Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. [Phil. 3.12-14]
I suppose you could say that this passage from Philippians is at the core of what The Narrow Gate is about. It always speaks to me of something more, something beyond what I have already entered into in Christ. It can be so easy to settle for less than all God has for us, to rejoice (as we should) in our salvation, without fully appropriating everything that is included in our inheritance as sons of God. So we should encourage on another not to, as Hebrews puts it, "neglect such a great salvation". Surely, it should be our heart's desire to inherit all that Christ Jesus died to give us?
Recently, however, another aspect of this passage has been brought to my attention by the Holy Spirit. It was not a lesson I learned easily, nor was I particularly thrilled with the way in which I had to come to this understanding. Let me explain by pointing out the verbs Paul uses in this passage which has meant so much to me. "...I press on...forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on..." . Does this not speak to you of effort, of application? Many Christians don't appreciate being told that the life in Christ involves effort, discipline, trying. They happily quote that salvation is all of grace, not of works, and therefore imply that there need be no effort in our walk in the Spirit. Other Christians come from another angle and apply these verses to the daily discipline of Bible-reading, prayer and other religious activities. These, they will tell you, are how we press on and apply ourselves in our Christian walk.
To be honest, I'm sure I've held both views at one time or another: sometimes I've held both views at the same time. This is not unusual: Christians have an amazing ability to hold varying views on many issues, because they have never taken the time and effort to think through what they have been told. So they have never come to an understanding of God's Word, only a shallow knowledge of what people have said about it. But that's another topic for another day.
Of course, we are saved by grace alone and not by works. Paul further encourages us, in his letter to the Galatians, to continue in Christ as we began.
Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? [Gal. 3.3]
Does this contradict what he tells the Philippians about pressing and straining? No, it does not. The Galatians were trying to remain in God's favour by performing acts of religious duty, coming back under the Law by believing that such duties kept them in God's good books. They may have been doing good things, but they did them for the wrong reasons. Reading the Bible and prayer are good things, of course. But not because they are duties of the Christian life, rather because they are the necessities: the food, drink, oxygen and life's blood of the Christian. They ought to be an integral part of your life, taken for granted, as it were, as a natural part of who you are. No, these are not the things which Paul is referring to when he speaks of pressing on and straining toward the goal.
Whenever you are in doubt about the meaning of Scripture, look to other Scriptures on the same topic for insight. Where else are we told about pressing on and straining towards something? Well, the Letter to the Hebrews makes a very interesting statement in Chapter 4:
Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter into that rest..[Heb. 4.11]
This is such a typical Scriptural statement, make an effort to enter rest. But what it tells us is that an effort is required on our part to do something. We must strive to enter the rest, which is defined earlier in the chapter as being a place where we trust God and cease from our murmuring and unbelief. In other words, we are being told that it takes an effort to trust God! Is this news to you? If you are honest, you will admit that it is not: you know very well, if you have been a Christian for any length of time, that trusting God is one of the hardest things in the world. Oh, in theory, we know all the Scriptures and all the arguments for faith: but when we are actually faced with real life, it is all too easy to slide into unbelief. But we must be both honest and encouraged. Honestly accept that trusting Him in all circumstances is not at all easy. But be encouraged that the Scriptures acknowledge that fact and tell us clearly that such trust requires every effort on our part.
Paul says that he is not perfect yet, but has to press on, straining towards the goal. He tells us in 2 Corinthians that, in certain circumstances, he found himself with "conflicts on the outside, fears within" [2 Cor. 7.5]. He knew sleepless nights and was perplexed by events, facing "daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches". It is hard to trust God with your whole life. It is relatively easy in some parts of life, partly because deep down we know that there is nothing really to fear. But what about when everything in you screams for security, for a break from the pressure, for just a little bit of reassurance - but Heaven remains silent? As Christians, we claim to trust God and believe the Bible: but do we obey the Word when it tells us not to be anxious and not to look to the world for our security? Have we considered the implications of not storing up treasure on earth? Are we ignoring that command in order to provide for our old age, or our children's education, etc. No, it is not easy to trust God always and in everything. It takes real effort.
The other great Scripture which means a great deal to me in the context of The Narrow Gate is Matthew 7.13: "Enter through the narrow gate...". The corresponding passage in Luke's Gospel is even more interesting in the present context:
Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to" [Luke 14.24].
There it is again: 'make every effort'. Jesus goes on to say that people will be left outside although they thought they were safe within. Those who are first will be last, and the last will be first. It is not easy to trust God: but many Christians think they do trust him, when all the time, they are busy protecting themselves in case God fails them. They ignore the Scriptures so as to keep one foot 'safe' in the world - just in case. I have found myself praying for God to give me guidance, to open up the door for me to walk in his will, while all the time keeping my options open. "Lord, do you want me to do this, or that?", while being quite unwilling to be open to the possibility that he wanted me to do neither. Are you open to the 'other' possibility: the one you are unwilling to even consider?
Jesus said something very relevant to this issue in Matthew 11, when he was talking about John the Baptist. When John came preaching the Kingdom of God, people had to leave the cities and go out to the desert if they wanted to hear his message. John stood outside the religious establishment and the world's structures: and he preached a new way of thinking about life and relationships with the world. Jesus said:
From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it". [Matt. 11.12]
Here is the parallel to Paul's pressing on, the kingdom is advancing forcefully, and it takes effort and energy to take hold of it. We do not grow in grace and maturity as Christians by waiting for something to happen. We must press on to take hold of it. This means making decisions, decisions that will mean loss and discomfort and a lack of worldly security for us. It means deciding to trust God, even when everything happening to us and around us tells us we are mad to do so. It is a lonely journey, one that each of us must make alone at times. The gate is narrow, we can only go through one at a time. There will be times, usually the darkest and loneliest times, when we will be attacked without mercy by the Enemy of our souls. We will be led by the Spirit to the desert places to be tempted by the devil, just as Jesus was [Matt. 4.1]. Then, alone and under pressure that seems impossible to bear, heaven will be silent. I heard someone say recently a most wonderful thing: when we are in an exam situation, the Teacher remains silent. So, alone and isolated, like Jesus in the wilderness, hungry and tired, we must face the test.
At such times, emotions will not suffice. Emotions are wonderful, but undependable. Emotions can carry us along: but we are not always to be carried, sometimes we have to stand on our own and make decisions. Nor can we put off the test until we are feeling stronger. It is not good enough to say that unbelief is okay because we're feeling tired or dispirited. We can't say we'll get back to God when this bad time passes: this is his time to show you your heart and to give you the chance to grow up. The devil came to Jesus in the desert when he was tired and very hungry: that was the work of the Holy Spirit. His response to the test needs to be our's also. Whatever the Enemy said to him, whatever temptation there was to unbelief and taking control into our own hands again, we must stand in that Day and proclaim: "IT IS WRITTEN!"
That is why we need to read the Bible, and to pray and to think over what God has done and said. We need to know our God and his ways so well that we can see through the lies of the evil one and challenge our own hearts. So, when everything seems meaningless, when the gospel and the Christian life seems empty, cold and the pursuit of lunatics, we will answer:
It is written: 'Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God...Do not put the Lord your God to the test...Worship the Lord your God and serve him only!" [Matt. 4.4,7,10]
If you are serious about the Lord, and are willing to give him complete freedom in your life, then you must expect these times and rejoice that you are being treated as a child of God. Circumstances do not become a trial until you are passed your level of faith, and are finding it harder and harder to trust God. What matters to God is not the nature of the circumstances you find yourself in, but how you respond to those circumstances. We all have some level of faith, patience or tolerance. What matters to God is how you submit, or fail to submit, to him in those times. That is the evidence of trust and faith. Have you got to the point where you will question God's love for you, his concern for you, his interest in you? If not, you have never yet known his discipline, as a trust child. You will come to a place where you will say "My God, why have you forsaken me". The real pain will come, not from the place you find yourself, the illness, the loss, or whatever the details in your own case. The real pain will be in the temptation to believe that your Father doesn't care, or isn't even there. But, if you are willing to press on, straining toward the goal, then you will go on to say in the most unemotional and serious way: "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit". Then you will bow your head and yield up your spirit. You will ignore your feelings, your fears and your circumstances. You will stop listening to the Devil who is stirring up those thoughts and feelings within you. Instead, you will bow the knee before God Almighty and admit that he is Lord, that he loves you and that he deserves your unconditional surrender. And you will accept that you deserve nothing in return. Finally, you will determine to go on, regardless of how you may feel. You will persevere in this madness, this Christianity, because he is God and there is no other, and he loves you.
Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. [James 1.12]