GRAMMY nominated Christian contemporary band MercyMe, release their eighth studio album, Welcome To The New, on Tuesday April 8 and lead singer Bart Millard said it feels like it is just the beginning. Breathecast had an in depth interview with Millard and discussed the new era the band has entered of ditching their traditional life in legalism and embracing the joy and grace of Jesus Christ.

Breathecast: Do you think people are intended to always reinvent themselves, that whole "new" experience like in the scriptures from Glory to Glory, or do we ever find that happy medium?

Bart: We call it maturing in Christ. If I'm not one step closer to Christ now than I was a year ago, then I don't think I'm really doing what I was created to do. We don't come to know Christ and then everything shuts down and we go to heaven. There is a journey in place.

The beautiful thing about the journey is that we are good with Christ regardless of what happens the day we come to know Him, which is the novel concept of this whole album. We tend to live like we have to stay good or we are going to ruin it, versus Christ saying 'hey man the covenants in place, me and you were good so you live life, and enjoy yourself along the way. See how amazing I am in life and in creation in everything else and enjoy it.' I think the enemy has us so bound up that we think the second that we don't do right or good enough that we're ruined. I think that's where the church has been in bondage for years and where I have been in bondage for years, til the last couple of years.

BC: I read that you grew up in a very strict church where dancing was not even allowed, what revelation has made you embrace this new carefree attitude in which you can dance in the video of your first single "Shake" and not feel guilty?

Bart: The revelation for me was that I played by the rules my whole life. I'm kind of an over achiever. I did everything I could. If they told me I had to do it twice I'd do it four times. The irony is, that I was doing everything right for the kingdom but yet my personal life was falling apart. I felt like my family was hanging on by a thread.

It was heart breaking, going to the same church I grew up in when my wife and I got married 15 years ago in where we couldn't have a dance because my father in law was a chairman of the deacons, and it would look so bad that they didn't want us to go there. I can't think of a moment where my wife was actually walking out the door but it wouldn't have surprised me if that would have happened.

In an interview, Billy Graham said, 'My one regret was that I didn't cherish my family and my life enough,' and I thought what an amazing thing for such a godly man to say. I could totally relate. I remember saying God is not a God of chaos so some how my family life and my ministry will work together. I used it as an excuse to do all the stuff I was doing and then my family was supposed to figure it out. I should have protected my family more and embraced what God had laid right in front of me and the ministry would take care of itself. Without suffering it's hard to truly appreciate grace and that's how I ended up. I had to face it head on and realize, this is what matters and this is what doesn't matter.

A friend of mine came into my life and told me at the perfect time that no matter what I do in life there's nothing I can do good enough to make Christ love me more than He already does. And so for my family's sake, for my own sake, for the gospel's sake, 'why don't you just stop and rest in the finished work of the cross?' For me, right then it wasn't about doing something, it was about doing nothing. And it was life changing! That's why the album is called Welcome to the New, after 20 years of MercyMe we feel like we're just getting started.

BC: What advice can you offer a believer who may be young in their walk or unaware, to help them identify the bondage of legalism?

Bart : I've been a Christian since I was 13, so for me to become militant is exactly what the enemy wanted to do, so I've learned to be a little more gracious.

Legalism or the lack of legalism is not what makes us Christian. We can be in the most legalistic church and come to know Jesus and remain legalistic, but because of the grace of God we are still going to make it to Heaven. The difference is perspective, because of your perspective you can miss out on the joy that Christ desires us to have hear on earth.

If the message is presented the right way, I can't imagine someone not wanting to be free of legalism and wanting to be free. Religion is such a depressing story in comparison to a true-free life with Christ and that's what we are trying to do, is show the difference. Religion will fall short. Religion's purpose was to cater to an amazing free gospel, not the other way around.

BC: Now, on the other hand, what can help the believer not become so liberal, that they end up going against God's teachings in some sort of a new age way?

Bart: I believe that everything revolves around the light, I think that's what it all comes down to. I think the enemy has done a very good job at making anything that's Spirit led sound like it's the hippie movement.

The bottom line is that our Christian walk comes down to one thing, we try to do all these things to please God to get His attention when the whole time He's saying 'I've been pleased with you since the day you called my name, I never stop, so we can get pass that, there is no condemnation, I'm thrilled with you at your worst and at your best, because what you do, is not who you are.'

The Bible says if you want to please God, then just believe it, trust it, follow Him...which means live a spirit led life. The same spirit that rose Christ from the dead dwells inside of you, and because of that fact, all we have to go by is what the Spirit leads us to do. The sad truth is, sometimes it will be against what religion or your fellow believers, or your church may say, or may understand, and it may put you in a hard spot, but I believe that's what it comes down to. I believe the gospel is very tailor made for each of us, the ultimate truth is only one answer and that is, Christ is the only way, truth and life, no one comes to the Father but through Him.

I did this big blog a while back about Ellen Degeneres hosting the Oscars and got eaten alive by people saying that I support gay marriage. All I said was that she did a great job, and she's very funny. So I had to kinda come back and say, look I just want to make it clear that I love Ellen with as much grace as I can possibly muster up and I think she is unbelievable and I pray that she comes to know Christ one day more than anybody else. I think it'll be unbelievable.

People have asked me 'What do you think of gay marriage?' I wish there was a loop whole that says it was ok because that would make life easier for all of us, but I can't find it. I try not to go there because that shuts the door so fast to having the ability to show grace. On the flip side of that, I had to make it clear, that I have gay friends that I love with all my heart. In fact, I love them so much that I have this burden to see them come to know Christ regardless of what the church may think of me; because I care for them more then I do for some of the church.

But I believe with all my heart that without Christ you don't get in, Period. Some people say they need to stop being gay to come to Christ, but here's the thing, I haven't figured out how to stop lying yet, or gossiping and some how, Christ has let me in. There are people that struggle with the flesh that will be in Heaven.

I hope I'm not falling into some new age hippie thing when I say its all about being Spirit led and showing people grace because I do believe that's what the gospel is. If I ever thought that there was more than one way to Heaven than Christ, then I have messed up, somebody punch me in the face, because I don't believe that, but I do believe that grace is so vital.

BC: There is a new thing going around in the Christian industry that artists, worship leaders, actors, and rappers do not want to be called Christian because they say it limits their reach. What do you think about that?

Bart: I don't really care, I rather pick the label of Christian then not be called a Christian. I think religion has kinda ruined it and given us a big black eye. Where I stand is, I am a Christian, this is the type of Christian I am. Unfortunately, we represent a lot of legalistic, religious people, that embarrass me more than anybody else.

I'm not going to allow the mainstream world to strip me of who I am as a Christian. I'm not going to let these knuckle heads in the church do the same thing. And so, I'm a Christian, I am in a Christian band. A good songwriter writes about whatever consumes their heart, and my heart is consumed with Christ.

I guess, you can not call me a Christian band but your going to know in about 30 seconds that I am. We've been around for 20 years and that thing has been going around for so long, I've kind of out-grown that.

The ones that make a big deal about not being called that, it's like you're trying to make up for something else that's missing. There's always an agenda. You can call me anything you want, as long as you're listening to my music (LAUGHS).

Listen the album preview of MercyMe's album Welcome to the New, below: