The Binary Choice: Why There's No Middle Ground in Following Christ

The Binary Choice

Recently at my high school friend's wedding rehearsal, groomsmen were betting how late it would start. "An hour!" "Hour and a half!" “2 hours!”

I said "No way! 30 minutes max!"

The jokes ensued. "Oh look at Mr. Positivity!"

Result? They started 25 minutes late.

My boys get mad at me because I'm ALWAYS positive. Like literally get clowned for seeing the bright side. In ALL my circles - basketball friends, work friends, music friends, childhood friends - I'm known as "the positive one."

Now we've known this friend 25+ years. I'm not naive - I KNEW they'd start late. But I had faith they wouldn't leave guests sitting in the hot sun for 2 hours. Not because I'm delusional, but because I CHOOSE to hope.

But this wasn't just about a wedding start time. This was about which master I was going to serve in that moment.

The Lie of the Gray Area

Most Christians want to believe discipleship is about "trying harder" or "doing better." They think following Christ exists on a spectrum - some days you're closer to God, some days you're further away, but hey, at least you're trying your best.

That's not what Scripture teaches.

Paul doesn't give us a sliding scale in Galatians 5. He gives us two lists. Two natures. Two completely different results.

Following Christ is about submission. And submission is not subjective. Either you are or you aren't.

Don't believe me? Let me show you how different good and bad are from submission.

I get thanked for destroying people in battle. As a military veteran, I get discounts at stores and a whole day of celebration in November. Someone else destroys someone in a street battle and they're in a jail cell for life.

Same act. Different context. Different outcome. Subjective.

Submission is not. You either do or you don't.

The Real-Time Battle

When you follow your sin nature, you are not submitted to Christ. When you are following Christ, you are not submitted to your sin nature.

There is no middle ground.

So when Scripture says to "die daily" to your flesh, these are real-time decisions you're making all day long. At that wedding rehearsal, I had a choice: Submit to cynicism based on past disappointment, or submit to hope based on faith.

My friends chose flesh. I chose Spirit. They mocked me for it.

That's the cost of the binary choice.

The Three-Letter Battle Plan

This is why I live by a simple reminder: keep JOY. live Disciplined.

Every character is intentional. Notice the lowercase "k" and "l"? That's not poor grammar. It's physical humility. While JOY and Disciplined stand tall and bold, those lowercase letters represent me literally bowing before Jesus.

JOY isn't feel-good nonsense. It's biblical hierarchy from Matthew 22:37-39:

Jesus first - Love God with all your heart
Others second - Love your neighbor
Yourself last - but still love yourself

The order matters.

When Jesus is first, everything else falls into place. When you put others before yourself, the world looks different. And when you finally love yourself the way He loves you, you stop living in fear.

The period after JOY is a full stop. A declaration. keep JOY - period. No exceptions, no conditions, no matter what hell breaks loose around you.

Then FROM that unshakeable foundation, become a Jesus disciple - which means live disciplined.

The Fruit That Proves Your Choice

Here's how you know which master you're serving in real-time: Look at the fruit.

"But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control" (Galatians 5:22-23).

Notice that "fruit" is singular, not plural. The Spirit produces all nine of these things simultaneously and constantly. All together, they are THE fruit of the Spirit.

Here's what most people miss: This fruit is constantly being produced in your spirit, even when your soul feels depressed. Your spirit is ALWAYS bearing love, joy, and peace. The question is whether you're going to let your soulish emotions dominate your spiritual reality.

When I chose hope at that wedding rehearsal instead of cynicism, I was drawing from the fruit that was already there. When my friends chose to expect the worst, they were walking in the flesh that "wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants" (Galatians 5:17).

Same moment. Two different masters. Two different fruits.

The Fruit That Proves Your Choice

Here's how you know which master you're serving in real-time: Look at the fruit.

"But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control" (Galatians 5:22-23).

Notice that "fruit" is singular, not plural. The Spirit produces all nine of these things simultaneously and constantly. All together, they are THE fruit of the Spirit.

Here's what most people miss: This fruit is constantly being produced in your spirit, even when your soul feels depressed. Your spirit is ALWAYS bearing love, joy, and peace. The question is whether you're going to let your soulish emotions dominate your spiritual reality.

