We have a part to play in our Walk with Christ.

Do we have a part to play in this Christian walk?  It wouldn't be much of a walk if we didn't.  We need to YIELD and in YIELDING we recognize our inability to save ourselves. In yielding we trust in God's word, His word calling us into action. We aren't to remain stagnant in our walk with Christ. Too many people believe that we are no longer accountable to God once we accept that Christ died for us. Christ did it all in saving us and we have no part to play.  I can't argue with people on this, it's true that we cannot save ourselves, however it is also very true that we can damn ourselves.  We choose Jesus and HE saves us. We don't choose Christ and He doesn't save us= we are never forced to be saved. When we are saved can we ever be unsaved? Yes, we can turn back, we can turn away from God. We can un-save ourselves. Remember this…

Luk 8:11  Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.

Luk 8:12  Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.

Luk 8:13  They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away.

Luk 8:14  And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.

Luk 8:15  But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good

…. These have no root which for a while believe and in time of temptation fall away.

….they heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasure of this life and bring no fruit to perfection.

And this…

Luk 11:24  When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my house whence I came out.

Luk 11:25  And when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished.

Luk 11:26  Then goeth he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more wicked than himself; and they enter in, and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first.

We can be saved and then still be lost.  The belief in 'once saved, always saved' is not Biblical.

We are instructed--

1Co 10:1  Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;

1Co 10:2  And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;

1Co 10:3  And did all eat the same spiritual meat;

1Co 10:4  And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.

1Co 10:5  But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

1Co 10:6  Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.

1Co 10:7  Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.

1Co 10:8  Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.

1Co 10:9  Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.

1Co 10:10  Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

1Co 10:12  Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.

1Co 10:13  There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

1Co 10:14  Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry.

Those of old are examples for us NOW.

We must not lust, we must not give into temptation-- yet we scarcely know what lust is any longer because we've sunk so low in a worldwide society with depravities so incredibly vile and we call them good. We call evil good. We believe if we desire something it's just and good, because we desire it and the things we desire can't be wrong, because we don't believe we ourselves are wrong, that we are bad, we want to believe we are good.

We have a walk to walk, a daily cross to bear, keep that in mind as you read the following excerpt from - The Spiritual Man by Watchman Nee.  Make sure you take your Bibles and read all the verses given. Take all he says to the Bible, pray and study to know truth. If he is leading us wrongly may God please reveal it to us! If he is not leading us wrongly, but to a deeper understanding of God's truth, may we learn from what we read.  By the grace of God, by His mercy, His love, His truth! All through Jesus Christ our LORD, our SAVIOR!  Amen.

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'The Practice

We have just seen how the High Priest operates if we accept the cross. We shall consider next the practical side; that is, how we may arrive at the experience of having the Lord Jesus divide our soul and spirit.

(1) Know the necessity of having the spirit and soul divided. Without this knowledge no such request will be made. Christians ought to petition the Lord to show them the abhorrence of a mixed spirit-and-soul life and also the reality of that deeper walk in God which is wholly spirit and uninterrupted by the soul. They should understand that a mixed life is a frustrated life.

(2) Ask for the separation of soul and spirit. After knowing, there must be a genuinely earnest desire in the heart, a requesting that this mingled soul and spirit be cut apart. Just here the question rests with the human will. Should believers prefer to enjoy what they themselves consider the best life and not desire to have their soul and spirit divided, God will respect their personal rights and not force them into such experience.

(3) Yield specifically. If believers definitely desire the experience of having their soul and spirit separated, they must consign themselves to the altar of the cross in a specific manner. They must be willing to accept totally every consequence of the operation of the cross and be conformed to the death of the Lord. Before they encounter the cleaving of soul and spirit believers need to bend their will continuously and incessantly towards God and actively choose to have this cleavage. And as the High Priest accomplishes this division in them their heart attitude should be that He should not stay His hand.

(4) Stand on Romans 6.11. God’s children need to watch lest in seeking to experience the separation of soul and spirit they fall back into sin. Remember that this separating is built upon their having died to sin. Hence they should maintain daily the attitude of Romans 6.11, considering themselves verily dead to sin. Additionally, they should stand on Romans 6.12 and not permit sin to reign in their mortal bodies. This attitude will deprive their natural life any opportunity to sin through the body.

 (5) Pray and study the Bible. Christians ought to search the Bible with prayer and meditation. They should let God’s Word penetrate thoroughly into their souls so as to enable their natural life to be purified. If they actually do what God says, their soul life shall not be able to continue its free activity. This is the meaning of 1 Peter 1.22: “having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth.”

(6) Daily bear the cross. Because the Lord desires to sever our spirit and soul He arranges crosses in our everyday affairs for us to bear. To take up the cross daily, to deny self at all times, to make no provision for the flesh—not even for a moment, and to be shown constantly by the Holy Spirit what are the activities of the soul in our lives: this is spiritual life. Through faithful obedience we shall be led to encounter the dividing of soul and spirit so that we may experience a pure spiritual walk.

 (7) Live according to the spirit. This is a condition not only for our preservation but also for a distinct cleavage between spirit and soul. We must seek to walk by our spirit in all respects, distinguishing what is of the spirit and what is of the soul and resolving as well to follow the former while rejecting the latter. Learn to recognize the working of the spirit and follow it.

 These are the conditions which we on our side must fulfill. The Holy Spirit requires our cooperation. The Lord will not be able to do His part should we fail to do ours. But were we to discharge our responsibility, our High Priest would tear apart our spirit and soul with the sharp Sword of His Spirit in the power of His cross.'