Dear ones, the problem with making ourselves out to be so important is that it leads us to an attitude where we think we are qualified to bring the things of God under our own control. We think we are qualified to take the deep, mysterious, matters of the Spirit and force them into “statements of faith” and formal creeds. We think we are qualified to take the testimonies of the living practices found in the New Testament assemblies and force them into set forms and rituals.
TAS has much to say regarding this matter in message seven. His two main points are these: Firstly, we bring nothing but trouble and confusion into the assemblies of God’s people whenever we try to bring the things of God under our own control. Trouble and confusion are always the result of man putting his hands into the things of God. Secondly, because of our tendency to try to bring the things of God under our own control, God in His mercy has to come in to weaken us and to make us know our own weakness. He has to bring us to the point where we glory in our weaknesses and infirmities, so that the power of Christ (and not our own power!) can rest upon us.
Excerpts from TAS’s speaking in message seven:
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“Somehow or other man must put his hand on things . . . That is, to bring the things of God into his own control. We use our hands in order to bring things under our control. But when it comes to the things of God, that is a wrong use of our hands . . . Christianity began in a simple beautiful living way. It was all in the life and the liberty of the Spirit. And while the Holy Spirit has His hand on things, everything is all right . . . Man has brought it under his control. That is always a dangerous and a disastrous thing. The Lord's attitude is like this. 'I will keep My hands off until you take yours off. While your hands are on My things I will leave it to you.' And things go from bad to worse. Now I think we all recognize that. The more a man or any man puts their hands on the things of God, the more confusion there is. When man brings the things of God under his control and dominates them, that means trouble. That is why the Lord so often had to weaken man and make man know his own weakness.”
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