Chapter 32: Of the rest from Legal Performances, and the several ways how this rest comes from Chri
This ties into the next words of the text: "Learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and you shall find rest for your souls." Christ gives you rest for your soul, so that you may be of a meek and quiet spirit towards others. When we come to those words, we will speak more fully about the gentleness and peace of spirit that should characterize Christians.
These lessons naturally follow from the rest that we have in Christ from the Law. Many other points could be drawn, but as these are only consequences of what has already been taught, I have decided not to elaborate further on them.
Chapter 32 Of the rest from Legal Performances, and the several ways how this rest comes from Christ, namely:
(1) duties are delightful to the soul, because Christ renders God to the soul in a gracious way; (2) they are not performed as satisfactory, but as testimonies of love and thankfulness; (3) Christ Himself offers up the duties to God;
(4) they are performed from the Law in the heart; and (5) they have the promises joined with them.
Now, let us begin to address the next point, which is closely related to the previous one: the rest that is found in Christ from the trouble of spirit caused by legal performances. Earlier, I spoke extensively about the great burden on many people's consciences—how their consciences push and pull them toward duty, and though they dare not neglect it, they find that performing their duties becomes a burden because they approach them in a legal way. Many of you are familiar with this, and it is impossible to discuss such a topic without some of you understanding what I mean, though others may not.
There are those who feel compelled by their consciences to perform their duties, even though those very duties are burdensome to them.
There are others, of course, whose consciences do not hold such sway, and though their conscience tells them to do their duty, they dare to omit it without feeling troubled. But there are some who have not yet experienced the liberating grace of the Gospel. They are so bound by their conscience that they dare not neglect any duty it requires, yet the Lord knows that the duties they perform feel like a heavy burden. They carry out their duties under the compulsion of conscience, as if under a grievous weight.
To these, Christ says, "Come to me, and I will give you rest." In believing in Christ and exercising faith in Him, there is deliverance from this burden. Many poor souls have lived for years under this burden, but when the Lord revealed to them the grace of Christ, their hearts were set free. They have since been just as conscientious in performing their duties as before, but now these duties have become the joy and delight of their souls. They approach their duties with rejoicing, and the commandments of God have become their inheritance, the joy of their hearts. These duties are as sweet to them as honey and the honeycomb.
This is our current topic: that in Christ, there is rest from the burden of legal performances. Christ enables believers—those who are His members—to perform their duties with a spirit of freedom. Indeed, evangelical duties are those performed with freedom of spirit, which distinguishes them from legal performances. The latter are done as burdens, while the former are done with liberty of heart. Now, let me show you how Christ grants this freedom. The scripture tells us,
"Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." This freedom of spirit in performing duty comes from Christ in the following ways:
1. Christ renders God to the soul in a gracious way.
When the soul comes to Christ, it finds rest because Christ presents God to the soul in a gracious and loving manner. Christ removes the terror that previously filled the heart at the thought of God. The reason why legalists find duties burdensome is that they offer them to God while viewing Him as a terrible judge. They must do what
God requires, but when they come into His presence, they see Him as a fearsome judge. However, when the soul comes to Christ, Christ presents God as amiable and lovely to the Christian soul—as a father.
Christ said, "I go to my Father and your Father." So believers, when they perform their duties, view God not only as a father, but as their
Father, and the Father of their Redeemer as well. Believers see God in a double relationship: He is their Father because He has begotten them anew to Himself, and He is their Father because He has adopted them as His children. But He is also the Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, and through Christ, believers have an interest in God's fatherhood. As Christ said, "I go to my Father and your Father."
Thus, when believers offer up their service to God, they come to Him as their Father and as the Father of their Redeemer. This brings great ease to the heart of a believer in performing their duties. There is a
vast difference between being called to a father and being called to a strict and severe master or judge. When a child hears that their father is calling them, they run joyfully, loving to be in their father's presence. But when a servant hears that their master is calling them, they fear the possibility of being punished.
This is the difference between legal performances and evangelical ones. Those who are in Christ, when called to duty, are called to enter into the presence of their Father and the Father of their blessed Redeemer. When they are called to perform a duty, they do so in Him. For example, when conscience says, "Come, you must pray," they do indeed go, but they go with a heart free from fear and discouragement. Rather than being struck with terror, they approach with confidence, knowing they are entering the presence of their loving Father, not a harsh judge. The Father of their Redeemer is calling them to have communion with Him, and this makes their heart spring with joy. Christ makes God appear lovely to them and thus removes the burden of legal performances.
