New Thoughts (09/09/11-09/12/11)
As a beginning to this study, it seems there are a few technicalities that need exploration, or questions I should prefer to have resolved. Whether or not I shall arrive at resolution remains to be seen. The first such issue is an apparent temporal conflict between Matthew’s account and Luke’s. Both have just described the series of disasters, both man-made and natural, which are a necessary outworking of the fallen state of the world around us. These, we were told, are not the signs of imminent conclusion to the working out of God’s purposes (Mt 24:6-8, Lk 21:8-11).
As our authors continue relaying the message, Matthew connects this next thought with the word, “then”. According to lexical sources, he uses this by way of indicating those things which could not occur until the preceding had taken place. He indicates dependency. The tribulations of the saints, in this view, required the wars and disasters to have occurred before they could enter into history. Luke, on the other hand, indicates that these tribulations precede the disasters previously mentioned.
Frankly, the solution to this apparent conundrum seems relatively simple to me. The ‘then’ of Matthew is not, in this case, intended to demonstrate dependency at all, but is rather to be understood as a simple connective term, not much different from the many cases of ‘and’ which follow. It is a continuation of thought, but not intended to relay any details of the ordering of the events on the agenda.
The phrasing in Luke’s account seems to imply a more temporally significant phrasing. That ‘before’, however, translating pro, could potentially seek to imply an ordering of significance as opposed to an ordering of time. I don’t think it’s necessary to try and shift the emphasis in this way, but quite honestly, from the disciples’ perspective, I should think details of their own personal treatment might be perceived as more important than general calamities. Were I to put it in light of recent events in these parts, to know that hurricanes will come is one thing – a more or less generalized cause for concern. To be told that the result will assuredly be that your own house will be destroyed; that’s a far more critical bit of knowledge to be possessed of, isn’t it? Consider the alternate case: that having been told of the hurricanes, there had been joined to it the certain news that you and yours would suffer no ill effects from it. That there were hurricanes then ceases to be a concern at all. It’s like hearing that there will be earthquakes in California, but I live on Massachusetts. It’s sad, but it doesn’t really impact me.
As I say, I don’t think it’s necessary to understand Jesus as using pro to signify greater importance. Yet, I would also have to say that it’s not necessary to understand Him as setting out an orderly schedule of events. Indeed, it seems to me that we are too easily caught up with trying to discern a schedule, to read the times and seasons ahead, from the words of the One Who explicitly declared, “It’s not for you to know.” If He has laid this out as a central fact of life for us, why, then, do we keep seeking to know anyway? It’s worth thinking about. The overarching message of Christ is, “Live like it could be today. You will not know the hour of My return. Just see to it that I find you ready when I come.”
Of greater concern, I think, is the question as to what portions of this message ought to be understood as specifically applying to those He spoke to, to the immediate generation of disciples, if you will, and which parts ought to be understood as applying down through the years. Certainly it can be said that many of these things have come to pass at one time or another. To be sure, if one takes only the case of the Apostles, the first several points were immediately applicable. They were delivered, to both Jewish and Gentile systems of law. They were flogged and abused and even killed for His name. And, it did assuredly serve as an opportunity for testimony to Christ.
On the other hand, persecutions certainly didn’t stop with that generation. One could consider that business of many falling away and turning each other in as holding particularly true during the persecutions Rome inflicted on the Christians for the first few centuries. We know, for example, that the Church in northern Africa struggled both with the betrayals by its own, and with later reconciliation with these same folks. In that case, it would seem the falling away was not a permanent condition, but rather an evidence of an as yet incomplete work of God in their lives.
That said, persecutions clearly did not end with the Christianizing of the Roman Empire. Nor have they yet ended. Down through the centuries they have continued. Is there, then, a reason to try and parse some aspects of this message as applying to the Apostles specifically, and others as general guidance? Perhaps not. One thing is certain: The message that those who endure shall be saved can certainly be held as applying in all ages. And, if there is one verse we could look at as being particularly apropos to our age, it must be Matthew 24:12. Honestly, is there anything that would better describe our feelings about the world around us today?
