HOW TO WORK THE WORKS OF GOD.
JESUS CHRIST wrought the works of God. He was God manifest in the flesh. He emptied himself and God filled him with his Spirit, not in stinted measure, but "it pleased the Father that in him should all fullness dwell." "For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." Jesus himself said: "Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words I speak unto you I speak not of myself; but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works." John 14:10. Certainly he could work the works of God; he could not do otherwise than work the works of God, when he was emptied of himself and God dwelt in him in all fullness. His words were God's words, his works were God's works. Jesus Christ was like God because God dwelt in him. How may we be like Christ? How may we work the works of God? We have no power in ourselves to make us like him. We have no riches by which we may purchase the transformation. We are utterly "without strength" to do this great thing of ourselves. We are "carnal, sold under sin;" the sinner is taken by his own iniquities and "holden by the cords of his sins." "None of these can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him." How utterly unable man is to do God's will is shown in Rom. 3:7, and has been experienced in the life of every soul who has made the trial. The only way by which man can become like Christ is to be "born again." To do this he must deny himself as did Christ. Matt. 16:24. He must renounce all of self and sin, and yield himself fully to God. Luke 14:33. He must acknowledge his sins and come to Christ as his only Saviour from sin, according to the promises of the word of God. He must believe this because God has said so. He must believe that God for Christ's sake forgives his sin, because he believes what God has said. He must trust in the word, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." This is not true to the sinner because of any works he has done, is doing, or can do, it is true because God says so and he believes it. It is wholly of God's favor. This yielding to God, this submission to God's will, this confession of sin and faith in Christ, brings Christ to us as a pardoning Saviour, who forgives all our sins. It brings Christ into us as the life of God, so that we may say as did Paul, "I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me." Faith puts the Spirit of Christ within us, just the same as the Spirit of God was in Christ. Did Jesus meet the power of the enemy? It was by the Spirit of God (Matt. 12:28) which was given to him without measure (John 3:34). Even so will the Spirit of God through Jesus Christ be given to the man who renounces all and seeks for the Spirit that he may be filled. Luke 11:9-13. The Spirit of God cleanses the heart, creates within a new spirit, new affections, new purposes and motives, makes of the man a new creature; in short, he is born again, born a child of God through faith in Jesus Christ. (See Eze. 36:26, 27; 2 Cor. 5:17; John 3:3-5, and many other passages. This work is wrought by the Spirit of Christ which faith brings into the soul, "but if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." Rom. 8:9. So also that Spirit gives a new life to the soul who believes Christ. "The Spirit is life because of righteousness" (verse 10), and that life will work out the righteousness (right doing) of God. The righteousness of the law, which is also the righteousness of God, for to it the law testifies (Rom. 3:21, 22) is fulfilled in those "who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit." Rom. 8:4. Man could not by himself do God's righteousness; he does it because the law of life in Christ Jesus has made him free. Verse 2. Faith in the gospel of Christ, the mystery of God, does all this, it forms Christ within the hope of glory (Col. 1:27), and with Christ within we live Christ's life, we will work the works of God2through Christ. We cannot do otherwise than work the works of God. So Jesus answers the question, "What shall we do that we might work the works of God?" by replying, "This is the work of God that ye believe on Him whom he hath sent," and this faith is all; and all is in this faith.