In the Christian life there are two things that are very different from each other. One is keeping the law; the other is being conformed to the image of the firstborn Son of God (Rom. 8:28-29). Of these two things, only the latter is the eternal purpose of God (Eph. 1:5). The eternal purpose of God—His mind, His eternal thought—is not that we would keep the law. Even if we were able to keep the law perfectly, keeping the law would still not be the eternal purpose of God. The law is at best something that is only “alongside” God’s intention. God’s eternal purpose is that we would be conformed to the image of His Son so that His only begotten Son would become the firstborn Son among many brothers. Originally, God had only one Son, the only begotten Son (John 1:18). But His intention, His eternal purpose, is to produce many sons so that His only begotten Son would become the Firstborn among many sons.
Perhaps you have been a Christian for many years. What is your general idea of what it means to be a Christian? Is it your idea that the meaning of being a Christian is to be a person who keeps the law and does good in order to please God? Or is a Christian a person who needs to be conformed to the image of Christ? According to typical Christian thought, a “good Christian” is actually a Christian who keeps the law. In other words, if you are trying to be a “good Christian,” in actuality you are not trying to be a man of Christ but a good man of Moses. If this is your case, in regard to your living you are a Christian in name only, for in reality you are trying to be something else.
Before we came into the recovery, very few among us would have been able to declare the following: “I have been regenerated by God for the purpose of being conformed to the image of the firstborn Son of God. Therefore, I have nothing to do with the law and desire instead to stay in line with the Holy Spirit, for it is only in this way that I will be conformed day by day into His image.” Most of us could have said only that as those who had been saved by God, our duty was to be good Christians who did good and kept the law. May the Lord open our eyes to see that the eternal purpose of God is not that we would do our best to keep the law. We must give up this thought. The eternal purpose of God is that we be conformed to the image of the firstborn Son of God.
I wish that in the course of this chapter I could remind you thousands of times to be conformed to the image of the firstborn Son of God. But I am afraid that even after so many reminders, you will forget everything after you put down this book. I fear that even after I contrast keeping the law and being conformed to Christ’s image, tomorrow morning you will kneel down to pray, “Lord, this is a new day. I do not want to be wrong anymore. I wish to do right. I wish to do good. I wish to be humble and nice to my spouse. Lord, help me do all these things.” If you pray in such a way, it shows that instead of being conformed to Christ’s image, you are trying to be a good man of Moses. Years ago I prayed similar prayers day after day because I had not received the vision of conformation. Even today I am sometimes drawn back to the old deceit by the enemy. We must cease praying in such a way. To pray in this way is to live according to the tree of the knowledge of good and evil instead of by the tree of life. Rather than trying to keep the law, we need to be conformed to the image of the firstborn Son of God.
How then can we be conformed to the image of the firstborn Son of God? The way is very simple. The Spirit of the Son of God is now in us (Rom. 8:9). We need to stop trying to keep the law and stop trying to do good. Be simple. Simply keep yourself in contact with the Spirit who indwells you. Simplify the whole situation by realizing that the Spirit of the Son of God dwells, works, and acts within you all the time. Simplify the situation by no longer trying to do good and trying to be a good Christian. Simplify yourself to just one item: knowing the indwelling Spirit of Christ and keeping in contact with Him moment by moment. To take this way is to take the tree of life (cf. Gen. 2:9). The tree of the knowledge of good and evil is complicated, for with it there are many things, including good, evil, death, and knowledge. The tree of life, however, is simple, for with it there is only one thing—life. The tree of life is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself as the Spirit (John 14:6; 1 Cor. 15:45b; 2 Cor. 3:17).
The more we simplify things, the better. We even need to forget about all the teachings we have heard in the past. It would be good if we could simplify our prayer. Instead of praying that the Lord would help us keep the law and do good, it would be good if every night, we were to pray, “Lord, I praise You. You are my life. You are my all. Now You are in my spirit. How great this is, Lord! The Spirit, who is Your reality, now dwells within me. Now I am going to bed, and I know that You are going with me.” Then the next morning, it would be wonderful to offer some praises and thanks to the Lord: “Lord, here I am. I know that You are in my heart and spirit. I appreciate Your presence, Lord. I am in You and You are in me. O Lord, how wonderful this is. What a joy and blessing! Lord, I worship You. Thank You, Lord. Hallelujah!” This is the best way to pray in the evening and in the morning. I am not giving you another law or a different law. Rather, I am telling you to make the Christian life simpler. Simply know the indwelling Spirit of Christ and remain in contact with Him moment by moment. Rather than doing a lot of things to complicate ourselves, let us pay attention to the working of the Holy Spirit within us. Aspects of this work can be seen in a number of verses in Romans 8.