0:02 Have you ever wondered why so many
0:05 Christians live defeated lives despite
0:07 knowing all the promises of victory?
0:10 Look around you. See how many of us
0:12 carry Bibles, attend services, and pray
0:15 fervently, yet we remain trapped in the
0:18 same anxieties, the same habits, and the
0:21 same cycles of frustration. Why does the
0:23 abundant and overflowing life that
0:26 Christ promised seem to slip through our
0:29 fingers like water? Are we fundamentally
0:31 misunderstanding what it means to follow
0:33 Christ? Before we continue, check if
0:36 you're subscribed to this channel so
0:38 that the Lord can continue guiding you
0:41 through these messages. Every word
0:44 shared here is the result of prayer and
0:46 a quest for the truth that sets us free.
0:49 Watchman Knee in his profound
0:51 reflections on the Christian life taught
0:53 us that the greatest obstacle to
0:56 experiencing the fullness of Christ is
0:58 not external circumstances or even the
1:01 devil but something much more intimate
1:03 and subtle, our own natural life, our
1:08 uncride self and not I but Christ, wrote
1:11 Paul in Galatians 2:20. This is not a
1:14 poetic phrase or an unattainable ideal.
1:16 It is a precise description of the
1:19 normal Christian life, the life that God
1:21 planned for each of us. The fundamental
1:23 problem we face is not a lack of
1:25 biblical knowledge or spiritual
1:27 disciplines. Many of us know what we
1:30 should do. Yet, we find ourselves unable
1:32 to live according to that knowledge.
1:34 Why? Because we try to live the
1:37 Christian life in our own strength. We
1:39 attempt to imitate Christ rather than
1:42 allowing him to live through us. This is
1:44 the crucial difference that watchman
1:47 knee consistently emphasized. It is not
1:50 about imitation but about manifestation.
1:54 In Romans 7 18, Paul confesses, "For I
1:56 know that nothing good dwells in me,
1:59 that is in my flesh. For I have the
2:01 desire to do what is right, but not the
2:04 ability to carry it out." How many of us
2:06 recognize this daily struggle? We want
2:09 to love, but we discover hatred in our
2:12 hearts. We want to be patient yet we
2:15 explode in irritation. We want to trust
2:18 but we are consumed by anxiety. This is
2:21 the conflict that arises when we try to
2:23 produce the fruit of the spirit through
2:26 human effort. The solution is not in
2:29 trying harder. It's not in accumulating
2:32 more knowledge. It's not in multiplying
2:35 our religious activities. The solution,
2:37 as Watchman Knee insisted, lies in
2:40 recognizing the complete failure of our
2:42 human resources and accepting the
2:44 finished work of the cross. And those
2:46 who belong to Christ Jesus have
2:49 crucified the flesh with its passions
2:53 and desires. Galatians 5:24.
2:55 This is not something we do once at our
2:58 conversion. It is a reality we need to
3:01 apply moment by moment. When I first
3:03 encountered the writings of Watchman
3:06 Nay, I was confronted with a truth that
3:08 revolutionized my understanding of the
3:10 gospel. He wrote, "God will never
3:13 attempt to improve our old nature. He
3:15 condemns it to death." This statement
3:18 profoundly shocked me. For years, I had
3:21 tried to reform my nature, improve my
3:24 temperament, control my thoughts, and
3:27 all I achieved was spiritual exhaustion.
3:30 I had never realized that God is not
3:32 interested in improving the old man but
3:35 in completely replacing it with the life
3:38 of his son. The crucifixion of self is
3:41 not an abstract theological concept. It
3:44 is the gateway to true freedom. When we
3:46 accept that our old nature was judged
3:49 and executed with Christ on the cross,
3:52 we stop struggling to improve it. We
3:55 cease to be disappointed by our failures
3:58 because we no longer trust in ourselves.