Lawlessness is on the increase. We see it all around us. We see a world that largely resembles the many warnings of Scripture. “They exchanged the truth of God for a lie. They worship created things rather than the Creator. They pursue degrading and unnatural passions, women bedding women and men bedding men.” (Ro 1:25-28). They hate the things of God, practice acts they know are deserving of death and cheer on everybody else who does likewise (Ro 1:32). They call the good evil and the evil good. They are insolent, untrustworthy, unmerciful, arrogant. They make up all sorts of new evils to pursue. They dis their parents. They love nobody but self (Ro 1:30-31). My! What part of that passage isn’t in full force in the world around us? And things have that appearance of continuing unabated, even of growing steadily worse. It’s enough to make one question: Where is God in all this? How can He allow this? Why does He suffer us to have to deal with this? Why does it seem that God’s people suffer and the evil folk prosper?
Mind you, we are hardly the first generation to have such questions. Indeed, it seems to be nearly as old as faith, this sense that something’s really off. The answer of Scripture is, of course, that in spite of present circumstance, the eternal situation of the evil will be intolerable and eternal torment, and that those who have suffered for Christ in this life will know an eternity of joy in His presence. But, this life remains to be navigated, and quite frankly, it is this life that occupies our thoughts most fully, being as we are most fully immersed in it. So, yes, it can come about that our observations of the world around us might well lead to a cooling of our spiritual ardor.
Notice, in particular, what Jesus says here. He does not suggest that some will fall away because of this situation, nor even that many will. He speaks of the majority. MOST will react in this fashion, so dismayed by events as to decide that faith is futile, a waste of their effort and a crimp on their enjoyment of life. Why bother with all this effort at sanctification when the clearly unsanctified are equally clearly having such a grand and profitable time of it? Many will feel this. Excuse me: Most will feel this. And, we’re not talking about the uninformed. Most who have heard the Gospel, who have for a season pursued the Gospel will, seeing the apparent good fortunes of the evil, decide that it’s just not worth the effort to resist.
Most! Think about that as you sit in the pews at church. As I say, it is clear that the circumstances in view are active in our own day. Disasters and distress on every side, a culture that is more and more hostile to anything that so much as admits of righteousness, a loss of respect for the wisdom of age, a diminishing authority admitted of for the parent; what isn’t arrayed against us? And Jesus says, MOST will find their love for God grown cold because of this constant onslaught. Look around you. Look, for all that, at yourself. Being in that pew is not an insurance policy. It’s certainly a good place to be, exposed to the primary means of grace, but it is not a guarantee. Think about your fellow members in that body and consider, that Jesus says most of them will drop off. Wow! Now, don’t you dare get all puffed up about this, because it’s exceedingly probably, given that most factor, that your are in their number and not the number of the enduring. “It could have been me,” Phil Keaggy writes in one of his songs. It’s a thought we need to keep ever in mind: It could be me. However confident of salvation I might be, and believe me, I’m quite confident that God has me, even so, I must live my life in light of that thought: It could be me. I could grow cold and indifferent to what God has done. I could decide it’s just not worth it. We have been warned.
Listen to the message as Weymouth has provided it. “because of the prevalent disregard of God's law the love of the great majority will grow cold.” If that doesn’t describe the world we live in, what does? A prevalent disregard of God’s law? We are in a time when there is a prevalent disapproval of even mentioning God’s name, of even suggesting He might exist! As if this changes anything as concerns reality! Still, though God must surely be amused by such nonsense, if in a less than humorous way, it is a terrible and terrifying thing. There are matters of national responsibility and national consequences. History would tend to say that, as concerns the temporal working out of those consequences, believer and unbeliever alike will suffer the punishment. True, the believer can rest in the assurance of heaven remaining at the end of it, where the unbeliever can expect only more of the same and worse, but that won’t make the process any more palatable to endure. But, endure we must and endure we will.
