ix. Introduction
the complete Green letters is not a single work, but actually a collection of 5 works dealing with a common theme - 'NOT I, BUT CHRIST'. in these works, Miles J. Stanford of Lakewood, Colorado, presents us with a comprehensive, if somewhat disconnected, treatise on what it means to be a christian.
Stanford (S) is convinced that the weakness experienced by the church today, whether individually or corporately, as well as throughout its history, is primarily due to its ignorance of the truths pertaining to the deeper life. most Christians SETTLE FOR FAR LESS THAN THE BEST after wearying but fruitless struggles with the flesh. BECAUSE THEY RELY ON THEIR OWN STRENGTH, which is a hopeless thing to do, THEY NEVER MAKE ANY SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS TOWARD TRUE SPIRITUALITY. fortunately, there exists the truth of the deeper life, known by some throughout the history of the church, by now explicitly taught by many great writers of our own era, such as R. E. Huegel, Ruth Paxon, Andrew Murray and Jessee Penn-Lewis and, above all The Keswick Convention.
the five books that make up this manual of spirituality are to be read in order. they are:
..The Green Letters: Principles of SPIRITUAL GROWTH
The Principle of POSITION: FOUNDATIONS OF SPIRITUAL GROWTH
The Ground of Growth: The Christian's Relationship to THE CROSS and THE RISEN CHRIST
The RECKONING that counts: The Realization of Spiritual Growth
ABIDE ABOVE: A Guide to Spiritual Growth
Book one, The Green Letters, lays the foundation for understanding what spiritual growth is. S bases x numerous principle discussed, such as faith, consecration, discipleship and the cross, on some essential foundational principles, for example, the futility of the self-life.
all that we are, have been, or attempt to be is utterly worthless and totally sinful.
any attempt to operate on this basis is doomed to the heartbreaking failure and total defeat.
the crux of the matter is 'WHICH LIFE IS TO BE CONSECRATED TO HIM,
THE OLD SELF-LIFE OR THE NEW CHRIST LIFE?
God can accept absolutely nothing from the old.'
the second key principle is IDENTIFICATION.
..(this teaches) OUR OLD MAN OR ORIGINAL SELF, HAS BEEN CRUCIFIED WITH CHRIST.
we are one with Him in death;
He is one with us in life.
Not I, but Christ.
HE is now my life and I am dead and gone.
....another foundation principle is that of RECKONING.
we are to live as disciples, reckoning the identification truths to be true.
we are dead indeed unto sin.
we are to hate ourselves.
we are to count it so that Christ lives in us.
if we do not do this we will be substituting self-will for truth and will certainly fall.
in the second book, The Principle of Position, S attempts to work out the implications of dead self, identification and reckoning by stressing the importance of position.
'ALL SPIRITUAL LIFE AND GROWTH IS BASED UPON THE PRINCIPLE OF POSITION.
it can be summed up ion one word: SOURCE.
by this S means we must allow what we are in IN FACT to become what we are IN EXPERIENCE.
the Lord is our source (ie. our everything) and we are complete in Him.
we must let this reality become an experienced reality.
'but only the believer who knows, grows. it is faith in the facts of our position that gives us the daily benefits of growth in our condition'.
S follows this important truth with discussions of such theological concepts as justification, reconciliation, security, sin, conscience and confession.
The Ground of Growth continues the study of what it means to be in Christ by focusing on our internal conflict and the solution to it. the conflict exists because when we are born again we are given a new nature that immediately wars against the old nature - the flesh - that was not removed when we became christians. we might wonder why God did not simply destroy the 'old man' when
xi. we believed, and S gives several speculative reasons as to why He didn't, but the fact remains:
THE SPIRIT STRUGGLES WITH THE FLESH because they are contrary to one another.
the resolution is to apply identification truth to our lives,
RECKON THAT OUR 'OLD MAN IS DEAD and ALLOW CHRIST TO BE OUR LIFE.
when we do this, we find that we are no longer under law but that our 'old man' is dead and allow Christ to be our live.
when we do this, we find that WE ARE NO LONGER UNDER LAW,
BUT THAT WE WALK IN LIBERTY, IN THE SPIRIT, IN CHRIST.
'my liberty from the old is infinite in the Lord Jesus.
in The Reckoning That Counts, S isolates the key element in the practical realization of what it means to grow as a christian.
ASSUMING THAT ALL OF THE IDENTIFICATION TRUTHS HAVE BEEN UNDERSTOOD,
the believer who wants to go on to maturity MUST NOW 'RECKON' UPON THOSE TRUTHS.
if we do not do this there will be compounded failure and bondage, because
ONLY SPIRIT-TAUGHT AND SPIRIT MINISTERED IDENTIFICATION TRUTH WILL AVAIL.
there are three steps in reckoning:
KNOW AND RECKON;
ABIDE AND REST;
DEPEND AND WALK.
S follows this with discussions of reckoning truth in Romans 6,7,8, Galatians 2.20, Philippians 3.10 and Colossians 3.
the basis for certainty in all of this reckoning is the ETERNAL, UNCONDITIONAL SECURITY
that the believer has IN CHRIST.
IT IS ONLY THE BELIEVER WHO REALIZES THAT LIFE-UNION WITH CHRIST IS FOREVER WHO WILL BE ABLE TO TRUST CHRIST FOR EMANCIPATION FROM SIN AND MATURITY FOR GROWTH.
the final book, ABIDE ABOVE, admonishes us to keep looking down.
in contrast to the popular exhortation to 'KEEP LOOKING UP' (from ourselves to Christ), we are to 'KEEP LOOKING DOWN' (from our position in Him)upon our circumstances here on earth.
this gives us the proper perspective on all things.
in this, we are guided by the Holy Spirit, and S shows what that consists of, as well as what he thinks it does not consist of, namely healing and tongues speaking. 'the modern 'gifts of tongues and healing have a common source. they are not of the Spirit, but of the flesh, and function primarily in the realm of the nervous system. (note - I have never received these gifts but am, at the beginning of reading this book, not quite sure what is stated here...)
