor. 3:17/ ESV).
This healthy kind of detachment increases our ability to love God and others. Imagine how it would feel to finally be untangled from sinful patterns--free at long last to walk in the Lord's renewal, so that we can become closer and closer with Him. We don't stop feeling or experiencing these desires or tendencies, but we learn to stop accepting them and instead seek to peace of Christ.
We have a model of perfect apatheia in our Savior, the "One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15). When Jesus was temped by Satan in the wilderness, His appetites were tested but He did not submit to them. Instead, He relied on what was true about God--responding to the devil again and again with Scripture (Matthew 4:1-11). This way of living is accessible to to everyone who calls on Jesus' name, and follows Him.
Think about how you navigate your daily life now, including the way you manage stress and the amount of time you spend praying, reading God's Word and even fasting. As you identify opportunities to reorient your efforts and time, remember we don't have to get there all at once. It's a lifelong process of trusting the Holy Spirit every day, allowing Him to guide us in putting the things we love in order. Then we're able to renounce what gets in the way of our oneness with the God who gave His life to save us. .~~
-"He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him" --[John 3:36]
(2 Corinthians 3:17)