Secondly, in Christ, believers do not perform duties to offer them up as a way to make amends for their past failings, but rather as testimonies of love and thankfulness for what they have already received. This makes duties much easier to perform. It is true, they may reflect on past neglect and use that as motivation to stir themselves to greater diligence. However, they are no longer burdened by the thought of needing to "pay back" God for what they have failed to do. Performing duties in a legal way, as if to satisfy God for past neglect, would be a grievous burden.
Those who are unfamiliar with the Gospel tend to believe that the more they have neglected their duties in the past, the more they must now do to make up for it. Their conscience tells them they must serve
God diligently to compensate for past neglect, and this makes their duties burdensome. It's like a man who has fallen into debt and now must use all his earnings to repay what he owes. This man will go about his work in great heaviness, knowing that no matter how hard he works, all his earnings will go toward satisfying his debt.
But now consider another man, also once in debt, who has a friend or relative come along and pay off all that he owed. This friend gives him a fresh start, saying, "Now you are free. Whatever you earn from this point forward is for yourself." This man will go about his work with much more joy and liveliness. This is the difference between those who perform duties in a legal way and those who perform them in an evangelical way. The one under the Law feels as though he must make up for his past failures, while the one under grace knows
Christ has already paid the debt and freed him from that burden.
A believer performs obedience on different terms. Christ has laid down the price for their sins and discharged all arrears. Christ has also given the believer a stock of grace, saying, "Now live and serve
God. Use this grace to gain more comfort and more grace, and every good work you do will benefit your soul." This is how the believer approaches duties—with joy and freedom, knowing they are not working to pay off old debts, but rather to grow in grace and enjoy the benefits of their work.
Thirdly, another way Christ delivers believers from the burden of performing duties is this: when a believer performs a duty, Christ goes with them to the Father and offers the duty to Him. This makes the duty easy for the believer's heart. Those who perform duties in a legal way go alone into God's presence. They have no one to go with them and must offer up their service to God on their own. This can
weigh heavily on their heart, especially considering how they have offended God in the past.
Imagine a malefactor who has wronged the king and must now go into his presence to petition for mercy, but has no one to accompany him or present his petition on his behalf. He must go alone, with no help, and his heart is heavy with fear and dread. He knows he must go, for it is his only chance to save his life, but he goes without encouragement.
Now, imagine another man who must also go into the king's presence, but the king's dear and only son takes him by the hand and says, "Come, I will go with you. What is it you have—a petition? Give it to me, and I will present it to my father, and I will make sure it is granted." How cheerfully and confidently would this man enter the king's presence!
This is the difference between a legal performer of duties and an evangelical performer. The legal performer goes alone, with no one to help them present their prayers or service to God. But a believer never goes into God's presence alone. Even if they are physically alone, praying in their closet, Christ is with them. He takes them by the hand and leads them into the presence of their Father. Their poor petitions and broken prayers are taken by Christ, who presents them to the Father. This, the believer can see by faith, and it brings great comfort. Duties are no longer burdensome when they are performed in such a manner. The believer can say, "I go to this duty, but Christ stands by me and takes what I have to offer, and He presents it to the Father on my behalf."
Fourthly, another way Christ provides rest is that all duties performed by a believer come from the law that is now written in their heart. The believer becomes a law unto themselves because the
Spirit of Christ is within them. They no longer perform duties simply because they are commanded, but because such duties are now aligned with the divine nature that has been imparted to them. As Scripture says, believers are "partakers of the divine nature." With the Spirit of Christ in their hearts and the law of Christ written within, they naturally do what God requires.
For such believers, every duty that God asks of them is already written on their hearts. They don't just obey because conscience tells them to, but because it is now their heart's desire to do God's will.
They can say, as Christ did, "It is written in my heart to do Your will, O Lord." When conscience prompts them to perform a duty, their heart responds willingly: "Lord, this is what You require, and it is already written in my heart. I am ready to do it."
This is true rest in the performance of duties: when there is a natural disposition in the heart to obey what God requires. The believer becomes a law unto themselves, and no duty God commands feels burdensome. Even without the motivation of heaven or hell, they would still obey naturally—just as natural as it is for a fish to drink water.
It is said of the wicked that they "drink iniquity like water," because sin is natural to them. In a similar way, though not entirely so, grace becomes natural for the believer. While the heart may still have some opposition to good, there is a principle within that makes it natural for the soul to embrace God's commandments. Just as a fish drinks in water, the believer drinks in God's law.
