Romans chapter 8 verse 2.
For the law of the Spirit of life
in Christ Jesus has set me free from
the law of sin and of death.
1st John chapter 2 verse 27.
And yourselves, the anointing which ye have received
from him abides in you, and ye have
not need that anyone should teach you.
But as the same anointing teaches you as
to all things, and is true and is
not a lie, and even as it has
taught you, ye shall abide in him.
Go back to the gospel according to John
chapter 1 verse 4.
John chapter 1 verse 4.
In him that is in Christ was life,
and the life was the light of man.
2nd Corinthians chapter 7 verse 1.
Having therefore these promises, beloved, let us purify
ourselves from every pollution of flesh and spirit,
perfecting holiness in God's fear.
Galatians chapter 6 verse 17.
For the rest, let no one trouble me,
for I bear in my body the brands
of the Lord Jesus.
2nd Corinthians chapter 3 verses 17 and 18.
Now the Lord is the Spirit, but where
the Spirit of the Lord is, there is
liberty.
But we all, looking on the glory of
the Lord with unfailed faith, are transformed according
to the same image from glory to glory,
even as by the Lord the Spirit.
Dear Heavenly Father, we are in thy presence,
and we do desire that thou wilt quicken
thy word to our hearts.
We pray that thy words will truly be
life and spirit to us.
Deliver us from just hearing the letter of
thy word, and not entering into the Spirit.
So Lord, we do trust thy Holy Spirit
to guide us into all truth, and to
thee be the glory, in the name of
our Lord Jesus.
Yesterday morning we shared together on this matter
of the issue of life.
God is a living God.
His very nature is life.
Therefore you find that the issue between God
and man is none other than the issue
of life.
If it is not of life, it is
not of God.
If it is not of life, then it
is not acceptable to God.
So you find that from the very beginning
to the end of the word of God,
it is always this matter of life that
is the issue.
God's issue with us, and our issue with
God, is none other than that of life.
It is not in teaching, it is not
even in doctrine, it is not in organization,
it is not in method, it is not
in anything else but in life.
That is the issue.
Therefore it is of extreme importance that we
know what life is.
We know that life, because that life is
different from any other life.
It is different from the human natural life.
It is the eternal life.
The very life of God.
The very nature of God.
And it not only has all the attributes
that God has, but it is actually God
himself.
The Son himself.
He that has the Son has life.
He that does not have the Son has
not life.
Now this morning we would like to go
a step further, to consider together before the
Lord on this matter of the law of
life.
You know, every kind of life carries with
it a nature.
And that nature of life actually is its
law.
We usually think of natural law as the
physical law around us.
For instance, we live upon this planet, and
we find ourselves under the force of the
law of gravitation.
We are being pulled to the center of
the earth all the time.
There is the physical law, and we call
these physical laws natural laws.
Now that is true because God the Creator,
he has put these laws in the physical
universe.
But we must remember that there is not
only the external as it were, physical laws
around us.
But we find that there is an inward
law that is within us.
There is a moral or metaphysical law, if
we want to use that word, that God
has put within us.
So the natural law is not just referred
to the physical laws.
Natural law also refers to that inward law,
the law that we are born with.
It is the law of nature, whether it
is the nature around us or whether it
is the nature within us.
So our consideration before the Lord this morning
is not regarding the external law that surrounds
us, but it is the law of life,
the law of nature, the natural law that
is inborn, or that we have inherited.
And this is the law that we would
like to share together this morning.
Now every life has its nature or its
law.
For instance a bird.
A bird is born with the nature of
flying, and flying actually is its law.
For a bird to fly is natural, it's
right.
For a bird not to fly is unnatural,
and it's not right.
You know, life grows according to its natural
law.
If you are against that natural law, you'll
suffer for it.
But if you follow that natural law, you'll
grow according to it.
And the same thing is true with a
fish.
A fish is born with the nature of
swimming, and swimming is the law of the
life of a fish.
If you take a fish out of the
water, it dies.
And the same thing is true with us
human beings.
Now we have to go back a little
bit to understand this natural law that is
within us.
For when God created man, he created man
with a soul.
