Lorna’s Notes: Romans 7 Gives us the example of the Apostle Paul as concerns growing in grace. He started out trying to live the life God desired through his own power. After all he had a lifetime of practice in “righteous” living according to the law, so much so that he was a Pharisee of Pharisees. What he discovered, by the teaching of the Holy Spirit, was that in that endeavor he was failing miserably to live a life pleasing to God. “What a wretched man I am,” he said. Then the Holy Spirit taught him that it is the grace of God that enables us to live a life pleasing to God.
The life of Christ is our perfect example of a life pleasing to God lived by grace. (John 7:6 John 7:30). Jesus entrusted himself completely into the father’s hands (Luke 23:46 I peter 2: 21-24.) Jesus did only what the father told him to do. (John 5:19-20 John 14:31). Every moment of Jesus’ life was planned. Every moment of Jesus life was in rest, except during that short period where he entreated the Father to let “this cup pass from” Him. Every person he met, every miracle he did, every where he went was according to God’s plan. Never once was he in danger, though they wished to kill him. Never once was he defeated, though they came against him. Even in his death, he was completely in the will of God. He lived in and by the grace of God.
Here are some excerpts from Louis Sperry Chafer’s Book “Grace” and a teaching by Ray Stedman.
Chapter 3 – Safekeeping in Grace Not only is the believer said to be saved by grace, but he is said to “stand” in grace. The word stand, as used in the New Testament, gives expression to the thought of continuing and enduring, and to “stand” in grace is to abide unchanged, to endure, and to continue in grace. We read: “We have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand” (Rom. 5:2), and, “This is the true grace of God wherein ye stand” (1 Pet. 5:12). The continued exercise of divine grace toward the Christian is the one and only basis upon which one may hope to endure, for, as certainly as grace is the one and only basis upon which God can save a meritless sinner, so certainly grace alone is the basis upon which God can righteously keep one saved. Having begun in the Spirit, or wholly in the power and grace of God, there is no hope for continuance to be found in the flesh, or in the resources of human strength. Human ability can no more maintain a right standing before God than it can attain such a standing.
II. The Keeping Power of God Through Grace Is Implied in Every Revelation Wherein Is Presented the Truth That Grace Reaches into the Coming Ages for Its Consummation Through the cross of Christ, which has dealt with sin, and through His decree against all human obligation and merit as related to salvation, God is righteously free to preserve His child forever. And since His supreme purpose in all the ages will not be realized until the sinner is saved, transformed into the image of Christ, and lifted up to the highest glory, He will continue the exercise of His grace toward every believer until the divine objective is consummated. How perfectly He has delivered Himself from every limitation! How absolutely gracious are all His ways with those whom He saves! And how irresistible is His purpose and power! The great covenant promises of salvation are not limited to the moment when the sinner accepts the saving grace that is in Christ Jesus; they all reach on and guarantee every step of the way from the first moment of faith to the last moment of fruition. Even the word salvation, in its largest biblical meaning, covers all that is past, all that is present, and all that is future, in the outworking of the grace of God for the one who believes.
- “He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6)
- “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16)
In the great promises of grace there is no measurement as to time, nor any human condition imposed other than believing.
- “But as many as received him, to them gave he power [right] to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:12)
- He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life” (John 3:36)
- “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life” (John 5:24)
- “And him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37)
- “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth” (Rom. 1:16)
- “That he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus” (Rom. 3:26) “For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth” (Rom. 10:4)
Such is the unalterable and unconditional covenant of God in grace.
III. The Keeping Power of God Through Grace Is Indicated by the Manifold Provisions and Safeguards Which He Has Made to That End
The eternal purposes of God in grace can never fail since He has anticipated and provided for every emergency that could arise. Some of these provisions are:
A. The Power of God
His power, which is supreme, is ceaselessly engaged in the keeping of His own to the realization of His eternal purpose. Able is the great New Testament word that is used to indicate the omnipotent power of God. By use of this word, God is said to be of sufficient power to do whatever is predicated of Him.
- “My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man [nothing] is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand” (John 10:29)
- “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature [created being], shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:38-39)
- “Who art thou that judgest another man’s servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand” (Rom. 14:4)
- And God “is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think” (Eph. 3:20) “According to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself” (Phil. 3:21)
- “For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day” (2 Tim. 1:12)
- “For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them that are tempted” (Heb. 2:18) “Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost [without end] that come unto God by him” (Heb. 7:25)
- “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy” (Jude 24)
- “And being fully persuaded that, what he has promised, he was able to perform” (Rom. 4:21)
- “What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31).