4:01 We begin to look to Christ as our only
4:04 hope, our one source of life. Watchman
4:06 Knee taught us that the cross is not
4:08 only the place where the sinner is
4:11 saved, but also where the disciple is
4:13 made. Many Christians experience the
4:16 cross for salvation, but they never
4:18 experience it for sanctification. They
4:21 receive Christ's forgiveness but not his
4:24 life. They take pride in justification
4:26 but continue to struggle in their own
4:29 strength for sanctification. Reflect on
4:32 Romans 6:11. In the same way, consider
4:35 yourselves dead to sin but alive to God
4:38 in Christ Jesus. Notice the verb
4:41 consider. Paul does not say become dead
4:44 to sin as if it's something we need to
4:46 achieve. He says to consider it as a
4:49 fact that has already happened. This is
4:51 faith accepting as true what God
4:54 declares even when our feelings suggest
4:56 otherwise. When you wake up in the
4:59 morning and feel spiritually weak. When
5:02 old desires seem as alive as they always
5:04 were. When your natural temperament
5:07 seems to dominate every reaction. In
5:10 that moment you have a choice to trust
5:12 your perceptions or to trust the word of
5:14 God. Watchman Knee constantly
5:17 emphasized, "Faith does not create
5:20 facts. Faith recognizes facts." The fact
5:23 is that you died with Christ. The fact
5:26 is that you were raised with him. The
5:29 fact is that your life is now hidden
5:32 with Christ in God. Colossians 3:3. How
5:34 does this apply practically? When
5:37 temptation arises, do not fight against
5:40 it with carnal determination. Instead
5:43 declare, "I have no ability in myself to
5:45 resist this, but it is no longer I who
5:48 live, but Christ who lives in me, and in
5:52 his strength, I refuse this temptation."
5:55 When irritation rises, do not try to
5:58 suppress it through willpower. Recognize
6:00 this irritation comes from my natural
6:04 life, which was crucified with Christ. I
6:06 do not need to obey it for I now live by
6:09 the life of Christ. In the spiritual
6:12 man, Watchman Nay wrote, "The cross is
6:14 the place where God puts an end to the
6:17 natural man. The Holy Spirit then builds
6:20 what is of Christ upon those ruins." And
6:22 this is a revolutionary truth. God does
6:24 not build upon our natural life. He
6:27 completely removes it in order to
6:30 establish something altogether new. our
6:32 education, our natural talents, our
6:35 personality. All of this must be taken
6:37 to the cross before it can be used by
6:40 God. This explains why so many talented
6:43 Christians often produce so little
6:45 lasting spiritual fruit. They are
6:48 serving God with their uncrcified
6:51 natural abilities. As Watchman Nay
6:53 warned, the work of God done with human
6:56 effort will have no eternal value. This
6:59 is terrifying to consider how much of
7:01 our Christian service is simply
7:03 religious activity powered by the flesh
7:06 rather than by the spirit. Have you ever
7:09 experienced this exhausting cycle? You
7:12 serve, work, give, sacrifice, yet you
7:15 still feel empty inside. You preach to
7:17 others but fear being disqualified. You
7:20 counsel people with the word but find no
7:22 comfort for yourself. This is the
7:24 inevitable result when we try to serve
7:26 God in our own strength. The answer
7:29 again lies in the cross. Unless a grain
7:31 of wheat falls to the ground and dies,
7:34 it remains alone. But if it dies, it
7:38 bears much fruit. John 12:24. Watchman
7:41 knee saw in this verse the fundamental
7:43 principle of all Christian life and
7:46 service. Death precedes life. There are
7:48 no shortcuts. There are no alternatives.
7:51 If we want to experience resurrection,
7:53 we must first go through crucifixion.
7:56 This is a hard message in our age of
7:59 instant gratification. We want spiritual
8:02 growth without death to self. We want
8:04 power without surrender. We want fruit
8:07 without sacrifice. But the way of Christ
8:10 is clear. If anyone wants to come after
8:13 me, let him deny himself, take up his
8:17 cross, and follow me. Matthew 16:24.