Take Zacchaeus as an example. When Christ touched his heart, he immediately responded, even though he had been a covetous man before. He declared, "Half of my goods I give to the poor, and if I have taken anything by false accusation, I restore fourfold."
Restitution, one of the hardest duties, became easy for him once he came to Christ. Many people can find no peace or comfort in their lives until they have made restitution for their wrongs because, until then, they are continuing in their sin.
This is the difference between one who is only under the terror of the law and one who has found rest in Christ. The former is like a ship stuck in the mud, beaten by the waves, with the danger of being broken apart. But once the tide lifts the ship, it floats freely, and the slightest touch can move it in any direction. Likewise, before coming to Christ, the heart is stuck in sin and burdened by the law. Even with some illumination, it is constantly troubled and unable to find peace. But when the heart comes to Christ, it is freed, and the soul moves with ease in obedience to God's will.
When the heart is freed from sin, the world, and the creature, it moves in God's ways with great ease. Even the hardest duties become light. The believer does not see God's commands as burdensome, whereas one who is legal in their obedience may view God's commands as harsh. There is an excellent Scripture for this in 1 John
5:3, where it says, "This is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not grievous."
A believer, when they come to Christ, finds that even the most difficult commandments—like restitution or constant prayer—are not burdensome. It's true that corruption may sometimes make duties feel heavy, but when the heart is full of grace, the commandments of God are not burdensome at all. They become easy to the soul, as Christ Himself says: "My yoke is easy, and My burden is light."
Many people complain that God's ways are too hard, and the strictness of duty too much. But this is only because they are still under the law. Once the Spirit of Christ enters their heart, those
duties that once seemed hard become a source of comfort and joy.
They will find more peace, more ease, and more rest when they are walking in obedience to God.
To the carnal heart, this may seem like a riddle. How could one find more rest and comfort by walking in strict obedience to God's commands? To them, the ways of God seem like bondage. But the truth is that they are mistaking the nature of true liberty. They think that freedom is found in indulging the flesh, but in reality, such liberty only leads to more weariness. Those who understand the mystery of godliness will find that the strictness of God's ways brings true ease and comfort to the soul.
Therefore, do not let the devil deceive you into thinking that strict obedience to God is a burden. The devil is only deluding you. If you had the Spirit of Christ and had truly come to Him, you would find rest in even the most difficult and exacting duties. You would find your soul at peace in the performance of them.
Fifthly, duties are not burdensome to those who have come to Christ because, in Christ, every duty comes with a promise. When duties are performed in an evangelical way—when the soul has come to Christ—it sees each duty that God requires as having a promise attached to it. This promise enables the soul to do what God commands, and in this, the soul finds rest.
When God requires something of us, the soul does not only look at the commandment but also at how a promise accompanies it. For instance, consider two passages in Deuteronomy. In Deuteronomy
10:12, we read: "And now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, and to love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, to keep the commandments of the Lord and
His statutes which I command you this day for your good." Then, in verse 16, it says, "Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiff-necked."
Here, we see that God requires great things—fear, love, service, obedience, and heart circumcision. These are heavy demands, especially if approached in a legalistic way. However, when the soul is in Christ, it finds a promise accompanying these commandments.
In Deuteronomy 30:6, it says, "The Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the Lord your
God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live."
Here we see a transformation. God commands the circumcision of the heart, love for Him with all our being, and obedience to His commandments.
But, left alone, such demands would be overwhelming. However, in the gospel, God not only commands but also promises: "The Lord your God will circumcise your heart." God promises to do the very thing He commands us to do.
I could give many more examples where the Lord requires something, and it would indeed be hard if we were left to ourselves.
But when we find a promise from God that He will do it for us, the duty becomes easier. This is the great difference between the law and the gospel: the law commands, but gives no strength; the gospel, however, never commands without also providing a promise that God will enable the soul to perform the duty.
Is this not rest for the soul? When the soul considers the extent of the duties the law requires—love for God with all our heart, soul, and might, circumcising our hearts, and keeping His commandments—it can be overwhelming. But when the soul can look to Christ and the covenant of grace, seeing that God has promised to enable it to do these very things, it finds rest.
