Lesson for January 12, 2025
The Law of Volitional Responsibility
Lesson 2
The Positive Aspect of the Law of Volitional Responsibility
If a believer chooses the positive aspect of the Law of Volitional Responsibility, which is to “learn and live,” learning and living will come by means of the knowledge and application of accurate Bible doctrine and the power of God the Holy Spirit.
The first thing a believer must do in order to “learn and live” is to learn accurate Bible doctrine from the teaching of a man with the spiritual gift of pastor-teacher. Once Bible doctrine is learned, it then needs to be applied on a consistent basis.
If a believer chooses the hard way of “live and learn,” learning may come by means of self-induced misery or by divine discipline. On the other hand, if a believer chooses the easy way of “learn and live,” learning will come by means of the knowledge and application of Bible doctrine. “Learn and live” is therefore living under the power and guidance of God the Holy Spirit. The spiritual life provided for us in the Church Age is learned by following God’s blueprint, outlined clearly in the Word of God.
If we learn first and then live what we have learned, we are going to “grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” (II Peter 3:18) So the spiritual life during the Church Age is based on learning accurate doctrine found in the New Testament epistles and applying it to one’s life. “Learn and live” is being consistently filled with the Holy Spirit. (Ephesians 5:18)
“Learn and live” means we have made a decision to learn the Word of God and live our lives in accordance with its teaching. This means we must have knowledge of the doctrine taught in the Bible and how to use it in our daily lives. How much we love God and His Word will determine the quality of our spiritual lives. The more of God’s Word we store in our souls, the more the Holy Spirit can guide and empower our lives.
Hebrews 4:12, “For the Word of God is alive and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of the soul and the spirit, and of the joints and the marrow, and is a critic of thoughts and intents of the heart.”
The Christian Way of Life is a life of thinking the way that Jesus Christ thought. The mind of Christ is the doctrine found in the Word of God and is the only source of absolute truth.
I Corinthians 2:14-16, “But the natural person [a person who is operating from their sin nature, believers and unbelievers alike] does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness [absurd and illogical] to them; and they are incapable of understanding them, because they are spiritually discerned and appreciated, [unbelievers are not qualified to judge spiritual matters].But the spiritual person [the spiritually mature Christian] judges all things [questions, examines, and applies what is taught], yet they are judged by no one [the unbeliever cannot evaluate or understand a believer’s spiritual nature]. For who has known the mind and purposes of the Lord, so as to instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ [Bible doctrine].”
In order to have the proper thinking, we must be consistently learning, believing, and applying the Word of God to every area of our lives. At salvation, we are placed into union with Jesus Christ and become spiritually complete in Him (positionally). (Colossians 2:10) However, experientially we are not spiritually complete. For this reason, we are commanded to grow spiritually and to advance to spiritual maturity (“learn and live”). Spiritual maturity should be the goal of every person who has trusted Christ as Savior.
II Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness; that the person of God might be thoroughly furnished unto good of lasting value.”
God has given all believers a command to grow spiritually, and He never gives us a command without giving us the means necessary to obey it. God, therefore, has provided His written instruction book (the Bible) and the filling (guidance) of the Holy Spirit. Both are functions of God’s grace for every believer during this age, regardless of education or I.Q. Any believer with a positive attitude towards Bible doctrine can learn, believe, and apply it accurately (“learn and live”).
Without a correct understanding of the Biblical spiritual life, believers will go through life executing some form of legalism or asceticism that will lead to only misery and unhappiness (“live and learn”). The spiritual life is not what you do for God, the church, or other people. The true spiritual life is your invisible relationship with God. (Galatians 4:19; John 1:14)
The Bible is more reliable than anything we see, hear, smell, taste, or feel. The Bible is the Word of God the Father, the mind of Jesus Christ, and the voice of the Holy Spirit. This is where we find God’s divine viewpoint. (I Corinthians 2:16; Hebrews 3:7, 4:12; II Peter 1:12-21)
The more Bible doctrine you know and apply, the more Divine Viewpoint Thinking you will be able to utilize (“learn and live”). The less Bible doctrine you know, the more Human Viewpoint Thinking you are going to utilize (live and learn).
II Timothy 2:15, “Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, handling with accuracy the Word of Truth.” We must learn Bible doctrine to live Bible doctrine.
John 14:26, “But your Helper (Mentor), the Holy Spirit, Whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, He will bring to your memory all that I said to you.” Through the mentorship of God the Holy Spirit, as accurate Bible doctrine is taught by our pastor-teacher, we learn, recall, and apply truth. Once Bible doctrine circulates in your stream of consciousness, you are to live that doctrine as the function of your spiritual life. The objective is to learn doctrine and to live the spiritual life.
“Learn and live” is the pattern of the unique spiritual life of the Church Age. Learning Bible doctrine and living under the power and guidance of God the Holy Spirit is the easy way to live. When it comes to our spiritual life, the proper order is always “learn and live.”
If we learn first, and then live what we learn, we are going to grow spiritually in the grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ. The spiritual life of the Church Age is based on the “mystery doctrine” found primarily in the New Testament epistles. Therefore, learning this “mystery doctrine” will teach us how to live the spiritual life.
This unique life was designed, tested, and proved by Jesus Christ. Learn and live is being consistently filled with the Holy Spirit by staying in fellowship with God. Therefore, we must all “learn and live,” not “live and learn.”
“Learn and live” is partnering with the Holy Spirit by staying filled with His power and guidance a maximum amount of time. John 16:12-15, “I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them at the present time. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take from Mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine; this is why I said that He takes from Mine and will disclose it to you.”
The principle of “learn and live” is a law of increased capacity to receive magnificent blessings from God, by reaping what you sow. Matthew 6:33, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided to you.”