April 6 – Co-operating With God

        2 Peter 1:5-7 – "For this very reason, make every effort to add goodness to your faith; and to add knowledge to goodness; and to add self-control to knowledge; and to add perseverance to self-control; and to add godliness to perseverance; and to add brotherly kindness to godliness; and to add love to brotherly kindness."

        Hebrews 12:2 – "Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith...."

        While God has made it clear that he has provided all the details for making our salvation sure, walking with God entails some work on our part. The production of the fruit of the Spirit is God's job, as any tree knows that it is a natural thing to produce fruit, as long as the tree is rooted and in good soil. That last phrase is what our part as Christians, is. Just like we are living sacrifices that can wriggle off the altar, so too we can move our roots in and out of good soil and water absorption. If we want God to produce his fruit in us, we must co-operate with him. We cannot be couch potatoes, expecting God to miraculously change our behavior.

        There are many scriptures in which God commands us to behave in godly ways, or to do something, which "triggers" God to do something. For example, James 4:8 states, "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you." In John 15:5, Jesus stated, "If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit." There is a cause-and-effect, a give-and-take relationship with God. So as we seek, worship, pray, study, act, give, do, even change ourselves (as 2 Peter 1 intimates), God will be faithful to do his part to change us even more, conforming us to his image and likeness.  Paul also states, "We have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. We pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Master, and that you may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work; growing in the knowledge of God; and being strengthened with all his power...." (Colossians 1:9-11)