NORMAL CHRISTIAN EXPERIENCE

Normal Christian Experience for Every Believer

 

The little book of Philippians was written to describe normal Christian experience. So observe carefully the phrase "normal Christian experience." While it is true that everyone has experience for experience is simply to live through the course of events, it is not true that everyone has "Christian experience." And while it is true that every believer has "Christian experience," for Christian experience is simply to live in relationship with Christ, it is not true that every believer has "normal Christian experience." Nevertheless, normal Christian experience is the standard for every believer, and anything less than that is neither completely beneficial to the believer nor pleasing to the Lord.

Most people want to be normal; that is, they do not want to be supernormal, nor do they want to be subnormal, for either extreme is freakish in its deportment. And while in the realm of mentality we refer to the supernormal and to the subnormal as well as the normal, in the realm of spiritual things we recognize only two levels instead of three. There is the normal Christian who is the spiritual man, and who stands at the very top of the spiritual ladder, and there is the man who falls below the normal level, who is the carnal man. Now it is normal Christian experience of which Paul writes in the little book of Philippians, and into which the Holy Spirit would lead every believer.

Also, let it here be said, that normal Christian experience is the life with fullness of joy, as a careful study of this epistle will attest. Therefore, where Christian experience falls below normal, there will be absence of joy; and where Christian experience follows the course which is marked out as normal, there will be fullness of joy; for joy is the emotional overflow from the fullness of Christ. It cannot be worked up under any circumstances, and yet in conjunction with the fullness of Christ it will manifest itself regardless of circumstances. And since every believer wants his life filled and overflowing with joy, it therefore follows that he must travel through the realms of normal Christian experience as outlined in the book of Philippians. Therefore note.

 

First, The Person of Christ is the Philosophy for
Christian Living

(Phil. 1:21)

"For to me to live is Christ."

Contrary to what a great many have taught, the phrase "to live" does not mean the same as the word "life," for the word "life" may mean the principle of existence, or the span of existence, or the condition of existence; but the phrase "to live" extends far beyond that, referring to the acts and activity that fills one's life; to the events and circumstances which go to make up the daily routine of the believer's life And since living consists in thinking, willing, speaking, and doing, Paul is asserting in his case, Christ is to fill up his thinking, his willing, his speaking, and his doing. Christ is to be the subject of his thoughts, the object of his will, the message of his speech, and the substance of his deeds.

Thus, Christ becomes the philosophy for normal Christian experience. Nor should the Christian shy away from the word philosophy as though it were a pagan idea. For as a matter of fact the word simply means a system of thought or a world-view which motivates one's life. And the Christian, no less than the average man of the street, needs a philosophy by which to motivate his life. And for him, that should be Christ, Who will cause the aimlessness of life to disappear, mental confusion to become order, and disturbances to cease. This philosophy will undergird him for all the experiences of life and equip him for a life of fruitful service.

 

 

Second, The Mind of Christ is the Principle for
Christian Conduct

(Phil. 2:5)

"Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus."

This is to remind the believer that normal Christian experience does not consist alone in a philosophy to motivate one's life, although that is primary and basic, but include a principle to guide one in his conduct. That there is a need for such a principle is very definitely demonstrated in the quarrels and clashes that occur in every congregation of believers. So Paul describes the principle that should guide Christian conduct in Phil. 2:1-4, and follows this description with a superb illustration from the life and ministry of Christ in Phil. 2:5-11. When the salvation of men was at stake, He did not selfishly cling to what rightfully belonged to Him, but gave it up that He might accomplish the work of the cross, and all of this He did for the glory of the Father. That is the mind of Christ, and the principle which should guide every Christian in his service for the Lord.

Selfish ambitions will wreck the most well organized society and throw it into a confusion where order can never be restored. Lucifer, the son of the morning, now the arch­enemy of God, once wrecked heaven, and has since wrecked the earth, all because he selfishly sought his own glory (Isa. 11:12-14). But Christ, in that He wrought out the whole plan of salvation for the glory of the Father, has supremely demonstrated the principle that should guide every Christian

 

Third, the Mark in Christ Calls for Progress in
Christian Life

(Phil. 3:14)

"I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."

And in this verse it is definitely implied that every believer should be making progress toward the mark in Christ. It is not enough to have a philosophy of life, and a principle to guide conduct, but the believer should employ both of these in making progress in the direction of the mark in Christ. Now that "mark" is the perfection which is in Christ, and which every believer will experience when Christ comes again and calls us out of this world. But the fact that we shall then be perfect is no occasion for indolence today. At least Paul found no such occasion in that blessed fact. On the contrary, to him there was in it a definite incentive for progress in the present life toward that goal. And as one of God's saints has said, "If we expect to look like Him some day, then it follows that we ought to begin to look like Him now." And toward that goal Paul found joy in continually pressing. Peter said this in 2 Pet 3:14 “Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.” The quality of the pastor who shepherds the flock as an example (1 Tim. 3:2) “A pastor (who is also the bishop and overseer) then must be blameless….” As well as the deacons who serve “….the office of a deacon, being found blameless.” (1 Tim. 3:10)

Nor is that goal vague and indistinct, for all that Christ was and is morally and spiritually is the image of what we shall be some day when we shall see Him as He is. For the present any believer has access to the blessed book, mirrored in whose depths there is the image of the face of Him who is altogether lovely. And that child of God who faithfully and persistently gazes upon His face as reflected in the Word will be "changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord" (2 Cor. 3:18). Thus he makes progress toward the mark in Christ.

 

Finally, The Riches of Christ are the Provision
for Christian Life

(Phil. 4:19)

"But my God shall supply all your needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." And with this the cycle of normal Christian experience is completed. With the philosophy for life in the person of Christ, and the principle for conduct in the mind of Christ, and the mark in Christ for progress in life, and now the riches in Christ as the provision for life, the journey of the Christian through life can be successfully undertaken and completed. Best of all it can be traveled through regions that are wholesome and healthful and spiritual. And all of this is provided out of the bountiful riches of God in Christ.

Though a motorist may have a vehicle in which to travel, and a steering apparatus with which to guide his machine, and a destination and a road over which to travel, he still cannot make the journey without supplies of gasoline and oil. And so it is with the believer. He may have a philosophy which is the Person of Christ (Phil. 1:21); and a principle for conduct which is the mind of Christ (Phil. 2:5); and a point of destination which is the mark in Christ (Phil. 3:14); but he still needs provision for the way which alone can be found in the riches in Christ (Phil. 4:19), for without Him we can do nothing (John 15:5).

Nothing short of joy can rise in the heart of one who has experienced all of these things during his life. He must rejoice when he realizes how completely Christ solves every perplexing problem of the journey through life. He must rejoice when he realizes how perfectly the mind of Christ motivates every service for Christ. He must rejoice when he realizes how easy it is to make progress toward the clearly revealed goal in Christ. He must rejoice when he realizes how remarkably God has made provision for every human need. This is normal Christian experience and the life of joy.