For the present, at least, it seems that this is the most dire and applicable part of this warning as concerns us. We are not in any immediate danger of being brought before courts of inquiry for professing the name of Christ, at least not in this country at this time. There are places where there would not even be the nicety of a court trial, just summary execution for the audacity of faith proclaimed. But, that’s not our danger. Do we suffer from false prophets and false teachers? Oh, to be sure, we have plenty of that happening. And, there are categories of the Christian populace that will be drawn to these men. Actually, though, I think that is a greater trap to the only purportedly Christian populace, those who take the title but have little to no understanding of the import, of the doctrine. Perhaps I am wrong in that, but it’s what I would maintain. But, this surrounding sea of ever increasing lawlessness: That’s something that we face day in and day out. We find it, certainly, in our workaday world. We find it, as well I fear, in the house of worship. We cannot help but bring it in with us, unfortunately, and we too often fail to recognize and deal with the dirt we’ve dragged in with us. Too many of us in the pews are all appearance and little reality. Too many of us are allowing ourselves to nod off during the sermon, to listen to the fineness of the presentation but summarily ignore the message.
Love grows cold, and that’s a dangerous thing in any relationship. Were it husband and wife, we might have better hopes that the couple would sense the risk and do something about it. How much more ought we to be concerned when the relationship in question is that of our Christ and our self? Oh, to be sure, His love for us has not dimmed or cooled. But, what of ours? What of mine? Is my pursuit of God the thing it once was? Are these studies the close encounters with my Lord that they once were, or have I become too enamored of my own thoughts to hear Him any more? I worry about these things, as well I should. And, to the degree that I see myself described in these warnings, I must surely go to prayer that my God shall sustain me. It is either that, or I am truly lost and most to be pitied among men. For, if He does not uphold me, then all is for naught and I may as well have pursued my own pleasures.
Oh! It is not so. It is not like that, and this I know full well. He Who has redeemed me is not only able to keep me until that day, but He is assured of doing so. What He has purposed shall transpire. These things that darken my days are as much of a piece with His purpose as is the outcome. As He said to those who would face darker times than I, “It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony.” All things truly are worked to the good of those serving in His purpose (Ro 8:28). There is no grounds for doubting this. There is every ground for walking forth in all confidence because it is so certainly true.
OK. At this point, I have jumped several topics ahead of myself in regards to what I had planned to say on this passage. God is good! That is clear. He has turned my thoughts both inward and upward this morning, as He has guided my considerations, and for this I thank Him. Perhaps tomorrow I shall return to those things I have laid out to consider, or perhaps He has other plans. We shall see.
[09/11/11] One brief observation I thought to make is that the things Jesus sets out as the future expectation for His disciples is no different from that which He Himself would undergo. He would indeed be delivered to the courts, flogged, stood up before governors as testimony. He would be, and in large part still is hated by all nations. Yet, He endured to the end, and having endured, He secured for us a salvation that was otherwise forever beyond our reach.
How wonderful to have this anchor of faith by which to hold on. Contemplating the anniversary this day represents, thinking upon the evil that can so suddenly burst upon the scene and so thoroughly disrupt the order of our days, I cannot imagine how people hold onto hope apart from Christ. When this is the world we live in, what hope is there in mankind? There is none. The fallenness of his nature is inescapably evident in those who would perpetrate such a heinous act, and even worse, think themselves doing God’s work in what they do. True, there are those we recall as heroes, those who sacrificed themselves to rescue whom they could. And, of these, Scripture has the best words: “Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” (Jn 15:13). Indeed, I think Jesus surely looks upon those whose deeds followed His words, and took special note that it was not even for friends, but for total strangers. If there are men worthy of honoring, it is surely such as these.
