"I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." John 10:10b
"But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." Acts 1:8
Many Christians, myself included, often live the Christian life in our own strength. Though we may pray, witness, attend church, and read the Bible, we often find no real joy, peace or happiness. Since we know that something is clearly wrong in our lives (and that the problem lies with us), let us then look at 3 truths from God's Word to turn us onto the right path.
Firstly, remember that God's plan for all His children is good and for His glory. Know that His love for you is unchanging and that no matter where you are in your Christian life, He still wants to restore and revive you for His own Glory. No matter how you feel about it, these are the facts that are eternally dependable. Therefore don't let your feelings and experiences knock you off but seek Him humbly (Jer 29:11-13) for He will surely revive you (James 4)! Remember, God's overarching plan for you is good and for His glory :) .
Secondly, recognize that Christ's work on the Cross is finished. In the Greek, the word "finished" in John 19:30 implies that Christ's work on the Cross is a completed action, with continuing results. That means that even up to this very moment, Christ's finished work on the Cross still has a positive effect on the Christian's life. It's not only for heaven but for the Christ life on earth. If we can trust Christ to save us from the penalty of sin, why not the power of sin too? Many of us put our trust wholly on Christ for Heaven but do not realize that we are to put our complete trust in living the Christ life on earth as well. It is sad and humbling because every time we start depending on ourselves to live Christian life, we undermine the finished work of Christ. Apart from knowing these facts in our mind, we need to agree that these glorious facts apply directly to us for this very moment and let it sink into our hearts (Col 2:6).
Lastly, realize that the Spirit's guidance is the key to the successful Christian life. The Holy Spirit is not another attribute of God or a force from God, He is the third person of the Trinity who is to teach, guide and enable us to lead the successful Christian life. One has put it this way: "God plans, Christ executes, and the Spirit applies." Thus ignorance to and independence from the work of the Spirit is fatal to the Christian life. When Christ ascended, He gave us another comforter to live in us. That word "another" means another of the same kind, showing that Christ was emphasizing on the Spirit's importance in the Christian life. Why do we find it hard, grievous and laborious to walk victoriously in the Christian life? Why is it that our Christian experiences always fall short of the expectations we find in God's word? It's because we do not know the ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives. We are neither depending on the Spirit to teach, comfort and guide us, nor are we interacting with Him to guide, warn and empower us. If we know more of the Spirit-filled life, don't you think it will make sense that we will look more like Jesus? Until we acknowledge, agree, and appropriate (by faith) God's plan, through Christ's work, for to His Spirit ultimately enable us to lead the victorious Christian life, we will never make it! May we not go around telling other people how the real Christian life is impossible, impractical and impersonal by our speech and lifestyle. You will realize His presence and power in your life only when you depend on the Spirit daily.
Maybe you have tried to live the Christ life but have failed miserably. Church is getting burdensome, sermons are getting dry, praying meetings are getting boring and daily devotions are getting dreadful. Are those activities bad? No! Satan and all of his angels would love for Christians to carry on living the Christ life themselves because he knows it's of not much worth in the Kingdom of God at all. There is a saying that goes like this, "If a Christian's life is not supernatural, it is probably superficial." What about yours? How much of our lives can be explained by self instead of God's enabling Spirit? The victorious Christ life on earth is not possible without the Spirit of Christ. If we can't say truthfully that we are depending on the Spirit of God right now, we are depending on self and living independently from the Holy Spirit. May God help us to depend on Him totally and continually. By God's enabling Spirit, may we win the battle over our addiction of self-dependence. Let us all make moment by moment choices to depend wholly on the Spirit today.
"Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts." Zechariah 4:6
- Benji Quek
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