The Son can do nothing by Himself. (John 5:19 NLT)
That is the principle of the
Cross. He accepted that position of being able to do nothing out from Himself.
It must all come out from God. There is no way through otherwise.... There was a revolution in my life thirty years
ago when that principle of the Cross came flat up against ministry – ministry
that for years I had been producing – against all my study, reading and late
nights, to get up the stuff for ministry, till the whole thing became an
intolerable burden in myself. Others perhaps thought it to be pretty good, but
the crisis when – listen to me, men and women who are in ministry, or
contemplating it – the whole turn came upon the recognition of this principle,
this principle of the Cross when, with the door closed, I said to the Lord ‘I am
finished in all ministry, I am never going to preach again unless You do
something now. I have been doing it all these years; I have been producing this,
now I am finished. You have got to do it.’ But I saw that principle, you see, as
the principle of the Cross and I meant it.
Forgive me speaking of myself, but I must bring
this home in some way. The next week would have seen my resignation in with my
church officers, and I would have gone out from ministry if the Lord had not
done it. But the Lord was true to His own principle. It was an utter end of
anything that I could produce for ministry, and I meant it to be like that,
because I recognized that God meant that. That was the principle of the Cross –
nothing out from ourselves. No fruit that labor and study of the mind and heart
could produce has a way through in the work and service of God. God was true to
His own principle – He always is. From that day to this, there has been no
trouble about ministry. It is easy to let ministry go, and much more easy than
to accept it. This clamoring for ministry – it is uncrucified flesh. Well,
there has been an open heaven since then. Again I beg your forgiveness for
making this personal reference, but this is a true thing. It is a principle
which covers all the ground.