For the rest of us, there remains that comfort of knowing that even with such an awful event in view, the rock solid reality that God is unchanged. The rock solid reality that God is good is unchanged. How Good could allow such an act is honestly beyond me to explain. Yet, I know that He has and will continue to utilize the worst evils of man and devil to further His perfect, unaltered and unalterable good purpose. It will often prove the case that we can only wait and see when seeking the good in events. Surely, this was true of the death of Jesus the Christ of God. It is painfully clear that the Apostles, viewing His death, could see no good in it, no cause for hope. And yet, there was never a greater good done for man, never a more certain foundation for hope. “Greater love has no man than this… and you are My friends, who do as I command you” (Jn 15:14). But, I will come to that passage soon enough. Best to reserve my thoughts on that passage for its own time.
As to the message in front of us, it’s not difficult to imagine how this was coming across to those who were there listening. You know how it goes. One part of us may very well be recording the things that are said as nearly verbatim as memory allows. But, there’s another part that is interpreting, filtering, parsing and applying that which is said even while it’s being said. It is that part which gets the immediate attention. It is the source of what we might call the knee jerk reaction. It’s the instantaneous feedback we have on what we’re hearing. Listen with those ears. Listen without the inestimable benefit we have in already knowing how it all turned out. Listen like those men who have asked Him what to look for to know His time is come, and then consider how it sounds.
Allow my one such mental interpretation of the message. “You’ll testify of Me, and they’ll flog you, imprison you, and only when they’ve had their fill of tormenting you, maybe they’ll get around to just killing you so they won’t have to hear it any more. But, you must bring them word anyway!” If they thought they’d heard hard things from Him before, this went beyond being hard to hear. You are commanded to take on this suicide mission, or what is very likely to be one. Go and tell them their forgiven while they kill you. And, as I have noted, He will demonstrate exactly what He means with this command, doing Himself exactly what He is calling them to do. It’s a high calling, and a hard one.
But, here’s the thing: The Gospel must be preached to all. Our tendency, when we read this in Mark 13:10, and even more so when we hear it in the setting of Matthew 24:14, where there is the additional clause, “and then the end shall come”, is to find that this is our part, this is our work that will bring the kingdom along more quickly. We get into this mindset that we ought to be rushing to get that job done because just as soon as we’ve gotten the Gospel out to that last long lost tribe, the end will come and we’re outta here. But, I’m not so sure we ought to hear it that way.
Recall that Jesus is primarily answering the question as to what signs will give evidence that the kingdom is coming in earnest. He is listing preconditions. When it came to that matter of wars and rumors thereof, of natural disasters and gathering gloom (Mt 24:3-8), He made clear that these would all be precursors of the desired dawn of the Kingdom. But, they were no evidence that dawn was imminent. They were merely things that must transpire. As we saw in that passage, that must speaks to the necessity of the event, the certainty of what will happen. Taking Mark 13:10 and Matthew 24:14 together, we can hear that aspect of things. “It must be preached and it will be preached.” This is the more important part for us to take away. It is a necessary condition, necessary in this case because God has decreed it so.
Face it. This is the sole reason why true prophecy is True, because it speaks nothing beyond or beside what God has decreed. Is it any wonder that God is so fiercely protective of the reputation of His prophets that He would demand that every claimant to that role whose words prove to have been inaccurate be put to death so as to purge the evil of his lying claims to being God’s spokesman from the nation of His people? Is it any wonder that He does not take prophetic claims lightly? To claim the prophetic voice, let alone the office, is to claim to be speaking what He is saying. That is the only basis a prophet’s message has for being accepted. Anything else is the spiritual equivalent of vaporware. It’s all gas and no substance.
So, when Jesus, the truest of prophets, being He is the Prophet, says it must happen, He means just that. It must happen, and nothing but nothing can stop it from happening. It will happen. I hear that same certainty when I think of His model prayer, “Thy will be done”, yes, and Thy will will be done. It cannot be otherwise. Thy will having been purposed, the worst machinations of the devil could not cause it to delay even one second. Thy will having been purposed, the vilest disobedience of man, or even of all mankind, could not divert its course. It will be done, and on that we can stake our hope and our future. So, then, the Gospel will be preached as it must be preached because He has purposed, decreed and commanded that it shall be preached. We have our role in this, to be sure. It is there in the great commandment. It is there in this passage. What, after all, is the Gospel, if not the testimony of and to Christ Jesus? And for this, you will be hated, treated as the worst of criminals, abused and even killed. But, you must go.