B. The Love of God
Not only is God able to do according to His eternal purpose, but His love as a supreme motive will never fail.
- “Having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end [without end]” (John 13:1)
- “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life” (Rom. 5:8-11)
As He loved the unsaved enough to give His Son to die for them, even when they were “yet without strength” and “enemies,” “much more then, being now justified by his blood” and “reconciled,” they shall be “saved from wrath through him,” and “saved by his life.” Such is the unchangeable love of God. “Much more” than His love for the “enemies,” which drew out the unspeakable gift of His Son, is His love for His own who are now “justified” and “reconciled.” So, also, there is a boundless assurance as to the future: “saved from wrath through him,” which points to the unchangeable position of the believer “in Christ,” and “saved by his life” which points to the living presence and ministry of Christ in glory. With such provisions, God’s love can know no disappointment concerning those whom He has saved in grace.
C. The Prayer of the Son of God
Christ prayed while here on earth:
I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them. And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they be one, as we are. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil… Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word (John 17:9-12,15, 20).
It is wholly impossible that any prayer of the Son of God should be unanswered. Too much emphasis cannot be placed on this assuring fact. While the “son of perdition,” who was never saved, was lost that, in his case, “the Scripture might be fulfilled,” the Son of God could say of the saved ones: “And none of them is lost.” Thus, since He has prayed, as well, for “them also which shall believe on me through their word,” He will yet say, of all believers: “And none of them is lost,” and in the same manner will the Scriptures be fulfilled in the presentation of every saved one in glory.
As Christ began to pray for His own while He was yet here in the world, so He has continued to pray for them, and will continue to pray for them, in heaven: “Seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Heb. 7:25). Who can measure the security of the children of God when they are the objects of the ceaseless intercession of the Son of God, whose prayer can never be denied?
D. The Substitutionary Death of the Son of God
The death of the Son of God is the sufficient answer to the condemning power of sin, even as sin appears before the righteous throne of God. Not even the unsaved are now condemned because of sin which Christ has borne; how much more are the saved free from condemnation through the death of Christ! Thus the Holy Spirit boldly inquires: “Who is he that condemneth?” The answer He also gives: “It is Christ that died”; “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus”; “When I see the blood, I will pass over you.” The eternal purpose of God in grace is assured through the death of the Son of God.
E. The Resurrection of the Son of God
When he is saved, every believer partakes of the resurrection life of the Son of God. He receives a new life from God. It is the gift of God which is eternal life, and it is “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Speaking of this imparted life, Christ said: “I am come that they might have life,” and, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life.” So, again, “I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish” (John 3:36; 10:10, 28). It is the imperishable life of the eternal Son of God which is imparted to every believer. God never gave this gift in blindness, not knowing what might be the future character of the one He thus saved. He knew the end from the beginning. He anticipated every failure and sin; yet, through Christ, He can assure us that, having received the gift of eternal life, we shall never perish. According to the unalterable gift of eternal life, made possible through the death and resurrection of the Son of God, the purposes of God in grace are secured.
F. The Present Advocacy of the Son of God
The Lord Jesus Christ is now “appearing” in the presence of the Father as Advocate for everyone who is saved by grace. As Advocate, He is concerned with the actual sins of the Christian. He is not there before the Father making excuses for their sins, nor is He imploring the Father to be merciful; He is rather presenting His own blood before that throne as the answer to the condemnation of every sin. “If any man sin, we [Christians] have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous” (1 John 2:1). In Rom. 8:34, assurance is given by four great facts that the child of God will never be condemned. One of these is that Christ “is even at the right hand of God.” To the same purpose it is declared in Heb. 9:24, that “Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.” In view of the presence of the Advocate before the Father’s throne, meeting the force of every sin, even meeting the challenge of Satan who is there to accuse the brethren night and day before God (Rev. 12:10), there can be no doubt remaining as to the realization of the eternal purposes of God in grace.