Man is a living soul.
Man has a personality.
He has a soul life, or we may
say, soulical life.
But that soul life that God has given
to man, when he was created, is neither
holy nor sinful.
In other words, it is neutral.
Think of Adam.
When he was first created and put in
the garden of Eden, before he fell into
temptation.
So far as his life is concerned, that
is, his natural life is concerned, it is
neutral.
He is not holy, but neither is he
sinful, because he hasn't committed sin yet.
But then you'll find the unfortunate thing happened
in the garden.
Adam fell into sin.
And because Adam fell into sin, sin entered
into his life and reigns over him.
In other words, here you'll find that life,
which today we call natural life, is a
sinful life.
That natural life of Adam is under the
law of sin and of death.
Adam, after he fell, was under the natural
law of sin and of death.
In other words, in Adam, in that life,
there is that natural law.
It is natural to that life.
And that natural law is the law of
sin and of death.
And this is not only true to Adam.
But this is true to all who are
in Adam.
That is to say, we who inherit from
Adam his life, we also receive from him
that natural law.
That governs that life.
And that natural law is the law of
sin and of death.
That's the reason why you find in 1
Corinthians chapter 15, it says, in Adam all
died.
We who are in Adam, we who live
by that Adamic life, we need to remember
that that life is governed by a natural
law.
Just like our physical body is governed by
the law of gravitation.
But there is an inward law within us
that governs, that rules over, that natural life
of Adam.
And it is the law of sin and
of death.
Adam and Eve, they ate the fruit of
the tree of the knowledge of good and
evil.
And you know today, we always judge people
according to that knowledge.
Adam's sons, we are all Adam's sons.
And Adam's sons you'll find, with some people
they are more evil than good.
With other people they are more good than
evil.
And with some people there seems to be
an equal amount of good and evil.
And we always judge people that this man
is good, that man is evil.
Or the other man is so-so, you
know, we always judge in that way.
In other words, we judge people by good
and evil.
And this good and evil actually is according
to the knowledge of good and evil.
Some people we consider them as good.
Why?
Because according to the tree of the knowledge
of good and evil, he seems to be
good.
And to other people we think he is
evil because according to the same tree we
feel he is evil.
But the good that we consider is not
acceptable by God.
In other words, you'll find even the good
in Adam is dead in the eyes of
God.
That is the reason why we cannot be
justified by our good works.
Because our righteousness is all before God as
filthy rags.
They cannot cover our nakedness, they cannot satisfy
God's righteousness.
To God it is no good at all,
but to man we say it is good
because we judge by the tree of knowledge
of good and evil.
Now so long as we are in the
realm of good and evil, we find we
are under the law of death and of
sin.
The good that we want to do, we
cannot do.
Why?
Because we are under the law of death.
The evil that we know we shouldn't do,
we do it.
Why?
Because we are under the law of sin.
Remember that we who are in our natural
state is hopeless and helpless.
It is important for us to realize one
day that so long as we live in
Adam, so long as we live by this
natural life that is the result of the
fruit of the tree of the knowledge of
good and evil, we are under that law
of sin and of death and there is
no escape.
Now what is a law?
A law is something that acts or
reacts always in the same definite way, given
it the same condition, regardless of time.
For instance the law of gravitation, it is
a law.
Why?
Because that law always acts in the same
way.
Whether it was in the first century or
whether it is now in the twentieth century.
Whether it is in London or it is
in Santa Barbara.
Whoever drops a thing, you may be a
white, you may be black, you may be
a yellow, but if you drop something it
goes down.
Now that is a law, the law of
gravitation.
It disregards any person, there is no partiality
there.
It is universal and so long as you
are on this planet earth, that is the
way it will act.
Now that's a law.
Now brothers and sisters, do you know that
you are under that law?
Romans 7, there are different interpretations about that.
Some people think that Romans 7 is Paul's
experience as a Pharisee.
In other words, it was the experience of
Saul, the Pharisee.
Other people think that it is the experience
of Paul, the believer.
After he had believed in the Lord Jesus,
he experienced such things.
But dear brothers and sisters, actually it is
not essential.
