Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me, and know my anxieties;
And see if there is any wicked way in me,
And lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139.23, 24

Define, depend, demonstrate

Having defined the life of faith, and now beginning to depend on the Lord by denying the world and determining a proper course for the time of our lives, we will begin to demonstrate the reality of the spiritual life in all our words and deeds.

...let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus... Hebrews 12.1, 2

Number our days

The spiritual life is life in Jesus Christ, our risen and reigning Savior and King. We are in Him and He is in us, and we are learning to desire Him and deny whatever keeps us from depending solely on Him for full and abundant life.

But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord... Philippians 3.7, 8

The spiritual life

We are grouping the various dynamics of the spiritual life under three general and overlapping headings: define, depend, and demonstrate.

One thing I have desired of the LORD,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to inquire in His temple. Psalm 27.4

The Christian’s calling

The Christian’s calling is to a life oriented to, focused on, sustained by, and expressive of Jesus Christ, the risen and exalted Son of God, King of kings, and Lord of lords.

The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. 1 Corinthians 15.47, 48

A spiritual life

Of course, every Christian will assent to the idea that the Christian life is, in the first instance, a spiritual life.

ReVision studies are designed for individual or group use and explore various aspects of the Christian worldview. All ReVision studies are available in free PDF format and may be duplicated for group use.

https://www.ailbe.org/resources/item/6583-1-peter1 Peter 1.25

²⁵Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.

https://www.ailbe.org/resources/item/6583-1-peter1 Peter 1.24, 25

²⁴…because
“All flesh is as grass,
And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass.
The grass withers,
And its flower falls away,
²⁵But the word of the Lord remains forever.”

1 Peter 1.22, 23

²²Since you were purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, ²³having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever…

1 Peter 1.20, 21

²⁰He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in the last times for you ²¹who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

1 Peter 1.17-19

¹⁷And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear, ¹⁸knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, ¹⁹but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

1 Peter 1.14-16

¹⁴…as obedient children, not be conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance, ¹⁵but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, ¹⁶because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.”