Life and Growth

Deep thoughts are filling my mind. God has a plan for the remaining days of my life. The thought that lies on my mind now is the working out of this plan, so when the last hour is reached, I can say, “I have done perfectly the work which Thou gavest me to do.” I am deeply conscious that I cannot work out this plan in my own strength. God, who has formed the plan for me, must needs come into my life and live in me and through me that this plan may be worked out. Letting God come into my life in all His strength to work in me “to will and to do of his good pleasure”* (Philippians 2:13) is the only way I can do the work God has given me to do. To let God come into my human life, and work in me and through me so that it is not I that lives, but God that liveth in me (Galatians 2:20), is a great and deep thought to me.

Dear soul, God has a definite life-plan for you. He has an exact work for you to accomplish in life. To work out this plan is saintly living. Every act that is done in accordance with this plan, and under God’s direction, is saintly, and all that is done that is not in accordance with this plan is not saintly. For your life to be holy, saintly, the Divine life must be in every word and deed. This is what the apostle means when he says, “Whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus.”* (Colossians 3:17) To do things in His name is to not do them in our own human effort, but in His life and power.

Christianity is a distinct life. It is a life that can be lived by no human will-power or human effort. Christian life is Christ-life and can be lived by none other than Christ. You can live a Christian life only when Christ liveth in you. If you will let Christ dwell in you, and let Him live in and through you, all your life will be in perfect harmony with the Divine character. When Christ is living in you and through you, your life will read like the Bible reads. God has a place for you to fill; a service for you to perform. What a great thing is life when we look upon it as something that can work out that which God cherishes in His heart! What are the trials of life when we look upon them as aids in working out God’s life-plan for us!

One rule in all saintly living is that of growth. To live saintly, we must grow to be more saintly.

We said that we would tell you some of our experiences. We do so only for the purpose of helping you to a thorough understanding of what we have said before. We asked you to patiently hear us to the end, and we would make all clear. We hope you have done this. Remember, our object in writing this is not to give anyone occasion to serve the flesh, or make any compromises with the world, but to help you to a certain feeling of responsibility to God for your own life. We are certain that there is too much doing of things because others do them. There is a taking of license from others to do things that God does not want us to do. We want you to have liberty, but liberty is not license. We want you to have the liberty to serve God to all the light and understanding you have. You are responsible to God for your own life. It is good to be teachable and take advice and counsel from others, but not to the extent that you do not get things from God for yourself.

We have stated that God does not want us to walk in the same paths we walked in thirty years ago. We must walk on much higher ground than thirty years ago. I have not gone back to single thing that God saved me from forty-three years ago. I am fairly well acquainted with the teaching of the pioneer preachers of this last reformation, and I am living in obedience to all they taught. I do say, however, that God has been pleased to reveal some things to me that I should practice in my life that I never heard anyone teach. Now I hope you will understand me. God has a plan for my life, and He may plan some things for my life that He will never plan for another. You should not try to plan my life for me. I shall not try to plan your life for you. This is what I mean by giving you liberty.

Forty years ago, I was planning to go 100 miles to preach to some poor saints. I had money to pay my way only about 60 miles, thus leaving me 40 miles to walk. One of the old pioneers said to me, “Brother Orr, I advise you not to do that. I would not go if they did not send me the money to come on.” His remark troubled me. I went in prayer to God, and He said to me, “I am planning your life for you; obey Me.” It is often good to get advice from others, but I want to warn all not to do this to the exclusion of letting God plan your life.

If we will let God plan our lives, we will all live holy lives, and yet not live just alike in all of life’s details. We will live alike so far as holy living is concerned. We should not copy from each other. We should be benefited by the godly example of others, but not copy in a mechanical way. No two robins build a nest just alike in every particular, but in general appearance they are much alike. No two things in nature are alike, yet in general they appear to be so. The young robin does not copy from an older robin in building of its nest. It builds from a principle or instinct in its life. They build nests alike, on the whole, because they build from the same principle of life. We should let God work in us and through us. What we do should be done from a principle of life in us. If we all build from a godly principle in us, we will build alike, and yet not alike. God would have this so to keep us from copying after one another. Read Romans 12:1-8.

There were things in my life forty years ago and thirty years ago that I could not have there now and keep saved. There were useless expressions, unkind words, frets, anxieties and worries, and idle thoughts that I could not have now and keep in favor with God. I do not doubt but that there are things in my life yet that I must get rid of as God gives me light and draws me into a closer walk with Him. God has led me into a life of prayer and meditation that I do not think of binding on others. If I judged others by my life in these respects, not very many would be saved in my estimation, but I do not so judge them. Then, as concerning the spending of money, I do not bind God’s rule for me on others. I have not spent five cents for candy in ten years. I do not spend a penny for ice cream, soft drinks, chewing gum, or any other thing as a luxury. If these things at any time are a food and a positive necessity, then I could use them, but not as a luxury. Saintly living and luxurious living do not harmonize.

There are a number of things that I see others doing that I know God does not want me to do. The Bible says, “Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God.”* (Romans 14:22) The Twentieth Century translation says, “Keep this faith of yours to yourself, as in the presence of God.” Moffatt says, “Keep your own conviction on the matter, as between yourself and God.” God has shown me some things that I am to live to that I have not divulged to anyone, and I believe He will have you do the same if you allow Him to live His life in you. He will have some acts of your life in His eternal temple that has never been found in the life of another.