G. The Intercession, or Shepherdhood, of the Son of God
The intercession of Christ extends beyond His present ministry of prayer for the saved, which has just been considered, and includes, as well, His shepherd care over them. As Shepherd, He is guarding their path against the snares of the Evil One, and guiding their feet in the ways of His blessing and peace. Peter knew nothing of the fact that Satan had designs against him, or that Christ had anticipated those designs and had prayed for him. All this was revealed to him when Christ said: “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you [obtained thee by asking], that he may sift you as wheat: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not” (Luke 22:31-32). Peter’s ignorance of that which had transpired in heaven concerning him did not change the fact that he was, nevertheless, under the shepherd care of Christ the Lord. So it is at every moment concerning the child of God. As Shepherd and Intercessor, Christ is now the High Priest in heaven for His own. The priesthood ministry of the old dispensation was continually interrupted by the dying of the priests; but this Priest—Christ—has an “unchangeable priesthood,” one that is assured because “he continueth ever”—Christ will never die again. His priesthood will never cease. Because of this it is also said: “Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost [without end] that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Heb. 7:23-25). He will save them as long as He lives, which is forever. David, too, had learned of the shepherd care of his Lord: for he said, “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” His confidence concerning the future which is expressed by the words, “I shall not want,” is that which is even more to be expected in the believer of this dispensation, who has all the added revelation regarding the present ministry of Christ in heaven. The instructed believer is thus made certain that the eternal purposes of God in grace will never fail.
H. The Regenerating Work of the Spirit
By the regenerating work of the Spirit the believer is made a legitimate child of God. God being actually his Father, he is impelled by the Spirit to say, “Abba, Father.” Being born of God, he has partaken of the “divine nature,” and, on the ground of that birth, he is an heir of God, and a joint-heir with Christ (John 1:13; 3:3-6; Titus 3:4-6; 1 Pet. 1:23; 2 Pet. 1:4; 1 John 3:9). The impartation of a nature is an operation so deep that the nature thus imparted is never said to be removed for any cause whatsoever. This statement may be verified from the Scriptures. The vital fact of relationship through birth is never said to be disannulled. Thus, again, the fulfillment of the eternal purpose of God in grace is to be anticipated with unwavering confidence.
I. The Spirit’s Indwelling
The fact that the Spirit of God now indwells every believer may also be verified from the Word of God (John 7:37-39; Rom. 5:5; 8:9; 1 Cor. 2:12; 6:19; 1 John 3:24). It is also clearly revealed that the Spirit has come to “abide” in the heart He has once entered. This abiding presence of the Spirit is in answer to the prayer of the Son of God, which prayer cannot be unanswered. “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever” (John 14:16). The Christian may “grieve,” and “quench” (resist) the Spirit; but there is no Scripture which teaches that the Spirit will be grieved away, or quenched away. So long as the Spirit indwells, the eternal purposes of God in grace are sure, and He must abide forever.
J. The Baptism with the Spirit
The Christian has been so vitally united to Christ by the baptism with the Spirit that he is said to be “in Christ,” and Christ is said to be “in” the believer. According to the Scriptures, there is no other meaning to the baptism with the Spirit than this (1 Cor. 12:13). Thus, being placed by the Spirit in organic union with Christ, the believer is related to Christ as the branch is to the vine, or as a member of the human body is to its living head. Because of this most vital union to Christ through the baptism with the Spirit, the believer is said to be a partaker in all that Christ is, all that Christ has done, and all that Christ will ever do. This is a limitless theme since it opens before one the eternal realities of an unchangeable identification with Christ. One of these eternal realities is “the imputed righteousness of God.” This garment in which every believer is now clothed and because of which he is now, and will be forever, accepted before God, is reckoned to him because he is in Christ: “That we might be made the righteousness of God in him” (2 Cor. 5:21); “But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us… righteousness” (1 Cor. 1:30); “That I may win Christ, and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness,… but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith” (Phil. 3:8-9). “In him” we are made near through the blood of Christ, and we are “made accepted in the beloved.” There is a righteousness from God which is to all and upon all who believe (Rom. 3:22). This is the imputed righteousness of God. It covers the Christian, because he is in Christ, and God sees him only as Christ is seen. Being in Christ he is in God’s sight what Christ is. This position is that of being accepted as a living member in the body, of which Christ is the living Head. God sees the member only in the body of His Son. As long, then, as Christ abides and is Himself what He is—the very righteousness of God—so long the member of His body will abide under the imputed righteousness of God. Thus the eternal purposes of God in grace are certain through the baptism with the Spirit.
