Faith Dares to Fail

In this world men are judged by their ability to do.

They are rated according to the distance they have come up the hill of achievement. At the bottom is utter failure; at the top complete success, and between these two extremes the majority of civilised men sweat and struggle from youth to old age.

A few give up, slide to the bottom and become inhabitants of Skid Row. There, with ambition gone and will broken, they subsist on handouts till nature forecloses on them and death takes them away.

At the top are the few who by combination of talent, hard work and good fortune manage to reach the peak and all the luxury, fame and power that are found there.

But in all of this there is no happiness. The effort to succeed puts too much strain on the nerves. Excessive preoccupation with the struggle to win narrows the mind, hardens the heart and shuts out a thousand bright visions which might have been enjoyed if there were only leisure to notice them.

The man who reaches the pinnacle is seldom happy for very long. He soon becomes eaten by fears that he may slip back a peg and be forced to surrender his place to another. Examples of this are found in the feverish way the TV star watches his rating and the politician his mail.

Let an elected official learn that a poll shows him to be two percent less popular in August than he was in March and he begins to sweat like a man on his way to prison. The ball player lives by his averages, the businessman by his rising graph and the concert star by his applause meter. It is not uncommon for a challenger in the ring to weep openly when he fails to knock out the champion. To be second best leaves him completely disconsolate; he must be first to be happy.

This mania to succeed is a good thing perverted. The desire to fulfil the purpose for which we were created is of course a gift from God, but sin has twisted this impulse about and turned it into a selfish lust for first place and top honours. By this lust the whole world of mankind is driven as by a demon, and there is no escape.

When we come to Christ we enter a different world. The New Testament introduces us to a spiritual philosophy infinitely higher than and altogether contrary to that which motivates the world. According to the teaching of Christ the poor in spirit are blessed; the meek inherit the earth; the first are last and the last first; the greatest man is the one that best serves others; the one who loses everything is the only one that will have everything at last; the successful man of the world will see his hoarded treasures swept away by the tempest of judgment; the righteous beggar goes to Abraham's bosom and the rich man burns in the fires of hell.

Our Lord died an apparent failure, discredited by the leaders of established religion, rejected by society and forsaken by His friends. The man who ordered Him to the cross was the successful statesman whose hand the ambitious hack politician kissed. It took the resurrection to demonstrate how gloriously Christ had triumphed and how tragically the governor had failed.

Yet today the professed church seems to have learned nothing. We are still seeing as men see and judging after the manner of man's judgment. How much eager-beaver religious work is done out of a carnal desire to make good. How many hours of prayer are wasted beseeching God to bless projects that are geared to the glorification of little men. How much sacred money is poured out upon men who, in spite of their tear-in-the-voice appeals, nevertheless seek only to make a fair show in the flesh.

The true Christian should turn away from all this. Especially should ministers of the gospel search their own hearts and look deep into their inner motives. No man is worthy to succeed until he is willing to fail. No man is morally worthy of success in religious activities until he is willing that the honour of succeeding should go to another if God so wills.

God may allow His servant to succeed when He has disciplined him to a point where he does not need to succeed to be happy. The man who is elated by success and cast down by failure is still a carnal man. At best his fruit will have a worm in it.

God will allow His servant to succeed when he has learned that success does not make him dearer to God nor more valuable in the total scheme of things. We cannot buy God's favour with crowds or converts or new missionaries sent out or Bibles distributed. All these things can be accomplished without the help of the Holy Spirit. A good personality and a shrewd knowledge of human nature is all that any man needs to be a success in religious circles today.

Our great honour lies in being just what Jesus was and is. To be accepted by those who accept Him, rejected by all who reject Him, loved by those who love Him and hated by everyone that hates Him. What greater glory could come to any man?

We can afford to follow Him to failure. Faith dares to fail. The resurrection and the judgment will demonstrate before all worlds who won and who lost. We can wait.

The above extract is taken from the book, "Born After Midnight", by A. W. Tozer and published by Christian Publications Inc., USA    

Deeds, Toil and Perseverance

When the risen Lord Jesus spoke to the Ephesians Church in the Book of Revelation, He referred to three aspects, among others, concerning the believers in verse 2 – their deeds, their toil and their perseverance.

