Scripture Reading: Matt. 6:27-30; Rom. 7:18-19, 21-25a; 8:1-4; Matthew 6 is on the physical life; Romans 8 is on the spiritual life.
Every life has its law. For example, a man can only grow to a certain height. He cannot add an inch to his stature. It is impossible for anyone to try to become taller by self-effort or will power. He can only be as tall as his natural life allows. This is also true of the spiritual life. What you are is what you are; you cannot increase your spiritual stature by the power of your will. Life is something spontaneous; it has what it has and is what it is. A short person can make himself look taller by wearing high heels, but he can only do this for a little while. When he takes the shoes off, his height de- creases. The same difficulty arises when a man makes up his mind to humble himself. He can sustain this effort for a little while, but he cannot keep it up forever. Many people try to be the kind of person they are not. This is hard. They find it hard and strenuous to be a Christian. Before Paul became a Christian, he resolved again and again to do good, but the good that he willed, he did not do, and the evil that he did not will, that he did. This is because another law of evil was operating in his members. Many Christians feel that they are too talkative or too proud. They think that if they strive, restrict themselves, and cultivate themselves a little, they will improve. They do not realize that there is a law of sin within them which the power of the will has no control over and which can never be overcome.
The first three chapters of Romans is about what man as a sinner has done. Then Romans 7 tells us what man is in himself — a sinner. The first three chapters of Romans talk about what man has done; this involves the need of forgiveness. Romans 7 and 8 deal with what a man is in himself; this involves the need of freedom. The first three chapters tell us that the evils that man has committed are forgiven through the redemption of Christ Jesus. Romans 7 and 8 tell us about the law of sin — that which is within man's being — and how man is released from it through the law of the Spirit of life. An unbeliever tries to walk according to the power of his will. But a Christian should not walk according to the power of his will. God delivers us from the first law through the operation of the second law.
During the Ching Dynasty, there was a toll tax which was a heavy burden to many people. The Ching Dynasty set up many toll stations throughout the country, and the toll officers possessed tremendous authority. In order for a load of goods to pass through several provinces, the owner had to pay a heavy toll tax. When the Nationalist government took over, a new law was decreed that replaced the old toll tax. Those who were suffering under the old law were relieved by the institution of the new law. They did not need to hope or pray for change any longer, because the new law had been instituted and had delivered them from the old law.
Consider man's physical life. Our eyes are cleansed by the blinking of the eyelids. This action is involuntary; one does not need to consciously activate it. Our heart, digestion, and breathing are all regulated and spontaneous. There are many laws that govern our body. Many people have forgotten the fact that God not only gives man life but also equips him with the functions of life. Many people think that God gives man only eyes, a heart, lungs, and limbs, etc. But God has given each of these organs their own movement and function. Some may think that even though God has given us life, we have to stir up the capacity of this life ourselves before we can do anything. The result of this stirring up is never satisfactory; man ends up not doing what he wants to do. This life operates by itself. There is no need for us to do anything. This is a law. A law is something that operates by itself.
Once I could not sleep well for five or six nights. Sleep is very much related to human metabolism. I was worried that if this went on, I would not have the energy and physical strength to work. Later, I prayed and looked up verses in the Bible about sleep, such as the Lord Jesus sleeping at the bow of the boat in the midst of a storm. But none of these verses helped me. Finally, the Lord told me that I should trust in the natural law of the body. When the body is tired it sleeps, and after it sleeps it works. I trusted in this natural law and did not worry about it any longer, and I was able to lie down and sleep very well.
As long as a man eats, he will be filled and not be hungry. He does not have to worry whether he will be hungry again or what would happen if he lost his hunger. Man's stomach feels hungry spontaneously. As soon as we feel hungry, we eat. A little later we become hungry again and have to eat again. In the same principle, there are laws in the spiritual realm. We read the Bible because the inner life has a spontaneous urge to read, and the more we read, the more we like to read and the sweeter it becomes to our taste. However, if we force ourselves to read, we will not have any taste for it. The same is true with material offering, testifying, and every other kind of spiritual matter. Walking according to the inner life is something very spontaneous. When trials and temptations come our way, the life within will spontaneously withstand them; there is no need to assist with human methods and human strength. Our duty is to pray to the Lord and to look to Him silently and calmly. A Christian does not need to be anxious for his life, because the life that he has resists Satan and rejects sin spontaneously.
All we have to do is calmly trust in this new law, the second law within us. However, the minute we exercise our own strength, we act against this law. Anything strenuous is artificial. A man does not need to exert any effort to be saved. This is also true concerning overcoming. Being a Christian is not a question of striving or struggling. It is the Lord's grace that brings us through all the circumstances and that bears us up in all things. The law of life within spontaneously regulates and carries us on.
What should we do about this new law? Romans 8 tells us that the Holy Spirit works to fulfill the righteousness of the law in a Christian. This righteousness is the very righteousness that the man in Romans 7 sought and tried to attain by resolving to do God's will. The secret of experiencing the law of the Spirit of life is to follow, which means to come behind. We cannot walk in front of the Holy Spirit; we cannot lead the way. We have to follow the Lord and walk behind Him. The Lord walks in front of us, and we should follow behind. We should let the Lord move first and then follow after. The Lord can do everything. We do not have to initiate anything. Instead, we can rest fully in the Lord.
At this point, a question often arises: "If I cannot make it when I try hard to hold myself back, would it not be worse if I let go?" If an unbeliever does not hold himself back, he will become worse because he will be taken over by the law of sin and of death once he lets go. He will die faster because there is only one law in him. But if a regenerated person lets go, the life within will usher him into the new law, the law of the Spirit of life, and once he goes along with this law, he will experience life and peace.
