The Bit Guides the Whole

March 1

We’ve all heard someone referred to as a ‘free spirit.’ The term conjures an image of an individual who does things his own way, someone who thinks outside the box. A free spirit is a nonconformist, the person who lives life on his own terms without regard to conventional wisdom or the opinions of others.

But is the whole concept of being a free spirit an illusion? Is there really such an entity on the planet as a free spirit? The reality might be entirely different than the perception. An old Bob Dylan song puts it this way, “…everybody’s gonna’ serve someone.” If that’s true, the question becomes, “Who am I serving?”

James 3:3 says, “When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we also guide the whole animal.” It isn’t merely the horse’s mouth or the horse’s head that is turned because of the bit in his mouth, it is the whole animal.
What ‘bit’ is in my mouth? What ‘bit’ is in your mouth?

Who or what is it that guides us? Who steers us in the direction we go? If we have given our lives to the Lord Jesus Christ, it should be the Holy Spirit that we follow. If we have not made our hearts His temple, we will follow our lust, follow our folly, follow the enemy of our souls into the dark by-ways of sin where the destruction of our spirit will occur in the secret places of iniquity.