When I chose hope at that wedding rehearsal instead of cynicism, I was drawing from the fruit that was already there. When my friends chose to expect the worst, they were walking in the flesh that "wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants" (Galatians 5:17).

Same moment. Two different masters. Two different fruits.

The Victory Parade You Missed

Here's the part that changes everything: The battle is already over.

"Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them" (Colossians 2:15).

The Greek word Paul uses here is THRIAMBEUO - meaning "to make an acclamatory procession" or "to triumph over." This wasn't just victory. This was a Roman triumphant procession.

Let me paint you the picture:

When Roman generals conquered an enemy king, they would strip him completely naked, tie him to a horse or chariot, and cut off his big toes and thumbs. Then they would parade this defeated leader through the streets of Rome while citizens cheered and celebrated.

Why cut the thumbs and toes? Simple. A king without thumbs can't hold a sword. A warrior without big toes can't maintain balance in battle. He's permanently crippled - no longer a threat to anyone.

The Greek word APEKDUOMAI (translated "spoiled" or "disarmed") literally means "to strip completely" or "to divest wholly." Paul is saying Jesus didn't just defeat Satan - He stripped him naked, crippled him, and made him a public spectacle.

This is what God did with the devil.

Satan has been stripped of all power and authority. He's been publicly humiliated. He can't hold the sword of condemnation anymore. He can't maintain his balance in spiritual warfare.

His only weapon left is deception - making you think the battle is still in question. Making you think you're "trying your best" to follow Jesus instead of knowing you have the power to choose submission moment by moment.

But here's what proves Satan's defeat: No demons were ever cast out in the Old Testament. Not once. You don't see David casting out demons. You don't see Elijah casting out demons. You don't see any Old Testament prophet doing what Jesus did with a simple command.

Jesus was the first to cast out devils in this manner, signing His signature as being the Son of God having all power and authority over all spirits, clean or unclean.

Once Jesus came, died, and rose again, suddenly His disciples had the same authority. He gave them "authority to cast out the demons" (Mark 3:15). Why? Because the victory parade had happened. Satan was defeated, stripped, and crippled.

The problem is that much of the church has missed the parade. They don't know Satan has been defeated. They're still living in fear of a stripped, hobbling enemy who can't even hold a sword anymore.

The Choice That Defines Everything

Every moment of every day, you're making a binary choice between two masters.

At a wedding rehearsal, choosing hope over cynicism.
In traffic, choosing patience over road rage.
In conflict, choosing love over retaliation.
In disappointment, choosing faith over despair.

These aren't personality preferences. These are submission choices.

You're either drawing from the fruit of the Spirit that's already in you, or you're walking in the flesh that wars against that fruit.

There is no trying. There is no middle ground. There is no "doing your best."

There is only the choice: Which master will you serve in this moment?

The fruit will prove which one you chose.

The Challenge That Changes You

Stop living in the gray area that doesn't exist.

Stop telling yourself you're "trying to be more like Jesus" when what you really need to do is submit to the Jesus who already lives in you.

Pick your master.

When your friends mock you for choosing hope, remember: they're revealing which master they're serving.

When you feel the pull toward cynicism, complaint, or compromise, remember: that's your flesh trying to regain control.

When you choose JOY over justified anger, others over yourself, faith over fear - that's not you being positive.

That's you being submitted.

"So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves" (Galatians 5:16).

The binary choice is always there. The power to choose correctly is already in you.

What master will you serve today?

That’s it for today

keep JOY, live Disciplined

Let Me Serve You Better

I want to be transparent... since I started this newsletter in February, I've tried releasing on every day of the week and at different times to serve people better.

I'd like to know from a reader standpoint: Would you enjoy these articles mid-week or on the weekend (Saturday or Sunday)?

Hit reply and let me know what works best for your schedule and when you're most likely to actually read and apply what I'm sharing.

Music That Matches the Message

I've created two musical projects to sonically get this message across. The first project is called keep JOY and the second is called... you guessed it... live Disciplined.

These projects will be releasing over the next 2 months, but I created a visual preview of keep JOY that captures the heart of what I'm trying to communicate.

Visual Preview

The music isn't just entertainment - it's another way to get these biblical truths into your spirit so you can make the right choice when the moment comes.

Because the binary choice is happening whether you're ready or not.