A God-Glorifying Exhortation

The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Galatians, severely rebuked the decline in the life of grace. The Galatians had listened to seducing spirits who opposed Paul’s preaching. Consequently, all kinds of follies and abuses of Christian liberty had been adopted. Contention and discord had arisen in the congregation. The chief sin, however, was the pursuit of vain glory (pride). Luther called it a very base sin, which not only causes turmoil in the congregation but also sows mischief and destruction.

Vain glory and envy have caused war between nations. They have done much harm in the family, society, and church life. In Paradise we have listened to the seducing spirit. That spirit has dominion over us. We are ruled by it. We are seekers of vain glory and pursue the lusts of our depraved flesh. Although this is more evident in the walk of the one than in another, by nature, we are all spiritless, that is, “having not the Spirit.”

It becomes different when God makes His indwelling in our heart through His Spirit. Then the Spirit takes possession of our heart and there comes a living in the Spirit. The Spirit renews our will, regulates our passions, removes the innate blindness, and bestows new affections. The Spirit rules and governs the deliberations of the heart.

The Spirit is the Spirit of conviction, the Spirit of faith, hope, and love. To live in the Spirit points to a total renewal of internal stirrings of life. It is a life not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. Its moving cause is God the Father, who according to His good pleasure elected men to salvation. The meriting cause is God the Son, who as Surety obtained that life. He gave Himself up into death. The applying cause is the Holy Spirit, who works and maintains life in the heart. To live by the Spirit is to crucify the flesh with its lusts from within. Living in the Spirit is a holy life, a God-glorifying life; it is a sin-killing and a continuous, dying life.

To live in the Spirit purifies the heart, burns out sin, enlightens the dark soul, and makes one follow after perfection. Paul knew that life as he said in Galatians 2:20a, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless, I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.” Christ lived in him by His Spirit. The Spirit glorifies Christ in the soul. The Spirit declares Christ in the soul and gives, as the Spirit of faith, the bucket of faith to draw from the wells of salvation with joy.

Yet, notice that the life from within has its ground not in some affections of the mind, in some blissful feeling, or in some contemplative knowledge. It has its ground in the work of the Spirit, in an essential renewal of all the affections. Through that Spirit, children of darkness become children of light, and children of Satan become children of God. Paul wanted to say, if that is how it is, let us also walk by the Spirit.

Here the apostle used a word borrowed from military service. Soldiers can stand side by side so that they form a front. However, it also happens that they are placed behind one another and go behind one another. The latter is meant by the apostle. To walk by the Spirit is to follow in the footsteps of the Forerunner. Who is the great Forerunner? Well, Christ, the Apostle of our confession. He is the great Forerunner. The Holy Spirit not only points to Him but also teaches to follow in His footsteps. So, then it means not only to internally mortify our members which are on the earth but also to reveal it externally in our walk. Consider the walk of faith of Abraham.

The same apostle said, “Whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.” That means to fight the constant battle against vain glory and to walk as is pleasing to God. The apostle had insisted much on a conscientious walk. It consists not only in abstaining from public sins but also in the constant battle against corrupt self, against rising pride, stirring lusts, and powerful corruptions.

The walking that Paul meant is not only through the Spirit but also according to the Spirit. As a result, the Spirit will reveal His influences in the heart more and more. Those who live in the Spirit sometimes have more of it than they know themselves. The more there is of the Spirit, the more their walk will be according to the Spirit. Yet, they realize that they cannot get there. Therefore, they are a miserable and a poor people who trust in the name of the Lord.

The great question is whether we live in the Spirit. The Spirit draws upward and makes one set his affection on things above. The spirit of the world draws downward and seeks and devises the things of here below. How unhappy we are without the Spirit of Christ. Learn to see your deep misery in time so that the prayer may rise from your heart: “O let Thy Spirit be my constant aid.”

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