Analysis of the Paradoxical Life of Christians

 

Analysis of the Paradoxical Life of Christians

John 3:30 "He must increase, but I must decrease"; Philippians 3:8 "I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ." 

Topic	Cause	Explanation	Examples	Application	Related Scriptures
Nature of Inner Contradiction	Christ indwells in believers, creating conflict with the old self	Before salvation, one's inner life is consistent; after salvation, another sense emerges, and these two senses are often inconsistent, causing contradiction	Feeling not to speak when wanting to speak; feeling not to do something when wanting to do it	Recognize that this contradiction is normal and proves we are genuine Christians	Romans 7:15-25 "For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do... I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good."
Two Propositions in a Christian's Life	We have our own propositions, and Christ has His	Christians have two conflicting propositions and preferences within, one is their own, the other is Christ's	Contradictory feelings when choosing clothes; inner struggles in relationships	Learn to submit to Christ's propositions and let go of our own preferences	Galatians 5:17 "For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish."
Relationship Between Pursuit and Contradiction	The more we pursue the Lord, the more we feel inner contradiction	When communion with the Lord is good, the sense of contradiction is stronger; when not praying, one feels "free"	More contradictory feelings throughout the day after good morning prayer; peace when not communicating with the Lord all day	Don't stop pursuing because of contradiction; it's a sign of spiritual health	Matthew 10:34-39 "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword... a man's enemies will be those of his own household."
Growth Process in Contradiction	Contradiction is a necessary process for growth	The first stage of Christian life must have contradiction; this is the process of our blending with Christ	From confusion to gradually submitting to the Lord's guidance	Learn to pray in contradiction until our inner sense aligns with us	1 Corinthians 2:14-16 "But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God... But we have the mind of Christ."
Lost in Christ	Reaching oneness with the Lord through contradiction	As we are more conquered by the Lord, contradiction decreases; the goal is to be completely lost in Christ	Giving ourselves to the Lord in prayer until we feel sweetness	Learn to kneel and pray in conflict and confusion until we have a consistent feeling with the Lord	Philippians 1:21 "For to me, to live is Christ"; Galatians 2:20 "It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." Romans 8:14 "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God."; Isaiah 55:8 "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways, says the LORD."
The Spirit's Guidance vs. Human Rationality	Sometimes the Spirit's guidance contradicts human rationality	Even if external advice seems reasonable, the inner spirit may have different leading	The brother who heard the advice of elder brothers but had a feeling of prohibition inside	Learn to follow the inner guidance, not just external rational advice
Positive Consistency	The ultimate goal of contradiction is to reach positive consistency with the Lord	Through much contention, we decrease and the Lord increases, until we completely disappear in Him	From initial struggle and resistance to final submission and joy	Continue pursuing until our will is completely submitted in the Lord
Signs of Spiritual Maturity	Decrease in contradiction is a sign of spiritual maturity	Decrease in contradiction due to submission is good; decrease due to lack of pursuit is not	Those with mature lives have more consistent views and feelings with the Lord	Continue pursuing the Lord in contradiction until reaching substantial maturity	Ephesians 4:13 "Till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ."

 

Conclusion:

This analysis clearly presents the nature, causes, and purpose of contradiction in the Christian life. From the table, we can see that contradiction is not a negative phenomenon but a necessary process for the growth of a Christian's life. The deeper the pursuit, the more obvious the sense of contradiction often becomes, indicating that Christ is living and working within us. The ultimate goal is to achieve oneness with the Lord through these contradictions, as Paul said: "It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me."

 

* Please refer to The Christian Trend, Part 6, The Christian Contradictions