The Daily Business of Being a Christian

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Jan 27, 2015 2567

By Desmond Ford

Christianity is a daily affair like all important matters. We are to be born again daily, we are to crucify the old life daily, we are to trust daily, and we are to obey daily. But as faith is ever prior to obedience, our primary duty each day is to seek the infilling of the Spirit by drinking deeply of the words of our Lord.

It is interesting to note that in two parallel passages of Scripture the same effects are attributed to being filled with the word as to being filled with the Spirit. In Ephesians 5:18,19 we read, “Be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.” Then in Colossians 3:16, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”

As we receive Christ Jesus the Living Word by receiving his Written Word, so we maintain our relationship with him in the same way. The Holy Spirit does not inspire a vacuum but a Word-filled believer. Thus our primary concern every morning should be to seek God’s strength afresh before venturing into the day of toil.

On one occasion when the disciples were crossing a lake without Jesus, they were overtaken by a storm. For hours they rowed fruitlessly. When they were ready to despair, they discerned Jesus himself walking on the sea toward the ship. The record says, ”Then they willingly received him into the ship: and immediately the ship was at the land whither they went” (Jn. 6:21).

Too many of us are battling with life’s storms on our own; we toil in rowing and arrive nowhere. What we need is to receive Jesus on board. Then we will be immediately at our destination, even the destination of a life that is filled with joy and fruitfulness because it is filled with him who is the Thought of all thought and the Strength of all strength.

– Des Ford. Rom 8:27–32 (From “Christianity Made Easy”)