To Whom It Concerns,
We know that all things are of God (2Cor 5:18) and for our sake (2Cor 4:15). In God's plan we are confronted with a situation or circumstance that we don't like. Instead of embracing God and thanking Him in all things (Eph 5:20), we react and get negative. God put this thing in our life to crucify our flesh but we don't want it. We don't want God's plan in this area of our flesh and we don't want to be conformable unto His death (Phil 3:10). In some cases the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak (Mt 26:41). In other cases, many believers want to serve God but they don't want to take up their cross (Mt 6:24) and be made conformable unto His death. Jesus said in (John 12:24,25) the following;
'Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal'.
When we react and get negative in the details of life, we are fighting against the plan of God designed to get us to die (not physically but experientially), so that God can bring forth much fruit. Salvation does not crucify our flesh, the cross does. We can have all kinds of biblical knowledge, and rightly so, yet never take up our cross. If we are going to truly follow Jesus Christ, we must deny ourselves and take up our cross. Paul said, as a believer in (1Cor 15:31), 'I die daily'. In (Gal 2:20), 'I am crucified with Christ'. In (2Cor 4:12), 'So death worketh in me'...
The corn of wheat (the believer), unless it dies, abides alone without bearing fruit. You can be a believer without taking up your cross and letting the plan of God crucify your flesh and bear no fruit. This points to what a carnal believer is all about. They can have the right knowledge without taking up their cross daily and have no fruit. If they continue this way, they will suffer the loss of all rewards at the judgment seat of Christ, yet they will be saved as by fire (1Cor 3:15). The only work that will not be burned up is the work of God to believe upon whom God has sent (John 6:29), that will remain. But, if we take up our cross, deny ourselves and respond with faith toward God in the details of life and let Jesus Christ crucify our flesh experientially, we will bear much fruit and that fruit will remain (John 15:16).