I have been influenced early in my Christian life by spiritual giants from China and India. These were Watchman Nee, John Sung, Pastor Hsi from China, Sadhu Sundar Singh, Bakht Singh and Zac Poonen from India.
I would think the books of Watchman Nee have influenced me the most since he has written scores of books about spirituality. His influence on me can be seen in my posture reflected in my book, “The 26 Gifts of Christ’s Finished Work”. I hope this book will be published by the end of February. Here are some quotes about Christ’s finished work from a few of Watchman Nee’s well-known books:
From his classic book “The Normal Christian Life”:
“God makes it quite clear in his word that he has done all that is necessary on his side. Now he is waiting for us to take an attitude that will bring us into the experience of what he has done.”
“The normal Christian life must begin with a very definite ‘knowing’, which is not just knowing something about the truth nor understanding some important doctrine. It is not intellectual knowledge at all, but an opening of the eyes of the heart to see what we have in Christ.”
“Our old history ends with the Cross; our new history begins with the resurrection.”
“The blood can wash away my sins, but it cannot wash away my ‘old man’. It needs the cross to crucify me. The sinner needs forgiveness, but the sinner also needs to be delivered from the power of sin.”
“Outside of Christ, I am only a sinner, but in Christ, I am saved. Outside of Christ, I am empty; in Christ, I am full. Outside of Christ, I am weak; in Christ, I am strong. Outside of Christ, I cannot; in Christ, I am more than able. Outside of Christ, I have been defeated; in Christ, I am already victorious.”
From his classic book “Sit, Walk, Stand”:
“Christian life does not begin with walking; it begins with sitting. We begin our spiritual life by resting in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Christian era began with the ascension of the Lord Jesus, not with his crucifixion. He sat down at the right hand of the Father, and that is where we begin – we are seated with him in the heavenly places.”
“If we merely try to imitate Christ’s life, we will be exhausted. The secret of the Christian life is not imitation but participation. Christ has already done everything; we simply step into the reality of what he has accomplished.”
From the less-read work “The Spiritual Man”:
“The Christian life is not about trying to live for God but allowing Christ to live through us. It is not self-effort, but Christ’s power working in us.”
“Many try to crucify themselves, but we cannot crucify ourselves. God has already crucified us with Christ; we must simply reckon it so.”
From his book, “The Overcoming Life”:
“Victory is not something we work for; it is something we receive. It is not our victory – it is Christ’s victory, which he has freely given to us.”
“To overcome means to rest in Christ’s victory, to reckon upon what he has done, and to allow him to live out his overcoming life in us.”