To illustrate this point, consider the human body. Physicians observe that with every vein through which blood flows, there runs an artery alongside it. The artery carries the vital spirits that give life and energy to the body. Similarly, I compare the commandments of the law to veins—these are the duties required of you in life. But if you only have veins and no arteries—no life-giving spirits—then you will be sluggish and weak, even if your veins are full of blood. Just as the spirits in the arteries give life and energy to the veins, so the promises of the gospel give life to the duties required by the law.
Those under the law may know their duties, but without the promises of the gospel to accompany them, they lack the life and energy to perform them. Therefore, Christians, when you hear a duty from God's word that you are to perform, consider: here is the duty
(the vein), but where is the promise (the artery) that enables me to perform it? Search the Word to find the promise that accompanies the duty and plead it before God. Say, "Lord, You require this duty, but You have also promised to enable me to do it." By doing this, you will find that your duties are no longer burdensome, and you will experience rest in Christ, even in those services that once seemed grievous and burdensome.
This lack of understanding is what makes the lives of many people disheartened and causes them to perform their duties sluggishly and without joy. But if you would embrace this principle—seeking out the promises of God that empower you to fulfill your duties—you would find that your duties would not weigh you down. Instead, you would say, "My soul has rest in Christ, even in the performance of those duties that were once heavy burdens."
Objection: But you will say, "We have many promises in the Gospel to enable us, but the promises are conditional, and I may forfeit the
promise by not performing the condition."
Answer: To that, I respond, we have in the Gospel both absolute promises as well as conditional ones. Some promises depend on no condition at all but only on believing. Consider, for example, the promise where the Lord says, "I will take away the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh." What condition is attached to that? Does
God say, "If you first repent and perform such and such duties that I require of you, then I will take away your heart of stone"? No, that is an absolute promise.
Likewise, the promise where God says, "I will put my fear into your heart, that you shall not depart from me"—this promise does not come with a condition either. You might ask, "Why, then, do some still have stony hearts, since the promise is absolute?" I answer that the promise is absolute in that it requires no prior condition.
However, God still desires us to come to the promise, to embrace it, and to cast our souls upon it. He does not say, "If you first do such and such things, then I will fulfil this promise." No, the only requirement is that you cast your soul upon the promise and depend on it.
When your soul struggles with conditional promises, and your heart doubts, telling you that you have not met the condition of a certain promise, and therefore you cannot find comfort in that conditional promise, then turn to the absolute promises. Cast your soul upon them, and they will open the way to the conditional promises.
Understand this: all conditional promises in the Gospel are founded upon absolute promises. When you cannot rest in a conditional promise, you may turn to the absolute ones. And when you rely on the absolute promises, you will find strength to meet the conditions of the conditional promises.
Herein lies the difference between the Law and the Gospel: the Law demands, but it does not give strength to fulfil its demands. The Gospel, however, not only requires but also gives the strength to fulfil what it commands.
Sixthly, there is rest for those who come to Christ in this: when they perform duties in Christ, they do not perform them in order to obtain life or pardon. They are not striving to earn life or forgiveness through their duties. Rather, they perform them as the fruit of the life they have already received and as the fruit of the pardon that has already been granted. This brings great rest and ease to the heart in the performance of duties.
There are many troubled souls whose consciences drive them to duty. But why do they perform these duties? Because their conscience accuses them of their sins, and they know their great need for God's mercy. They stand guilty before God and, therefore, perform duties to gain a pardon. They are aware that they were made for eternity, and so they make an effort to perform their duties in hopes of securing eternal life. This is the heavy burden of legal performances that I previously described. But when the soul comes to Christ, it finds rest in this: the very first thing done in Christ is the full discharge of all sins, the pardon is granted, and the person is placed in a state of eternal security. The peril of eternal life is now over.
Now, the duties required of the believer are merely the fruit of the pardon of sin and the assurance of the eternal life they have already received. There is a great difference between performing duties in order to earn pardon or eternal life and performing duties as the fruit of pardon and eternal security.
For example, consider a man standing before a judge, with his life in danger. He knows that if he reads well, he will live. But life hangs upon it, and the judge is strict. The pressure causes even a learned scholar, who can read well under normal circumstances, to fail at such a moment, unable to read a word. But suppose this man receives a pardon, and you then ask him to read. Now he can read with delight and freedom. If before he had to read a Psalm of mercy while in danger, he would do so with great difficulty. But after receiving his pardon, if he is given a Psalm of thankfulness for his life, he would read it with joy.
