◄ Spiritual Satisfaction ►

I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you cannot have eternal life within you. (John 6:53 NLT)

Let us remember that this wayis a way that is a constant offence to the flesh, to the naturalman. The Jews strove with one another, saying, "How can thisMan give us His flesh to eat?" But not only did Jews, thereligious people in their religious self-satisfaction, strivetogether, but it is also written, "Many therefore of Hisdisciples, when they heard this, said, This is a hard saying; whocan hear it?" Even disciples could not go on sometimes. When theycame face to face with the implications of such a saying, theywere no longer willing to be associated with Him on a basis ofthat kind. The flesh loves to have it in itself to be doing, tobe laying the plans, arranging the programs, organizing thework, superintending it, and getting it going. The flesh revelsin that, and when you come and say to that whole order of things,"The way of God is the way of utter dependence and faith, with theHoly Spirit in entire charge, and you must keep your hands offand be willing to do only what the Lord tells you and no more,"(that which is meant by the declaration, "I can do nothingout from Myself") it is an offence to the natural man, evenin religious matters.

We come up against that constantly, do wenot? It is the difference between meeting together as they did atAntioch to pray things out and get the Lord's witness as to Hiswill, and having a committee meeting to discuss a proposal andmake plans. If the natural man is not doing the whole thing, andarranging it, and ordering it, and running it all, he cannotthink that progress can be made at all. Unless you come out withyour plans, and announce your programs, and declare what youare doing, and present your statistics, the naturally mindedChristian thinks that nothing is being done. It is possible tohave wonderful things done without any of that kind of activity.We cite such a thing purely as an illustration. Application canbe extended in many directions, but this is just to help out thethought. The whole accomplishment of God in Christ is on thebasis of Divine Life mediated through faith. That is another wayof saying that Christ has to be the basis of everything in aspiritual way. This is an offence to the flesh, but asatisfaction to the Spirit.