Spiritual Stagnation

Stagnation is impossible where the foundation of relationship is a mutual passion to see Christ formed within. Spiritual stagnation is a result of existing outside of the life of His Spirit within. There is a satisfaction in something less than His fulness; a complacency and a spiritual slumber. Paul was consumed with pursuing the full apprehension of that for which Christ had apprehended Him. His current standing in Christ was eclipsed by the Call of God to greater things. His past accomplishments, His nationality or anything else which would seem to be an advantage, was considered dross in His pursuit of Christ. How can we be complacent in our day?

“Not that I have already obtained, or am already made perfect; but I press on, that I may take hold of that for which also I was taken hold of by Christ Jesus”
Philippians 3:12

Paul prefaced this by exhorting the Church of God in Philippi:

“Have this in your mind,
which was is* also in Christ Jesus”
Philippians 2:5

*Wuest correctly changes the tense from
was (past tense) to the current tense IS

Compare this significant truth to this verse:

“Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as He IS, so are we in this world”
1 John 4:17

It is our present-tense relationship in Christ that keeps the heart alive unto the full pursuit of His Person. The God of all Glory revealed Himself as the great I AM. It is to that end that the Holy Spirit is ever at work to keep us ALIVE and abiding in Him so that “Today we will hear His voice”!

Spiritual slumber is the result of a life which is no longer current in God. It believes all the tenets, the promises and teachings of God, but the fire of God has grown cold within. Intensity of spirit, humility, hatred of sin and the passion to see Him fill the whole earth with His Glory, is evidence of His Mind being formed within us. Until the Church of God sees that the Light spoken of in the New Covenant is His Life abiding within, we will continue to feed upon the Tree of Knowledge rather than the Tree of Life. It matters little what I know; to know what to do without His life within empowering me to DO is the hopelessness of religion. May we find in Him the power, the grace and the love to count it all joy to DO His Will.

“In him was life;
and the life was the light of men”
John 1:4

His Life within is our Light and our only Hope of Glory.

“Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us”
Ephesians 3:20

This great promise given to us is proportional to “the power that worketh (present tense) in us”.

“…as He IS,
so are we in this world”

Selah

Brian Troxel