Whether you think of Romans 7 as applied
to Paul's experience as a Pharisee in the
past.
Or whether you apply it to Paul as
one who has met the Lord.
It makes no difference.
Why?
Because as long as you live in the
flesh.
That law of sin of death operates.
Whether it is before your conversion or after
your conversion.
It is exactly the same.
Here you find a man, he knows the
law.
And by the law here is the commandments.
You know we have the commandments.
And here is a man who knows the
commandments.
And of all the commandments, there is one
commandment.
You know ten commandments?
There is one among the ten that really
governs our inward desire.
All the other commandments may be applied externally.
But there is one commandment of the ten
that deals with the inward heart.
And that is thou shalt not covet.
Thou shalt not be greedy.
And sure enough you find this man is
bothered by this one commandment.
But the law in Romans 7 does not
refer to the commandments.
The law in Romans 7 refers to the
inward law.
The law of nature.
The law of sin and of death.
Now the commandments, they give the occasion for
the inward natural law to work.
The commandments are holy, righteous, spiritual.
But unfortunately that man is fleshly, is carnal.
And therefore you'll find the inward natural law
of Adam takes the advantage of the holy,
righteous, spiritual commandment and attack that man to
make sin more sinful and death more deadly.
In Romans 7 you'll find it is a
battle between the will and the law.
Here is a good will.
I want to be good.
I want to please God.
I do not want to be greedy.
And if any man is of a strong
will, certainly Paul is one of them.
He has an iron will.
So here you'll find he is exercising his
will to fight against a law.
The law of sin and of death.
I will not do, I should not do.
But I will do everything that I must
do.
And he starts out to do it.
He may be able to succeed for a
little while.
You know if you hold this Bible, this
Bible is a very small one.
It doesn't weigh too much.
I carried it because it's light.
Certainly I can hold up this Bible for
an hour.
My arm, my will, I will tell my
arm, hold it.
Do not let it be dropped.
And I can do it for an hour.
But after an hour, my arm began to
ache.
And I began to shake.
And maybe after an hour and a half,
my arm dropped and the Bible go down
to the floor.
The law of gravitation.
Your will cannot conquer a law.
No matter how strong your will is, you
cannot conquer a law.
Because a law never changes.
It is permanent.
Perpetual.
And it is always there.
Asserting its force.
Never ceasing.
And that's the reason why you cannot fight
against a law.
Why does that law operate?
Because in Romans 7, you find that man
is living in the flesh.
Not in the bad flesh, but in the
good flesh.
That man has enough sins to reject that
which is bad.
Evil.
Out of the flesh.
But that man doesn't have the sense of
seeing that the good of the flesh is
still flesh.
It is still of the tree of the
knowledge of good and evil.
And it is still under the law of
sin and of death.
And because he does not see it, therefore
he fights against that law.
As if he does not belong to that
law.
And the result is failure.
Defeat.
Until one day he discovered, oh wretched man
that I am.
Who can deliver me from this body of
death?
Until one day he confessed that in me,
that is in my flesh, there is no
good.
And when that day comes, the deliverance comes.
Thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
So brothers and sisters, here we discover one
thing.
And that is, we who are in Adam,
we who live according to the flesh.
Whether it is before you are saved or
after you are saved.
As long as you live in the flesh.
As long as you consider that there is
still some good in your flesh.
As long as you try to use the
good of your flesh to please God.
You will find eventually, not only the good
is bound by death.
But the evil will also come forth.
In other words, you will fall into sin.
There is no hope to Adam.
In Adam all died.
But in Christ, all have received life.
So here you find the salvation is in
Christ Jesus.
We thank God that our Lord Jesus came
into this world.
And when he came, he brought another life
into this world.
In him was life.
He brought a new life into this world.
And as we mentioned yesterday, through the cross,
through death and resurrection, he has released that
life to us.
And as we believe and receive him, we
receive that life in us.
Today dear brothers and sisters, we are in
Christ.
In 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 30 it
says, by God ye are in Christ Jesus.
Do you know that as you believe in
the Lord Jesus, not only his life has
entered into you and become your life.
But at the same time, God has put
you into Christ.
