In Ephesians 4:1 Paul urges us to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called…”  The writer of Hebrews exhorts us strive “for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (Heb 12:14).  In our efforts to honor God with our lives we must say no to temptations of ungodliness on a daily basis.  An inherent danger of this battle though is to become preoccupied with our sin.  This is often what happens when we allow the Gospel to slide out to the margins of our lives.  The effect of this drift is a weariness and spiritual dryness.  We grow apathetic to the things of God.  Our motivation for godliness slows down or in some cases comes to a halt.  So how do we get started again?  What will make the winter of our soul turn to spring?  Certainly the Galatians series is serving to remind us that we’ve been justified before God based not on our life-performance but through faith in Jesus Christ.

Several months ago I read an excellent book on this subject entitled A New Inner Relish: Christian Motivation in the Thoughts of Jonathan Edwards by Dane Ortlund.  It was through this book that God gave me a fresh appreciation for the doctrine of regeneration and a significant boost in joy.  Maybe you’ve heard the term “conversion” , “born again” or “the new birth”.  These are all synonymous with regeneration,  which describes how God grants us new spiritual life.  The question Ortland poses to his readers is “why do you obey God”?  There a number of answers to this simple question.  We obey God out of gratitude for what Christ has done for us on the cross.  Because Jesus loves us He was willing to die in our place, paying the price for our sins.  Our identity in Christ might be the reason we obey God.  We don’t want to dishonor the name of the Savior.  Or perhaps we obey God because there is great benefit in doing so.  We’re laying up for ourselves treasures in heaven.  These are all perfectly valid and biblical reasons for our obedience.  Jonathan Edwards certainly affirmed them in his extensive writings but the author has discovered what lay at the foundation of the Puritan theologian’s motivation.  Gratitude, identity and benefit are all dependent on the grace of God to be effective and that grace comes through the  regenerating power of the Holy Spirit.

Ortland writes, “Edwards has gone beneath the problem of motivational dearth to the root.  And he has there discovered that nothing external to a human being will invigorate obedience.  Only a divinely initiated, — though humanly sought! — internal change will effect heartfelt obedience.  And this change is the furnishing of a new taste, a new sense, a new inclination, a new relish.” One of the reasons why sin is so tempting is because a part of our heart desires to imbibe its pleasures.  As we’ve seen before “Jekyl’s potion” is no answer.  We need a new hunger and thirst.  Ortland points out, “Our only hope to obey God is if He intervenes and reverses the savoring tendencies of our spiritual taste buds”.   Ezekiel 36:26 describes the transformation that takes place when a person is regenerated; “I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you.  And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.” When God raised us up with Christ He gave us nothing less than an entirely new nature!  Our likes, desires, interests, passions, and longings have all changed.  For Jonathan Edwards the thought was “The delight of the saint consists in the enjoyment and exaltation of a Being outside of himself; namely God.  The joy of the regenerate heart is the Creator.”

I found a summary by Ortland helpful; “We have called Christianity the gift of a new relish.  What is it to relish but to enjoy?  We have described it as a new inclination.  But what is it to be inclined in one way and not another but to find great joy in one thing than another?  We have reflected on Edward’s metaphor of a newfound taste. Yet this too implies that we find God intrinsically pleasant.  Our language all through reminds us that Christians are those whose eyes have been opened to a new and superior joy — the joy of holiness.” 

When we begin to grow weary in our pursuit of holiness we must remember that God has changed us down to the very nature of our being.  He’s given us a new heart on which He’s written his Law.  The Holy Spirit (the third member of the Godhead) has come to live within us.  As a result of this change we are able to taste and see and experience and  enjoy (albeit through a glass dimly) He who is truly awesome and worthy of our adulation!  This is what happened to each of us when we were regenerated.   Christian motivation is not simply a function of applied knowledge or spiritual grit and determination.  Rather our forward movement is the work of the Spirit drawn upward and inward by a new inner relish for God Himself.  I encourage you to pick up a copy of Ortland’s book, in our bookstore.  Take some time in the next couple of days to consider your own conversion.  I believe these things will give you fresh vision, hope and motivation as you pursue the Savior!

Thankful for His Grace,

Brett