Water, water, everywhere, but not a drop to drink!

Almost everywhere I go, it seems that Christians are lacking in the basic knowledge of their standing in Christ by Grace, their identity in Him, and the significance of the New Covenant which has given us a new heart as promised by the great Old Testament prophets. Ezk 11:19; 36:26; Jer 31:31-34; 32:39;

Not understanding these matters, which are the heart and soul of Paul's exposition of Life in Christ, is a deeply troubling and debilitating state of affairs for individual Christians.

Over and over, Paul writes to the early churches in his letters, if I may summarize: “this is who we are and what we have in Christ Jesus, therefore, this is how we live it out”. Well-meaning people often teach us exactly the reverse - to live out the life of Christ from our own resources, which is a massive folly. Christ is not our model in some way we can actually follow without help; rather, as Paul writes, He is our very life. Col 3:4;

If you do not know who you are in Him, then you have to get your identity and therefore, your whole mode of living from somewhere else. Inevitably, it will be, from the world, the flesh or the devil. And why not? We are used to this old way. A way which seems right, but leads to death and dead works.

Now, since we are in Christ whether we realize this or not, God is going to bring pressure to bear to break us of our dependence on things that misshapen our lives. In short - He will break us. This is definitely not fun or abundance, but the fruit of this work is going to work an exceeding amount of goodness and blessing. I remember hitting this particular wall about six years ago, and today, I have scars to help me not forget.

The bible speaks about the refining fire in several places, but in our cushy, air-conditioned, drive-through churches, we are not used to hearing this side of things; as if it were some innovation, or a hang-over from medievalism, rather than a simple fact of the spiritual journey.

There is much that is done in the name of Christ with good intentions, and even outcomes, to be sure, but I assert that this is something of a trickle, compared to what might be if we were more in partnership with God, rather than striving to make things happen in our own strength. Imagine how foolish it would be to plant some nice seeds in your window box and never giving them any water, or driving a car without any oil. Withering, grinding, and great waste will always ensue!

All too often, I hear Christians begging God to do things that He has already granted us in Christ. It is not uncommon to hear people grovel before “the throne of grace”, yet Hebrews tells us that we can boldly come before Him. Heb 4:6; This status in Christ is not of our doing, and it does not diminish either, our call to holiness and wholeness in His power; nor does it mean that God is somehow relieving of us of all responsibility for our lives. Nevertheless, there are a few prize chestnuts that tie us up in knots that you will find commonly, probably seeded into our churches by the enemy and perpetuated by our performance, law-loving, and conversely, licentious flesh. I leave these lies unidentified, for you to take time out to investigate and root them out in full dependence on the Holy Spirit.

The way of God is not the way of man. The path of spiritual growth cannot be accomplished by human efforts. Spiritual disciplines, prayer, meditation and study of scripture and so forth, are rightly done as means to avail ourselves of grace – they do not produce it. There are no “1-2-3-4-5” principles that we can routinely follow or discover which will make one iota of difference - except perhaps, to strengthen the power of our flesh (and not our spirits); and religious flesh is probably the most insidious avenue that is really a “cul-de-sac”(!); just look at the Pharisees, ultimately leading us down the road to spiritual bankruptcy and hypocrisy.

I don’t mean to suggest that I have this all sown up, or that there is some magic formula to all of this, but that as the truths’ of Scripture about who we are and what we have in Christ gradually penetrates us, we will find life in Christ flowing from God Himself in our lives, as we yield to Him. This may take time, come in differing stages from person to person, but it is something God is ready and willing to grant us - for we have it already!

Resources that might be of use to you: http://www.gmint.org/go/resources/