I recently read this quote from Augustine in regards to his
struggle with sin:
“How sweet all at once it was for
me to be rid of those fruitless joys which I had once feared to lose…! You
drove them from me, you who are the true, the sovereign joy. You drove them
from me and took their place, you who are sweeter than all pleasure, though not
to flesh and blood, you who outshine all light, yet are hidden deeper than any
secret in our hearts, you who surpass all honor, though not in the eyes of men
who see all honor in themselves. …O Lord my God, my Light, my Wealth, and my
Salvation” (Confessions, Book IX, 1).
John Piper comments, “This is Augustine’s understanding of
grace. Grace is God’s giving us sovereign joy in God that triumphs over joy in
sin. In other words, God works deep in the human heart to transform the springs
of joy so that we love God more than sex or anything else” (The Legacy of Sovereign Joy, 57).
It seems that Augustine had an encounter with God that drove
the power of temptation from him (although he also took great pains to avoid
temptation in later life by establishing a monastery). That made me wonder why
some people experience rapid freedom from temptation and others don’t. The
thought came to me—though God could easily change or remove our temptations and
difficulties, He is far more interested
in cultivating a deep desire for Himself and for the holiness that He confers
and enables within us. An awareness of our sinfulness and weakness
certainly should reveal how desperately we need God and His mercy and grace to
change us from the inside out.
As I observe the American church in general, I don’t see a
lot of people who are desperate for God. I see people who are content with their
sin and comfortable with superficial spirituality. There are some who are eager
to learn and to wrestle with applying Scripture and living out their faith, but
we appear to be in the minority. If all the nominal Christians got serious
about knowing God intimately, we would need a lot more pastors, discipleship
groups, Christian counselors, Sunday school classes, prayer meetings, and
churches. But as I wrote recently, God has to be the one to nudge us toward “holy
discontent” (to borrow Bill Hybels term). So long as we are content with the
direction our lives are going, there is no motivation to seek change.
Just taking a quick survey of the New Testament, there are many
references to struggling, fighting, resisting, fleeing, and being burdened. I
don’t think Paul and the author of Hebrews would have much understanding of or
compassion for lackadaisical Christians.
- 1 Peter 4:1-2- “Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God” (ESV).
- Hebrews 12:3-4- “Consider Him who endured from sinners such hostility against Himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.”
- 1 Timothy 6:11-12- “But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”
- 2 Timothy 2:22- “So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.”
- 2 Corinthians 4:8- “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.”
Some of the harshest words to Christians in Scripture are
recorded in Revelation to the churches in Sardis and Laodicea:
- 3:1-2- “I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God.”
- 3:15-16- “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.”
May we not be content
to tolerate sin, but may God make us discontented with the world so that we
become desperate for Him!
