To Know Him And To Make Him Known
Eternal life is to know God, and Jesus Christ whom He has sent. The believer, who is an ambassador of Christ, has the living Christ dwelling in Him by the Spirit of God. He has been commissioned by God to be a vessel of honor, bearing with him a very precious possession, that of the life of Christ. The believer is to so live by faith and love, abiding in Christ, so that Christ may dwell in him, revealing His life to a lost world. The fragrance of Christ's life is to be spread abroad.
The Unchanging Power Of Christ
Scripture tells us that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. So is His power. That which we see throughout the Old and New Testaments is the same today. That is not the issue. The issue is the appropriation, or receiving, of that power to live for the glory of God. All is in Christ by the Holy Spirit, for the glory of God, where we live. Ours is to believe God for all that we need to honor Him.
The Preparation And Practice Of True Worship
The worship of God is unique, and singular. It can only be accomplished by two things...the truth of God, and the Spirit of God. The truth is essential because anything less than the truth is a lie, and idolatrous. The Spirit of God is essential because only by His power can one come to God in faith, without doubting, receiving from God in Christ all that is needful to live for God's glory.
The Perfect Servant
Christ alone is the perfect Servant. He came to this earth to minister, not to be ministered to. As a servant, He came to reveal to us what true holiness is, the reason for it, and the way by which man can know something of it. It begins with His work on Calvary to save mankind from itself, delivering the sinner from the domination of a self-oriented life, to live for first for God, and then for others.
Old Things Passed Away
God does not sew a new cloth on an old piece of clothing, nor pour new wine into an old wineskin which will burst. He does not take the sins of men, and the old sinful nature of man to make a vessel that is honorable. What then does He do? In Christ He does away with all that is not of God, of Christ, in order to give that which is of Christ by the Spirit. He gives NEWNESS of life in Christ by the Spirit for His glory and honor.
God's Precise Time
The matter of God's timing, with regard to blessing or judgment, is His and His alone. There are times when He reveals what He is going to do after a certain time, or when there are certain circumstances. Though we cannot understand God's timing, as He alone possesses the wisdom to bring about His will on earth, as it is in heaven, He has called all who would follow Christ, to trust Him to work in His time and way. This way no one can put his hand on His glory and claim it as his own. God works in His way, in His time, for His unique glory.
The Manifest Blessing Of God
The true believer in Christ cannot be blessed more than he is IN CHRIST. On this earth, we are very limited in the true perception and its magnitude when Paul declares to us that we are blessed with "all blessings in heavenly places in Christ." The blessings on this earth, principally fellowship with Christ, are so limited, not by virtue of God's willingness to give, but because of our meager capacity to receive. Hence, we are called to live and walk by faith, abiding in Christ and Him in us.
The Fulness Of The Blessing
When does God give and reveal the fulness of His blessing? He does it when the soul is aligned with His will, and His purposes, for His glory. God gives His glory to no man, and certainly not to idols. But He will bless the one who truly trusts and follows Him. There will certainly be suffering and difficulty in following Christ, but there is the blessedness of His presence, and His sustaining grace.
Not With Eloquence Of Speech
God rarely calls eloquent speaking people to preach His word. Why? It is because there is often a trust in the eloquence instead of being placed only, and wholly in Christ. This is so very important because Christ alone is the believer's power. Without the power of God, there is no true accomplishing of the will of God. God gives power to be used for His glory and the accomplishing of His purposes.
How Must We Live Today
The believer in Christ is not called just to know the truth of Christ, though it is essential to true faith. He is called to know "the power of His resurrection," appropriating His life by faith every day. Why? First of all because Christ has become his Life, and secondly, it is only by abiding in Christ that His blessed life is communicated to us, and through us to a lost and dying world.