Finishing Well

The race is not always to the swift but to him who keeps on running.

One of the heroes in Christian History is William Wilberforce. As a young man, Wilberforce was very discouraged one night in the early 1790s after another defeat in his 10 year battle against the slave trade in England. Tired and frustrated, he opened his Bible and began to leaf through it. A small piece of paper fell out and fluttered to the floor. It was a letter written by John Wesley shortly before his death. Wilberforce read it again: “Unless the divine power has raised you up... I see not how you can go through your glorious enterprise in opposing that (abominable practice of slavery), which is the scandal of religion, of England, and of human nature. Unless God has raised you up for this very thing, you will be worn out by the opposition of men and devils. But if God be for you, who can be against you? Are all of them together stronger than God? Oh, be not weary of well-doing. Go on in the name of God, and in the power of His might.”

  The slave trade ended because one British politician persevered and committed nearly his entire life to see it end. It took forty years and didn’t end until one month after his death. His lifelong perseverance brought about a radical spiritual and societal change.

  Perseverance is to be a trait of all Christ-followers. The Apostle Paul persevered. Near the end of his life he wrote, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7).

  Yet, many Christians don’t persevere. Nearly every day we learn of another professing Christian, sometimes a very famous one, that’s become disillusioned and jettisoned their faith. Why? How does someone walk away from what at one time they so strongly affirmed that they believed?

  They had unrealistic expectations about God and Christianity. C.S. Lewis referred to this as the “problem of pain.” There’s an erroneous belief, sometimes taught by well-meaning Christians, that God will protect His children and their lives will essentially be pain-free.

  Such teaching flies in the face of the clear teaching of Scripture. The book of Job is right in the middle of the Bible. No one suffered as much as Job. Yet, he was one of the godliest, faithful men in all of the Bible. Beginning in Genesis all the way to the book of Revelation, there’s account after account, even promises of suffering, trials and unbelievable pain.

  God never promises us a pain-free life. The Bible promises something much more powerful, God’s grace to persevere through the worst pain (2 Cor. 12:9) and that all pain for the believer is temporary (2 Cor. 4:16-18).

  While some Christians, because of suffering or disillusionment, abandon their faith. What’s more common is a kind of passive Christianity. Often this is a believer who at one time had a vibrant faith but now are just going through the motions. They may still go church or call themselves a Christian, but something happened, perhaps a struggling marriage or wayward child. While they never say, they no longer “trust” God, they’ve become overwhelmed by pain and sadly, Satan has sidelined them.  

  God rarely conforms His plan to our wishes, which is a good thing. Better than that, we have a Savior who understands all of our sufferings because Jesus has suffered more acutely than any of us ever will.

  They feel betrayed by the Church or a Christian they admired. There are no words for the horror of a spiritual leader molesting or abusing someone under their care. Yet, we know that the poison of a lost world has too often contaminated the church. Then, spiritual leaders can be absorbed with their agenda and self-glory, not God’s. Some manipulate or use those whom they’re responsible for to promote themselves. Narcissism and empire-building is not just a secular world problem. It’s why James warns those in leadership or teaching positions of their greater accountability, “Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness” (3:1). Probably, the greatest betrayal takes place in the home with a parent who claims to be one thing at church, yet lives a double-life. While we all sin and none are perfect, such duplicity and betrayal leave deep, lifelong scars.

  The solution is to look to a Savior who was betrayed and murdered, yet trusted God. He understands the depth of betrayal that none of us can begin to comprehend. We must as the writer of Hebrews urged us to do, “Look to Jesus” (Hebrews 12:1-3) who will never fail or disappoint us.

  They are covering personal sin. Each one of us is designed by God and made in His image, Imago Dei. We were never designed though to live with guilt or a pained conscience. As a result, one has to do something with guilt because the shame and pain can become unbearable. So, like our first parents, we cover ourselves with fig leaves. Some cover guilt with the fig leaf of bitterness or anger. Blaming others, continually focusing on them and how they have been wronged. It helps keeps us from having to look at the darkness within our own hearts. Others will abandon a Bible-believing church that teaches about sin and personal responsibility, yet keep some veneer of spirituality by being part of a church where, as Scripture describes it, their ears are “tickled” (2 Tim. 4:3). Sometimes they will even go to counseling to rid themselves of guilt and “repressive biblical truth.”

  The only true hope and cure is confession and forgiveness. Jesus died for all of our sin. Nothing surprises Him. He longs to forgive and free us from guilt. He’s the Good Shepherd searching for the lost lamb (Matt. 18:12-14).

  What’s the key to being able to endure? You can’t…on your own. We foolishly believe that we’re strong and sufficient in ourselves. We’re not. The key is to rely totally on Jesus. Paul gives us the prescription of perseverance and spiritual success, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13). We plug into His power by regularly reading God’s Word, honestly praying and crying out for His strength, surrounding ourselves with other believers who pray, support and encourage us. And we must focus on our eternal future, the finish line. As Esther Kerr Rusthoi powerfully wrote as part of a hymn many years ago:

It will be worth it all when we see Jesus,
Life’s trials will seem so small when we see Christ;
One glimpse of His dear face all sorrow will erase,
So bravely run the race till we see Christ.

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.