Transformative Journey: Embracing Authentic Christian Identity

But the moment a man becomes a Christian he does he is aware that he's the seat of this tremendous battle and fight he is aware that he's a sort of enigma he's aware of these forces struggling within him some for the soul some against he's aware of all that and then you see he comes com and he looks at the Lord Jesus Christ. [00:17:34]

You need to have eyes enlightened by the ey s of the holy spirit before you can rarely see him and you begin to see the Marvel and the Mystery of his person you see the Divine you see the human you see the divine nature you see the human nature you see the two there're together they're unmixed they're both there but they're not mingled you look at the Marvel and the mystery. [00:18:34]

Now to the Christian this is something of which he's aware it means something to him this is to him the greatest thing in life this is the most extraordinary thing this is no some no longer something ridiculous which he dismissed and says he can't understand scientifically no no says the Christian these things are spiritually discerned and it is to him the most marvelous and most glorious truth of all that the Incarnation has taken place God was manifest In the Flesh. [00:19:57]

The man who is light in the Lord is a man who knows the way of Salvation and he can explain it to others this isn't merely the teaching of the Apostle Paul the Apostle Peter you remember in his first epistle in the third chapter says the same thing where he says be be ready at all times to give a reason for the hope that is in you with meekness be ready at all times to give a reason for the hope that is in you. [00:20:09]

The Christian is a man I say who comes to it with with a new mind he's light in the Lord this book means everything to him he sees this extraordinary truth in it and he has an increasing understanding of it there's his intellect his mind but let me say just a word about the heart yes he not only has this new understanding and apprehension but he has a heart that can respond to it. [00:21:04]

The fruit of light is in all goodness and righteousness and truth you are light in the Lord he says well now then walk as children of light and then in Brackets he puts it in the fruit of light is in all goodness righteousness and truth and then he finishes his statement walk as children of the light proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. [00:24:22]

It is only when a man becom a Christian that he rarely becomes natural it is only the Christian who begins to approximate to what a man is meant to be I mean by that of course it is only the Christian who begins to approximate to what man was in his first creation he was made and created in the image of God he was made upright he was given an original righteousness. [00:25:55]

The life of the Christian is rather reminiscent of fruit growing on a tree we saw the other life was artificial this isn't the Christian should never give the appearance of being mechanical or machine like or machine produced Christians can't be produced to order or by numbers neither can their life and their activities and their actions now this to me is of tremendous importance. [00:28:36]

The fruit doesn't come suddenly isn't imposed it's not readymade but you know I find far too many readymade Christians as regards conduct you see it's all taken in stages first of all you're taken to an Evangelistic meeting and there you get saved well then you're taken to some instruction and this is put upon you then you're told what to do and it's all perfect at once and immediately they're already made and mass-produced that's not Christianity. [00:32:08]

There are always individual differences look at an apple tree teeming with apples well you say they're all apples I agree but they're not all identical they're not all identical in shape they're not all identical in the coloring little more red in one little less in another and so on there are all sorts of minor differences and variations it's all fruit it's all Apple but there are all these differences that's the characteristic of fruit. [00:33:25]

The whole secret of fruit is this that fruit is always something that comes from within outwards fruit in a sense is the expression of the life of the tree that produces it not from without but from within something that comes out of the character out of the nature out of the life and that is what the Christian is and that is why I say we must never impose forms upon the Christian. [00:36:10]

You must never decide to do anything solely in terms of your mind and your understanding that is where people who say and teach that the need is the call are really denying this principle that we're dealing with this morning the need need is not the call if the need were the call well then I say that in an age like this every single Christian should go out of every secular employment and should go straight into whole-time Christian work if the need is the call you can't dispute that but the need isn't the call and never has been. [00:38:08]