[Songs in the Night - October 10]
I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:14
NO CHRISTIAN should be satisfied with a long
delay in reaching the mark.
The milk of the Word
should be received, its strength should be appropriated,
spiritual sight and spiritual energy should quickly
follow, and strong meat of divine truth should speedily
bring to full maturity the Christian character.
And
once attained, it should be held at any cost through all
the trials and difficulties which the Adversary, and the
world, and the flesh, might be permitted to bring
against us.
The severest temptations come after we
have reached the mark—temptations to slackness in
service of God; temptations to withhold parts of our
sacrifice; temptations to deal unkindly, uncharitably,
unlovingly with the brethren, or unjustly with our
neighbor, or ungenerously with our enemies.
All of
these must be resisted as we prize our eternal life, as
we prize the promise of joint-heirship and fellowship
with our Redeemer in his kingdom.
Whoever sees this
subject clearly must realize that as a Christian he has
to do with a great proposition which will thoroughly
test his loyalty, his courage, his zeal, his love.
He
will need to remember the Lord's comforting assurances
of grace to help in every time of need if he would
come off a victor and not be dismayed, nor have his
courage beaten down by the Adversary's attacks. Z'09-270 R4470:5 (Hymn 4)