The Apostle Paul, while writing to the Thessalonians through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, used similar terms in his first letter, chapter 1, verse 3 – work of faith, labour of love and steadfastness of hope.

What can we understand from these strikingly similar passages in scripture? Before dwelling on them, it would be good to remind ourselves of some basic truths which make up the foundation of our Christian faith.

1. The spiritual realm is as real as the natural realm. In as much as we are certain of the reality of the visible world around us, the unchanging truth is that the Lord God and the heavenly kingdom, though invisible to us, are as real. God is the great unseen Reality and all other realities, visible or invisible, are dependent on Him. He has always been there and He will continue to be there regardless of our notions of Him. This spiritual world is not future but present and is shining all around us. The fundamental difference in the two realities is that what is seen is temporal and what is unseen is eternal. (Heb. 11:6; 13-16; 10; 12:28; 2Cor. 4:18)
   
   
2. The Lord God abounds in immeasurable love for us. His compassion and mercy are rich towards us. His favour is not only rich but through Christ Jesus has been lavished upon us. His perfect and manifold wisdom, His marvelous plans, His constant goodness and faithfulness are directed toward us and are unchanging and steadfast. There is nothing, absolutely nothing that can separate us from the love God has for us in Christ Jesus. (Ex. 34:6; Eph. 1:7,8; Eph. 2:10; Jas. 1:17; Rom. 8: 38,39)
   
   
3. There is only one right relationship between the Creator and the creature, which is us. There is no other right relationship. This relationship involves us giving God the rightful and first place in every aspect of our lives. When our every decision, our every thought, all the words from our mouth and all our actions exalt Him, honour Him and please Him, we know that we are in a right relationship with God. That a saving work has already been done in our lives is taken for granted here. (Mt. 22:37,38)

Having reminded ourselves of these basic truths, let us consider the three aspects referred to at the start of this writing.

• Work of Faith: The Amplified Bible refers to faith as the leaning of the whole human personality on God in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness. Our deeds each day should stem from such a leaning on God. Our complete dependence on Him for His provision, His direction and His will pleases Him immensely. “The Lord delights in those who put their hope in His unfailing love.” If in all our pursuits, in all our difficulties, in all our failings, even in our rejection, each day, every time we lean every fibre of our being in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom and goodness, I believe this work of faith glorifies the Lord. (Ps. 147:11; 118:8; Prov. 3:5,6)
  
  
• Labour of Love: The Lord Jesus told us that the second important commandment is to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. The Bible exhorts us to be useful and helpful and kind to one another, tenderhearted, compassionate, understanding, loving-hearted, readily and freely forgiving one another as God in Christ forgave us. We are asked to do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than ourselves, each looking not only to our own interests, but also to the interests of others – having the same attitude as that in Christ Jesus. The Word of God continues to strongly encourage us not to grow weary in doing good and to share with others. If in our ambition to live in God’s will, this labour of love, through His enabling, becomes our constant striving, then I believe the Lord God is exalted. (Mt. 22:39&40; Eph. 4:32; Php. 2:3-5; Gal. 6:9; Heb.13:16; Eph.4:28[b])
  
  
• Steadfastness of Hope: The scriptures are filled with the constant reminder that in our walk here on earth, it is very, very important for us to persevere. “In just a little while,” the author of the Book of Hebrews tells us “in just a little while, He who is coming will come and will not delay.” “Hold on to what you have until I come.” “This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus.” If in our life, through the darkest of times, when all seems despairingly lost, we can continue with praise on our lips, joy in our heart and steadfastness of hope, I believe the One who called us and gave His life for us is lifted high. (Heb. 10:37,38; Rev. 2:25; 2:3; 14:12)

The Ephesians Church had her deeds, toil and perseverance, but sadly she lacked the sincerity and simplicity of devotion that a beloved enthralled in the love of her Lover should have. Somewhere down the line in her walk with the Lord she drifted from her first love. Could her deeds of faith, her toil of love and her perseverance of hope been a drag – something that she must do – and lacked fire and passion in seeing the name of her God lifted high? (2Cor. 11:3) 

Characteristic of the patient, merciful God that He is, the Lord Jesus says, “Remember the height from which you have fallen. Repent – change the inner man to meet God’s will – and do the deeds you did at first.”  (Rev. 2:5)