8:20 When we study the life of Jesus, we see
8:23 this principle in action. He constantly
8:26 affirmed, "The Son can do nothing by
8:29 himself." John 5 Nin, "And the words
8:32 that I say to you, I do not speak on my
8:36 own." John 14:10. Jesus, although being
8:38 God incarnate, lived in complete
8:40 dependence on the Father. This is the
8:43 pattern for our Christian life. Not
8:45 spiritual independence, but complete
8:48 dependence. One of Watchman knee's
8:50 deepest insights was his understanding
8:52 of the true meaning of surrender. He
8:55 wrote, "Surrender is not offering
8:57 something to God. It is recognizing that
9:00 we have nothing to offer." This turns
9:03 our common understanding upside down. We
9:05 think of surrender as an act of
9:08 generosity, giving our life to God, but
9:11 true surrender is an act of honesty. We
9:14 recognize that we never had real control
9:17 over our lives in the first place. This
9:21 surrender leads to liberation. When we
9:23 stop trying to be what we are not, we
9:26 can finally rest in who Christ is in us.
9:28 When we cease trying to produce what we
9:31 cannot produce, we can enjoy what Christ
9:34 has already produced. As Paul wrote, "I
9:36 have been crucified with Christ. It is
9:39 no longer I who live, but Christ who
9:42 lives in me. And the life I now live in
9:44 the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of
9:47 God, who loved me and gave himself for
9:51 me. Galatians 2:20. Consider this
9:53 liberating truth. You do not need to
9:56 strive to be holy. You do not need to
9:59 struggle to be patient. You do not need
10:02 to work to be loving. All of this, every
10:04 virtue, every strength, every grace that
10:07 you need is already available in Christ
10:10 who lives in you. Your responsibility is
10:12 not to produce these qualities but
10:14 simply to allow Christ to manifest them
10:16 through you. How does this work
10:19 practically? Watchman Knee used the
10:22 analogy of the branch and the vine.
10:26 Jesus said, "I am the vine. You are the
10:29 branches. The one who remains in me and
10:32 I in him produces much fruit. For apart
10:36 from me, you can do nothing." John 15:5.
10:38 The branch does not strive to produce
10:40 fruit. It simply remains connected to
10:43 the vine. The sap flows naturally from
10:45 the vine to the branch, producing fruit
10:48 effortlessly and without anxiety.
10:50 Similarly, your Christian life should
10:52 not be marked by constant effort but by
10:55 constant abiding. When you find yourself
10:58 struggling, it is a sign that you are
11:00 trying to produce something on your own
11:03 rather than receiving what Christ has
11:05 already completed. Struggling is always
11:07 a sign that we are operating in the
11:10 flesh, not in the spirit. This does not
11:13 mean passivity. Watchman Nay was careful
11:16 to distinguish surrender from spiritual
11:19 laziness. He wrote, "Letting Christ live
11:21 through us requires our active
11:24 cooperation, but not our independent
11:27 energy. There is a participation on our
11:29 part, but it is a participation of
11:33 faith, not of effort, of obedience, not
11:37 initiative. Romans 8:13 clarifies this.
11:39 If by the spirit you put to death the
11:42 deeds of the body, you will live. Notice
11:45 the combination. We put to death, but by
11:48 the spirit. There is an action on our
11:51 part, but it is an action energized by
11:54 the spirit, not by the flesh. This is
11:56 the delicate balance of the Christian
11:59 life that watchman knee understood so
12:03 well. This truth transforms our prayer
12:06 life. Many of us approach prayer as a
12:09 way to persuade God to do what we want.
12:11 We fervently ask for patience, love,
12:14 strength, as if God were withholding
12:17 these things until we plead. But
12:20 watchman knee reminded us that prayer is
12:22 not convincing God to give what he
12:25 hasn't given but receiving by faith what
12:29 he has already provided. In Christ we
12:31 have already received all things
12:34 pertaining to life and godliness. Second
12:37 Peter 1:3. Everything we need to live a
12:40 holy and fruitful life has already been
12:42 given. True prayer then is not about
12:45 asking for more but about thanking God
12:48 for what we already have and exercising
12:51 faith to access what already belongs to
12:54 us in Christ. This understanding also
12:57 transforms our perspective on trials
12:59 when we face difficulties. Our natural
13:02 tendency is to pray for God to remove
13:05 them. However, watchman knee viewed
13:07 trials as divine instruments meant to
13:10 expose our insufficiency and lead us
13:13 into a deeper dependence on Christ. He
13:16 wrote, "God will allow circumstances in
13:18 your life that will bring you to the end
13:20 of yourself so that you may discover the
13:24 riches of Christ. E. When you encounter
13:27 situations that exceed your ability to
13:29 bear, when a difficult relationship
13:32 tests your patience to the limit, when a
13:35 financial crisis challenges your faith,
13:38 when illness shakes your confidence.
