THE SPIRITUAL DIRECTION OF LIFE

“When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.” Matthew 26:1,2

What God - Yehovah has laid on my heart to expound today concerns the spiritual direction of life. In this context, let us survey the lord Jesus's own life and teaching, and ask ourselves, “What is the whole direction of my life?”

Such a question presumes our lives have some direction. Do we have such a direction, or are we like a ship tossing in the storm without a compass? Which way are you heading? As I pondered this matter before the Lord God - Yehovah, I felt burdened that even among many Christians, there does not seem to be any clear sense of direction. They don’t seem to know where they are going.

Of course, if you don’t move at all, there is no question of direction. However, if you are moving, you must have a sense of what your whole life is headed for. Many people bungle their way through life, groping in darkness, somehow expecting that by some miracle of chance or by some piece of good fortune, they might end up in the right direction. That is, at best, a very risky way to go. Imagine a ship setting out without a clue as to where it is going. Yet when you speak to many Christians, who seem to have submitted their life to the Lord God - Yehovah, it becomes very distressing to see that they too are without direction.

When the question is asked, we often hear the very spiritual reply, “I’m just waiting on the Lord God - Yehovah.” That we need to wait on the Lord God – Yehovah for details is indeed true, but what is the general direction of our life? What are we waiting on the Lord God – Yehovah for? If our ultimate goal is not clear, we should not be surprised to find that often the Christian has the same objectives as the non-Christian, and is caught up in the affairs of daily life - not realizing that the pleasures of the world cannot satisfy. No wonder the world is not impressed with the Gospel when all it sees are Christians pursuing money, and status; in a word - materialism.

The Direction of Matthew’s Gospel

“When Jesus had finished all these sayings” - this is a standard formula in which Matthew closes a main section of the lord Jesus' teaching. In Matthew, there is a special structure and order. In writing his gospel, Matthew knew exactly the direction he was going to take. What we have, if we have the eyes to see, is not a random composition but a specific structure consisting of five main sections, each section ending with this phrase.

Our present context is the fifth usage of this construction. Prior occurrence are in Matthew 7:28, 11:1, 13:53, and 19:1.

Many scholars have observed Matthew’s intentional design and compared its pattern with the five books of Moses, that is, Genesis to Deuteronomy. As these five books (hence the term “Pentateuch”) reveal the law of the old covenant, so too Matthew desires to show that these five sections of his gospel reveal the law of the Messiah Jesus, the foundation of the new covenant. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Matthew already had a plan and a design given to him by the Lord Jesus.

The Messiah Jesus' Direction of Life

The lord Jesus says, “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the son of man will be delivered up to be crucified.”

How did the disciples know this? The lord Jesus had already told them he was going to be crucified in Matthew: 17:22, and 20:18,19. So this is the third time; only two days before the crucial events. All the time, the Messiah Jesus had this clear goal and direction before him; the cross [stake] set before him. His whole life moved steadily towards that cross [stake]; the redemption of mankind – the reconciliation of mankind before his God and Father Yehovah.

That the cross [stake] was before him was not just an afterthought, for we note that from the very beginning, the Messiah Jesus had this sense of purpose. At the age of twelve, we read in Luke 2:49: “Did you not know I must be about the things of my Father?” Can we see his preoccupation with the things of God? Even at the age of eleven or twelve, you are not too young to fix your vision and let your mind dwell on the eternal things.

In his last recorded statement before his death, we see the persistence of the Messiah Jesus’s thinking. In John 19:30: the lord Jesus utters the famous last words, “It is finished”. The “it” was his mission, his task which he had steadfastly pursued all his life. In our present passage, we find the lord Jesus speaking these words with decision and determination. There is no sudden panic, that two days hence he will be crucified; a terrible death reserved for criminals. There is no melodrama. In the person of Jesus the Messiah, we see a dignified calm: a person who knows where he is going.

Paul’s Direction

As we examine the life of the apostle Paul, we are immediately struck with this same impression. Paul “presses toward the mark” (Philippians 3:14). How strange it is that this expression has gained a certain respectability in some Christian circles, yet when I question closer, what is “the mark”? I wonder which of them could answer. How can we move forward if we do not know what the mark is?

Are we following the example of the Messiah Jesus? By definition, a disciple goes where his Master goes. Our master knew where he was going. The question is: “Do we know where we are going?” Before we can echo with the lord Jesus; “It is finished;” we must first begin. Before we can begin, we must have some general sense of our aim in our lives.

The apostle Paul could say at the end of his life, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7). Paul could only finish his course because he knew what the task God entrusted to him was. Paul does not say: “I have finished my life” but “I have finished my course”. In the end, Paul carried out the works the lord Jesus called him to do. To finish your course and to finish your life are not the same. How tragic that for many it is only on their deathbed that there comes the realization: I have finished my life but what was my course?