In the same way, those who perform duties in a legal manner stand before God as their judge, and every act feels like a life-or-death matter. The weight of their souls rests upon their ability to perform those duties. This fear and burden straiten their hearts. But when a soul comes to Christ, and the Lord has granted it pardon and peace through the blood of His Son, God says, "Now perform your duties— read, pray, and serve—not as a way to secure life, but as a way of blessing and praising me for the life I have already given you."
Indeed, this is the primary reason God requires anything of those who come to Christ: that they should offer their duties in thankfulness for the pardon of their sins and the acceptance they have received through His Son.
To illustrate further: consider a man among his enemies who is forced to work under the threat of death. He goes about his work with great dread and fear. But if this man comes home to his father's house, and his father asks him to do some work, knowing that his life is not at stake, he would do it with much greater freedom and ease.
This is the condition of believers when they come to Christ. They
come into their Father's house, and though they are asked to work, their lives do not depend on it.
As you have heard before in the discussion on being freed from the Law, now apply this understanding to the matter of legal performances. The Lord, though He is strict in observing our actions, is not strict in seeking to take advantage of us. The Lord spared not His own Son, but He will spare you. In Malachi 3:17, it says, "The Lord will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him."
And in Romans 8:32, it says, "God did not spare His own Son."
Why is this? God did not spare His Son so that He might spare you.
This is why He spares you in the performance of your duties: because He did not spare Christ.
When Christ came to perform His duties, the life of the whole world depended on His actions. If Christ had failed in anything, the life of all humanity would have been lost. But even though such great responsibility lay upon Christ, the duties were not grievous to Him, for He was most able to perform them. You, therefore, must rely on Christ's performance in His obedience to give you rest and ease in your own performance of duties. You should think, "I come now to perform duties, and thanks be to God, my eternal estate does not rest on my efforts. But Christ took upon Himself the weight of the world's salvation, and His perfect obedience makes my obedience easy and comforting to me."
In the Law, we read that peace offerings could be made with a female animal, whereas normally a male was required. Peace offerings were offerings of thanksgiving. The entire life of a Christian is nothing less than a peace offering—an offering of thanksgiving for the mercy received through Christ. In such a peace offering, the Lord accepts the "female," meaning that even weaker offerings are accepted. And
this is the sixth way in which the soul finds rest in the performance of holy duties once it has come to Christ.
Seventhly, as the soul does not perform duties in order to gain life, it no longer operates in that manner. The performance of duties, when the soul has come to Christ, is itself a part of eternal life, and therefore, there is rest in it. It is so far from earning eternal life by performing duties that, in fact, these duties are more like eternal life itself than merely a path leading to it. For example, one might say,
"Though I perform duties, God has taught me that, under the Gospel, we must not think to gain eternal life by them—this would be a form of popery. However, performing these duties is the way to eternal life, via ad regnum—the way to the kingdom, though not the cause of reigning."
But I will show you something deeper. The ways of obedience and holiness in a Christian's life are not merely the way to eternal life— they are rather part of eternal life itself. They have more excellence in them than simply being a means to life. It is true that great ease and rest come to the spirit when considering holy duties as simply the way to heaven. For instance, if a man were on a journey and knew that the end of the journey would be glorious, perhaps receiving a crown or a kingdom, he would not be troubled by a boisterous day, stormy weather, or difficult paths. He would count it a comfort to know he is in the right way because the destination will make amends for all the troubles along the way.
Indeed, there is enough rest and ease in knowing that the ways of God lead to life and salvation, to the kingdom and glory—especially considering that we were once wandering on the paths of death and destruction, and God, by His Almighty hand, has brought us into the right way. When a man is on a journey of great importance and has
lost his way, there is distraction and disquiet in his heart. But when he is brought back into the right way, how much ease and peace come to his spirit!
However, I tell you something even greater: when you are performing holy duties and exercising the grace of God, you are not just in the way of eternal life, you are in eternal life itself. You are not only on the path to the kingdom, but you are in the kingdom. You are not merely on the way to heaven; you are already experiencing heaven. This is eternal life: to know God, the true God, and Jesus
Christ whom He has sent into the world.
In 1 John 3:15, it says that whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and no murderer has eternal life abiding in him. The implication, by contrast, is that one who loves his brother and is godly has eternal life abiding in him. The scriptures describe grace as the beginning of glory. Sanctification is glorification begun, and glorification is the perfecting of sanctification. This is why, in Romans 8:30, it says,
"Whom God predestinated, He also called; and whom He called, He also justified; and whom He justified, He also glorified." Notice, sanctification is not explicitly mentioned.