13:40 These are not interruptions in your
13:43 spiritual life. They are opportunities
13:46 to discover that Christ is sufficient
13:48 where you are insufficient. They are
13:50 invitations to experience the reality of
13:54 2 Corinthians 12:9. My grace is
13:57 sufficient for you, for my power is made
13:59 perfect in weakness. Many Christians
14:02 live in constant frustration because
14:04 they expect from themselves what only
14:06 Christ can produce. They are committed
14:08 to living for Christ but have never
14:11 learned to live from Christ. They know
14:14 Christ as savior but not as life. As
14:17 Watchman knee wrote, salvation is not
14:19 just Christ giving something to you. It
14:22 is Christ giving himself to you. This
14:24 explains why so many Christians
14:26 experience highs and lows in their
14:28 spiritual lives. When circumstances are
14:31 favorable, when they are well-rested and
14:33 in good health, when there are no
14:35 extraordinary pressures, they seem
14:38 spiritually strong. But when stress
14:41 increases, when temptation intensifies,
14:44 when fatigue sets in, their spirituality
14:47 quickly evaporates. The problem is that
14:49 they are living from natural strength,
14:52 not from the life of Christ. Natural
14:55 strength is limited and fluctuating. The
14:57 life of Christ is infinite and
15:00 consistent. Paul testified, "I can do
15:01 all things through Christ who
15:05 strengthens me." Philippians 4:13.
15:07 Notice the present tense of the verb.
15:10 Not strengthened but strengthens. A
15:12 continuous action moment by moment. You
15:15 might be wondering, how do I access this
15:17 life? How do I move from theory to
15:20 experience? Watchman knee provided three
15:22 practical steps that remain relevant
15:25 today. First, recognize the complete
15:28 failure of your natural life. As long as
15:30 you think you have something to offer
15:33 God, some strength, some virtue, some
15:36 ability, you will continue to rely on
15:39 yourself instead of on Christ. Repeated
15:41 failure is not an accident in your
15:43 Christian life. It is God's method of
15:46 bringing you to the end of yourself.
15:48 Don't fight against it. Learn from it.
15:51 Let each failure convince you more
15:54 deeply. Without Christ, I can do
15:57 nothing. Second, accept by faith that
16:00 you were crucified with Christ. This is
16:02 not something you need to accomplish. It
16:04 is something you need to recognize. The
16:07 execution has already taken place. Your
16:10 old nature has already been judged and
16:12 crucified with Christ. As Paul declared,
16:15 "Knowing this that our old man is
16:17 crucified with him, that the body of sin
16:20 might be destroyed, that henceforth we
16:23 should not serve sin." Romans 6:6. This
16:26 is an objective truth, not a subjective
16:29 experience. You accept it by faith, even
16:32 when your feelings contradict it. Third,
16:34 live moment by moment in conscious
16:36 dependence on Christ. Just as you
16:39 received Christ by faith at the
16:40 beginning of your Christian life,
16:43 continue to receive his life by faith,
16:47 moment by moment. Before each task,
16:49 acknowledge your inability and rely on
16:52 Christ's capability. Before each
16:54 interaction, confess your lack of love
16:57 and receive Christ's love. Before each
16:59 decision, admit your lack of wisdom and
17:02 trust in Christ's wisdom. Watchman Knee
17:05 described this life as walking according
17:08 to the spirit. Romans 8:4. It's not a
17:10 complex technique, but rather an
17:12 attitude of momentto- moment dependence
17:15 on Christ. It involves continuously
17:17 recognizing, I don't have what is needed
17:20 for this situation, but Christ in me
17:23 does. and I am counting on him. This
17:25 truth transforms not only our personal
17:28 lives but also our Christian service.
17:30 Much of what is called Christian work
17:33 today is done in the energy of the
17:35 flesh, not in the energy of the spirit.
17:38 We confuse activity with spirituality
17:41 and production with fruitfulness. But
17:43 watchman knee warned, "What begins in
17:46 the flesh will end in the flesh. Work
17:48 produced by human effort may impress
17:50 people, but it won't fulfill God's
17:53 eternal purposes. Jesus made this clear
17:57 in John 15:4 to5. Abide in me and I in
18:00 you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of
18:02 itself unless it abides in the vine,
18:06 neither can you unless you abide in me.
