Conundrum . . . An Enigma . . . A Paradox . . .

An Enigma

Jim Berge

“To this end I labor, struggling with all his energy, which so powerfully works in me.” (Colossians 1:29)
So, which is it? God's power or my effort? Or some combination of both? If my effort is necessary in order to live the Christian life, then does that not imply salvation by works? And if it is only by God's power in my life that I can be saved, then what have I got to do with it? How do my decisions and efforts count for anything? Maybe I can just lie here eating Lays Sour Cream and Onion potato chips until Christ returns...1
This is truly a conundrum, especially as stated by Paul in the verse above: “...WORK OUT your salvation...for it is God WHO WORKS IN YOU...” Intuitively, I have known the solution to this problem, but have never really been able to articulate why I believe what I believe. In fact, I have of late been confused as to exactly where my effort ends and the ability to obey - or to even know - God's will begins.
The bible is clear that without God's power working in us, we are hopelessly lost. God does not need us at all, but on the contrary we need Him for our very breath:

He is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. (Acts 17:24-25)

So it is evident that our very ability to live and exist comes from Him. In past issues, we have explored quantum physics, and have established the fact that all matter is in fact held together by Christ, to the chagrin of secular physicists everywhere. This is corroborated by a number of biblical passages, including Colossians 1:17 “...in him all things hold together...” and Hebrews 1:3 “The Son is...sustaining all things by his powerful word.”
We must admit, however, that the sustenance of all material things by Christ is not the same as His active working within the lives of humankind. After all, He has chosen not to be actively involved in the lives of those who reject Him. They are left to their own devices (Romans 1:24-32) to their detriment. The entire universe is subject to God's will, and is in fact being divinely, unalterably directed:

I am God, and there is none like me...My purpose will stand, and I will do as I please...What I have said, that I will bring about; what I have planned, that will I do. (Isaiah 46: 9, 10, 11)

Being faced with an almighty, omnipotent God who directs the universe as He sees fit, what should our response be? The article in this issue about God's sovereignty addresses this question in more detail. Here we shall be content to state that our response must be to walk as He would have us walk. Which brings us back to the original question: Do we as Christians walk consistently with God through our own efforts, or solely from the power God gives us?
      I struggled with this question the other night after I had read the verses quoted at the beginning of this article. I masticated God's words for a while to no avail, so I decided to go to bed. Lying in the darkness, I asked God to reveal to me His truth, and to clear up this question in my mind. The analogy he suddenly gave me was a simple one, true to His form. I would like to share it with you here.
      It is clear that, although we are wholly incapable of living righteous lives in and of ourselves (“...all our righteous acts are like filthy rags...” (Isaiah 64:6)) we are nevertheless held responsible to live a righteous life. Yes, we are indeed held responsible for our own actions. The statement “work out your salvation” contains the important verb “work” which is defined by Random House as “exertion or effort directed to produce or accomplish something; labor; toil.” This leaves us no other way out but to accept the fact that we are personally responsible for our actions, for our sins, for repentance.
      Now for the analogy. Christians are athletes in training. This is a metaphor which Paul used often in his letters:

Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. (Hebrews 12:1)

Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. (I Corinthians 9:25)

Athletes require good nutrition. In fact, all human beings require good food in order to live and to stay healthy. If we stop eating, we soon become weak, then sick, and eventually we would die. In the same vein, if we eat plenty but eat poorly, then we will suffer all sorts of ills due to a poor diet.
The athlete's body uses food for nourishment and for energy. Without food, we have no strength to do the work we need to do. Can any of us choose to stop eating, yet expect to have energy to work, to play, or to even live? Try living without food for a week, then engage yourself in a vigorous game of basketball. You will soon learn the relationship between food and energy.
This is exactly the case in the Christian's spiritual life. We know that as believers in Christ, we require a regular diet of good spiritual food:

Solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. (Hebrews 5:14)

Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation. (1 Peter 2:2)

Without such good nutrition, we cannot become strong in Christ; strong in truth, strong in love, strong in service and commitment to Him. Just as good food nourishes the athlete and enables him or her to compete and win the race, so the food of the Spirit enables us to run the race of faith.
      Once again, we must return to the central question of this discussion; is it my work or God's work which perfects? I believe that just as physical food gives us the energy and ability to live a physical life, so good spiritual nutrition gives us the ability to grow spiritually. Just as we choose to participate in a basketball game, and just as we choose to either play by the rules or to disobey them, so we have the freedom to make decisions about the way we live our lives here on earth. And just as good nutrition and exercise help continually improve our state of health, so we grow stronger in the Spirit with good spiritual nutrition.
     We must develop the discipline to make the right decisions in the eyes of God, and He has promised to then give us the nutrition - the strength and energy - to make it happen. He does not always make it easier for us. In fact, if temptations were simple to overcome, this whole issue would be meaningless and we could erase several chapters of the bible. Our motto as Christians striving to become like Christ should be the same as the athlete's: “No pain, no gain.” This sinful flesh hates rebuke.
      As food is broken down by my digestive system to provide essential nutrients and energy sources for my body's individual cells, so the power of Christ works in me to help me through situations and temptations I encounter every day. As I would become weak and ill without food, so my spirit becomes weak and unable to handle the onslaught of temptation without the spiritual nutrition which comes from God's word, from prayer, and from Christian fellowship. I know this from personal experience.
      At this time a question ought to be posed: Should we even ask the question whether it's God's work or mine? That is, should we not work out our salvation just as tenaciously regardless of the answer to this question?
      Yes, we are required to work hard. The fact that all our strength comes from God does not excuse us from taking responsibility for our actions. It may indeed be easier - at least in the short term - to simply coast along until either death or the rapture takes us away. But we will not experience the deeper things of God. We will not be the healthy, radiant church God expects us to become while He delays His return. We will be sickly and pale; not a light shining on a lampstand but a flashlight whose battery is just about dead - you know, the flashlight you have to keep knocking and shaking to get out that last bit of glow.
      Here is the conclusion of the matter: we must work at this salvation thing. We must work and strive, training ourselves and “working out” spiritually. We must become disciplined (Proverbs 1:3) and strengthened (Ephesians 6:10) through exercise, diligence, and sometimes through the discipline of our heavenly Father. And most crucial to our performance is the nutrition, the energy, the wisdom and understanding which come from the word of Christ. While He builds us on the inside, we are responsible to build up on the outside. We are required to work out horizontally, but we must first have worked out and been strengthened vertically.
      It is a wondrous and mysterious balance which we must achieve. Our effort is important, God's nourishment crucial. We struggle, God rewards us for our struggles. We sweat and strive, He causes our spiritual muscles to grow. We stop exercising, our spiritual muscles atrophy. That which comes easily is not cherished. That which we fight for becomes precious. We continue to become more like Christ throughout eternity by the combined efforts of our limited selves and our almighty Savior. What an adventure!

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