Why?
Because sanctification is simply glorification begun, and glorification is the perfection of sanctification.
This is a vital truth for Christians: the best duties we perform are not just duties but are part of the life of heaven itself. In fact, they are the life of God within us. Ungodly men, before coming to Christ, are strangers to the life of God. But when you come to Christ, you receive the life of God within you, the life of heaven and the beginning of glory. When you perform holy duties, you are experiencing eternal life.
Therefore, you must not view any duty you perform merely as an obligation; rather, see it as a privilege—indeed, as part of your reward. It is a certain truth that God's work is its own reward. If you could grasp this principle, it would transform your Christian life. If you could view every duty you perform for God as wages, you would approach those duties with great sweetness and joy. As Romans
6:22-23 says, "The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Holiness, then, is the gift of God, the beginning of eternal life in this world.
A Christian who understands evangelical obedience sees duties not as burdens but as mercies. When we turn God's mercies into duties, it is a sign that we are receiving His mercies from a covenant of grace. Similarly, when we see our duties as mercies, it is a sign of evangelical obedience, and it brings a constancy in the heart in performing them.
Those who perform duties in an evangelical way see them as a golden chain around their neck, an ornament, not as bonds and fetters. The difference between someone who performs duties legally and someone who does so evangelically is this: the legal performer views duties as a chain of bondage around his neck, while the evangelical performer views them as a chain of gold, a graceful ornament to wear with pride. As Proverbs 3:22 says, "Keep sound wisdom and discretion, and they shall be life to your soul, and grace to your neck." The ways of wisdom—godliness—are life to the godly and grace to their necks.
Even the most seemingly severe laws of God are, for the saints, an inheritance and a joy. In Deuteronomy 33:2, the law is described as a "fiery law," but in verse 4, Moses says, "Moses commanded us a law, even the inheritance of the congregation of Jacob." This shows
that even the most rigorous commandments of God are viewed by the saints as their riches and their happiness. They do not view God's commandments as burdens but as the joy of their hearts. David said that God's commandments were sweeter to him than honey and more precious than gold. He did not say that heaven's glory was better than all these but rather that the ways of wisdom—the commandments of God—were better.
This is the life of a Christian: to perform duties not merely as the way to heaven but as the experience of heaven itself. This is the seventh aspect of the soul's rest in Christ in the performance of holy duties.
Eighthly, when a Christian is brought to Christ, Christ gives him rest in the performance of holy duties because Christ elevates and strengthens his spirit, making it in some measure proportionate to what God requires. There is an elevation of spirit, a strengthening of the soul in Christ, so that it becomes more aligned with the demands of God's law.
It is true that if a weak or sick man is tasked with difficult work, the burden will be extremely tiresome. For a sick man to carry a heavy load or undertake strenuous labour is indeed very irksome. However, when that man becomes healthy and strong, with his veins full of blood and his arteries full of life, he is able to go about his work with ease, finding it no burden at all, because he now has the strength to bear it. Similarly, the commandments of God are hard for those who attempt to fulfil them by natural means, from the strength of natural conscience alone. Despite all the effort that natural conscience can muster, the commandments remain burdensome.
But when the Spirit of Christ enters a person, there is strength. As it is written, "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty" (2
Corinthians 3:17), and similarly, where the Spirit of Christ is, there
is strength. As the Holy Spirit declares in Isaiah 11:2, "The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord." This Spirit of counsel and might rests upon Christ, and in a measure, it rests upon every member of Christ's body. The Spirit gives life, might, and counsel to all believers.
Thus, the Apostle Paul says in 2 Timothy 1:7, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love, and of a sound mind."
This spirit of power is given to all who come to Christ. They possess the power of godliness. As stated in Colossians 1:11, they are
"strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power." The Apostle Paul prays for this, indicating that such strength is available to us in Christ—a strength that allows us to be "strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness." This strength comes from God the Father, who has made us "fit to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light."
Although believers may feel weak in themselves, they are united with one who is infinitely strong, through whom they can be strengthened with all might. Not only do they receive strength according to God's power, but according to His glorious power. This power enables them to endure all trials with patience and longsuffering, and not merely with resignation, but with joyfulness. The duties of patience and longsuffering are among the hardest duties, but in Christ, there is the glorious power of God made available to strengthen believers for these very tasks.