S ends his series with a four point summary of what he is trying to say.
in the whole of the Christian life is comprehended.
LIVE POSITIONALLY: 'Crucified, Risen, Seated' (Gal. 2.20; Eph. 2.6)
LIVE POSITIVELY: 'Fully Persuaded' (Rom. 14.5)
LIVE POSSESSIVELY: 'All Things Are Yours' (II Corinthians 3.21)
LIVE LIVE TRIUMPHANTLY: 'More Than Conquerors (Romans 8.37)
Chapter 1 - FAITH
3..the Holy Spirit had paul write to each of us, 'Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith. II cor. 13.5a, and the recommendation is certainly not out of order at the inception of this series of studies. first of all, we must remind ourselves that 'without faith it is impossible to please Him', Hebrews 11.6a
moreover, and this is all-important, true faith must be based solely on scriptural FACTS, for 'faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10.17 unless our faith is established on facts, it is no more than conjecture, superstition, speculation or presumption.
Heb 11.1 leaves no question regarding this:
'Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
faith standing on the facts of the Word of God substantiates and gives evidence of things not seen.
all of us started on this principle when we were born again - our belief stood directly on the eternal fact of the redeeming death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I cor. 15.1-4
this is the faith by which we began and it is the same faith by which we are to 'stand' (I cor. 16.13) and 'walk' (II cor. 5.7) and 'live' (galatians 2.20b) 'as ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him. Colossians 2.6
since true faith is anchored on scriptural facts, WE ARE CERTAINLY NOT TO BE INFLUENCED BY IMPRESSIONS. George Mueller said, 'impressions have neither one thing nor the other to do 4 with faith. faith has to do with the Word of God. it is not impressions, strong or weak, which will make the difference. we have to do with the Written Word and not ourselves or our impressions.
then, too, PROBABILITIES are the big temptation when it comes to exercising faith.
to often the attitude is, 'it doesn't seem probable that he will ever be saved.
the way things are going, I wonder if the Lord really loves me.
but Mueller wrote , 'many people are willing to believe regarding those things that seem probable to them. faith has nothing to do with probabilities. the province of faith begins where probabilities cease and sight and sense fail. APPEARANCES ARE NOT TO BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT. THE QUESTION IS - WHETHER GOD HAS SPOKEN IT IN HIS WORD.
Alexander R. Hay adds to this by saying, 'FAITH MUST BE BASED UPON CERTAINTY.
THERE MUST BE DEFINITE KNOWLEDGE OF GOD'S PURPOSE AND WILL. without that there can be no true faith. for
faith is not a force that we exercise or a striving to believe that something shall come to pass.
that may be positive thinking, but certainly not biblical faith.
Evan Hopkins writes: 'FAITH NEEDS FACTS TO REST UPON. presumption can take fancy instead of fact. God in His Word reveals to us the facts with which faith has to deal'. it is on this basis that J. B. Stoney can say, 'REAL FAITH IS ALWAYS INCREASED BY OPPOSITION,
WHILE FALSE CONFIDENCE IS DAMAGED AND DISCOURAGED BY IT.'
there can be no steadfastness apart from immovable facts. Peter's burden was,
'that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. I peter 1.7
once we begin to reckon (COUNT) on facts, our Father begins to build us up in the faith. from his profoundly simple trust in God. Mueller was able to say that 'god delights to increase the faith of his children. WE OUGHT, INSTEAD OF WANTING NO TRIALS BEFORE VICTORY, NO EXERCISE FOR PATIENCE, TO BE WILLING TO TAKE THEM FROM GOD'S HAND AS A MEANS. I say - and say it
5 deliberately - trials, obstacles, difficulties and sometimes defeats, are the very food of faith.
on this same subject, James McConkey write: 'FAITH IS DEPENDENCE UPON GOD. and this God-dependence ONLY BEGINS WHEN SELF-DEPENDENCE ENDS. and self-dependence only comes to its end, with some of us, when sorrow, suffering, affliction, broken plans and hopes bring us to that place of self-helplessness and defeat. and only then do we find that we have learned the lesson of faith; to find our tiny craft of life rushing onward to a blessed victory of life and power and service undreamt of in the days of our fleshly strength and self-reliance.
J. B. Stoney agrees by saying, 'IT IS A GREAT THING TO LEARN FAITH: THAT IS, SIMPLY DEPENDENCE UPON GOD. it will comfort you much to be assured that the lord is teaching yo dependence upon Himself, and IT IS VERY REMARKABLE THAT FAITH IS NECESSARY IN EVERYTHING.
'the just shall live by faith' not only in your circumstances, but in everything. I believe the Lord allows many things to happen on purpose to make us feel our need of Him. the more you find Him in your sorrows or wants the more you will be attached to Him and drawn away from this place where the sorrows are, to Him in the place where He is'. 'set your affection on things above. Colossians 3.2a
actually, WE CANNOT TRUST ANYONE FURTHER THAN WE KNOW HIM. so we must not only learn the facts involved, but must always intimately come to know the One who presents and upholds them!
'and this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent'. john 17.3
'grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, according as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that hath called us to glory and virtue: whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature'. II peter 1.2-4
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