Charles Bridges was a pastor, writer, and leader in the Church of England in the mid-1800s. In his book The Christian Ministry, his chapter on faith is well worth the read.
We all know the tension that exists between striving to please God and trusting God for the change that only he can bring about. How do you balance those two? If you don’t balance those two, it’s all too easy to fall into a works righteousness mindset on the one hand, or a lawless, carefree mindset on the other. You can begin to work and work in the hopes of gaining more of God’s favor, blessing and approval; or you can kick back, relax and live how you want because you already got your ticket to heaven. Both errors reflect a lack of understanding of how much we need the Gospel not just to save us, but to sanctify us (to make us more like Christ in our actual lives).
This plays out in ministry, in leadership and in our mundane service in the context of the local church. How will we witness to that loved one? How will lead that Sunday School? How could I ever pray in front of others? Bridges answers, “Attempt everything in the conscious inability to do any thing: and thus ‘in weakness’ thoroughly felt, Divine ‘strength is made perfect.’” Sometimes God allows us to thoroughly feel our own weakness so we can come to learn his Divine strength.
That does not mean we “let go and let God.” There is a striving in the Christian life that’s part of our growth and sanctification. But the Gospel tells us that the righteous we have comes from Christ and his work on the cross, and not from the righteous works we do. That realization changes the way we approach life. Bridges adds, “Hence our course of effort is unvarying [that is, we still work hard], but more tranquil. It is peace – not slumber; rest in the work – not from it.” May God help us find that rest.
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