So today we are in Christ Jesus.
In Adam we all died.
But in Christ Jesus we all live.
We live by a new life now.
And thank God, just as the old life
carries an old nature and is under an
old law.
So this new life that we have received
today carries with it a new nature.
And it is driven by a new law.
Now what is this new law?
This new law is called in the scripture
the law of the spirit of life.
In Christ it is the law of the
spirit of life that operates.
In Adam it is the law of sin
and death that operates.
When we are on this planet earth, the
law of gravitation operates.
No matter where you go, no matter what
you do, you are under the law of
gravitation.
Because you are on this planet earth.
But suppose you go into outer space.
And people are going into outer space.
When you go into outer space you escape
the law of gravitation.
Because in outer space the law of gravitation
does not exist.
You float.
You are under a higher law.
A higher law operates in the outer space.
But suppose you return to earth.
Then what happens?
You find that the law of gravitation again
exerts its force upon you.
You cannot escape that.
The only way to escape is permanently stay
in outer space.
Then you escape that law altogether.
But unfortunately men always come back to earth.
Now spiritually it is the same thing.
Brothers and sisters there are two realms.
One realm is in Adam.
And the other realm is in Christ.
If you are in Adam, you are under
the law of sin and of death.
And there is no escape.
Sometimes you wonder why.
We are saved.
We know we are saved.
We are sure we are saved.
We know that we have the life of
Christ in us.
But sometimes we wonder why is it.
Why is it that we find ourselves still
under the law of sin and of death.
We cannot do what we should do.
We do what we should not do.
Oh wretched man.
We cry out.
Why?
Sometimes we even wonder whether we are saved.
We think if we are saved it shouldn't
be that way.
Brothers and sisters it is very simple.
You need to abide in Christ.
It is true that God has put you
in Christ.
This is your position.
But if you do not remain in that
position.
Abide simply means make your home there.
If you do not stay in your new
home.
If you return to your old residence.
Then you will find the old law is
upon you.
And there is no escape.
So the secret is to abide in Christ.
Abiding is a daily thing.
Abiding is a daily experience.
It is important therefore for us believers.
Knowing that we are in Christ Jesus.
Thank God for that.
That we should live permanently in that position.
Abiding.
Now how do we abide in Christ?
I remember many years ago we had a
young people's conference.
And during that conference I asked the young
people a question.
I said how do we abide in Christ?
And these young people gave me different answers.
Some said you abide in Christ by praying.
If you pray then you abide in Christ.
Others say you abide in Christ by reading
the scripture.
And all kinds of different answers.
Now brothers and sisters how do we abide
in Christ?
If we want to live under the law
of the spirit of life.
We must abide in Christ.
But how do we abide in Him?
There is one verse that gave us the
secret.
It is the key of abiding.
And that is 1 John 1 verse 27.
1 John 1 verse 27.
Chapter 2 verse 27.
1 John 2 verse 27.
And yourselves the anointing or the unction which
ye have received from Him abides in you.
And ye have not need that any one
should teach you.
But as the same anointing teaches you as
to all things and is true and is
not a lie.
And even as it has taught you ye
shall abide in Him.
Now thank God.
When we believe in the Lord Jesus.
You know God does this so much for
us.
When we believe in the Lord Jesus.
He has not only given us a new
life.
His own life.
Uncreated life.
A life that is released through Christ Jesus.
Available.
Receivable.
And this life of Christ is now in
us as our life.
But at the same time you will find
when we are saved.
God has quickened our dead spirit.
You know because of sin our spirit as
an organ was dead so far as God
is concerned.
But when we believe in the Lord Jesus.
The Holy Spirit of God will quicken our
dead spirit and make it living.
Becoming a new spirit.
And then the Holy Spirit will come and
dwells in our spirit.
Now brothers and sisters this is what happens
to you.
Lots of things happen at the same time.
You receive a new life.
And you receive a new spirit.
And you receive the indwelling Holy Spirit.
Not only a new spirit.
Your spirit is renewed.
That is it is made alive unto God.
You can commune with God now.
But then you will find the Holy Spirit
comes in and dwells in your new spirit.
