THE JOURNEY
If Jesus is a magician, He would work miracles and stunts to ensure that we have a problem-free life. If He is a powerful financier, He would ensure we always have the security of wealth and assets to weather any crisis. If He is the ultimate service provider to all humanity, we would have nothing to complain about because life would be nothing but easy.
We all know these are unbiblical misperceptions of Jesus that lead only to disappointment and disheartenment. However, we can be confident that Jesus is always someone we can talk to in any situation or hardship. Yet most days, especially when we are emotionally and mentally worn out, we would rather have fast solutions from Him than hard conversations with Him. We want to get out of challenges, not get better through them. We know exactly what we need to improve our situations if only God has the same mind about it. We know how to get things done, and if only He listened to us, life would be so much better for us.
Yet God is always merciful. Even if we refuse to seek His perspective, to listen to what He has to say about our situations, He will send a strong human voice to us to help us get back on the narrow road beyond the small gate (Matthew 7:14). Other bible translations describe the narrow road as one that is also difficult and hard, and for that reason, few look forward to getting on it.
Today, we have a voice of compassion from our guest speaker, Peter Loy, who says to those who are finding it hard to face another day of sameness, or wait another day for good news: “let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross” (Hebrews 12:1-2).
To Peter Loy, life is one continuous race across different terrains that require us to learn new ways of trusting God. To be sure, life does not always feel like jogging in a well-landscaped park, or working on a treadmill with indoor air-conditioning. We are all on a life-long race and the exertion will test our resolve, and train our spiritual fortitude so that we are transformed and renewed in Christlikeness (Romans 12:2). Even when everything in us want to call it quits, the race is worth enduring because God is in it with us. None of us are left to go it alone. Think about it: hasn’t God sent someone or a few people into your life. These are people who are committed to His word that says, “You must warn each other every day, while it is still “today,” so that none of you will be deceived by sin and hardened against God.” (Hebrews 3:13 NLT).
No one should ever say that discipleship is an easy journey for anyone but it is a necessary path to find the power of God in our lives. There are certainly options and alternatives but they don’t lead us to Christ. To think that all and any paths lead us to the same destination is a fallacy born out of human imagination. Our focus in this race is not the end of the road but Christ throughout the journey. He is the perfect pattern and example for how we are to run this race of life. As we grow in our knowledge of Christ, we are empowered by a divine endurance that does not draw on mere human abilities but on the strength of our trust in Him. It is a road God built on His love for us, and it is a race we run on the strength of our relationship with Him.
Peter Loy explained that endurance has four noteworthy features:
The Christian race itself which is counter-intuitive, and counter-culture. Thus, it requires us to train in going against the stream, and swimming against the prevailing currents. It helps to think of it not as a competitive race where we compare ourselves with others but a spiritual race to overtake our own ideology of what success and a good life looks like. It is a race that will overthrow idols of success and self-importance in our lives.
The Cross that Jesus endured does not relieve us of all sufferings. In fact, it becomes a model for how we are to endure our cross knowing that there is no victory without trials, and no crown without a cross. Being maligned, side-lined and betrayed by those you thought would stand up for you or at least show up to comfort you but didn’t - this is our cross. Feeling the weight of the world on you as a primary caregiver, the sole breadwinner, or working without adequate support or recognition – this, too, is our cross. Will things never change or improve? Yes, they will – if you let God have His way and act on your behalf. Isaiah 64:4 (NLT) gives us hope, “For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!”
Today, God would say to you, “I know your cross is difficult – but don’t give up.”
The apostle Paul, even when he was jailed and chained like a criminal, wrote that his chains were all part of God’s plans for him, and not mistakes done to him.
The Conflict describes the tension between our strong innate desire for self-preservation and the Holy Spirit’s tugging within us to die to self and lean on God. Self-preservation interests will also hold others back from stepping in to defend or help us during our times of need. This means letting go of any emotional wounding, any offence perceived, any hurts endured – even among the Christian community – so we can lighten our emotional load and run faster!
The Chastening is the part of the journey that we like the least. As any coach worth his weight in gold, God builds our endurance for the race through character and ideological corrections. Hebrews 12:7a says that “As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children.” If we cannot allow God to have honest and hard conversations with us, what kind of relationship do we expect to have with Him?
Listen, the grace of God in our lives does not end with just His saving grace but also His grace to carry us through to endure through life. Do we follow Christ only when it is easy and not when it is difficult? When we fall, is it because He is not present or does it show that He also gives us the ability to get up?
Believe that something divinely awesome is going to happen in your life. In summary, remember this: Our life is ONE RACE. We have One Focus – CHRIST. We must have One Attitude – ENDURE.
This is a summary and reflection based on a virtual BIR Session held on 24 September 2022.