18:09 I am the vine, you are the branches. He
18:12 who abides in me and I in him bears much
18:15 fruit. For without me you can do
18:19 nothing. Notice the contrast. Much fruit
18:22 versus nothing. There is no middle
18:24 ground. We either produce much fruit
18:26 through the life of Christ or we produce
18:29 nothing of eternal value through our own
18:32 efforts. This is a sobering truth but
18:35 also a liberating one. It frees us from
18:37 the pressure to produce results through
18:40 our own ingenuity or effort. Perhaps you
18:42 have experienced this freedom briefly.
18:44 moments when deeply aware of your
18:47 inadequacy. You simply surrendered to
18:50 Christ and to your surprise experienced
18:53 a power and peace that clearly were not
18:56 your own. You spoke words you hadn't
18:58 planned, demonstrated love you didn't
19:01 naturally feel, faced situations with a
19:04 courage you knew you didn't possess. In
19:07 those moments, you tasted what it means
19:10 to say, "Not I, but Christ." The
19:12 challenge is to make these moments the
19:14 norm, not the exception. It's about
19:16 learning to live continually in the
19:19 truth that you have died and your life
19:22 is now hidden with Christ in God. It's
19:25 about setting aside not just your sins,
19:27 but also your virtues, your talents,
19:29 your abilities, everything that could
19:32 become a basis for confidence in the
19:34 flesh. One of Watchman Knee's most
19:37 insightful observations was that our
19:39 natural ability is often the greatest
19:42 obstacle to God's operation. Those who
19:45 are naturally patient struggle to
19:47 recognize their need for the patience of
19:49 Christ. Those who are naturally
19:51 intelligent rarely experience the wisdom
19:54 of God that confounds the wise. Our
19:57 strength becomes our weakness precisely
19:59 because we trust in it instead of
20:02 trusting in Christ. This explains why
20:04 God sometimes allows even mature
20:07 Christians to fail in areas of natural
20:10 strength. The eloquent preacher suddenly
20:12 finds himself at a loss for words. The
20:15 wise counselor suddenly has no answers
20:17 for his own problem. The strong leader
20:20 suddenly feels indecisive. These
20:23 apparent failures are actually acts of
20:26 divine mercy. Reminders that even our
20:29 best qualities must be crucified in
20:31 order for Christ to live through us. It
20:33 sounds strange, doesn't it? That we need
20:36 to die to live. That we must become weak
20:38 to be strong. That we need to
20:41 acknowledge that in us, that is in our
20:44 flesh, nothing good dwells in order to
20:46 experience the uncarchable riches of
20:49 Christ. This is the madness of the cross
20:52 that confounds the wisdom of the world
20:55 but reveals itself as the power and
20:57 wisdom of God to those who believe. The
21:00 truth is that none of us are living the
21:02 normal Christian life as God intended.
21:05 We are all to varying degrees trying to
21:08 add Christ to our natural lives instead
21:10 of allowing him to replace our natural
21:13 life with his. We are trying to improve
21:15 what God condemned to death. We are
21:17 trying to strengthen what God determined
21:19 to weaken. We are trying to preserve
21:22 what God decided to crucify. As Watchman
21:25 knee wrote, "Many Christians are trying
21:28 to be humble, loving, and patient." But
21:30 you cannot be humble. You can only
21:32 receive humility from Christ. You cannot
21:35 be loving. You can only receive love
21:38 from Christ. You cannot be patient. You
21:41 can only receive patience from Christ.
21:43 Every virtue we attempt to produce on
21:46 our own is evidence that we do not fully
21:49 understand the gospel. Yet the gospel is
21:51 not only the message that Christ died
21:54 for our sins, but also that we died with
21:57 Christ so that he can live through us.
21:59 The first half of the gospel deals with
22:02 the penalty of sin. The second half
22:04 deals with the power of sin. We need
22:06 both to experience the abundant life
22:10 that Jesus promised. John 10:10. Many of
22:12 us are living in the consequences of a
22:14 half gospel. We have been freed from the
22:17 guilt of sin, but we are still fighting
22:19 against its power using our own
22:21 strength. We have been saved by the
22:24 blood of Christ, but we have not yet
22:26 learned to live by the life of Christ.