K. The Sealing with the Spirit
Likewise, every believer is now sealed with the Spirit. The immediate value of this accomplishment seems to be more for the sake of God than for the sake of the believer. This particular ministry is mentioned only three times in the New Testament, but it is of vital import: “Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts” (2 Cor. 1:22); “Having also believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise” (Eph. 1:13, R.V.); “And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption” (Eph. 4:30). It is also said of Christ that He was sealed of the Father (John 6:27; Cf. Isa. 42:1). The sealing of the believer with the Spirit is “unto the day of redemption.” It is the very presence of the Spirit in the heart. He is the Seal. The thing accomplished by His sealing is so vital and enduring that it precludes the possibility of interruption or deflection. Thus, as for reasons given above, the eternal purposes of God in grace are to be received without distrust because of the sealing with the Spirit.
L. The New Covenant Made in His Blood
The several great covenants into which God has been pleased to enter with human beings are either conditional covenants, or unconditional covenants. A covenant is conditional whenever it is made to depend at any point on the faithfulness of people. The law as given by Moses was a conditional covenant. Its terms might be stated in the words, “If you will do good, I will bless you.” On the other hand, a covenant is unconditional when it stands as a simple declaration from God as to what He purposes to do, and without relation to the faithfulness, or unfaithfulness, of people. The Abrahamic Covenant (Gen. 12:1-4; 13:14-17; 15:1-7; 17:1-8) is an unconditional covenant. It will be seen that God relied at no point on the character or conduct of Abraham. He simply declared to Abraham what He purposed to do. This was based on Abraham’s faith; but not on Abraham’s faithfulness. The covenant was, and is, assured through the faithfulness of God alone. In like manner, the New Covenant made in His blood, by which every Christian is now related to God, is an unconditional covenant. It is God’s declaration of what He proposes to do for the one who places his faith in Christ. Belief in Christ, it should be noted, is not a condition within the covenant; it is the one condition of entrance into the covenant. Turning to the great promises of the keeping of God through grace, it will be discovered that they are always unconditional. These promises are made to depend only on the goodness and faithfulness of God. As fruit of the saved life, good works are closely related to the Christian’s life under God, and are the ground of all future rewards; but human works, as important as they are, do not enter as a condition into either the divine plan of salvation by grace, or of divine keeping through grace. This, too, may be verified from the Word of God. Three very brief and unconditional promises of eternal security are here given: “I will in no wise cast out” (John 6:37); “They shall never perish” (John 10:28); and, “shall not come into condemnation” (John 5:24). Under such unconditional promises the eternal purposes of God in grace may be received with unwavering confidence.
Salvation by grace is, then, the indivisible whole of God’s redeeming purpose in Christ and that which rescues a sinner from the lowest depths of human standing, and transforms, preserves, and presents that sinner in the highest eternal glory. At infinite cost, God has made Himself free to do all of this. His unmeasured love will suffer Him to do no less in behalf of everyone who comes to Him through His Son. Divine grace is God’s all. It is the expression of the last degree of His love. In no sense could He exercise a part of His grace. It must be all or none. He must save perfectly for all time and eternity, or not at all. There is no other salvation offered in the Word of God.
Failure to trust in Christ alone is disclosed when salvation is supposed to depend on anything other than believing in Christ, and when security is made to depend at any point whatsoever on human faithfulness. Men and women are saved and kept in sovereign grace through simple faith in Christ alone. This is the heart of the gospel of divine grace. If any other gospel than this be preached, it must fall under the unrevoked anathema of God (Gal. 1:8-9).
The zeal engendered by modern religious movements which are even accompanied with signs and wonders is no guaranty of sound doctrine. The enthusiasts responsible for these movements almost universally deny that salvation is by simple faith in Christ, and that the grace of God will keep those who are saved as His own forever. Those who discredit the absolute reign of grace in the salvation and keeping of a soul should ponder well the fact that there is no other way of salvation.
We have thus complete evidence that the eternal purposes of God in grace are unalterable, since His keeping power through grace is included in every consideration of the principles of grace, His keeping power is implied in every revelation in which is presented the truth that grace reaches into the coming ages for its consummation, and His keeping power is indicated by the manifold provisions and safeguards which He has made to that end. Should His eternal purpose fail by the slightest degree, the object of salvation, the object of the death and resurrection of Christ, and the object of creation itself, will have failed. It shall not fail; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken it.
