Being and Doing
As Christians, our role is to be, not to do, and to rest fully available to the Saving Life of Christ.
Major Ian Thomas emphasizes the divine vocation of believers, highlighting that true fulfillment of good works can only be achieved through the power of the Holy Spirit. He warns against the futility of busy work done apart from Christ, reminding us that without Him, we can do nothing. Thomas encourages Christians to present their bodies as living sacrifices, allowing Christ to work through them in every aspect of life. He stresses that our identity and actions should be rooted in Christ, as Paul stated, 'For me to live is Christ.' Ultimately, it is our role to be available to Christ, who will do the work through us.
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This is divine vocation into which you have been redeemed, as "His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained that you should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10) can only be fulfilled in the energy and power of the One who indwells you now by His Spirit, as He walked once only in the energy and power of the Father who indwelt Him through the Spirit. Of Himself He said, "I can of mine own self do nothing" (John 5:19), and of you He says, in John 15:5, "Without me you can do nothing."
How much can you do without Him? Nothing!
It is amazing how busy you can be doing nothing! Did you ever find that out? "The flesh everything that you do apart from Him "profiteth nothing" (John 6:63), and there is always the awful possibility, if you do not discover this principle, that you may spend a lifetime in the service of Jesus Christ doing nothing! You would not be the first, and you would not be the last but that, above everything else, we must seek to avoid!
So you discover that the life which you possess as a born-again Christian is of Him, and it is to Him, and every moment that you are here on earth it must be through Him of Him, through Him, to Him all things! "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice" (Romans 12:1).
The Lord Jesus Christ claims the use of your body, your whole being, your complete personality so that as you give yourself to Him through the eternal Spirit, He may give Himself to you through the eternal Spirit, that all your activity as a human being on earth may be His activity in and through you; that every step you take, every word you speak, everything you do, everything you are, may be an expression of the Son of God, in you as man.
If it is of Him and through Him and to Him, where do you come in? You do not! That is just where you go out! That is what Paul meant when he said, "For me to live is Christ" (Philippians 1:21). The only Person whom God credits with the right to live in you is Jesus Christ; so reckon yourself to be dead to all that you are apart from what He is, and alive unto God only in all that you are because of what He is (Romans 6:1 1).
It is for you to BE it is for Him to DO! Rest fully available to the Saving Life of Christ.
From: The Saving Life of Christ. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House. ©1961.
Sermon Outline
- I. The Divine Vocation
- A. Redeemed to good works
- B. Fulfilled in the power of the indwelling Spirit
- II. The Limitations of Human Effort
- A. Without Christ, we can do nothing
- B. The flesh profits nothing
- III. The Life of Christ in Us
- A. A living sacrifice to God
- B. Christ's activity in and through us
- IV. The Role of the Believer
- A. To be, not to do
- B. To rest in the Saving Life of Christ
Key Quotes
“Without me you can do nothing.” — Major Ian Thomas
“The flesh profiteth nothing.” — Major Ian Thomas
“For me to live is Christ.” — Major Ian Thomas
Application Points
- Recognize that without Christ, we can do nothing, and seek to rest in His power and presence.
- Let go of our own efforts and desires to control our lives, and instead, surrender to the Saving Life of Christ.
- Seek to live a life that is pleasing to God, not by our own strength, but by His power and activity in and through us.