Dallas Willard describes three insightful types of faith in God. He called the first Faith of Propriety (religious correctness, respectability, or ritualism). We might think of how Job’s initial faith was described by offering sacrifices for his children in case they sinned. Or that of Nicodemus, who, although a Pharisee, was attracted to Jesus while maintaining his rituals. Willard described the second level as Desperation (chaotic, unstable, confusion). Job maintained his own righteousness when his friends challenged him. (Job 32:1) He maintained it even when God confronted him. When God paused His questioning in Job 40:3-5, although befuddled, Job only acknowledged his lack of knowledge, not his spiritual depravity.
Willard calls the last level the Faith of Sufficiency (deep conviction, perhaps the faith of Christ (cf. Galatians 2:16, KJV), Philippians 3:9, KJV). Completely humbled by God’s questions, Job then confesses, “I had only heard about you before, but now I have seen you with my own eyes. I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance.” Job 42:5-6 (NLT2) God’s questioning had brought him to a new level of trust in Him.
Likewise, every growing believer will pass through three levels of relationship with Jesus Christ, each in response to a unique invitation. The first is Jesus’ invitation to “Come to Me” (Mt 11:28). This is where we find rest and relief from our sins. The second is “Follow Me” (Mt 4:19), an invitation to a closer relationship of a leader/master and servant. The third is “Abide in Me” (Jn 15:4), which depicts a conscious awareness of His presence on a regular basis. This is the deepest relationship any human can have with Jesus, that of victorious Christian living. Brother Lawrence best relates this abiding in his book, The Practice of the Presence of God. Both Jesus and Dallas’ descriptions point to the coveted relationship level with God.
But how can this pinnacle be reached? Separate from living in harmony under God’s heart, our nature-imposed objectives go awry. The social and individual chaos of human desires sees to it. I’ve found that Solomon’s words offer the most effective way to live in harmony with His heart. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV) To be transparent, I honestly thought I was trusting Him more than my own understanding—and I’m sure I intermittently did so. Without Connie and through several very painful experiences, the Holy Spirit has been showing me I default to trusting in myself, and I cannot afford to continue this pattern. I must seek the actualization of depending entirely upon the “mind of Christ”. (1 Cor. 2:16) The Psalmist describes this when he wrote, “Whoever goes to the LORD for safety, whoever remains under the protection of the Almighty, can say to him, ‘You are my defender and protector. You are my God; in you I trust.’” Psalm 91:1-2 (TEV)
Jesus’ call to abide in Him is not living like a monk or attending perpetual Bible study groups. Rather, it’s simply persistently endeavoring to integrate into one’s daily lifestyle, Jesus’s teaching of the kingdom of God. Of course, you can’t integrate them all at one time. But, it could be accomplished by teaming up with several friends to examine Jesus’ words about the kingdom and how each concept could be creatively integrated into your lifestyles. Doing this as a team could be an enjoyable way to grow into the full stature of Jesus Christ. (Eph. 4:13) Speaking from experience, the more I practice this, the more content and grateful I am.