Whenever a discussion comes up about the devotional life of the Christian and the importance of spending time day by day with God in His Word and in prayer, someone always asks, “Isn’t it possible for the devotional life to become just another works trip?”

Before I attempt to answer that question, maybe I should define “works trip.” When someone asks about the devotional life becoming just another system of works, what do they mean? Are they talking about earning or meriting salvation by putting in so much time in Bible study and prayer? It could be a real mistake to end up with some kind of righteousness by devotional life, instead of righteousness by faith in Jesus.

Perhaps we should say it here again that righteousness comes by faith in Jesus Christ alone.

Period. Nothing that we do can earn or merit our salvation.

But we must accept salvation in order to benefit from it, or the entire world, including the devil and his angels, would eventually be saved. Jesus’ sacrifice was enough; it was sufficient for the salvation of the entire world. But not all will accept.

Neither is salvation accepted once and for all–it must be accepted daily. The purpose of coming to Christ on a daily basis is to accept anew His grace and power and salvation. It includes much more than that, as we will notice in Thesis 95. But it includes a continuing acceptance of salvation. So it is not a matter of merit; it is a matter of method.

But the question– “Isn’t it possible for the devotional life to be just another system of works?“–has another dimension. And that has to do with whether it is easy, spontaneous, and automatic, or whether there is work involved. The devotional life is not a matter of works, but it is work! That’s an important distinction.

Many things in the Christian life are gifts. And you don’t work for a gift. Faith is a gift and repentance is a gift and victory is a gift and salvation is a gift. But there is one thing that is not a gift.

God has never promised to seek Himself for us. He has never promised to accept Himself for us. He has never promised to get acquainted with Himself for us.

All of the Christian life is not spontaneous. At times it may be a joy to seek Jesus for personal fellowship and communion. Other times it may take every ounce of willpower and self- discipline and grit and determination that you possess. Paul calls it the

“fight of faith.” 1 Timothy 6:12.

We do not believe in a passive religion. Man has a part to accomplish in cooperating with God for his recovery, in working out his own salvation.

What a tragedy that so many Christians have misunderstood this truth. We have put forth endless time and energy and willpower trying to force ourselves to do that which we cannot do and which God has promised to do for us. And we have not done the one thing He has invited us to do–seek Him. We have waited to be “in the mood,” we have waited for the devotional experience to come to us spontaneously.

If you have ever tried to spend regular time with God, you know that it can be hard work. Have you ever found yourself watching the clock to see how much time you have left? Have you ever looked ahead in that chapter you are reading to see how many more pages there are? Have you ever found it hard to pray? What do you do when this happens?

Well, one thing is for sure–quitting doesn’t help. As someone has said, “When it’s hardest to pray, pray the hardest.”

Thoughts from, the Mount of Blessing, page 115, says,

“When we feel that we have sinned and cannot pray, it is then the time to pray.”

So at the times you find the devotional life to be uphill business, the one thing you never do is quit.

Reading the Bible and praying is not a guarantee of spiritual life and health. It is possible to do both and still keep the heart far from God. The Pharisees did it. And so can you. But one thing is certain: You cannot maintain spiritual life if you don’t seek Jesus through His Word and through prayer. Just because you eat and breathe doesn’t guarantee a healthy physical life. But you won’t be healthy if you don’t.

Are there problems in continuing the devotional life? Sure there are. There are problems in continuing the physical life. The air is polluted. There are germs in the food. But no problem is so severe that it makes eating and breathing optional. Spiritual life can continue only as we continue to seek Him.