And the Holy Spirit is called the Spirit
of Life.
In other words He is there in charge
of that life.
We do not know how to handle that
life.
So God gives us the Holy Spirit to
abide in us.
In other words to make His home in
us.
He will never leave us nor forsake us.
He is always here.
He abides in you.
In your spirit.
In your new spirit He makes His home
there.
And He is to manage this new life
for you.
Because you do not know how to manage
this new life.
He is called the Spirit of Life.
And when the Spirit operates the law is
life.
Whenever the Spirit operates it brings in life.
You know in John chapter 14 to chapter
16.
You know our Lord Jesus tells His disciples
about the coming of the Comforter.
Another Comforter.
And when the Spirit of Truth shall come.
He will reveal Christ to you.
He will guide you into all truth.
He will take what is of Christ.
And He will make it known and make
it real to you.
Now that is the work of the Holy
Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is in charge of this
new life.
He is to bring to your knowledge and
experience of this new life.
He is to exert this new law upon
you.
And that is the work of the Holy
Spirit.
Just like the law of sin and death
is a law.
So the Spirit of Life is also a
law.
It never changes.
If you are in Adam the law operates.
If you are in Christ a new law
operates.
The Spirit of Life operates.
It is just as natural.
It is supernaturally natural.
You know sometimes we think of our Christian
life very unnatural.
Before we believe in the Lord Jesus we
live a natural life.
That is we live naturally.
We commit sin is a natural thing.
To do good is unnatural.
We find it very difficult.
And we always go the easy way.
And we live a natural life.
But after we got saved, brothers and sisters,
did you discover you begin to live an
unnatural life?
Why?
Because you try to live a Christian life
by your Adamic life.
And that is very unnatural.
And it is so unnatural that after you
become a Christian for a year you begin
to be very tense.
And two years you got nervous.
And maybe three years you broke down.
Because it is so unnatural.
You know?
And some people even think that everything you
have to pray therefore when you eat you
have to pray Lord should I eat one
serving or two servings.
And if you try to live in that
way my, the strain upon you is great.
But remember, spiritual life is natural.
It is supernaturally natural.
It is spontaneous.
It is effortless.
That is what the law is.
Will is something that you have to exert
it.
There is an effort.
Self made effort.
But the law does not make any effort.
It is just there.
It is spontaneous.
It is always so.
It never changes.
Brothers and sisters, do we see this?
Do we see that as naturally we live
in Adam so now as supernaturally natural we
shall live in Christ?
This is what Christian life is all about.
And it is the law of life.
The spirit of life.
If we live in the flesh we are
under the law of sin and of death.
But if we live according to the spirit
then you will find the law of the
spirit of life.
Thank God the Holy Spirit is so faithful.
As one brother said, he is your resident
boss.
He is so faithful.
And he teaches you in all things.
He is always there.
In all things.
Big things and small things.
And whatever he teaches is true and is
not a lie.
Brothers and sisters, how do we abide in
Christ?
Obey the teaching of the anointing.
And you abide in Christ.
Follow the Holy Spirit.
And you abide in Christ.
The mind of the flesh is death.
If you mind the flesh, it is death.
If you mind the spirit, it is life
and peace.
So long as you do according to the
teaching of the anointing.
Brothers and sisters, the Holy Spirit is within
us as the anointing.
In other words, he is always there anointing
us.
And when he applies that anointing there is
a soothing feeling.
Peaceful feeling.
He is always telling us what is of
God.
What is of life.
It is not a matter of good and
evil.
You know, Christians should not be governed just
by good and evil.
Christians should be governed by a higher law.
Life or death.
Many things are good.
But they are dead.
Life is the criteria.
And the spirit of life is always there
working.
Bringing life into us.
And as you obey the Holy Spirit, life
comes in.
And more life, more obeying the Holy Spirit.
It is a cycle.
And that's the way you grow.
You grow naturally.
Supernaturally natural.
In the Holy Spirit.
I want to quote to you something written
by beloved Austin Sparks.
When he tries to explain something he always
uses big words.
But if you understand it you always go
to the very heart of it.
Now here is what he says about that
law.
