Are You Experiencing Spiritual Dryness?

A Bit Spiritually Dry? Here is One Thing to Watch Out For . . .

“. . .After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?”
Gal 3:3
1-6-09

I had a brief conversation with a pastor friend of mine. We agreed that there seems to be a state of general spiritual malaise among believers in our churches. Pastors and I and other leaders have identified this for years as a type of spiritual apathy or lethargy. With this condition one experiences dryness and a lack of fulfillment in spiritual lives. While searching for legitimate solutions to the problem, there is also a strong allure for a quick fix of spiritual activities. This is usually what is attempted by the believer and even what is recommended by leaders to solve their spiritual apathy.

Unfortunately, believers usually have already attempted going down this path of “doing more stuff for God and church.” They were still left spiritually frustrated, dry, unfulfilled, without peace and joy which should accompany a believer who is following the will of the Father. But sometimes the believer will gain a temporary “feelgood” as a result of doing these good works and of course he/she will definitely benefit from positive affirmations from fellow believers, Christian leaders and even those they are serving. But it won’t be long before the believer loses that temporary endorphin based feeling and is left with his/her old situation of spiritual apathy and dryness except now he/she may have an extra busy schedule due to activity commitments and must pull themselves up by their bootstraps to attempt to meet their commitments. Doesn’t sound like holy sacramentally infused service to me. Instead, this sounds like manmade effort put forth to achieve spiritual goals.

We have a choice when faced this dilemma. One way of expressing the choice is to say the quick fix solution of doing activities, to be a more spiritual person, is to offer a believer a list of things to do and not to do. This, of course, has a feel in many regards to being like “the law” as described in scripture. However, when a believer trusts Christ as Savior and Lord, he is committing to a NEW way of life. He is putting away the old law of approval by performance and acceptance by activity.

Ironically, this old way is definitely EASIER in some ways than the new way. HOW? When embracing the law you know much more definitively what you had to do “A,B,C.” Attempting to follow the law also means doing more spiritual activities got you more “good works points” in everyone’s ledger or books that were keeping track of good works. Living by the Law means life was more quantifiable and measurable so it is easier to put our arms around how to follow the “life of the Law.”

As Christians though, this is NOT what we signed up for. When we believed upon the Lord Jesus Christ and called upon His saving Blood to redeem us by His Atoning power, He blessed each of us with the indwelling PERSON of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, according to Jesus,

“when the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of Truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me. It is for your good I am going away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. But when he, the Spirit of Truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, . . . he will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.” (John 16)

So the Holy Spirit will guide us into all truth including revealing and testifying about Jesus and act as Counselor within us to assist us and guide and aid in discernment, as we listen he will “speak only what he (himself) hears (from Jesus or the Father).” This process of living requires the believer to have the wax out of his ears, and the blinders off his eyes so that he might learn to be attuned to the Holy Spirit of God. Rather than “settling” for the old way of the law.

Let us never forget the Apostle Paul’s words to people stuck in this same situation. In Galatians 3 “You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes, Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. Did you receive the Spirit by observing the Law, . . . are you so foolish? AFTER BEGINNING WITH THE SPIRIT, ARE YOU NOW TRYING TO ATTAIN YOUR GOAL BY HUMAN EFFORT?”(vv1-3)

“But now that you know God—or rather are known by God—how is it that you are TURNING BACK TO THOSE WEAK AND MISERABLE PRINCIPLES? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again?” (Gal 4:9) Let us not turn back to legalistic principles of doing more activity, principles with which we become so easily entangled. We signed up for something different.

Yes, we signed up for the way by the Spirit. This “way” calls upon us to depend upon the discernment available to us because He indwells a believer who has given control over to Jesus. This is very different than depending upon “A,B,C,” spiritual activities for spiritual fulfillment and good works where you will find approval from others. We serve God. He has given us the Holy Spirit because Jesus left specifically so we would have the tools for the kind of discernment we are talking about here.

The “way” WE signed up for, God made us sons of God!! Sonship! Heirs to Eternal Kingdom! Everlasting Life to Learn How to Worship, Grow and Serve Forever at His feet. “God sent his son . . . born under the law, to redeem those under the law, that WE MIGHT RECEIVE THE FULL RIGHTS OF SONS. Because you ARE sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts . . . so you are no longer a slave, but A SON; and since you are a SON, God has made you also an HEIR!” (Gal 4:4-7)

Lasting spiritual fulfillment is not to be found in the old way, however, when we begin living in the rights, privileges, and responsibilities of Sonship the Lord will have helped us find our “way.”

Russell E. Olson, Sr.
1083
1-6-09