22:29 As a result, we experience a Christian
22:32 life of intermittent defeat, constant
22:35 frustration, and a persistent feeling
22:37 that there must be something more. And
22:40 there is more. There is the transforming
22:43 reality that Paul describes, Christ in
22:47 you, the hope of glory. Colossians 1:27.
22:49 There is the liberating truth that
22:52 Watchman knee reminded us of. The
22:55 Christian life is not difficult. It is
22:58 impossible except for the life of Christ
23:01 in us. There is the blessed rest in
23:02 knowing that we do not need to struggle
23:05 to produce what only Christ can produce.
23:07 This is the message that our world
23:10 desperately needs to hear. We don't need
23:13 more formulas for self-improvement. We
23:15 don't need more techniques to manage our
23:17 behavior. We need the revolutionary
23:20 truth that we were crucified with Christ
23:23 and now he lives in us. We need the
23:25 liberating understanding that the
23:27 Christian life is not our imitation of
23:30 Christ but his manifestation through us.
23:32 Watchman Knee paid a tremendous price
23:35 for his faithfulness to this truth. He
23:38 spent the last 20 years of his life in a
23:41 Chinese communist prison suffering for
23:44 his faith. Even there he continued to
23:46 live this message demonstrating that the
23:49 life of Christ can manifest even in the
23:52 most adverse circumstances. His last
23:54 written words found under his pillow
23:57 after his death were Christ is the son
23:59 of God who died for the redemption of
24:03 sinners and rose after 3 days. This is
24:05 the greatest fact in the universe. I die
24:08 for my faith in this. The life and
24:10 testimony of watchman knee challenge us
24:12 to go beyond a superficial faith that
24:15 seeks only comfort and convenience. He
24:18 calls us to the depth of a faith that
24:20 embraces the cross. Not just for
24:23 salvation but for sanctification. Not
24:25 just for forgiveness but for
24:27 transformation. Not just for a future
24:30 heaven but for present victory. The
24:32 question for each of us is are we
24:34 willing to accept the death sentence on
24:37 our natural life so that the life of
24:40 Christ can manifest through us? Are we
24:42 ready to say not just as a theological
24:45 doctrine but as a reality experienced
24:48 daily? It is no longer I who live but
24:51 Christ lives in me. I'm going to wrap up
24:53 this story. A young Christian was
24:56 struggling with repeated defeats in his
24:58 spiritual life. He read his Bible
25:00 faithfully, prayed fervently, attended
25:03 church regularly. Yet he continued to
25:06 fall into the same sins, displaying the
25:08 same difficult temperament and
25:11 experiencing the same inner emptiness.
25:13 Desperate, he went to an older Christian
25:15 known for his victorious life and asked,
25:18 "What am I doing wrong? Why can't I live
25:20 the way I should?" The older Christian
25:23 responded with a question. Have you
25:24 accepted that you cannot live the
25:27 Christian life? Confused, the young man
25:30 protested. But then how am I supposed to
25:32 live? The older man smiled and said,
25:35 "You don't need to live. Let Christ live
25:38 through you. Your battle isn't about
25:40 trying harder, but about surrendering
25:42 more, not to greater effort, but to
25:45 deeper dependence. This is the message I
25:47 need to hear every day. This is the
25:49 truth I need to apply at every moment.
25:52 This is the reality that transforms not
25:54 only my external conduct but my internal
25:58 nature. Not I but Christ. If this
26:00 message touched your heart, leave a
26:03 comment saying, "The cross set me free."
26:04 It would be a blessing to know that
26:07 these words resonated with your walk
26:10 with Christ. If you were uplifted,
26:12 consider leaving a like so that others
26:15 can also be reached by this transforming
26:17 truth. And if you haven't subscribed to
26:20 the channel yet, do so now to keep
26:23 exploring together the riches of life in
26:26 Christ. There's a video right here that
26:28 perfectly complements this message about
26:30 life in the spirit. Click on it and
26:33 let's dive even deeper into this journey
