02.B05. Free In Christ
CHAPTER V.
FREE IN CHRIST. AS the cleansing process above described went on, I soon became conscious of a power in Christ -- a power which I had vainly struggled to acquire during my prior Christian life -- the power of absolute control over all the propensities. In illustration, I will speak of my temper. Those who have known me most intimately for more than thirty years past, but did not know me before, have often said to me, "You don’t seem to have any temper. Nothing whatever appears to provoke your anger. We could be quiet under provocation as you are, provided we had such a temper as you have." The truth upon the subject is, that originally I had one of the worst tempers I ever knew. When reflecting upon the subject when ten or eleven years of age, I said to myself, when alone in my father’s pasture, "This temper will ruin me." When I became a Christian, I set about, with all the power of determination possible to me, to subdue and control that temper. All my resolutions, however, under sudden provocations, proved themselves a deceptive trust. When I came, however, to know Christ as my Deliverer, and when "the Son made me free," the first fact of which I became conscious was an absolute control over all the promptings of anger. Not long after, even these promptings disappeared entirely. In my former Christian life, under unexpected provocation, anger would arise, and I would "speak unadvisedly with my lips" before reflection would come to my aid, and then I would set about repairing the injury I had done. Often, as I have said formerly, would I say to myself, "Oh, that I could have time to reflect before speaking!" In my new life, reflection, as I became joyfully conscious, always came in directly between myself and the provocation, and gave me a perfect mastery over it. At length the feeling of anger disappeared, and it became just as natural and easy to be quiet and patient, as it had formerly been to be angry, under provocation. The same held true of my appetites. I had ever been, in the judgment of all who knew me, a very strictly temperate man; yet I was internally conscious that, in forms and particulars unknown to anybody but myself, my appetites did control me, and that my most fixed purposes were powerless to free me from their dominion. Faith in Christ, however, did set me free, and I attained to the state to which Paul refers when, in speaking of divers kinds of food, he says, "I will not be brought under the power of any." I now gratify my appetites as my better judgment dictates, and they do not, even internally, rebel against the dominion to which they are subject.
Finding how absolutely free divine grace had rendered me, relatively to my most despotic propensities, I resolved that, by the same grace, I would be the Lord’s freeman in every particular -- in other words, that I would have, "by the faith of Christ," and through His power abiding upon and strengthening me, absolute dominion over all my propensities in all their activities. I was well aware that, in regard to things lawful as well as unlawful in themselves, there might be forms and degrees of bondage from which "a believer in Jesus" should be perfectly free. Hence, whenever and wherever I felt an internal and restless cry after any specific gratification, whatever it might be -- a cry saying, "I must have this, and I must have that "-- I separated myself totally from such objects, until, through prayer and the "power of Christ resting upon me," that cry was subdued, and I felt myself perfectly free to enjoy or to be denied that gratification as providence and the best wisdom given should indicate. I thus found myself standing in "the light of God" and "in the power of His might" above my propensities, one and all of them alike, and rejoicing in God in an absolute "rule over my own spirit." Thus "our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin" (our evil propensities, principles, tendencies, and habits) "might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin." To all who would enter into "the rest of faith" and continue therein, I present the above facts and suggestions as of infinite moment. Not a few who do enter into, and for a time abide in this rest, fail to continue therein, and thus give occasion to opponents to "speak evil of this way." The reason is, that the propensities, by not being "brought under," and thus "held in subjection," the "old man" not being "crucified with Christ," and "the body of sin not being destroyed" by His sanctifying "power working mightily" in "the inner man," "sin revives" through the renewed activity of "the law in the members." Thus losing their rest, they "cast away their confidence" and return to their old bondage. The rest of the soul in Christ will not be likely at all to continue unless, "through the faith that is in him," all forms of bondage to the propensities are completely broken, and they in all their promptings and activities are brought into complete subjection. For the reason that this liberty is not attained and perfected, Christ may "save us now," but not permanently.
I hear instructions given to believers seeking this "rest of faith," instructions which I cannot approve. They are told that Christ will not take away their evil propensities, and prevent their acting within the mind, but will enable believers to resist and hold in subjection such promptings. The apostle, on the other hand, tells us that, for the purpose that henceforth we should not serve sin, "the old man is crucified with Christ," and "the body of sin is destroyed." In express view of this fact, he requires us to "reckon ourselves dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God, through Jesus Christ our Lord." As long as our lusts are left to "war in our members," there may be expected to be "wars and fightings" in the churches, and lapses and backslidings in all their membership. Christ "takes away our sins" by taking away the evil dispositions within us that prompt us to sin, and in the place of these dispositions giving us "a divine nature," which will prompt us to "love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, faith, meekness, temperance." The reader will call to mind here the case of Dr Hopkins, as stated in a former part of this work. In his case, during a period of more than thirty years, and no doubt to the end of life, he had not only held in subjection, but had experienced not a single prompting of the evil temper which, during his previous life, had had despotic control over him. The reader will also call to mind my own personal testimony on the subject. Similar testimony meets us everywhere. Here, as a fact, is an evil propensity not only held in subjection, but all its evil promptings utterly taken away. If Christ does this -- and all admit that He does -- in respect to one propensity, why should He not do the same in regard to all? As the Mediator of the new covenant, does He not stand pledged, when "He is inquired of by us to do it for us," to do for us all that is contained in the following "exceeding great and precious promises"? "Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them." Such is the express meaning of the new covenant, as expressed in all the Scriptures. I shall have occasion to recur to this subject in subsequent parts of this work. May the reader not fail to understand, and fully to attain, "the glorious liberty of the sons of God"!