THE WORK OF THE SPIRIT IN THE BELIEVER

“That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit”. The being born again does not alter the flesh, it remains the same to the end of the day. But there is implanted in the one thus born of the Spirit the germ of a new being. The subsequent work of God is the building up of this new being into a full-grown man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ. Christ is the pattern to which God works.

The final result will be complete conformity to Christ, He has predestined that we shall be conformed to the image of His Son, Rom 8: 29. This work should be going on continually day by day, so that we may be gradually transformed into moral conformity to Christ.

“We all, looking on the glory of the Lord, with unveiled face, are transformed according to the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Lord the Spirit”, 2 Cor 3: 18. We see in this passage how the Spirit carries on this work of transformation, namely, by engaging our hearts and minds with the Lord in glory, and with all that has been set forth of God in Him, for He is the image of God. Thus the work proceeds unconsciously to ourselves, though the effect will be seen by others in the exhibition of the spirit and grace of Christ in us, in our manners and ways.

We see how this was illustrated in the case of Stephen, it says of him that his face was as the face of an angel. The light of the glory of Christ which shone in his heart was reflected in his face. A man’s face is the outward expression of what is in his heart. So it will be with us: if the light of the glory of Christ shines in our hearts, it will shine out in our words and ways.

The apostle could say God has shone in our hearts for the shining forth of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. So that if we are in the Spirit, instead of being self-occupied we shall be Christ occupied.

The Galatians, like many today, were trying to bring about this change by self-improvement, that is, by the development of the flesh. The apostle was greatly troubled about them, he speaks of travailing in birth for them a second time till Christ should be formed in them.

That is not self-improvement. We have received the Spirit of Christ to this end, that Christ may be formed in us, in other words, that we may derive a new state of life and being from the last Adam. The work of the Spirit is to develop this new life, to build us up in Christ. But this depends largely upon what we feed on: we are assimilated to that which we feed upon, so that if we feed on Christ in our minds, we are built up in a spiritual state, built up in what is of Christ. This will result in our walking in newness of life, we shall come out in a new colour, in the character of Christ. What is expressed of Christ outwardly cannot go beyond what is formed of Christ inwardly.

The cross is the expression of God’s judgment of man, and the setting aside of man after the flesh from before God. He has no more to say to that order of man. Now God recognises only one man, Christ Jesus, and what is of Him in the saints; we shall only carry what is of Christ into heaven.

The Spirit in us will always be true to what has been set forth in the cross. He will not recognise or tolerate what is of the flesh. If we tolerate what God has judged in the cross of Christ, the Spirit is grieved. “They that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts”, Gal 5: 24. We have to be consistent with this or the work of the Spirit is hindered, and we lose our joy in the Spirit. “He that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption”, Gal 6: 8.

The Spirit ungrieved would ever direct our eyes to Christ, and engage our minds and hearts with Him. Thus the work proceeds until the Lord comes and completes it by transforming our bodies into conformity to His body of glory. This will be the finishing stroke to the work which has been going on in our souls since God first began His good work in us. “He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ”, Phil 1: 6.

What we have to be exercised about is that we do not hinder this work of the Spirit of God by allowing our minds to feed upon light literature, politics, and what is worst of all, unsound religious literature, the teaching of science, falsely so called, which tends to undermine the inspiration and authority of scripture. On the other hand we must see to it that we get proper food. “As newborn babes desire earnestly the pure mental milk of the word, that by it ye may grow up”, &c., 1 Pet 2: 2.

From The Believer’s Friend vol 13 (1920)