grape juice in the gas tank

Although I know that what goes into my body, whether through my eyes or my ears or my mouth, exercises influence over my spiritual condition, I struggle sometimes to live as if I really believed that this were the case. What does that mean?

Let me start unpacking that statement by referring to Galatians 5:16 and 17, which says, “walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other to keep you from doing the things you want to do.” What is the evidence, then, that I am walking by the Spirit? The response to this question comes several verses later: I bear spiritual fruit. So, if I am not bearing fruit, I must ask myself what is wrong. Chances are good that I am living according to the flesh, which means that I am allowing myself to be controlled by my sinful passions and desires.

Self-control is the last fruit to appear on the list of spiritual fruit in Galatians 5:22-23, which is unfortunate because I think it can often take a back seat to other more prominent fruit like love, joy and peace. The reality is that, without self-control, I will find myself exercising very little spiritual authority; living a life with very little spiritual impact. If I am unable to control my fleshly desires, I will continually live according to the flesh rather than according to the Spirit. And a literal reading of Galatians 5:21 would suggest that, if I continue to live this way, I may not be in Christ.

So what does this look like in real life? Every day I am hungry; not just gastronomically but also spiritually, intellectually, emotionally and, yes, sexually. A variety of desires and urges jockey for position within me, crying out to be fed. It makes me think of a group of hungry piglets fighting to get to their mother’s teat. And the question that I am faced with is this: which desires do I feed and what do I feed them?

My response to this question will make the difference between a life lived in the Spirit and a life lived in the flesh today. It will also make the difference between a fruitful life and a fruitless life today. I might go one step further and say that it will make the difference between a genuinely joyful life and a regrettably joyless life today.

Three stumbling blocks among hundreds, if not thousands, manifest themselves quite regularly: the refrigerator, the television, and the internet. Each of these three pose powerful and dangerous threats to my spirit-life. Without daily access to a grace-based, Spirit-empowered self-control, I will turn to one or more of these objects to satisfy one or more of the fleshly cravings that grumble within me. Without daily access to this same self-control (or self-discipline) rooted in God’s grace and power, the hungry spirit within me will go unfed and will therefore be ineffective and unproductive in the spiritual realm.

Imagine that I decided to pour gallons of Welch’s White Grape Juice into the gas tank of my car rather than diesel fuel (most cars in France are diesel). The juice is clearer in color than the diesel fuel, it smells better and it tastes better, not to mention that it costs less. From a purely sensual and financial standpoint, the grape juice is a way better choice than the diesel fuel. The obvious problem is that the engine of my car won’t function on grape juice. It needs diesel fuel if I hope to get anywhere in it.

In light of this, shame on me for pouring the grape juice of excessive and unhealthy eating into my spiritual engine. Shame on me for pouring the grape juice of wasted time reading political news reports from the internet into my spiritual engine (I have become somewhat of a political junky since my departure from the US and I need deliverance). Shame on some of you for pouring the grape juice of mind-numbing and morally questionable television shows or movies or literature into your spiritual engines. Shame on some of you for pouring the grape juice of perverse internet material into your spiritual engines. Shame on all of us for trying to nurture ourselves on any fluid that simply satisfies the flesh while starving the spirit that our heavenly Father graciously brought to life within us.

Our spirits, the engines of our souls, must have the spiritual diesel fuel of God’s Word, extended periods of prayer, Spirit-filled fellowship with other believers, spontaneous expressions of thankfulness and praise, and good works of kindness and mercy toward others who are in need (among a host of other spiritually nurturing activities) in order for us to live spiritually fruitful lives that impact those around us to the glory of our Lord Jesus.

May God give us grace to abandon the cheap grape juice in exchange for the costly diesel fuel that we desperately need every day of our lives.

umerited, conditional grace

The following is a selection of verses from Psalm 25 that I came across in John Piper's devotional book, A Godward Life (the words in italics are references to God's gracious help and the words in bold are conditions for receiving this grace):

Good and upright is the LORD;
Therefore He instructs sinners in the way.
He leads the humble in justice,
And He teaches the humble His way.
All the paths of the LORD are lovingkindness and truth
To those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.
For your name’s sake, O LORD,
Pardon my iniquity, for it is great.
Who is the man who fears the Lord?
He will instruct him in the way he should choose . . .
Turn to me and be gracious to me.
For I am lonely and afflicted . . .
Look upon my affliction and my trouble,
And forgive all my sins . . .
Guard my soul and deliver me;
Do not let me be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.
Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,
For I wait for you.

In his meditation on this selection of verses from Psalm 25, John Piper points out that “all the forgiveness and help of God are gracious and unmerited . . . but they are not all unconditional.” The text speaks of God’s lovingkindness, His instruction, and His protection. But it makes it clear that these helps are given to “sinners” who keep His covenant, who walk in integrity and uprightness, who wait for the Lord, who take refuge in Him, who fear Him, and who are humble before Him.

So, as I seek the Lord for His blessing, I must also seek Him for grace to live the kind of life that He loves to bless.