Fight the Good Fight

Scottish audio version here

Philippians 3:19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things. (NIV)

I wonder what Paul would have thought about buying food in a supermarket and seeing glossy magazines at the check outs that extol the virtues of the latest diets? I think he would have had a hissy fit and banned Christians from being in such places. But now that I think about it, it does seem kind of weird that in the very places where we pile up our carts with all sorts of junk food, we’re also enticed to buy weekly diet magazines. I guess that’s the way the world and marketing works. We buy the food because we’re hungry and we purchase the magazines because we feel guilty.

Even in Paul’s time, people were the same. The enemies of Christ were known for their gluttony, excesses, and over-indulgence. But what Paul was worried about was that Christian people were being led astray by the world, so that there was hardly any difference between Christ’s followers and unfaithful people. The church was enticed by society to adopt earthly standards instead of heavenly ones.

And that’s been the fight in every generation since Paul’s time. We’re constantly striving to keep our faith and maintain some sort of different standard, whereas the world pressurizes us to be like everyone else. Some Christians have even bought into the old heresy that all religions are alike and that we are all heading towards the same goal – the happiness of heaven. But we are not alike, which is why Christians are not liked in most secular cultures. We are different for we have a different Teacher, a different Savior, a different Leader to follow.

Now, don’t get me wrong – we aren’t perfect, spiritually superior, or absolutely sinless. Christians still have faults and make mistakes. But we try to overcome our selfish ways; we aim to please God rather than ourselves; we attempt to practice faith through confession, forgiveness, compassion, and love. Our minds aren’t always on earthly things, for our hearts are filled with heavenly hopes. As Paul expresses it: “…our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ…”

Prayer: Lord Jesus, our lives belong to You and we try to serve You each day. We know that we are prone to failure and make many mistakes. But we also realize that You have the authority to forgive our past misdeeds, and that You bestow a mercy which frees us from our regrets, enabling us to begin again. Be with us this day and renew our spirits. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.