I found this chapter both interesting and challenging. I liked the way McLaren said we can look at ourselves and be "self-absorbed, self-contained, self-centered, selfish, and self-consumed...Or you can engage in a Spirit-Guided self-examination, self-control, self-development and self-giving." The difference he says is how we seek the spirit of wisdom to direct us.
When people tell me that I should preach more about the rules of the Catholic Church, I often think there is a bit of immaturity in that. I guess it is because I rarely see simply following the rules as also giving life. I like the analogy that McLaren offers. Following the rules is like being in elementary school (and there is a place for that), but moving on to secondary school means maturing past following the rules into discerning the wisdom that calls forth the rules in the first place. It is in the maturation process that the Spirit leads us beyond the law. But it is only effective if we have moved into a place where we can discern what is life-giving for both ourselves and others.
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