By Jude Laredo
So, we're going to look at chapters 5 and 6 of “Why Grace
Changes Everything”, by Pastor Chuck Smith. In chapter 5,
Pastor Chuck writes about the importance of our relationship with God.
The title of chapter 5 is: One Step at a Time. And in chapter 6,
Pastor Chuck writes about the difference between "works" and "fruit".
The title of chapter 6 is: A Garden, Not a Factory.
CHAPTER 5: ONE STEP AT A TIME
So, this chapter is about our walk with the Lord, and our relationship
with the Lord. Having a relationship with the One true Living God. And
just like all the other relationships we have, We need to spend time
with the Lord. We spend time in His word and in prayer and in
fellowship.
We know that the Christian walk is not about religion. It’s about a
relationship. Pastor Chuck reminds us that "Relationship always
precedes behavior". In other words, if we try to "walk in the
Spirit" without first establishing a balanced relationship with God, we
won't make it. He said that "the relationship comes first
because it provides the foundation for everything that follows".
J Vernon McGee, in one of his teachings said,
"we must learn to trust God before we can serve God."
Without a balanced relationship, without spending time with God,
without getting to know Him, we won't learn to trust God. And if we
don't trust God, how can we serve Him?
So, that balanced relationship with God is essential, getting to know
Him and spending time with Him through His word and through prayer.
Only then we can learn to walk in the Spirit.
WALK: The Greek word used here is - PERIPATEŌ –
Meaning: How they conduct themselves. "To walk" is sometimes used of
the state in which one is living, or of that to which a person is
given. It describes the dominant characteristic of a person's life.
The example given in the book was if someone were to have a reputation
as a real miser, they would be known as someone who "walked" in greed.
If someone were to have a reputation as caring or helpful,
they would be known as someone who "walked" in kindness.
Matthew 7:20 (NKJV)
"Therefore by their fruits you will know them."
Galatians 5:16 (NKJV)
"I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust
of the flesh."
To walk in the Spirit means that we allow the Holy Spirit to exercise
control over our lives. It's about just living your life. Which will be
ruled by either the Spirit or by the flesh.
Pastor Chuck wrote, "Every day we are presented with the option
of living after the Spirit or after our own fleshly desires. Our mind
is the battleground where we will decide which will have dominion."
Charles Spurgeon said in his commentary, "These are the two
principles which make up the dual man: the flesh and the spirit, the
law of the mind and the law of sin, the body of death and the spirit of
life." Spurgeon called it a "daily duel"
between the flesh and the Spirit.
So, yes, we know we have two natures living inside of us. The old
nature (flesh) and the new nature (Spirit).
Our flesh constantly wars against the Spirit. An online commentary
stated, "Our most fundamental choice
as believers is choosing each day, each moment, which to obey."
("The Bible Says" Commentary) You are going to obey either the
flesh or the Spirit.
The following analogy has been used by several preachers like Dr. Henry
Allan Ironside but this quote is strongly linked to Sitting Bull.
“Inside of me there are two dogs. One is mean and evil and the
other is good and they fight each other all the time. When asked which
one wins, I answer, the one I feed the most.”
So, what do we do? Pastor Chuck wrote, "the simple yet profound
answer is this: Don't fight the flesh, strengthen the spirit. Don't
fight against the darkness, turn on the light." Our minds are
being programmed every day by what we take in, what we see and what we
hear. Galatians 6:8 (NKJV)
"For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption,
but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting
life."
The first half of Galatians 6:8 says, "For he
who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption . . ."
So, if our "input" comes from the flesh, our lives will be
characterized by the flesh. We will be walking according to the flesh.
The second half of Galatians 6:8 says, ". . .
but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life."
So, if we program our minds with the things of the Spirit, our lives
will reflect that of the Spirit. We will be walking according to the
Spirit. Therefore, it’s so important for us to be in the word of God
every day. It is vital!
WALK: Here is a list of scriptures on how a Christian
is to walk.