Indeed, having considered Matthew 24:14, which I have reserved for the next part of this study series, it behooves me to recognize a certain sense of that verse serving together with Matthew 28:19 as bookends for all that lies between. Allow me to merge the two and see if you don’t agree. “This good news of the kingdom must be preached to the whole world as a witness to the nations. Then comes the end. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.” As I have noted, it’s tempting to think this puts us in the driver’s seat, that our efforts must surely determine the timing of that end which is coming. If we dawdle about spreading the Gospel, then God will have to delay His arrival. If we redouble our efforts and make certain that no sooner is another lost tribe discovered then we are there getting the message to them, then surely this present time of troubles will be shortened by our efforts. But, when we think along these lines we are allowing ourselves to distort the image, to inflate our importance to the Plan. No. The timetable is set. It has been set since before time began. We are given a role to play in the working out of this timetable, and we can expect our eternal reward to reflect how faithfully we served our role. But, frankly, even if we sink into rank disobedience, it alters nothing except for ourselves. The Gospel will still be preached, the full number of the elect will hear unto obedience, and the full number of the reprobate will hear as well, though to no advantage.
This is what we need to hold onto: God is central to it all. Jesus, being wholly God, and being in particular the Christ of His choosing, is central to all. Everything is because of His name and for His name. Paul sums it up this way: “For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever” (Ro 11:36)! Notice how that fits with the message before us. They will hate you. Why? Because of Him. You will go through it, and you will testify. Of whom? Of Him. And, why? Because of Him. All of that which comes to winnow down the Church, the false prophets who mislead, the backbiting that comes from those who fall away, the failures of love for Christ; how can this be? Because of Him. There is, to be sure, cause for sorrow in these things, but it is not such a sorrow as might suppose His work is being thwarted or diminished by events. Not in the least! His work is being perfected in these things. His judgment upon the reprobate is as great a cause for His glory to be seen as is His mercy towards the redeemed. In all these things, His name, His character, His essential being is upheld and held up. It is held up as being magnified, manifested, made inescapably evident to one and all, whether to their joy or their sorrow. Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess. Nothing was ever said of this meaning that everyone will do so joyfully, only that they will do so. The Truth will not be denied.
Now, then, in this matter of promoting the Gospel, Jesus is being very blunt here, isn’t He? It’s not going to be a happy task. It’s not, by and large, a product that sells itself. To be sure, where the Gospel bears fruit, it is because of the Gospel, the product, and not because of our great talents. But, we are told over and over in various ways that the whole effort is to reach the remnant not the majority. Go back to the parable of the Sower and the Seed. We cast seed here, we cast seed there, we cast, it seems, most anywhere. But, if even one quarter of that casting lands on fertile, well prepared ground, it’s something of a bonus. We are to cast freely, and we are to cast well knowing that the greater part of what we sow will come to naught. Oh! But that portion which takes root and grows in the goodness of God! What great gain there is for our Lord in that. It will more than make up for the seeming waste.
Here, the downside of promoting the Gospel is even worse. It’s not just the depression of seeing so little result. It’s the danger to life and limb. The upshot of it all is that by and large, spreading the Gospel is guaranteed to stir up far more opposition than gratitude. It’s not a profession for the thin skinned. It’s no calling for the spineless. It’s a hard walk, and only the hardy of spirit can hope to walk it. Yet, what I see in myself, (and I do not suppose I am unique in this) is a great value placed on gratitude.