The Christian Life - To Glorify God

Everywhere in the lord Jesus' life, we see this quality of persistence. In John 17:4, the lord Jesus prays his high priestly prayer: “I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work which you gave me to do.” How did the Messiah Jesus glorify his God and Father Yehovah? By finishing the work entrusted to his hands. By this time, the lord Jesus had finished the task of laying the foundation for his church - the called-out assembly. He had equipped his disciples. Will we be able to say this prayer at the end of our lives? As his disciples, our lives are to give glory to our God and Father Yehovah (Matthew 5:16). Continually we read that the Messiah Jesus was well-pleasing in the sight of his Father Yehovah. Live so as to be pleasing before the Almighty God – Yehovah: to be holy and blameless in His sight.

His goal was constantly before him. This aim permeates the entire life of the Messiah Jesus. In John 8:14, Jesus answered: “... for I know where I have come, and where I am going ...” This same mission emerges in John 12:27. In John 12:23: “The hour has come”. In John’s gospel, sacrificial death is called “glorification”. The Messiah Jesus was glorified in the sin-offering sacrifice of himself. In v.32: “lifted up” has a beautiful way of revealing that the manner in which the Messiah Jesus' glorification is to be accomplished is by his death on the cross [stake]. To hang on to our life is to lose it. If we are to enter into life, we must share his suffering and take up our cross daily (cf. also Philippians 1:29, 2 Timothy 2:11, 12). In doing so, our God and Father Yehovah is glorified. So this element of the disciple of the lord Jesus life emerges. His direction is to bring glory and honor to the name of God - Yehovah through obedience to the working of His Spirit in his/her life. In all that we would do it behooves us to ask ourselves, “How is the name of God - Yehovah glorified by what I am doing?”

The Christian Life - Complete Self Giving

Now this passage in John 12 is very precious. From verse 23 onwards, we can trace the progression in the lord Jesus' utterance. V. 24 is a transition verse. It connects to the lord Jesus in v. 23. It connects with our life in v. 25. What is true for the Messiah Jesus is true for us. He is the seed [of Abraham]. To thrive and bear fruit, the seed must take full possession of the soil. The word of God must take full possession of our hearts in order to transform our lives. The faith which saves involves totality, openness, and suffering. “... unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” (v24)

Think carefully about this. The lord Jesus was that one lonely “seed” that fell into the ground and what came forth was a small handful of regenerate disciples. One new ear of wheat may have thirty or forty other grains. So the next generation of disciples shows the geometric progression. From one seed of wheat, we now have a whole field. But always the principle is this: complete self-giving, dying to selfish interest.

So as the lord Jesus ponders the way of the cross [stake], we read in v. 27: “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour?’ No, for this purpose I have come to this hour.” The thought of being crucified troubled the Messiah Jesus, but he would not turn away from his goal. Truly he was the “son of God who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20b)

The Christian Life - Walking in Light

Coming to v. 35 of this same chapter, the Messiah Jesus speaks not only of the sense of direction but also the clarity of direction. Is our vision clear? “Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtakes you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he goes.”

The one who walks in darkness has no sense of direction. Are we in light or darkness? If there is no sense of direction, it may be that we are yet in darkness and have not been freed from the bondage of sin.

Can it be that there is no sense of purpose because we have not as yet entered into the newness of life? In case we had missed this point. The emphasis on the disciples walk or conduct of life was also developed clearly in John 8:12: “I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

The Christian Life - Building a Tower

The pattern of the lord Jesus' life manifests his sense of value. Let us look now at the lord Jesus' teaching on the disciple's life. Let us search out how the lord and Savior describe this life.

“For which of you, wanting to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it. Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him saying, This man began to build and was not able to finish.” Luke 14: 28-30

In building a structure such as a tower you need to count the cost. In order to count the cost, you must have a clear sense of the building you wish to erect. This project involves a complex process of planning.

Throwing stones together does not make a tower. In our life, is there a tower emerging? Or will we, in the end, just have a heap of stones?

The Christian Life - Warfare

Secondly, the lord Jesus likens our life to warfare in Luke 14:31. “Or what king, going to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and take counsel whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand”. With these odds (2 to 1), you must plan your campaign carefully. The lord Jesus deliberately tells us the spiritual facts of life: In this warfare, we are outnumbered by the fact of the enemy within and the enemy without.

Within ourselves, we must reckon with the weakness of the flesh, exploited by temptations from the world. Outside, there are the daily pressures of life, family, and friends. Our warfare is also against Satan and his cohorts. In this light, the campaign plan must be executed with the precision of a general carrying out his military plans. What so terrifies me is the fact that so many Christians fumble around in life and yet hope to emerge victorious in this warfare. Is it any wonder we have a generation of defeated believers? We have no plan or campaign or discipline in our lives. Mark this well. The Christian life is continual warfare.

The Christian Life - Discipline

Have you seen an army that can win a battle without discipline? Yet I see Christians live without self-control and [are] undisciplined. When Paul writes to his fellow soldier Timothy, he says, “For God - Yehovah did not give us a spirit of timidity but a spirit of power and love and self-control” (2 Tim 1:7) Paul puts himself under discipline (1 Corinthians 9:24-27) because, like a soldier, you cannot win any battle with an unruly mob. Today churches complain that the exercise of discipline is too harsh. How can the church of God win any battles if we are all foolish and sentimental?

