The Static Quo

When I was in high school, I ran cross country.  For hours a week, our small team gathered and trained for upcoming races.  I remember my first junior-varsity race, an invitational hosted by El Capitan which weaved around Lindo Lake in Lakeside, California.  My memories of that race are not good because it is the only race I didn't finish.  About halfway through I turned my ankle, and after failing to keep pace I gave up and quit.  The ankle was no doubt sore, but my pride was hurt even more.  I would love to say that day I was an admirable picture of perseverance, finishing despite pain and the resulting poor time.  I suppose my mind set was not on finishing at all costs, but doing well.  If I couldn't do well in my mind, it was better to quit than press on.  Ouch.

One lesson I learned that day is despite making the team, training daily, intense preparation, wearing the right gear, warming up, and doing my best didn't guarantee a finish in the race.  Starting the race with absolute commitment to finishing the race in spite of any difficulty was something I needed to determine for me to have any chance of finishing.  Jesus was wise to tell people to count the cost before they followed Him.  All who follow Christ will face tribulation and trials.  But even counting the cost beforehand does not guarantee a finish.  As Jesus walked, some after hearing His words departed and never followed Jesus again.  Jesus taught that endurance to the end is key in Matthew 10:22:  "And you will be hated by all for My name's sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved."

Human beings grow comfortable with the familiar.  The irony of this is no human being is static but in a constant state of growth, development, or atrophy.  "Static" is defined by the Merriam-Webster dictionary as, "showing little or no change, action, or progress."  The world is changing, society is changing, and we are changing, but somehow we assume people stay the same.  We can be quite thrown when it is revealed someone is not who we thought they were.  But this is nothing new.  When Saul became the first king of Israel, he was a perfect picture of humility.  It only took a few years before power, wealth, fame, and pride corrupted Saul and God rejected him from being king.  How many Christian musicians are not as "Christian" as when they began?  How many politicians, pastors, and Christians change their tune concerning social issues or biblical truth because of pressure to conform?  It is our nature to forget the pit God brought us from and start judging others critically.  Paraphrasing Gene Edwards in his masterpiece A Tale of Three Kings, "The ability to see problems is a cheap gift indeed." (pg. 88)

We are either advancing in holiness or becoming increasingly weak, spiritually senseless, and blinded by sin.  We are shocked when we hear of Christians falling into sin or leaving the faith, whether it is a well-known pastor, mentor, family member, or a person out of the public eye.  God is certainly able to reconcile even such to Himself, for His love, acceptance, and grace is not only granted to the unregenerate but to all who repent.  Don't assume you will make it to the end of your race as a faithful follower of Jesus because you have made it this far.  You still need Jesus.  You need to seek and hear His voice.  You still need to be led by the Holy Spirit.  His Word must still be applied to your life and decisions daily.  Your works, gifts, or reputation among men will offer no benefit as you stand before God at the end of your days.  Are you growing in knowledge of God?  Hebrews 12:1-2 says, "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, ² looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

God forbid our lives lack the sheer desperation we once had to know, follow, and obey Jesus to the end!   Refuse to be pleased with the status quo of your walk with God, for nothing about man is static.  If we are not taking intentional steps to grow closer to Jesus change is still happening, but not for the better.  God gives us complete assurance He will do His part to save all who come to Him by faith, yet that is not a guarantee we will agree to meet His conditions!  Praise the LORD it is He who works in us both to will and do of His good pleasure.  Our salvation obtained by grace through faith should not give us confidence in our works or increase reliance upon self, but upon God alone.  May all who call Christ Saviour and LORD find contentment in the relentless, intentional pursuit of Him!