In lesser activities, this is certainly a great motivator, isn’t it? Even in simple matters of domestic chores, it is far easier to go forth and do the sort of work required to keep house if the other occupants of the house demonstrate gratitude for our efforts. We will do a better job of it if we know we are appreciated. It gets harder by far to do one’s best when nobody seems to notice the doing at all. If nobody cares, why put in so much effort. Just do the minimum and get it over with. Face it. We think this way, particularly with tasks we find little or no pleasure in. The problem is we bring this same mindset to our efforts for Christ. If there’s no gratitude, no appreciation for what I’m doing, why put so much effort into it? If the lost are so set against hearing the Good News, why give it to them? Isn’t that casting pearls before swine?
The fact of the matter is that most who preach or teach or evangelize or otherwise reach out in the name of Christ have this sense of things in one degree or another. Some are better equipped than others for combating the emotional response with Truth. Yes, we all prefer knowing others are grateful for what we do, but we cannot, MUST not, allow that to drive the degree of effort we put into what we do. Even if it seems that for long years on end nobody has appreciated what we do, even if it seems like every word we speak falls on deaf ears, even if we face violent opposition instead of mere apathy; yet we must continue, and we must continue to give our very best. After all, in the end, we do it not so much for those we see before us, but for Jesus the Christ of God, He Who is central to all our being and all our experience. It is in His service that we serve, and in accord with His command. It is His responsibility and prerogative to determine the result, just as with the seed. The farmer cannot, in the end, command that seed to grow to fully ripened maturity. He can only help the process along as best he may. In the end, it is in God’s hands, and the wise farmer is ever aware of that. So, too, the wise servant of Christ.
As I have been saying, what Jesus says here can be taken as a strong disincentive to evangelism. If this is what results, why would I wish to participate. For my part, I can honestly say that this becomes rather a strong factor. Yet, there is a counterbalance that we ought to grant the greater weight, which is the promise of Matthew 24:13: The one who endures to the end shall be saved. Let’s understand a few things about this. First, endurance in this case is more than just surviving. It’s more than holding onto faith even in hard times. Endurance must necessarily include obedience. There is this thread through Jesus’ message that the point of all that they (and we) will suffer is to serve as a testimony. Whether one chooses to read into that that our endurance is a testimony to our own faith, or that these dangerous situations give us opportunity to testify of Christ, it still amounts to testifying of Him. For, if we have the strength to endure it is by Him, and if we have words to speak, it is by Him. For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things!
The most powerful fact of this whole passage lies in that matter of endurance, because endurance, if it is to be had, is to be had in His strength, in the certainty of His Word. This is the counterbalance to the concerns we feel on reading of the risk of hatred and death. Face it, the risk of unpopularity is already enough to put us off our purpose. The threat of being ‘unfriended’ can make some people near suicidal. And, we’re called to something far worse than social rejections. We’re being called to what will amount, in many regions, to violations of the law. We are sent to what may very well turn out to be our physical death, but we are sent by the One Who has conquered death. We fear, but for what cause?
It is not something I care to admit to myself, but it can only be that in reality I value my own reputation far more than His. I am still convinced that I am the one that matters, that I ought to pursue my own goals and pleasures in preference to His. However often I may say and think, “Thy will be done,” however careful I may be to condition my prayers with, “nevertheless, what You want, Lord,” there remains the core of me that isn’t buying that line. I may say I want Your will, but really, it’s only as Your will aligns with mine. This is, of course, exactly backwards. Thy will be done is the reality. Thy will be done is the inevitable. And yet, here I am. His will is expressed in terms of, “go and make disciples,” and what have I done in that regard? His will is, “raise your children in the admonition of the Lord,” and in whose hands have I left that work rather than take it up as I ought? Truly, I have yet much to answer for, and no hope of bringing answer.
See, there is something I wrote earlier that weighs on me. “Heroes tend to come to a hero’s end.” As I noted there, this doesn’t cease to apply in the kingdom. It may even be more common in the kingdom. But, there are two ways one might respond to that realization. Some, as we have heard about in the reflections on 9/11, recognize that reality and give it no weight. It registers on them, but not as something of significance in their decision process. It’s not a factor, just a recognition. We read, for instance, of those two sent up in an unarmed fighter jet to intercept the last of the hijacked planes. What, exactly, could they do should they encounter that plane? Really, the only means they had of stopping the flight was the very plane they occupied, to echo the intent of the hijackers in the service of a greater good. And, the service of a greater good won out with them.