A law is a fixed and established principle.
It has potentialities.
It means that if you are adjusted to
it and governed by it certain results are
inevitable.
That the potentialities which it contains will most
surely find expression when that law is established.
So that what we have here is that
the mark of things being of God the
Holy Spirit is life.
If anything is of God the Holy Spirit
it will live.
It itself characterizes its key characteristic will be
life.
That is a law.
An established principle.
But there is another thing we must notice
at the outset.
This is that in a matter of life
as a fixed principle the life is in
Christ Jesus.
We come to see that life is in
all its manifold expressions in Christ Jesus.
To know life we must know Him.
We must understand Him.
Now this law of the spirit of life
is so important.
We need to know it.
How do we come to know this law?
We come to know this law by its
expressions.
By its manifestations.
In other words, wherever this law of the
spirit of life works you will find certain
expressions.
And by these expressions you know that law
is operating.
So brothers and sisters this is where you
need to watch.
First of all when the law of the
spirit of life is working it always brings
in light.
Revelation.
Enlightenment.
Why?
Because the spirit of God is the spirit
of wisdom and revelation.
He is the spirit who reveals.
Who reveals that which He has taken from
the Son.
He reveals the Son in us.
This is the very nature of the Holy
Spirit.
Revealing.
He is the spirit of wisdom and revelation.
Our God is light.
In 1 John 1, verse 5 it says
God is light and there is no darkness
in Him.
In James 1, verse 17 it says He
is the Father of lights in whom there
is no variation nor shadow of turning.
In other words, our God is perfect light.
There is no darkness.
There is no variation.
There is no shade.
There is no shadow with Him.
That is our God.
That is His life.
And you find when the Lord Jesus came
into this world He said in Him was
life and the life was the light of
man.
There is light in Him.
He is the life and in that life
there is light there.
Think of our Lord Jesus.
Think of His life on earth.
He lives a life full of light.
In other words, you find He always knows
the Father's will.
He always does the Father's will.
You find that He is transparent.
He is like a mirror.
Whenever somebody comes to His presence what is
inside that person is revealed because He is
transparent.
You cannot hide anything from Him.
He is deep but no hiding.
He is very open but there is no
foolishness there.
He does not have two faces.
He never pretends.
He is always true.
Why?
Because He is light.
He is light.
So you find that God is light.
Our Lord Jesus during His days on earth
lived a life of light.
And the Holy Spirit today who dwells in
us is to bring us into that very
light.
So whenever the law of the Spirit of
light works you find it always brings in
revelation.
Light and light.
You know, we live in darkness.
The whole world is darkness.
Even what we consider as light reasoning, rational
knowledge, ethics.
These are darkness.
Not light.
There is a verse in Isaiah that I
like very much.
Isaiah chapter 50 verse 11 because it does
tell of our situation.
Isaiah 50 verse 11 Behold all ye that
kindle a fire that compass yourselves about with
sparks walk in the light of your fire
and among the sparks that ye have kindled
this shall ye have of my hand ye
shall lie down in sorrow.
In other words, we surround ourselves with the
fire that we ourselves kindle.
We think we are walking in the light.
Whether it is tradition, whether it is reasoning,
we walk in the light.
But remember, this is the fire that we
kindle ourselves.
And the result is we lie down in
sorrow.
There is only one place where we can
get light.
In Psalm 36 it says In thy light
shall we see light.
Brothers and sisters, it is only when we
come to the Lord, to his life, and
his life will shine upon us and expose
everything.
In our Ephesians it is said Things, it
is light that exposes everything and reveals the
true character of all things.
When the spirit of life is operating, invariably
you will find there will be light and
revelation and enlightenment.
It will expose everything of its true character.
It will judge everything.
It will slay everything.
Kill everything.
But at the same time it will heal.
It will heal.
That is light.
You know, in our Christian life, if anything
is not from revelation, if anything does not
come by revelation, by the Holy Spirit revealing
to us, nothing lives.
You may have the best in understanding, exposition,
of the word of God, mentally.
You may memorize the verses and know them
by heart as it were, but not by
heart, by your brain.
You will find nothing living.
