at JANUARY 11, 2016 by MARK KOLCHIN
Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Phil 3:12
We sing the hymn regularly (or at least we use to in years gone by):
I’m pressing on the upward way, New heights I’m gaining every day;
Still praying as I’m onward bound, “Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.”
Lord, lift me up and let me stand, By faith, on Heaven’s table land,
A higher plane than I have found; Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.
The next stanza really brings it home:
My heart has no desire to stay, Where doubts arise and fears dismay;
Though some may dwell where those abound, My prayer, my aim, is higher ground.
We sing this hymn both as a prayer and an admission that we are not where we should be with the Lord. There is indeed far more ground to be gained in our walk and service for Him. Though we would like to think that we are “gaining new heights every day”, we are more like Joshua who was told by God that despite his advanced years, there was “much more land to be possessed”, Joshua 13:1. It seems to be the same for many of us. Truthfully, for all the personal devotions we have had, the messages listened to and the Bible studies attended, we really should be a lot further along in our lives for Christ than we are.
So why aren’t we gaining new heights every day? Why are we so vulnerable to the doubts that arise and the fears that dismay? Admittedly, there are a lot of personal hindrances in the Christian life, but the chief reason may fall squarely on us. It really boils down to a matter of the heart. God says, “My son, give me thine heart”, Prov. 23:26. If our hearts are not fully occupied with Christ, they can become easily occupied with other things. We can easily be lured off center. At best, we are unprofitable servants and like Paul can attest, “In me, that is in my flesh dwelleth no good thing”, Rom. 7:18. Truth be told, our hearts lean toward Egypt. We glance back there from time to time and then wonder why we are not satisfied with manna from above. Frankly, it shows that we still have an appetite for things that we developed a taste for in our former life, Num. 11:1-6. In the words of another hymn writer, we confess, “prone to wander, Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love”. It is not that He leaves us – He will never do that (Rom. 8:39; Heb. 13:5) – but we can and do drift from Him. We would like to blame it on everything and everyone else, but when it comes right down to it, we are at fault because we allow the “little foxes” to come in and spoil the vines, Song 2:15. These are just some of the personal hindrances that keep us from gaining higher ground.
But there are also outward hindrances that keep us from living life on a higher plane. There are a lot of adversaries to the Christian, 1 Cor. 16:9. We live in a day in which the word of God is being denied, if not attacked. There is a “famine” in the land, Amos 8:12. The room is getting darker as the curtains of this age draw to a close. There is not much to encourage us as we watch the nightly news. Scripture calls this system, “this present evil world”, Gal. 1:4. It is contrary to the things of God and all we stand for. The world hated the Lord when He walked on this earth and it hates Him now when He is faithfully represented by His servants who walk in His steps, Luke 23:35-36; John 15:18, 1 Peter 2:21. Through various means, it enslaves the lost as it promulgates its philosophies and distracts and even derails the saints, causing them to leave to their first love and affection for the Savior, Rev. 2:4. The glitter and glamour projected by the world and its ways are but a thin veneer that disguises the anti-God values that characterize it. Daniel’s prophecy of successive world empires portrayed it perfectly – valuable in the eyes of man (Dan. 2), but in actuality horrific and beast-like in the eyes of God (Dan. 7). It is worse than we may even think, yet many of us are taken up with its ways. We need to turn from it and take our cue from Demas’ defection (2 Tim. 4:10) and also the men in Elisha’s day when they said of Jericho, “the situation of the city is pleasant….but the water is bad and the ground barren”. It is an apt description of this world, 2 Kings 2:19. Like Jericho, the world offers nothing to refresh and satisfy the soul.
The main reason for all of this opposition that keeps many living on a lower plane is due to the instigation of the avowed enemy of our soul, the devil. He possesses a vast array of weaponry in his arsenal to make the path of the believer as difficult as possible to tread. Through temptation, deceit, imitation, lies, inferences, and a plethora of other snares and devices (2 Cor. 2:11), he is able to dupe those who are rely on instinct rather than seeking the guidance of the Lord. He works tirelessly to keep the unsaved under his sway and to thwart believers from advancing to higher ground.
So, what is our recourse then? How do we gain ground as Paul encouraged the saints at Philippi to do? How are we to “press on” in the midst of so many hindrances and ardent opposition? One way is to stay focused on the bigger picture. Keep your eye on the goal – the prize of our high calling in Christ Jesus. One day we will be in heaven and this “light affliction” which lasts but for a moment will yield eternal reward, 2 Cor. 4:17. In the words of another, “It will be worth it all when we see Jesus”. As a well-known evangelist once stated: “I have read the last chapter of the Bible and we win!”.
Another, way to keep pressing on is to stand on the promises of God’s Word. God has given us light for the path and all along this path are the promises of His Word. There are the promises of His presence, of His power, and of His provision. He has told us clearly, that “…He will never leave us nor forsake us so that we may boldly say the Lord is my helper what can man do unto me?, Heb. 13:5-6. Like Jacob, He will be with us and keep us in the way that we go, (Gen. 28:15) and He finish the work that He began in us, Phil. 1:6. This promise of His faithfulness to should motivate us to live even more for Him, that we may do that we may be well-pleasing to Him, 2 Cor. 5:9.
Yes, there are so many things to discourage us when we look around – defections to the world, disagreements with others, disappointments with ourselves – things that can keep us living on a lower plane. But when we look to the Lord and His Word, there is so much more that will brighten our path as we journey toward our home in Heaven. Press On!
“But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto that perfect day”, Prov. 4:18.