Listen to the teaching below here
Message: The Secret of Jesus (John 5:18-20)
Author: Ray C. Stedman
In three verses in the fifth chapter of the gospel of John we have Jesus’ own explanation for that incredible life which he lived among us. Studying through this passage this past week I felt like a little boy who was given a bucket and told to empty the Pacific Ocean before lunch! I have sat and stared at these verses and seen things in them that made me wonder how I could make clear the beauty, the profundity, and yet the simplicity of them.
In Verses 19 and 20 there is a truth far beyond Einstein’s simple little formula, E = m c2. Remember how thrilled and blessed you were when you discovered in school that E = m c2? Whether you knew it or not, that formula, which Einstein came to after years of mathematical calculations and deep thinking about the processes of the universe, has changed the modern world. In its utter simplicity, that formula has proved to be the key that unlocked the world of nuclear power and introduced us into a whole new age in the history of mankind. It stands behind most of the technological achievements that startle us in our day. Yet it is as nothing compared with the profound utterances of Jesus here.
Let us have them before us. John 5:18-20:
This was why the Jews sought all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but also called God his Father, making himself equal with God.
Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever he does, that the Son does likewise. For the Father loves the Son, and shows him all that he himself is doing; and greater works than these will he show him, that you may marvel.” (John 5:18-20 RSV)
These verses follow immediately the account of the healing of the impotent man at the pool of Bethesda, when Jesus simply said to him, “Rise, take up your bed, and walk,” (John 5:8 RSV). Immediately the man got to his feet, took up his bed, and walked! What a manifestation of the power of God! In the crowd which had gathered around the porches of the pool that day there must have been many who saw this miracle with open-mouthed amazement, staggered by what they saw. But there was a handful of men in the crowd, whom John simply calls, “the Jews” (he means the leaders of the Jews, some of the Orthodox priests, members of the ruling class of the Jews), who were not impressed. They looked on this occurrence with narrowed eyes, whispering their displeasure among themselves, angered by what Jesus had done.
Verse 18 discloses that they saw in Jesus a renegade who refused to obey the Sabbath regulations, and a blasphemer against God:
This was why the Jews sought all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but also called God his own Father, making himself equal with God. (John 5:18 RSV)
This verse represents the Jews’ misunderstanding of Jesus. They had watched a weak, powerless invalid who had been sick for 38 years, suddenly stand on his feet and walk, behaving in a normal fashion, having been made whole. Their reaction to this was disgust; they were angered that Jesus had dared to violate the regulations that they had added to the Mosaic laws about the Sabbath. They were angry at One who would not conform to the status quo, to the conventional approach to life. They regarded him as a blasphemer because he dared to say things that made it sound as though he was equal with God. (By the way, this verse answers those who challenge the fact that Jesus made a claim to Godhood. Jesus clearly conveyed that claim to those who were listening to him on that day.)
In reply to that misunderstanding, Jesus explains himself. I do not think there is anything more magnificent in the Word of God than this scene where Jesus confronts these hostile priests and explains to them in the simplest terms how he operates, yet he knew as he did it that they would twist and distort his words until at last they resulted in his death. This was a courageous act. It took power, perhaps as much power as did the healing of the impotent man. It is further confirmation of what our Lord indicates is the secret of his power. That is what he is talking about — how he lived a life that was continually the point of release of the power of God in whatever he said or did.
Jesus begins by what I call the formula of focused attention: “Truly, truly, I say to you.”
Whenever you read those words in the gospels, pay close attention to what follows. Those words have the same effect as the old-fashioned 19th century theater posters which had a hand with index finger pointing at certain words to highlight them. This is Jesus’ way of inviting his hearers to listen to truth that is absolutely fundamental and basic: “Truly, truly, I say to you.”
Now Jesus begins to unfold the secret. The first aspect of it is a recognition of the total folly of self-sufficiency: “the Son can do nothing of his own accord.”
That is probably the most radical statement in the entire Word of God, because it indicates the first step in being a channel of the power of God: a recognition that any effort made to use God’s power for one’s own benefit will finally leave nothing but a hollow, empty feeling; it will never achieve anything. You may mount to the top of whatever heap you aspire to, and gain the admiration and attention of all the world, but if you have not found this secret your life will be unsatisfying and absolutely insipid to you, and of no use whatever to God. “The Son can do nothing of his own accord.”