It is dead.
The word is true, but if there is
no revelation, if the spirit of life does
not work and brings in light and enlightenment,
it is dead.
It has no power.
But when the Holy Spirit takes the word
of God and reveals it to you, opens
it to you, immediately you will find there
is life, there is power.
So how do you know that the spirit
of life is working?
When there is light within you.
By revelation I do not mean something very
deep or something very mysterious.
By revelation I simply mean the Holy Spirit
takes the things of God and opens it
to us.
That we really see it in our heart
and we know it is life.
It is living.
It is reality.
It works.
That is the way we know the law
of the spirit of life is working.
Now number two, I have to hurry.
I have four more minutes.
Number two, you will find when the law
of the spirit of life is working, there
is always separation.
Our brother has mentioned that last night.
God is holy.
Now what is holy?
Holy simply means it is separated from everything
that is common.
We are being separated from everything common.
Separated unto He who is uncommon.
So whenever the spirit of life is working,
you will find it always separates.
And the spirit of life is working in
your life, you know, in your lifetime.
It doesn't mean that it operates only once.
You know, once upon a time, when the
spirit of life is working, you are separated
from sin unto righteousness.
Thank God for that.
But it doesn't end there.
If the spirit of life is operating in
your life, you will find the separation goes
on continuously.
As our brother mentioned last night, stage after
stage, you will be separated from the world.
And even separating from the world gets deeper
and deeper.
First separated from the things of the world.
Then separated from the fashion, the mold of
the world.
And then you need to be separated from
the spirit of the world.
We need to be separated from the flesh.
Not only from the bad flesh, but from
the good flesh.
We need to be separated from the self
-life in us.
And as we are separated, then we are
consecrated unto God.
That is the way the law of the
spirit of life operates.
And is that law operates in us today?
You know it.
And thirdly, you will find, whenever the law
of the spirit of life operates, there is
the mark, stigmata of the cross.
Just like Paul said, do not bother me.
I have upon my body the brains, the
mark, the stigmata of Jesus Christ, the cross.
If there is no wounds, no scars, you
know the spirit of life is not operating.
Do not think that Christian life, you can
live a Christian life without any wounds, any
marks of the cross.
It is impossible.
Because when the spirit of life operates, he
always leads us to the cross.
Look at our Lord Jesus.
By the eternal spirit, he offered himself spotless.
The cross leads us to the spirit, and
the spirit leads us back to the cross.
And finally, wherever the law of the spirit
of life operates, there is glory.
There is glory.
Brother Sparks explains glory as God is satisfied.
Whenever God is satisfied, glory appears.
And you know, brothers and sisters, when our
Lord Jesus was on earth, in John chapter
1 verse 14 said, the word became flesh,
tabernacle among men, full of grace and truth.
And then he said, in parenthesis, we have
seen his glory, even as the glory of
the only begotten with the Father.
When our Lord Jesus was on earth, you
know, his glory as the Son of God
is veiled.
What man sees is his moral glory of
the Son of Man.
You see a man, full of glory, but
it is the moral glory of the Son
of Man.
That eternal glory of the Son of God
is always veiled.
It comes out only once on the Mount
of Transfiguration.
But those with spiritual eyes can see, penetrate
through the moral glory of the Son of
Man into the eternal glory of the Son
of God.
Why is it there is always glory?
Because the Father is always satisfied.
And brothers and sisters, when the spirit of
life is working in us, invariably you will
find there will be glory.
We behold with unveiled face upon him as
a mirror.
And we will be transformed, according to that
image, from glory to glory by the Lord.
The Holy Spirit is bringing glory into us
that we may one day be led into
glory.
Thank God that we may please God, that
we may satisfy the Father.
Thank God Christ can be formed in us.
Thank God this is His will.
And this is what He is doing.
Shall we pray?
Dear Heavenly Father, we do praise and thank
Thee that Thou hast put us in Christ
Jesus.
We thank Thee that the law of the
spirit of life is working.
We pray that we may abide in Him,
that we may know the law of the
spirit of life.
Lord, we do desire that there will be
glory unto Thyself.
In the name of our Lord Jesus.