So Walk Ye in Him
The sermon emphasizes the importance of maintaining spiritual habits and abiding in Christ to achieve spiritual growth and freedom.
A.B. Simpson emphasizes the importance of abiding in Christ and maintaining a continuous spiritual fire within our hearts. He compares the effort required to keep our spiritual habits alive to the ancient Greeks' sacred fire, urging believers to avoid the struggle of rekindling their faith after it has waned. Simpson encourages the congregation to strive for spiritual perfection and to establish good habits that will lead to a spontaneous and free expression of faith. He reminds us that while forming these habits may be challenging, their maintenance will ultimately lead to a more fulfilling spiritual life.
Text
Let us abide in Him. It is much easier to keep the fire burning than to rekindle it after it has gone out. Let us not have to remove the cinders and ashes from our hearthstones every day and kindle a new flame; but let us keep it burning and never let it expire. Among the ancient Greeks the sacred fire was never allowed to go out. So, in a higher sense, let us keep the heavenly flame aglow upon the altar of our hearts. It takes much less effort to maintain a good habit than to form it.
A true spiritual habit once formed becomes a spontaneous tendency of our being, and we grow into delightful freedom in following it.
Let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works (Hebrews 6:1); whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing (Philippians 3:16). Every spiritual habit begins with difficulty and effort and watchfulness. But if we will only let it get thoroughly established, it will become a channel along which the currents of life will flow with divine spontaneousness and freedom.
Sermon Outline
- Abiding in Christ
- The importance of maintaining spiritual habits
- The ease of keeping the fire burning
- The difficulty of rekindling a lost flame
Key Quotes
“It takes much less effort to maintain a good habit than to form it.” — A.B. Simpson
“Among the ancient Greeks the sacred fire was never allowed to go out.” — A.B. Simpson
“Let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works (Hebrews 6:1);” — A.B. Simpson
Application Points
- Make a conscious effort to maintain your spiritual habits to avoid the difficulty of rekindling a lost flame.
- Continue to walk by the same rule and mind the same thing to ensure spiritual growth.
- Let your spiritual habits become a spontaneous tendency of your being to achieve divine freedom.