Jesus does not mean that it is physically impossible for him to do something apart from the Father, any more than it is physically impossible for us to do things apart from God. We can, and we do. And Jesus could have, too. Further on in this account he says that the Father has given him power to act “out of himself.” Jesus could have created a whole universe over which he was God. He had the power to do so. But the whole point of this is, he chose never to exercise that power for his own benefit. Never! This is the explanation of his behavior in the wilderness when he was tempted by the devil to change stones into bread for his own satisfaction, to leap from the temple to gain the applause of people, or to gain the whole world for himself. He steadfastly refused to do so. That is the key. God gives his power to those who will not use it for their own benefit. That is one of the most profound secrets in Scripture. Jesus starts there: “The Son can do nothing.”
The “can” is not one of physical, but of moral impossibility. I might say to some man of sterling integrity — let’s say, Steve Zeisler — “Steve, why don’t you pad your expense account this week and get an extra $40 so we can take our wives out to dinner?” He would look at me with horror in his eyes, and say, “I can’t do that.” He could, of course, but he will not; that is the point. He could do that. He could cheat, lie, steal, whatever, all of us can, but it would violate his integrity; it would cheapen his whole life; it would be a total contradiction of all he believes in. That is what Jesus means when he says, “The Son can do nothing of his own accord.” He could, but he would not, and he never did.
What he did do was obey an inner vision. He says,
” …the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing;” (John 5:19b RSV)
He is looking at God the Father with an inner vision, and, seeing what the heart of the Father wants to do in a situation, he immediately obeys that.
I do not know quite how to describe this inner vision. Within his Spirit, somehow, an impulse arose which Jesus knew was of the Father, because it was in line with the character of the Father as he has revealed himself in his Word.
Many people today claim that God has told them to do something or other. We even see accounts in the newspapers of men who have murdered, saying God told them to do so. Not long ago there was an account of a man who murdered his wife and children, claiming that God had told him to do that. We must recognize that it is dangerous to follow just any impulse from within our minds and think that God is behind it.
The key, of course, is that no impulse ever arose in our Lord’s mind that was not in line with the external revelation of the Word of God. That is the guideline. “Test everything” (1 Thessalonians 5:21 RSV) by the Scripture, we are told; what is in line with what the Scripture says God is like, that impulse can be safely followed. That is what our Lord did. In any given situation something within him indicated what the Father wanted done, and immediately our Lord responded to will to do that, to say the word, and his word had power.
We can see this principle at work in the incident at the pool of Bethesda. There was a great crowd of invalids lying there — lame, blind and paralyzed — and yet when our Lord’s eyes fell on one man, just one man, he sensed within that here was a man whom the Father knew had reached the end of his rope, whom the Father understood was helpless and hopeless, ready to receive help and not to argue and fight, and, perhaps, need to experience further pain. The Samaritan who found the wounded man lying by the roadside sensed an impulse from within to help the man. That was the Father at work, stirring him, moving him to respond with compassion to a need he saw. That is the key — that inner vision of what the Father wants done. Two religious persons had already passed by this wounded man. (Somebody has well said the reason they did not help him was that the man had already been robbed!) But when the Samaritan saw him, he sensed within him what God wanted done. At the pool of Bethesda when our Lord sensed within himself what God wanted done there was an immediate response. He said the word, “Rise,” and the man was on his feet.
Notice how Jesus puts this: “the Son can do nothing of his own accord (‘nothing from me’), but only what he sees the Father doing (‘everything from God’).” Does that sound familiar? Anybody who has read the writings of Paul will remember that in the third chapter of the great Second Letter to the Corinthians the apostle says something very similar: “This is the confidence we have in him, not as though there were anything coming from us, but everything coming from God. (Nothing from me, everything from God),” (2 Corinthians 3:4-6 RSV). That, Paul declares, is the New Covenant, the new arrangement for life. On that basis the apostle did that mighty work that has changed the course of the history of the world in every generation since that day.
Here is the secret of the release of the power of God — nothing coming from me, everything coming from God; nothing for or from me, but everything coming for the Father and from the Father. Thus, the amazing import of this verse is: This is what Jesus is modeling for us. We have the same relationship to him as the Son, as he had to the Father. What the Father would do through him, the Son is prepared to do through us.