THE CHRISTIAN IS TO WALK:
Here is a list of scriptures on how a Christian is NOT to
walk:
THE CHRISTIAN IS NOT TO WALK:
After the flesh: Romans 8:4
After the manner of men: 1 Corinthians 3:3
In craftiness: 2 Corinthians 4:2
By sight: 2 Corinthians 5:7
In the vanity of the mind: Ephesians 4:17
Disorderly: 2 Thessalonians 3:6
So, to walk in the Spirit, we must feed the spirit. Like Pastor Chuck said,
"don't fight the flesh, strengthen the spirit". Again, it's
by consuming the word of God. Our daily bread. In John 6:63 (NKJV), Jesus
said,
"It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words
that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.
" Time spent in God's word is essential. His word is life! Job said in Job
23:12 (NKJV)
". . . I have treasured the words of His mouth More than my necessary
food."
Now, of course, prayer is also an essential part of our walk. We need the
Lord's help; we need His strength to help us to be able to walk in the
Spirit. Pastor Chuck said that "our greatest need is to become more
and more aware of God's presence at all times. And that's why prayer is an
essential part of our walk. Praying, which is talking with God -communing
with Him- helps us realize that God is with us continually."
Deuteronomy 31:8 (NKJV)
"And the LORD, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you,
He will not leave you nor forsake you..."
"The instruction to walk in the Spirit simply means that we are to
deliberately make God our constant
traveling companion as we move through the day." We need to practice His
Presence. Colossians 3:2 (NKJV)
"Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth."
Between our flesh, this fallen world and Satan, we will face many
challenges, trials and temptations
that can hinder our walk and our spiritual growth. But Pastor Chuck points
to Philippians 3:14 (NKJV),
"I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in
Christ Jesus."
Jesus said in Luke 13:24
"Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will
seek to enter and will not be able."
STRIVE: The Greek word for strive is - AGŌNIZOMAI where we get our English
word agonize. Walking in the Spirit is not easy and because of our flesh,
it is not natural. But, just as Daniel
"purposed his heart"
not to defile himself with the king's delicacies (Daniel 1:8), we too need
to "set our hearts" on walking in the Spirit.
Chuck wrote, "To walk in the Spirit takes effort, devotion and
moment-by-moment awareness. We need to be deliberate and our hearts
steadfast." We also need to "purpose our hearts" like Daniel did.
The more time we spend with God and taking in His word, the more we will
choose to walk in the Spirit. To live our lives according to the Spirit.
And God will give us the strength and the desire to do it. And the more
time we are in His Presence, the more we will experience His peace. Isaiah
26:3 (NKJV)
"You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You,
Because he trusts in You."
As we abide and walk in the Spirit, we will begin to enjoy a close
relationship with God. And the more
we experience that relationship, the more we will desire it. And as Pastor
Chuck said, we will experience "a life
strengthened by the Spirit with joy, love, and peace flowing through us."
At the end of chapter 5, Pastor Chuck wrote: "But in order to
experience this blessing, we must choose to walk in the Spirit. We must
come to God and ask Him to plant a greater desire for prayer, for time in
the Word, and for fellowship with Jesus in our hearts. We must pray for the
grace to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. It is then
that we will know tremendous victory over even our most besetting sins, and
it is then that the Spirit of God is able to use us in the most
extraordinary ways."
CHAPTER 6: A GARDEN, NOT A FACTORY
In this chapter, Pastor Chuck is writing about "works" and "fruit".
"Works" is described as something that pictures a factory. A factory has
pressures, deadlines and the constant need to produce. "Fruit" is described
as something that pictures a very peaceful, tranquil garden. As Pastor
Chuck said, " Whenever we get into the realm of works (the
factory)
we are dealing with the flesh. Whenever we are in the realm of the
Spirit
(the garden) we are dealing with faith."
Earlier this year, The Women's Morning Bible Study did a teaching on "Life
In The Holy Spirit". In this study, we discussed how our mind is set either
on the things of the flesh (the factory) or on the things of the Spirit
(the garden). Romans 8:5 (NKJV)
"For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the
things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the
things of the Spirit."
God does not run factories; He grows gardens. God is not interested in our
works; He desires to enjoy our fruit. And as we take in the Word of God, as
we abide in Jesus, fruit is being produced in us. John 15:1, 4
1 "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser." 4 "Abide in
Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it
abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me."
