The Bible Echo
November 1, 1893
Co-Operation With God A Necessity
“Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” I repeat the words of John, “Behold the Lamb of God.” We are to contemplate the character of Christ. We are to meditate upon the cross of Calvary; for it is the unanswerable argument of Christianity. The message we are to bear to the impenitent, the warning we are to give to the backslider, is, “Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” Those who bring the message to the soul may turn aside from the truth, but he who would be saved must keep his eye on Jesus. By beholding Christ he will learn to hate sin, that has brought to his Redeemer suffering and death. By beholding, his faith becomes strong; and he comes to know “the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom He hath sent.” The sinner sees Jesus as He is, full of compassion and tender love; and by beholding the manifestation of his great love toward fallen man, in his sufferings on Calvary, he is transformed in character. BEcho November 1, 1893, par. 1
While our salvation is wholly dependent upon Jesus, we have a work to do in order that we may be saved. The apostle says, “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” The work that we are to do is not independent of what God is to do, but a work of co-operation with God. The power and the grace of God are to be wrought into the heart by the divine worker; but some go astray here, claiming that man has a work to do that is wholly independent of any work of God. Another class take the other extreme, and say that man is free from all obligations because God does the whole work, both the willing and the doing. But the true ground to take is that the human will must be brought into subjection to the divine will. The will of man is not to be forced into co-operation with divine agencies, but must be voluntarily submitted. Man has no power of himself to work out his own salvation. Salvation must be the result of co-operation with divine power, and God will not do that for man which he can do for himself. Man is wholly dependent upon the grace of Christ. He has no power to move one step in the direction of Christ only as the Spirit of God draws him. The Holy Spirit is continually drawing the soul, and will continue to draw, until by persistent refusal, the sinner grieves away the tender messenger of God. BEcho November 1, 1893, par. 2
In the heavenly councils, it has been decided by what means and methods, the grace of Christ shall prove effectual in saving the soul. And it is clear that unless the sinner consents to be drawn, unless he will co-operate with divine agencies, the end will not be attained. The work to be done is a united work. The divine and the human are to work together, and the sinner is to depend upon grace, while rendering willing obedience to the dictates of the Spirit of God. “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” BEcho November 1, 1893, par. 3
God has endowed men with reason and with intellectual faculties; but if these are untrained, left uncultivated, men will become like the savage heathen. The mind must be cultivated, and it is necessary that teachers present line upon line and precept upon precept, guiding and training the free-will moral agent, so that he shall understand what it is to co-operate with God. God works in the human agent by the light of truth, and the mind enlightened by truth is capable of seeing truth in distinction to error. Open to the light of truth, free from prejudice, unbound by the traditions and opinions of men, the enlightened mind clearly sees the evidence of the truth, and believes it from God. The man enlightened by truth, will not call falsehood truth, and light darkness. The Spirit reveals to the mind the things of God, and he who co-operates with God realizes that a divine presence is hovering near. When the heart is open to Jesus, and the mind responds to the truth, Jesus abides in the soul. The Spirit's energy works in the heart, and leads the inclinations toward Jesus. By living faith, the Christian places entire dependence on divine power, expecting that God will do that which is according to his pleasure. BEcho November 1, 1893, par. 4
As fast as the soul resolves and acts in accordance with the light that is revealed, the Spirit takes the things of God and gives more light to the soul. BEcho November 1, 1893, par. 5
“As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth.” The Spirit of God is not commissioned to do our part of the work, either in willing or doing. It is the work of the human agent to co-operate with divine agencies. As soon as we incline our will to harmonize with God's will, the grace of Christ is supplied to co-operate with our resolve. But it is not to be a substitute to do our work,—to work in spite of our resolutions and actions. Therefore our success in the Christian life will not be because of an abundance of light and evidence, but will depend upon our acceptance of the light given, upon our rousing the energies, upon our acknowledging the light, and upon our co-operating with the heavenly ministers appointed of God to work for the salvation of the soul. BEcho November 1, 1893, par. 6
If the sinner or backslider settles himself in sin, the light of heaven may flash about him to no purpose, as it did about Saul when the bewitching power of the world's deception was upon him. Unless the human agent inclines his will to do the will of God, as finally Paul did, the light will shine in vain, and a thousand-fold more light and evidence would do no good. God knows when the sinner has sufficient evidence, and says of such, “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.” “If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rose from the dead.” BEcho November 1, 1893, par. 7
Paul had a terrible awakening when the light of heaven flashed upon him, and a voice said to him, “Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me? Paul answered, “Who art Thou, Lord?” and Christ answered, “I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest; it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.” And the Lord said, “Arise, and go to the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.” The Lord always gives the human agent his work to do. Paul was to work in compliance with the divine command. If Paul had said, “Lord, I am not in the least inclined to follow your directions in working out my salvation,” then had the Lord have showered upon him a light ten-fold as bright, it would have been useless. It is man's part to co-operate with the divine. Here is where the conflict is to be sternest, hardest, and most fierce, in yielding the will and way to God's will and way, relying upon the gracious influences which God has exerted upon the human soul throughout all the life. The man must do the work of inclining. “For it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do.” The character of the action will testify what has been the nature of the resolve. The doing was not in accordance with feeling and natural inclination, but in harmony with the will of the Father in heaven. Follow and obey the leadings of the Holy Spirit; obey not the voice of the deceiver, which is in harmony with the unsanctified will, but obey the impulse God has given. This is what the heavenly intelligences are constantly working to have us do,—the will of the Father which is in heaven. BEcho November 1, 1893, par. 8
Everything is at stake. Will the human agent co-operate with divine agencies to will and to do? If a man places his will on the side of God's will, fully surrendering self to his will, the rubbish will be cleared from the door of the heart, the defiance of the soul will be broken down, and Jesus will enter to abide as a welcome guest. BEcho November 1, 1893, par. 9