For many, if not most of us, though, the thought of rushing headlong to a hero’s end is not something to be embraced. Oh, we may hope that, should the necessity arise, we will face it like men. But, that’s different than suggesting that we would knowingly thrust ourselves into such a situation when there was yet the opportunity to avoid it. Yet, this is exactly the call. They will do these things to you, but you must go anyway. They will hate you for the message, but you must deliver it. They will reject you, yet you must speak the Truth. This was the prophet’s call. This was the apostle’s call. It remains our call. There can be no question about that. As children of the kingdom of God, we have taken upon ourselves the covenant of heaven’s King. We have volunteered ourselves as permanent servants in His household. This holds in spite of our relationship as His bride. The two are one. We have committed ourselves to serve Him alone and to serve Him faithfully. That commitment does not admit of qualifications. It does not confer upon us the right to decide which commands we will heed and which we will not. If, then, our Commander says, “Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations,” how many options are there, really, for our response? There ought to be only the one.
But, that thought remains: Heroes come to a hero’s end. Here’s the thing that I for one really need to internalize. The hero’s end isn’t the end. Death doesn’t get the final say. There is that which awaits beyond the grave, and quite frankly, that being the greater share of Life by far, it is the part that truly deserves our attention and our consideration. As we contemplate facing a hero’s end on behalf of our God and King, two things: First, we may draw from the strength of those who have gone before us. We can follow in the footsteps of Polycarp who, entering the Roman arena in which he would meet his death, heard God saying, “Be strong, and play the man.” We can stand, as Hugh Latimer did, facing the fires of persecution, and speak to his co-laborer, “Play the man, Master Ridley. We shall this day light such a candle, by God’s grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out.” That is the hero’s assessment of a hero’s end. That is a kingdom focus. That is recognition of the depths of the reality that those who endure to the end shall be saved. Even that sort of end which involves such atrocities as being rent by lions or seared by the flames of bonfire.
Here’s the thing: Jesus says that those who endure to the end will be saved. Now, hear that statement in light of the knowledge that our salvation is strictly and thoroughly in His hands. Hear it with the understanding that He has never lost a one that was entrusted to Him nor ever shall. What that says to me is that the message heard in reverse remains valid: He who is saved shall endure to the end. The same God who upholds and insures our salvation is the God who upholds us in the midst of trial and empowers our endurance. Everything even our endurance, is truly in His hands.
Let’s think about that matter of endurance just a bit. There are a few fragments of definition that particularly strike me in regard to this issue. See, we can fall into a certain bitterness in endurance. We can endure in that grit your teeth and rage against the injustice fashion. But, that’s not what’s in view here. To endure, in this sense, is to deal with that load of miseries, adversities, trials and tribulations with a particular attitude: One of demonstrable patience and faith. To endure, says Thayer, is to bear it all ‘bravely and calmly’. That’s the challenge! That’s the testimony! The simple fact of getting through it means little enough. After all, what choice did you have but to try? What choice did you have but to survive? It is natural. The worst of heathens would do no less. But, to do all that with a palpable calm, with patience undisturbed, that’s another story.
The words of Rudyard Kipling’s poem ‘If’ come to mind, although with need of a small edit. Let me present the first stanza of that poem, conjoined to its conclusion:
If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!
The one bit of that I might wish to adjust for my purposes is the third line, which I would apply thusly:
If you can trust your God when all men doubt Him,
Calm, patient, brave and faithful. These are the expected characteristics of the believer under trial, whatever form that trial may take. Understand that, as I have been saying, it is God Who underpins all these things, else they are not to be had. If I can be a Man as Kipling describes it, it is by the power of God in me. If I can be brave in the face of a hero’s end, it is by the power of God in me. If I can be patient (the which is ever in question), it is by the power of God in me. Even that faith to which I seek to be faithful is by His power, else it is of no value whatsoever. These are the first of those good works, I think, that constitute the evidence of faith: that we walk through our trials, burdens borne, with this as our constant character.