I submit to you that is far greater in its impact than E = m c2. Simple, yet absolutely profound — releasing at any point of human need the power of God to meet that need. Our Lord lived like this all the time. It was not merely in raising men from sick beds that he employed the power of God. He did it when he spoke to some lonely, heartsick, broken person and brought him to life and faith. It was the same power that made his words full of impact and meaning to the woman at the well who had had five husbands and was still trying to find satisfaction in living with a man without marriage. Here is the secret of power, seen in the third element of this formula for action. When you begin with a self-denial — “I cannot, I do not have anything in myself that can accomplish this thing, but God can, he wants it done” — and you obey that, it results in a visible release of power. Jesus could say to the impotent man, “Stand up,” and the man was immediately on his feet.
Words are remarkable things. Right now I am speaking words to you. What are they but little puffs of air and sound coming out of my mouth? Sometimes even millions of words have no impact, no power. We are moving into an election year. Think of all the words we are going to hear, pouring incessantly on our ears, with little power behind them. Yet words can have tremendous impact. Sometimes a single word can hit you in such a way it utterly changes your life from then on.
Last week I shared in a Navigators Pastors’ Conference ministry in Colorado Springs, with Howard Hendricks and Chuck Swindoll. There were 300 pastors there from all over this nation, East Coast to West Coast, Canadian border to Mexico — young men, just beginning their ministry. What an exciting time, to be in on the ground floor of setting the vision of their life and the reasons for their ministry! Chuck, Howard, and I were so excited by the prospect we were almost bouncing off the walls. On the second morning, Chuck Swindoll said that, though he was scheduled to speak on a certain subject, as he had been listening, and watching, seeing God at work, he felt strangely moved to change his subject and instead to speak on forgiveness. In a marvelous message, grounded in his own experience, he shared with us the necessity for every relationship of life to be based upon forgiveness — forgiving one another, not being hard and demanding, or asking for our pound of flesh, but forgiving one another. It was obvious that his was a word of power; it touched us and blessed us. There was a fragrant spirit that spread throughout the whole of the congress as that word of power came. He had inwardly sensed (seen) what the Lord wanted, and, when he complied, his word came with power.
Words are like sails on sailboats. If you go out in a sailboat on the bay on a still day and raise the sail it will hang there, limp and powerless; the boat will just sit there, becalmed. But lift that sail on a day when a strong breeze is blowing and it will fill with wind; it will begin to strain and pull and the boat will move rapidly through the water. Any sailboat will (especially if it is made in Australia)! That is what a word is like. Words are insignificant in themselves, but if they are in line with the working of God they are filled with impact and power. This is what our Lord is modeling for us.
Our Lord gives further insight in Verse 20:
“For the Father loves the Son, and shows him all that he himself is doing; and greater works than these will he show him, that you may marvel.” (John 5:20 RSV)
Jesus will go on to detail later in the chapter two of those “greater works” that are amazing and marvelous. Here he gives further revelation of what is behind this divine process of power.
First, it flows out of the Father’s love for the Son. The “Father” whom Jesus is talking about is the Creator, the One whose brilliant mind conceived the glory of nature, all the marvelous structures of life, the intricate blending and dovetailing together of the processes of the natural world. That creative Person “loves” the Son and delights to communicate to him, in any given situation, a novel, creative alternative to the things that would destroy, hurt, maim, and create sorrow.
So it is with our relationship with the Son. He is the Lord of life, the Lord of nature, the Lord of the universe, the Lord of nations, and he loves us. It is his delight to communicate to us creative alternatives to the situations in which we find ourselves. This does not mean we are to be gilt-edged spooks, with wings making a holy hum, half-angel and half-human. We are normal human beings who have access to a power, a wisdom, a creative mind who can suggest new approaches that seem simple in themselves, but, filled with the divine wind, are like great sails that change the course and move the events of history. This is greater by far than E = m c2.
Then the second step: This process is to be without limit — “For the Father loves the Son, and shows him all that he himself is doing.” The whole thing — not all at once, but ultimately it will include everything. The writer of Hebrews says, “We do not yet see everything in subjection to him [man]. But we see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, crowned with glory and honor…” (Hebrews 2:8b-9a RSV). We see Jesus crowned; eventually that is the end of all God wants to show him.
