PARENTHOOD a divine stewardship Volume 3 Issue 7July 1998
Our being replaced with the divine element does not mean that we should be abandoned. It is correct to say that our old man should be replaced, but we should not say that our old man should be abandoned. Galatians 2:20 says, "I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live...." When we read the first part of this verse, we may think that Christ lives in us and that we have been abandoned. Paul says that he no longer lives, but he goes on to talk about the life which he now lives. I have been crucified, it is no longer I but Christ, but I still live. The old "I" is replaced by a divine Person to create a new "I." Our God is daily waiting for a chance to add Himself into all of us. If we would give Him the opportunity and the opening, He will add Himself into our being as the new element, not merely to correct us but to replace us, to renew us. This renewing process is gradual. It takes a long time. From regeneration to glorification is a long process. In this long process, God has to sanctify us, to separate us from the world. He has to transform us by renewing us metabolically. This renewing transforms us from one form to bring us into another form. Our old form is a form without God, but the new form is with God in us as our life, as our nature, as our appearance, and as our expression. This renewing brings in the conformation to the Lord's image. Then in doing everything we are like God, and we do things according to God at the right time. What we need is to be renewed day by day.	Sometimes God may allow the church to pass through a "storm." God may allow this "storm" to occur because He wants us to be renewed. The tragic thing is that while we are suffering in the "storm," we would remain the same with no renewing. I hope that we will consider this matter. We have to pray, "Lord, I don't want to remain the same. I do not want to remain the same this year as I was last year. I want to be renewed day by day." God's intention is for us to be renewed day by day. In order to be renewed, we need the new addition of God into us daily. Daily we need to contact God, open ourselves up to Him, and let Him come into us to be a new addition into us day by day. The Renewing Capacity Of The Divine Life In Resurrection …There is the ability to wash away dirt in the nature of the soap. Likewise, in the divine life which we have received and which we are enjoying, there is a renewing capacity according to its nature. Thank the Lord for the renewing capacity of the divine life. We need to enjoy the renewing capacity of the divine life in resurrection day by day….	The renewing process should be continuous. Moment by moment we have to receive God so that He can be added into us, and we have to reject ourselves to receive the death of Christ so that we can cooperate with the Lord within us. Then we will enjoy not only the renewing capacity but also the renewing result, which is a metabolic change in our behavior, in our character, in our disposition, and even in our habit. The most difficult thing to renew is our habit. When we experience God in Christ daily, we will see that God's intention is to renew us bit by bit, especially to renew our habit. This is the real experience of being renewed day by day. For this purpose God raises up all kinds of environments to consume our outward man so that our inward man can be renewed day by day. (Witness Lee, Being Renewed Day By Day, Chapter Two, pp. 21-26, 28.) APPLICATION 1. What is the way for us to discipline our children according to the nature of God? 2. Why does the Lord raise up circumstances to consume our outward man?

PARENTHOOD
a divine stewardship

Volume 3 Issue 7July 1998

Our being replaced with the divine element does not mean that we should be abandoned. It is correct to say that our old man should be replaced, but we should not say that our old man should be abandoned. Galatians 2:20 says, "I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live...." When we read the first part of this verse, we may think that Christ lives in us and that we have been abandoned. Paul says that he no longer lives, but he goes on to talk about the life which he now lives. I have been crucified, it is no longer I but Christ, but I still live. The old "I" is replaced by a divine Person to create a new "I." Our God is daily waiting for a chance to add Himself into all of us. If we would give Him the opportunity and the opening, He will add Himself into our being as the new element, not merely to correct us but to replace us, to renew us.

This renewing process is gradual. It takes a long time. From regeneration to glorification is a long process. In this long process, God has to sanctify us, to separate us from the world. He has to transform us by renewing us metabolically. This renewing transforms us from one form to bring us into another form. Our old form is a form without God, but the new form is with God in us as our life, as our nature, as our appearance, and as our expression. This renewing brings in the conformation to the Lord's image. Then in doing everything we are like God, and we do things according to God at the right time. What we need is to be renewed day by day.

Sometimes God may allow the church to pass through a "storm." God may allow this "storm" to occur because He wants us to be renewed. The tragic thing is that while we are suffering in the "storm," we would remain the same with no renewing. I hope that we will consider this matter. We have to pray, "Lord, I don't want to remain the same. I do not want to remain the same this year as I was last year. I want to be renewed day by day." God's intention is for us to be renewed day by day. In order to be renewed, we need the new addition of God into us daily. Daily we need to contact God, open ourselves up to Him, and let Him come into us to be a new addition into us day by day.

The Renewing Capacity Of The Divine Life In Resurrection

…There is the ability to wash away dirt in the nature of the soap. Likewise, in the divine life which we have received and which we are enjoying, there is a renewing capacity according to its nature. Thank the Lord for the renewing capacity of the divine life. We need to enjoy the renewing capacity of the divine life in resurrection day by day….

The renewing process should be continuous. Moment by moment we have to receive God so that He can be added into us, and we have to reject ourselves to receive the death of Christ so that we can cooperate with the Lord within us. Then we will enjoy not only the renewing capacity but also the renewing result, which is a metabolic change in our behavior, in our character, in our disposition, and even in our habit. The most difficult thing to renew is our habit. When we experience God in Christ daily, we will see that God's intention is to renew us bit by bit, especially to renew our habit. This is the real experience of being renewed day by day. For this purpose God raises up all kinds of environments to consume our outward man so that our inward man can be renewed day by day. (Witness Lee, Being Renewed Day By Day, Chapter Two, pp. 21-26, 28.)

APPLICATION

1. What is the way for us to discipline our children according to the nature of God?

2. Why does the Lord raise up circumstances to consume our outward man?

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