There are good applications of boundaries and bad applications of boundaries all around us. The boundary of law and order, which in the United States is given by the Constitution and code of related laws and upheld by leaders and law enforcement, is a good boundary. For example, if we removed the specific boundary of the law dealing with right to life – laws that in general say someone cannot harm or injure another person or property without recourse – society would devolve into a place of revenge and anarchy. When used appropriately, this boundary protects life, property, and institutions that we hold dear. It promotes freedom in that it enables moral, honest citizens the opportunity to move about and live their lives in safety and security.
However, the same general boundary – the law – can be misappropriated and misused in ways that does not promote freedom, but instead limits it. The law unjustly applied to citizens creates a totalitarian state where no one is free to do anything, other than what the government gives them permission to do. Freedom disappears with the over-application of the boundary of laws.
In his book “Boundaries for Leaders”, Henry Cloud writes that “good boundaries, both those that help us manage ourselves and lead others, always produce freedom, not control.”[1] It is when we either fail to recognize good boundaries, or we recognize them and reject them, that we are in trouble. In our search for freedom, by throwing off God’s divine boundaries, what we are doing is putting ourselves in the open with the cheetah. The cheetah is just as real as the boundaries, and when we seek to step outside those real boundaries, the real cheetah is there waiting.
Finding the Balance
There is a balance of accepting external boundaries in our life and simultaneously pursuing freedom – true freedom. This is a balance that we see played out in Scripture.
First, to find balance we can learn how to deal with unjust boundaries. There is a principle in Scripture that teaches us that we cannot allow unjust boundaries to prevent us from serving the Lord. The Apostles dealt with unjust boundaries – boundaries designed to thwart the Word of God – and they responded with force:
And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them, saying, “Did we not strictly command you not to teach in this name? And look, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this Man’s blood on us!” But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men.
Acts 5:27-29
This was a direct, forceful defiance against the authorities in charge. It was justified because the boundaries were unjust – they were not boundaries leading to true freedom, but boundaries designed to crush that freedom. Those kinds of boundaries can and should be justly refused.
On the other side of the coin, we cannot simply run the race of life however we deem best, removing whatever boundaries our opinion tells us are unjust, and setting up our own. The definition of freedom is not arbitrary. We must play by the rules. The Apostle Paul addresses this very subject:
And also if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.
2 Timothy 2:5
Paul is talking about running the Christian race, life in general, in his letter to Timothy. He is reminding Timothy of the powerful principle of boundaries. He is exhorting him that there are indeed some things that he cannot do, and some things that he must do. There are boundaries that are fixed that he must observe in order to run well.
If a runner in an Olympic race decides half-way through to start running outside the lines, taking shortcuts, running backwards, and skipping obstacles – he would be disqualified. Why? Because he is no longer truly running the race. He is ignoring the fixed boundaries. In the same way, there are many people who ignore God’s boundaries in many areas of life. While they may appear to have freedom in the moment, in reality they are like the runner who is no longer participating in the race. And God is the one Who will judge us in the race of life – whether we ran according to His boundaries, or we did our own thing. Doing our own thing will not lead to victory and reward. In the end, it leads only to shame and regret. This dynamic of freedom and boundaries plays itself out in several areas of life: our work, our families, our other relationships, and our ministries.
This post is a part of a series of posts that are excerpts from my book “Finding Your Midpoint: Locating the Balanced Positions for Your Life and Ministry” – available on Amazon or wherever books are sold.
[1] Henry Cloud, Boundaries for Leaders