Like fruit, we just need to hang in there.
The fruitfulness in our lives is shaped by our relationship with God. It is
God who brings forth the fruit within us as we abide in Him. It is the
natural outcome of spending time with the Lord. God cultivates the fruit
within us. Pastor Chuck said, "One of our biggest problems is that
we tend to be more interested in what we do than in what we are, while God
is more interested in what we are than in what we do. He looks for fruit;
we try to produce works."
As an example, in the book, Pastor Chuck looks at Abraham, in Genesis 22:2
(NKJV) where God said to him,
"Take now your son, your only son Isaac … and offer him there as a
burnt offering on one of the mountains
of which I shall tell you
." Didn’t Abraham have another son named Ishmael? What did God mean,
"Take now your son, your only son Isaac"? "The
answer is, Ishmael was a work of the flesh. He was not the son of promise;
he was not the son of faith. God refused to recognize Ishmael because he was
the work of the flesh. God recognized only His work of the Spirit, Isaac,
the child of faith." Chuck said there is "no such thing as
fleshy faith."
In Matthew 7:22-23 (ESV) Jesus said,
22 "On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy
in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty
works in your name?' 23 And then will I declare to them, 'I never knew
you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.'"
God does not want us to depend upon our flesh (the factory). We are called,
by faith, to rely upon His Spirit (the garden). The Lord doesn't recognize
works of the flesh; He never has. Just like God said to Zerubbabel, “. . .
So he answered and said to me: "This is the word of the LORD to
Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the
LORD of hosts"
(Zechariah 4:6 NKJV).
Pastor Chuck writes, "Let your life be as a garden where God can
come to enjoy the fruit you are producing
as you abide in Christ." John 15:5 (NKJV)
"I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in
him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing."
God wants you to be extremely fruitful for Him.
That fruit can come forth only as you abide in Christ - and that is a
position of faith. And just like the bible says in Hebrews 10:38 (NKJV)
"the just shall live by faith..."
Now, we all know, there is not one thing that any of us can do in our flesh
that will please God. There is nothing we can do to make Him love us any
more than He already does. We are holy, because He makes us holy. We are
righteous, because He makes us righteous. “We cannot improve on the
righteousness given to us by God. It is by faith alone. Faith always
produces fruit”.
And the fruit that's being produced in us is listed in Galatians 5:22-23
(NKJV)
22 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering,
kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control…"
In the last paragraph of chapter 6, Pastor Chuck wrote: "Since
you've begun in the Spirit, you must continue in the Spirit. Having begun
in faith, you must continue in faith. Don't degenerate ("decline") into
works; don't let your Christian experience become a bore. Don't become a
factory worker (the flesh), but let your life be as a garden (faith), where
God can come to enjoy the fruit you are producing as you abide in Christ by
faith."
Galatians 6:9 (NKJV)"And let us not grow weary while doing good,
for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.""If we
are truly abiding in Christ - which is a position of faith - then fruit
will come forth from the relationship." Jesus said in John 15:8 (NKJV),
"By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit…"
Therefore, let us continually and faithfully pursue our relationship with
the Lord, making it our aim to live our lives in a way that honors and
pleases Him by praying, reading His word, fellowshipping and seeking Him
daily.
Colossians 1:10 (NKJV) "that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully
pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the
knowledge of God;"
Pastor Chuck said that "a vital relationship of faith in Jesus
Christ will bring forth fruit - without fail."
Psalm 92:13-14 (NKJV)"Those who are planted in the house of the LORD
Shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old
age; They shall be fresh and flourishing".And, as Pastor Chuck
said,
"strengthen the spirit"; "turn on the light".
As we walk by faith in the Spirit, we will leave behind the old factory
ways of the flesh and will enter the
garden of grace where we will live and abide with Him.
==============
BIBLIOGRAPHY
The Bible Says Online Commentary
Billy Graham Commentary
Blue Letter Bible
Charles Spurgeon Library
Chief Sitting Bull
Harry A Ironside
J Vernon McGee
Why Grace Changes Everything (Chuck Smith)