There have been times when I have been empowered to walk in this fashion, and others where I have seemingly been left to try it on my own, only to fail. I think back to the final days after Hewlett Packard had bought out Compaq and inherited the remains of DEC as a result. As a DEC employee in expensive New England, I and my coworkers were deemed expendable. For three months, we were well aware of the final outcome, the inalterable decree of those in charge, yet we were required to continue our attendance at the office, a large financial incentive being the enforcement for that requirement. It was, I can tell you, a most unpleasant atmosphere to sit in day after day. Watching the loss in people’s eyes, seeing the despondency of some; it wore on one. But, bolstered by my God, bolstered by His Providentially arranged period of studying His Providence, I was empowered to walk in exactly this fashion: Calm, brave, patient; yes, in ways mostly unfamiliar to me. I was able to face the uncertain future without selfishness.
Think about it. I knew that along with myself there were going to be hundreds of folks with very similar qualifications dumped on a market that really hadn’t much room for even half so many. The natural man is inclined to face that situation with a very pronounced, “me first, every man for himself,” perspective. But, this was not to be the case for me. I cannot claim any great credit to myself for that. I am not Mr. Altruist, certainly not if left to my own devices. But, there it was. I had found a place for several of my coworkers before I found safe berth for myself. Indeed, even with that, there were surprisingly few resumes I felt inclined to send out. Things were orchestrated around me, and I know well who was the Maestro.
In present times of uncertainty, how greatly I need to reminisce and reflect on those events, and remember Who is in charge, Who has my back, Who has set forth plans for my future. He hasn’t changed. He hasn’t ceased to pursue His goals. Nor has He rejected me, Who saved me. He has secured me in the certain knowledge of my salvation by His hand, and being thus secured, I can likewise be secure in knowing that however poor my present self-assessment may be, I shall endure, for it is by His own right arm that I shall do so.
I had thought to comment a bit further on how we ought to understand that matter of testimony, whether it be to our fortitude and forbearance or His kingdom, but I think I have satisfactorily established that it is a testimony of Him in either case, at least to my own satisfaction. In that light, as one reads those translations that want to speak of ‘your fidelity’ as Weymouth does, let it be understood that any such testimony to our excellent qualities must, in the end, be testimony to Him apart from Whom we would have no such qualities. And, I shall leave off with the reassurance Paul gave to his readers in Philippi. “I want to make sure you understand, brothers, that these circumstances I am in have proven to serve the progress of the Gospel” (Php 1:12). Fear not! Yes, I am imprisoned. Yes, death is a very real possibility, perhaps even a strong probability. But, look what is transpiring! Those who imprisoned me are hearing the Gospel from me, and some among them are responding! Glory be to God! By whatever means I may bring increase to His kingdom, by whatever means, I should say, that He sovereignly decides to utilize me, so let it be done, that all might come to know the glory of the Living King!
Holy God of heaven, to the degree I can honestly make these words my own, I offer them up as my own. May it be that I find myself as willing to be poured out as was Paul. May it be that I would become such a son to You as will gladly avail myself of every opportunity to speak out Your message, to testify of Your great goodness towards me, and Your great mercy toward those whom You would call but have not called as yet. Bring me, my Lord, to that place of willing and joyful service, that seeing the hero’s end in view, I should not shrink back, nor even satisfy myself with standing fast, but will indeed press onward boldly in Your name. I know full well that should I find this character in me, it shall have no least grounds for boasting, for it is not in me to act as I would except I find myself gripped by the reality of Your willing and working in me to be as I ought. Please, Lord, let this be my experience. Let me be found worthy and obedient to Your command, in that way I know I ought which even yet so often turns out not to be the way I do. Let my deeds in Your strength come to match my desire to obey.
