Pastor Ponderings #173: Ultimate Advantage

Have you ever noticed that life doesn’t simply acquiesce to your desires or comply with your idea of what would be best for the future? We do not control our coming and going as freely as we would wish. There are many forces at play interfering with our control of our own lives. For example, hunger compels me to go to work when I’d rather sleep in. Bills are mostly unwilling to compromise on due dates. Responsibility compels me to continue a project when I’d rather give up. Children are a compelling force motivating many things that would not otherwise be accomplished. Their forcefulness on earth is often eclipsed only by that of a spouse! The forces at play are many and include bosses, expectations of others, peer pressure, love, duty, guilt, passion, joy, the devil and the Lord.

A parent’s responsibility is to protect, guide and instruct their child until such time as the child can become independent and move away from the parent’s oversight. Effective parents work themselves out of a job. We would all be rightly appalled by a parent who sabotaged their child’s success or hampered every act of independence. We would rightly say that such a relationship is controlling and unhealthy for the child’s development. Is this what God does to His children?

Does the Lord allow the circumstances of life to hinder our independence simply to keep us tugging on His apron strings? Is the Christian a perpetual pre-adolescent, prevented from leaving the nest due to an overbearing overlord? Never! The fact remains; challenges faced in life come to the faithful and unfaithful alike. It is not as though unbelievers ride an escalator up every hill of difficulty and relax in a cushioned carriage through the doldrums of life. Neither does the Christian. 1 Peter 5:6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. The art of overcoming is discovered in humble surrender.

What advantage does a believer have over the unbeliever? Much in every way. Consider the benefits of hope beyond the grave, purpose in the here and now, the knowledge of transcendent love and faith for support in trials. This is another counter-intuitive reality of the upside-down kingdom. The Christian only discovers freedom and peace that passes understanding once self-seeking independence is surrendered to Jesus. Philippians 4:6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Note that it is the heart and mind which are guarded but the circumstances are not eliminated. A child of God is not kept from difficulty but supported through it. A Christian does not need a quick fix to get them over it; they have an eternal hope to sustain them in it. To be found emptied of self and filled with Christ is the ultimate advantage.