Rumble In The Jungle Series

There are dozens of reasons why some quit the fight. Some figure that the hassles make this faith not worth doing anymore. They count the cost and aren’t willing to pay it. Some look at others’ lives and reason that if so-and-so calls himself a Christian, then they don’t want to be Christians. They get hung up on an issue God wants to deal with, and throw out the whole thing. They grow bitter over an issue in the church, and figure that staying home is more godly than loving others. They get too busy for the important stuff, and when they do try to come back, they feel too guilty to do it. They long desperately for God to answer a certain prayer, like a healing, and they blow up at God when it doesn’t happen. They look at things like the December 2004 tsunami or the recent devastation in the Gulf States and figure there’s no God in charge of it all. They simply give up the fight.

And this isn’t just kids getting out of high school into the so-called real world, which I don’t think is any more or less real than high school. This is adults, people who have walked with the Lord for years, giving up under the weight of pressure. It’s why Jesus told the each of the 7 churches in Revelation 2-3 that He will reward those who endure to the end. It’s because life is hard, and the Christian life is too. Maybe harder, maybe easier, depending on how you look at it.

So I tell you: don’t quit the fight. Don’t stop letting God deal with you. Don’t grow bitter. Don’t stop loving. I know that you don’t always get what you want: welcome to life. But that doesn’t excuse selfishness done in the name of Christ: “Well, my way is more godly and I’m right and they’re wrong, so if I don’t get my way, I’m outta here.” Grow up. And grow up in the Lord, too.

Well, the 2nd ditch we fall into when it comes to perseverance is this: 2) Some fight the wrong battles. Well, what does that mean? To fight the wrong battles? What I mean is, sometimes in our fight for what’s right, we end up fighting other people. But you know, fighting for God does not necessarily mean fighting others. In our zeal for the things of the Lord, we end up battling each other.

I’m not sure why, but it’s obvious: well-meaning, God-fearing people come to completely different conclusions about things. The churchy issue of speaking on tongues – people who love the Lord on either side of the issue, but things can get really nasty over it. Eternal security is another. How many useless arguments have we had that just ended up as “I’m more spiritual than you because it’s obvious what the truth is”? There’s evolution. Christians have come to different conclusions about it vs. creation. We just chalk it up to liberal churches vs. conservative churches, forgetting that at the time Jesus was likely considered a liberal in most things.

Of course there are the so-called worship wars: hymns vs. choruses. What that boils down to is what I like vs. what someone else likes. It’s a matter of preferences, not biblical truth. You know, there’s even the homosexuality thing. Some good Christians, who love the Lord, do not think that it can be solved simply by quoting a verse or 2. And you know, the way our culture is today, this is a test of someone’s spirituality: If you don’t agree with me on this, then you clearly aren’t a dedicated believer