1 Cor 6:20 For you have been bought with a price. So then glorify God in your body. (15) And He died for all that those who live may no longer live to themselves but to Him who died for them and has been raised.
We have been bought by God, and we belong to God. Yet He allows us to go free. As far as His sovereign right is concerned and as far as redemption is concerned, we belong to God, but He does not force us to do anything. If we want to serve mammon [money] , He allows us to go, and if we want to serve the world, He does not stop us. God does not make any move; He waits until one day we say, "God, I am Your slave not only because You bought me, but also because I want to be Your slave willingly." Therefore, no one can be God's servant without being conscious of it. We have to consecrate ourselves before we can be His slaves. This consecration is a matter of our own voluntary choice. God will not force us at all. He wants us to willingly consecrate ourselves to Him. When we were saved, we spontaneously had the desire to consecrate ourselves. The life we receive compels us to consecrate ourselves. Every saved person has the feeling that he should live for the Lord, yet he does not have the strength to do so. Many things ensnare and frustrate him from living for the Lord. But thank God that He has given Christ to us so that we can consecrate ourselves to Him. When we were dead in sin, we could not consecrate ourselves to Him. If we continue to live in sin after we are saved, we still cannot consecrate ourselves to Him. But now that Christ has become our life and our holiness, we can willingly consecrate ourselves to God.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Watchman Nee, The Overcoming Life, pp. 174-175. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
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