The Spiritual Direction of the Called-out Assembly

So let us carry this point further. If the individual has no sense of direction, how is the Church of God going to have any direction? Today let us honestly confess, the Congregation is largely a bunch of individuals who come together for a social gathering rather than a mighty army under the Lord God - Yehovah’s supreme command. A disoriented mob who have come out to shout some slogans. Today we see all around us, churches in which there is a great flurry of activity; organizing events, building buildings, etc. Let us ask amid all this activity, “What is the goal of the Called-out Assembly of God - Yehovah spiritually in this world?”

The answer which comes to most people’s lips is “We evangelize.” What is the nature and outcome of this evangelism? Trace the life of those who come to the lord Jesus. They make a profession because they believe in Jesus. They receive baptism. And then? Let me press this question. Then what? This person who is baptized, does he/she know what he/she is supposed to do? After baptism, most have no sense of where to go, and consequently, they go downhill. All too often we see this happen. 26 and v. 27: “Whoever does not bear his own cross – die to self, and come after me cannot be my disciple.” (v27) To a disciple Jesus the Messiah demands nothing less than total commitment. He says: The one who is not with me is against me, and the one who does not gather with me scatters. (Matthew 12:30) To be with the lord Jesus is to be totally committed to him.

The Christian Life - Total Commitment

Why does the lord Jesus demand this total commitment, this faithfulness, and endurance to the very end? We see the context as spiritual warfare. What soldier would be a good soldier if he is entangled in civilian pursuits and not prepared to die for his cause? (cf. “ Timothy 2:3,4). Likewise, in the case of the tower, you cannot finish unless you are prepared to commit all your resources to accomplishing the task. The lord Jesus says: “You have to renounce all” – renounce self, die to self.

Today’s peddlers of the gospel say: “You don’t have, to renounce anything ! Just accept the free gift.” That salvation is the free gift of God, provided we meet His conditions for receiving it. It is assuredly true. But to teach salvation in this way is not to teach as the Lord taught.

The lord Jesus has underscored the fact that the direction for every disciple who receives God’s gift of His Spirit given according to His amazing grace, is to take up our cross and walk in faith and obedience before Him and His son Jesus. Jesus says: Whoever does not carry his own cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:27).

The Christian Life - A Corporate Salvation

Jesus’ goal was to live and to give his life as a sin-offering sacrifice for the reconciliation and redemption of mankind to his God and Father Yehovah. Without this goal, we cannot be his disciples. To be like the Messiah Jesus means we share his sense of values, all that he stood for and stands for now seated at the right hand of God - Yehovah.

You and I are called not only to be saved for ourselves but that henceforth live for the salvation of others, to guide others to be free from the bondage of sin. This goal is not optional. Our whole life ought to be living for others. If we find such words unpalatable, then forget about living the life of a disciple of the lord Jesus. Is this not what Jesus said: “Whoever does not bear his own cross – die to self, and come after me cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14:27)

Throughout the Bible, Christians, and disciples are one and the same thing. The disciples were called Christians (Acts 11:26). These are not two stages. If we have not fulfilled his requirement as a disciple, let us plead that Yehovah first change the direction of our life; to be conformed to the image of His Son. What is our direction? The mark which Paul presses towards is to lay down one’s life for others. What else does “share His sufferings, becoming like him in his death” (Philippians 3:10) mean? (cf. 1 John 3:16) If we call ourselves ‘Christians’, let us realize that we may only do so on condition that we share the direction of life the Lord had.

Paul, in writing to Timothy, shares with us that “I suffer everything for the sake of the elect” (2 Timothy 2:10). Paul lived for the elect. He died for the elect. Following in the steps of the lord Jesus, Paul is willing to be poured out as a sacrifice for the others. So the apostle exhorts us, “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of the Messiah” (1 Corinthians 11:1)

Every true Christian has this one goal in mind - to build up the Called-out Assembly of God. To build the Called-out Assembly of God as the means which God - Yehovah has ordained to save mankind. If we are to live and die for others, we must begin where God begins; with His called-out Assembly. Is our life completely for Him?

We have been bought and paid for by the blood of the lord Messiah Jesus and as such are his slaves and as he was acting as the agent of our God and Father Yehovah, we are slaves of Yehovah. As His slaves we are to be slaves of righteousness, doing what is right in His sight. [Romans 6:16, 18-19, 22; 1 Peter 2:16]

What is right in His sight is to preach the good news of the soon-coming kingdom of God and the name of the lord Jesus.

When we preach the name of the lord Jesus, we preach everything he stood for and how he lived a life leading the way for us to follow in his steps totally committed to loving God – Yehovah will all our hearts, minds, being, and strength and loving our neighbors as ourselves, thus keeping the creed of the lord Messiah Jesus. [Mark 12:28-32]

Written by Eric H.H. Chang and edited and added on to by Bruce Lyon