The Spiritual Man

(^3 3)
The Principle of Mind Aiding the
Spirit
If He Is To Walk after the spirit the Christian must
understand its every law. Without this fund of
knowledge he will not be able to apprehend all the
meanings of the different spiritual senses and naturally will be unable
to do everything required of him. The demands of the spirit are all
expressed through the motions of the spirit. To disregard spiritual
movements is to ignore spiritual demands. It is this which establishes
the priority of knowing the laws of the spirit in one’s spiritual life.
But there is something else of no less importance for anyone
wishing to walk after the spirit: the principle of the mind aiding or
assisting it. This principle is to be applied constantly. Many defeats
in spiritual life can be traced to ignorance of it, even though the laws
of the spirit are indeed known. And why? Because these laws can
only explain to us the meaning of the spirit’s stirring and supply us
with ways to satisfy their particular demands. Whenever the spirit
senses anything, we are equipped by the knowledge of these laws to
fulfill the requirement called for; if the condition is normal, we walk
accordingly; and if abnormal, we can correct it. But a problem arises
here; which is, that we do not always enjoy such spiritual stirrings.
The spirit simply may not speak. Many have experienced an utter
silence for quite a few days. It appears as though it is sleeping. Is this
to say that during those days when our spirit is inactive we should do
nothing? Must we quietly sit for a number of days, neither praying
nor reading the Bible nor performing any work? Our spiritual
common sense vigorously replies: no, by no means should we waste
the time. But if we do anything during that period will it not mean
that we labor in the power of the flesh and not according to the
spirit?