Scripture: Romans 8:13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
Summary: As we live the Christian life, we must always be aware that we are both responsible and dependent. We are 100% responsible to work as hard and as effectively as we can, but we are 100% dependent on the power of the Holy Spirit to enable us to work. The Holy Spirit uses various "means of grace" to strengthen us and produce spiritual growth; these include the gospel itself, regular communion with God through Scripture and prayer, and the various circumstances he brings into our lives. All of these means contribute to our fellowship and communion with God.
Our fellowship with God is both objective and subjective: objectively, a believer always has the same relationship with God, whether he feels like it or not at any given time; subjectively, a believer's experience of his relationship with God varies, depending at least in part on his dependence upon the Holy Spirit as he works diligently at the spiritual disciplines.
Discussion: Explain the two sentences that start on the bottom of page 98: “There’s no conflict between our work and our dependence. In fact, the harder we work, the more absolute our dependence on the Spirit must become.”
Explain the differences between our union with Christ and our communion with Christ. (106; also see the quote on page 48).
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