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I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. II Timothy 4:8
I once thought that to enter heaven, you simply believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and serve God until you die; that sounds simple. But what does it mean to believe, and what does it mean to serve God? Things began to change as I got older and suffering brought about maturity.
Now I think of sanctification and heaven in a more serious manner. We definitely do not have the strength to live the Christian life in and of ourselves. We never know what tomorrow will bring our way. James 4:14 simply states it; "You do not know what will happen tomorrow."
We may start out very zealous and on fire for the Lord, like the seed on the rock or among the thorns. But we must be those that hear the word and receive it, and then bear fruit with patience. The word "patience" means to endure or continue, to strive after, or steadfastness.
The proof is in the fruit bearing; we must keep striving (enduring) to enter in at the straight gate. We work to stay on the narrow way, and be pleasing to our Heavenly Father. We must work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, Philippians 2:12.
In the Old Testament we read about King Joash, he was seven years old when he began to reign. "Joash set his heart on repairing the house of the Lord," II Chronicles 24:4. He had a very good beginning, and it appeared that his heart was in the right place. But when Jehoiada the priest died, he began to drift away from God. He started listening to the ungodly leaders of Judah. He had a good beginning, but didn't endure to the end in his walk with God.
Uzziah was another king of Judah who started well; "He sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God," II Chronicles 26:15. God helped him against the enemies of Judah and gave him insight as a leader. II Chronicles 26:15 says, "So his fame spread far and wide, for he was marvelously helped till he became strong."
Verse 16 says, "But when he was strong his heart was lifted up, to his destruction, for he transgressed against the Lord his God by entering the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense." Pride was his downfall, God struck him with leprosy as judgment. He lived in a separate house, as a leper till his death.
Jehoshaphat was a person who started well and finished the race even better. He was true to God and endured unto the end. He began to reign while his father was still alive and diseased in his feet. Despite the attitude and behavior of his father Asa, Jehoshaphat took delight in the ways of the Lord. His race was not all that long; he was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned for twenty-five years. That means his life was only 60 years.
Will people say the same thing about us when we are gone? Will we be able to persevere and endure unto the end? I am thinking more about glorifying God through our daily lives, by a godly life. None of us want to dishonor God and bring shame on the cause of Christ. The question is not about His faithfulness or ability to keep us; it is about our weakness and sin. When we are tired, will we come forth as gold? Comments or questions, contact me at: thoughtsonword@gmail.com
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Lyndon Stimeling, of Richfield, has been writing about faith and family for many years. He has self-published three books, "Common Thoughts on The Word" in 2016 and "Eye of a Needle" in 2017 and "Common Thoughts on The Word II" in 2019. He has also had articles published in The Coming Home Journal and local newspapers and has written a children's book.