"This only I want
to learn from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the
law, or by the hearing of faith? Are you so
foolish? Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect
by the flesh?"
Galatians 3:2, 3
Herein lies the root
of all problems. Flesh and spirit, not knowing the Spirit of God who
lives within our hearts, not spiritually understanding how we grow only in
spirit in union with Christ.
Flesh profits nothing
the Lord has said. Spirit is life. The Spirit of life in
Christ Jesus has set us free from the law of sin and death. The Lord
is also freedom from any law. Paul explained this - how flesh is not
able to produce life and fruit. Flesh is dead.
These words of truth
are simple in reality. What is hard is to plow through all the stuff
to have the Spirit of God in us, work it all out - in our minds, our hearts,
and are actual walking in and through Christ and His strength.
Repeated failure is a
good clue. God means to use it to find just exactly how we do grow
in the Lord, grow in grace, and live and walk only by His Spirit. Oh
let me not forget faith either - faith in who? Faith certainly not
in us! Faith in the Son of God who dwells in the heart. "But
we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may
be of God, and not of us!" 2 Corinthians 4:7
Think about the
Apostle Paul - he was clobbered big time - stoned to death, but God raised him
up. Well that was by man being controlled by the evil one, because
they did not like nor believe what he was preaching.
Yet God
"clobbered" (a/k/a chastened) Paul too, even using man's selfish and
evil intent to get him to understand the Gospel with power. And
understand he did - so much so that he said this: "...to
whom we did not yield submission even for an hour, that the truth
of the gospel might continue with you..." Gal. 2:5.
Remember too that Paul
was a former Pharisee - he talked about what his flesh was in Philippians
3 - but God caused him to understand who he had now become in spirit
through Christ. This is who he is. (I say "is" because
Paul is alive in heaven!) Paul had STRONG flesh, strong, strong, strong!
God also taught Paul
that the works he did would also now be through Christ and Christ
alone! He was certainly not an Apostle, because of his religious
education. He was an Apostle by the will of God, chosen by God.
One thing I am sure of
- years ago I sincerely asked God to teach me what He revealed to Paul the
Apostle regarding truth and His Gospel. And also, what all he fully
understood in HOW to walk out this Christian life.
Was it
easy? Nope. To obtain the truth of Gospel is indeed a
labor, because of principalities, powers, enemies of the truth, traditions of
men, leaven in the lump, and things of such. And some of it too, was
God having to work in me both to will and to do of His good pleasure.
God's heart is to
reveal the same thing to every person - it truly is not favoritism at all!
It is our choice as to how far we want God to teach us all the things concerning
His Son.
Paul preached CHRIST -
and he preached Christ in you, the hope of glory. He preached that
the Holy Spirit would reveal Christ, the things of God, the grace of God - that
wisdom and power, righteousness, and sanctification ARE Christ.
And now he said that
having begun in the Spirit there is NO way one is perfected through his flesh -
his effort, his this or that. No way! Faking it yes can
happen, but not real fruit - this comes through Christ alone.
Another wonderful
prayer to pray is to be perfected in the Love of God. Paul penned
also that faith and love are found in Christ Jesus, through the
Spirit.
Oh to pray for the
love of God to really be known within the heart - with God, who is Love comes
the revelation of Christ, His Son dwelling in us. Through Him and
Him alone comes all things - that He may receive ALL the glory - that our
boasting will be in Christ and in Him alone.
Stubbornness is and
was not limited to the children of Israel. God called them stubborn,
stiff-necked people. But these are definite attributes of the flesh
in all men. To have God kill those things and make one meek in
listening and learning is probably the greatest miracle He
can perform! :)
Now what is the
smashing point of saying all of this. Here it is: If we will truly
allow God to teach us His Son, His dwelling in us, and how to rely on Him and
not our flesh, we will receive the greatest blessing of our entire lives.
This is why the devil fights so hard against the truth, deceiving in
every way. And if we do go to great lengths to discover what Paul was
preaching, we will never be the same again.
Going all the way!
Sue
Gaither
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