All who do what God’s Spirit leads them to do are God’s sons. – Romans 8:14
There’s a big difference between stopping your car at a junction because the traffic light is red…and driving your car across the junction – despite the red traffic light – because you’re rushing a gunshot victim to the hospital.
In the former, your actions are being directed by an awareness of the traffic laws and good driving habits that you’ve been trained in.
In the latter, your actions are being driven by a discernment of how you should respond to the red traffic lights, given the urgency of your current situation.
Technically, you’re breaking the word of the law.
In reality, you’re fulfilling the spirit of the law, which is to protect life.
The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. (2 Corinthians 3:6)
And the Spirit gives life is true, even when the Spirit leads you into 40 days of wandering in the wilderness, followed by being tempted by Satan…and this after being baptised and endorsed by God.
It’s also true when the Spirit leads you to “a place I will show you” to sacrifice Isaac, or inspires you to defy Saul and take on a Philistine garrison.
This way of life also means using the vocabulary of instinct, courage, discernment, timing, “gut feeling”, trust and “knowing”.
It’s ‘awkward’ and messy, but it’s also part and parcel of being led by the Spirit.
Selah.