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The Daily Word of Righteousness
Living in the Fullness of the Spirit, #4
In order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit. (Romans 8:4)
As long as we are living according to the Spirit of God, the righteousness of Him who kept the Law of Moses perfectly is ascribed to us.
The Holy Spirit guides and empowers us in all aspects of the Christian life, and always assists us as we come boldly to the Throne of Grace in order to find help in our struggle against our sinful nature.
In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. (Hebrews 12:4)
The holy, fruitful life we are seeking can never come from our fallen nature. The fruit of the Spirit is the fruit of the Spirit, not of the Christian.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22,23)
As long as we are filled with the Spirit of God we can overcome the lusts of our flesh.
So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. (Galatians 5:16)
We Christians are never to drink alcohol. This is because the Holy Spirit and alcohol react on our body in a manner so similar that one rejects the other. Notice in the following verse that Paul tells us to be filled with the Spirit rather than with alcohol.
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, (Ephesians 5:18)
We can make merry with alcohol and drugs or we can make merry with the Spirit of God. The one leads to corruption and death, the other to life and joy.
The true Christian life is impossible apart from the assistance of the Holy Spirit. This especially is true as we think of the work of sanctification, of being made holy in thought, word, and deed.
We simply cannot make ourselves holy. Our fallen nature is extremely sinful and devious. No matter how noble our resolutions may be, various aspects of our fallen nature will continue to bring us to frustration and defeat.
However, if we will obey the commands of the Lord Jesus, and seek at every moment to find the mind of the Spirit, we can go from victory to victory. The Spirit is well able to help us overcome the world, Satan, the lusts and passions of our flesh, and our self-will. The Spirit of God is God and He can summon enormous power—enough power to make it possible for you and me to say no to sinful impulses and temptations.
However, if we expect the Spirit to help us we must lead a disciplined Christian life. There are things only God can do, and then things we must do. God will not transform us morally apart from our cooperation. How God and we are to cooperate is found in the books of the New Testament.
To be continued.