CROSS-BEARERS MUST BATTLE WITH THE FLESH, ALSO.

“While we pointed out, foregoing, that cross-bearing is quite separate from battling with the weaknesses of the flesh, nevertheless whoever has the mind of Christ, whoever is seeking to be a cross-bearer and to stand up as a representative of the Lord and the Truth in the midst of a wicked and perverse generation, as an ambassador of God, will surely realize that he could not be an acceptable ambassador and could not claim that his will is sacrificed to the Lord’s will, if he did not strive against the weaknesses and imperfections in himself as well as stand for the general principles of righteousness and truth everywhere.

The Apostle included this thought and much more in this expression, – “He that saith he abides in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.” (1 John 2:6.) He is to walk as our Lord walked, in his general deportment and relationship to everything that is good; and correspondingly to avoid everything that is evil. He is to walk as nearly as possible in the footsteps of Jesus.

This, however, does not mean that he either should or could, in an imperfect body, walk up to all the perfection of his Lord, who even in the flesh was perfect. It means just what it says, that we should walk as he walked – in the same way, in the same direction, toward the same mark and standard that he recognized and established.

The Apostle Paul gives us a suggestion along this line, very helpful when rightly understood. His words are, “The righteousness of the law is fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit.” (Rom 8:4.) To walk after the flesh is to walk after sin – to knowingly, willingly, intentionally, do those things which we recognize to be contrary to the divine will, even though we should not go to the extreme of wickedness.

So, likewise, to walk after the Spirit does not mean to walk UP TO the standard of the Spirit, which would be impossible for us who were born in sin, shapen in iniquity, and thus blemished by sin according to the flesh. As “New Creatures” we are living in the earthly tabernacle, which is imperfect; and so long as we are thus limited, we cannot do all that we would. As “New Creatures,” begotten of the holy Spirit, we desire to do perfectly. We desire that every thought, word and act should be perfect in the sight of our heavenly Father, – as perfect as were those of our dear Redeemer; but this we know from the Scriptures and from experience is impossible. We are glad, therefore, that the Lord shows us, as in this statement of the Apostle, that what he requires is that we should walk after the Spirit; – that he does not require of us that we should walk up to it, which would be an impossibility.

It is because we could not walk up to the Spirit, up to the perfect standard of the divine requirement, that God has mercifully provided an arrangement of grace on our behalf. By this grace, those who start as members of the body of Christ, to walk in the footsteps of Jesus – to walk henceforth not after the flesh, but on the contrary to walk after the Spirit, and as nearly as possible up to the Spirit’s requirements – have their deficiencies made up for them by their Redeemer’s meritorious sacrifice. The divine arrangement for this is a unique one, which adapts itself to the various conditions and circumstances of each and all called to walk in this narrow way. If one by reason of being well born and having a good environment has for this reason a better balanced and equipped mortal body in which the new mind can exercise itself with the greater freedom; – and if such a one by reason of these advantages be able to walk nearer to the Spirit’s standard than a less favored brother, whose will, however, is equally loyal to the Lord, the divine arrangement is that each shall have imputed to him grace sufficient, – so that both may be counted perfect – counted as having walked up to the Spirit’s requirements.

This matter may be more clearly before our minds if we imagine a scale marked off from naught (0) to one hundred (100) – a scale on which we will suppose moral stamina to be measurable, one hundred representing the full, complete character which God requires. On this scale imagine five brethren with different degrees of physical imperfections, yet all fully consecrated to the Lord, all seeking to the best of their ability to “walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit” – as nearly up to the full (one hundred) standard as possible. One has ten points of character, another twenty, another thirty, another forty, another fifty. From the Lord’s standpoint, because they are all trusting in Christ and walking in his way, and seeking to do his will, they are all counted as up to the full standard, one hundred – all acceptable with the Lord – the weakest as well as the strongest of them. This wonderful divine arrangement for man’s necessities tells of the wisdom of God as well as of his mercy and love. Who else could have devised such an equitable plan, by which whosoever cometh unto the Father through the Redeemer, with full consecration of heart, of will, and full intention of life, might be acceptable – nothing short of perfection being acceptable.

It is for this reason that we are told that we are reckoned justified – “justified by faith.” Mark now the words of the Apostle, “Where sin abounded, there did grace so much more abound.” He here expresses a general principle of the divine arrangement. Those hearing the invitation in this present time, and desiring to accept God’s grace and call, are all thus put on an equality: he who has little character with many weaknesses and imperfections, has accredited to him of the Lord’s grace and merit proportionately; he who has more of character naturally and who needs, therefore, less of grace, gets also according to his needs. But let it be clearly noted that there is “none righteous, no, not one” – none who can come up to the divine standard. All need to have the Lord’s merit imputed to them, and hence the Lord makes this arrangement for all who would approach him and accept his favor, his call to joint-heirship with his son. They can have neither part nor lot in the matter until they have acknowledged their own imperfections and have accepted the imputed merits of our Redeemer, “In whom we have redemption through his blood.”

All of the Lord’s people – not all of the nominal church, not merely nominal disciples, but the true followers mentioned in the text – are not only walking in the same pathway, but similarly all find it narrow and difficult. Similarly, all in this pathway have the same spirit, mind or disposition – to do the Father’s will and to serve his cause. This is the Spirit of Christ, and by it all men may take knowledge of his disciples; they, like him, will be loyal to the principles of righteousness and truth. They will be willing to suffer opposition and persecution for the Truth’s sake, for righteousness’ sake, and thus with him to be cross-bearers.

The Apostle Paul brings out this thought when, writing to the Corinthians respecting Titus, he asks, “Walked we not in the same spirit? Walked we not in the same steps?” (2 Cor 12:18.) Assuredly Paul and Titus must have been walking in the same spirit and the same steps if they were both walking in the Spirit and steps of the Master, – taking up life’s crosses and following him. And this, dear brethren and sisters, will be true of each and all of us. While we each have our individual peculiarities and differences of temperament, conditions, surroundings, opportunities, etc., the same spirit and the same steps can be noted in all who are followers of the Lamb. “If any man has not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.” If any man walks not in the footsteps of Jesus, he is not one of his followers, in this special sense pointed out by our text, and consequently would not be one of the joint-heirs in the Kingdom. But let us keep in memory the Lord’s assurance that his grace is sufficient for us, and that his strength is made perfect in our weakness, and that this is the victory that overcomes the world – even our faith.” (R3237)