As I suggested, the next line says this is going to be a gradual revelation: “greater works than these will he show him.” That is, it is a graduated process. Jesus the Man is growing in his understanding and strength, and, as he does, he will participate more and more in the works of the Father until he can say, “I have finished the work which Thou hast given me to do,” (John 17:4).
This is the process he is teaching us: God’s power is not handed to us as a package deal that we can use for our own benefit and make a name for ourselves. If we think it is, we will discover that, though we may win the applause of many, we will remain hollow and empty in our hearts. God’s power is released only when we use it as the Son did — for the glory of God, for the doing of the Father’s will at any given moment. When that happens, he gives us more power; we grow in our ability to manifest the power of God. That is why a life that walks with God becomes more beautiful, more free, more real as it grows. Life becomes richer and fuller, even though it may be lived amidst hostile opposition, as in our Lord’s case here. This is a pattern for us. God wants to teach us this very thing.
Finally, the third step: “… these he will show him, that you may marvel.” Every manifestation of the Father’s power (or the Son’s power released in us), will awaken a sense of wonder on the part of those observing. A simple word, perhaps, a deed of compassion, a cup of cold water given to somebody in the name of the Lord, will leave an impact that will make people marvel.
At Glen Eyrie last week, my wife and I walked up the mountain trail that leads to the grave of Dawson Trotman, the founder of the Navigators. The grave looks out over beautiful Glen Eyrie, with its great castle that is the headquarters of the Navigators. As we were standing there looking down at the grave, we talked of our remembrances of Dawson. I was associated with him in Hawaii in the early days of the Navigators’ work in World War II, while Elaine was his secretary for a time in Los Angeles. Little incidents about Dawson came to mind as we remembered those days.
One of the young pastors at the conference came walking up the trail and joined us as we were looking at the grave. He asked us if we had known Dawson, and we told him, “Yes, we had.” He said he had never met him, but he had read some of his books. “I have to say,” this young pastor continued, “that Dawson Trotman changed my life. He has had a tremendous impact on me.” When Dawson was 50 years old he was drowned in a boating accident in New York State while attempting to save the life of a girl who could not swim. On his grave are written the words, “Greater love has no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends.” This young pastor said to my wife and me, “Would you pray that God would give me something of the spirit of Dawson Trotman; that spirit that had such a vast vision of the lostness and need of the world, and such a hunger to reach people with the delivering word of the Living God.” As we three stood there, I prayed that God would indeed do that for this young man. I thought of the great work of the Navigators that has now reached around the world. In almost every country Navigators are discipling men and women, teaching them how to live as God intended men and women to live. What an impact that one life has had! We rightly marvel at what God did through him.
There is a verse in Romans 8 that follows a verse we often quote. We all know Romans 8:28, that wonderful verse that steadies us in times of trial, “All things work together for good to those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” But the next verse says, “Whom he has predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he (the Son) might be the first born among many brethren,” (Romans 8:29 RSV). God is not content with having only one Son. He wants many sons. Hebrews says (he has done all this) “that he might lead many sons to glory,” (Hebrews 2:10). Sons is a generic term: it includes men and women. God did all this so that he might have many children who are like his Son. He has “predestined” us, i.e., he is intent on it, he will not fail, he is at work on it.
The processes of change are now happening in your life and mine in order to teach us this very formula of behavior — that we refuse to use God’s power for our benefit (he will take care of that), and willingly respond to the inner impulse of compassion, mercy or love that we feel within us in any given situation; thus we will learn to operate by the mighty power of God, the mightiest power in the universe — that we might be like his Son!
When you think that one day you are going to be, by God’s grace and power, conformed to the image of his Son, you are left with one question: how much change are you in for in the days ahead? How much change am I in for? God is going to change us, and change is painful. We want to be left alone in our comfort. We do not like to be prodded and jabbed and made to think about things we do not want to think about. But God is going to change us, and the change will be that we might learn how to function according to the power of the Living God; how our words can have impact that will fall, not only on the ears of those who hear us, but perhaps for generation upon generation after we have left this earth, and our lives will have eternal significance.
Is that what you want? I am sure you do want that. I have never met anybody who does not have a hunger for life. This is what our Lord has modeled for us. He did it perfectly. Yet God in his grace has made provision that, as imperfectly as we do it, nevertheless we can learn to grow as his power is gradually granted to us that we might leave an impact behind us.
The Art of Lorna McLaughlin 