Teague Bible Church

HOW MUCH DOES GOD DO? HOW MUCH ARE WE TO DO?

That is the question that gets a little fuzzy sometimes.

” I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” John 15:5
I have seen extremes in thought and application on this verse that never quite seem to hit the mark. On the one hand, some lay about so passive and wimpy you wonder how they get up on their own in the morning. They say they are just waiting on the Lord, but really it just looks like fear to me. I do not think that is what Jesus had in mind here in this verse.
Nor did He mean for us to pretend we are tough enough to handle anything in life on our own. I asked a guy once if he wanted written on his tombstone, ” I was as tough as the next guy.” He said “no,” but that he was not sure what to do with his manliness in serving His Lord. I told him about a scene in the movie “Tombstone.”
Wyatt is as brave as they come, but is called out to have a gunfight with a man much faster on the draw than he was. He asked Doc Holliday if he (Wyatt) was fast enough to beat the man to the draw. Doc said no. Wyatt goes out anyway, but Doc got there beforehand, and killed the faster man for his friend Wyatt. Apart from Doc’s intervention he didn’t stand a chance. Wyatt was sure to be killed. Wyatt was mighty humble( western speak) to talk to the Doc about the situation in the first place. Simply admitting he had no chance to win on his own. I think that gets a better picture of our situation.
You have to lay that competitive pride down before Jesus and ask Him to make you the kind of person you are supposed to be. It is not, “Jesus, point me in the right direction, and I will take it from there!”
This life was meant to be a flowing relationship with our Father, not an attempt to be some Long Ranger looking for self- glory. Maybe you can live that life that was intended. Not a life where you neuter your manliness and call it a real life, but not a life of blather and useless, braggadocios arrogance.
Maybe live like David, who was as tough as they come, but totally depended on the Lord. Maybe you can live like Peter after his recovery; maybe live like Paul who endured so much and yet lived such a full and joyful life. Perhaps we could put on your tombstone, “A life well-live; Jesus meant everything to this man.” Yea, that about sums it up. JWP