It’s been far too long since I last sent an issue of THE V.O.I.C.E. so I won’t try to list my excuses. I will tell you that my wife and I have received our third wonderful miracle from God. (Is that an excuse?) On September 12, God brought Isaiah Taylor into our family. We are certain that he has won a three-way tie for cutest baby every born. Thank you for your incredible patience with these articles on assurance.

I’m realizing every week how many of God’s people struggle with their assurance. I would say, “Don’t rest until you settle your assurance,” but I won’t, because the only way to settle your assurance is to start resting in the sure Word of God! However, as Paul said, we must strive up that mountain of assurance according to His mighty working in us. This climb is a natural part of a believer’s life; so natural, that the climb itself is what constantly assures us of our salvation. Don’t be misled, the climb doesn’t help us to be saved in any way; it just assures us. Well then, back to where we left off. Let’s harmonize our last steps with the step before us.

FROM TEMPERANCE TO PATIENCE

Once we have allowed the Lord to create in us a clean heart (virtue), then we can begin to know Him more intimately (knowledge). As we get to know Him, we begin to realize that there is very little of us that is like Him. Therefore, we have to learn to say “no” to ourselves and “yes” to Him (temperance). This eventually leads us to a point of total surrender in our Christian walk. However, over the process of time, we begin to weary of saying “no” to the flesh. The idea of giving my life completely to the Lord for His purposes seems to promise very little present satisfaction. Then, the former lusts from the “Valley of Fog” begin to allure us.

Getting up early in the morning for devotions is not half as fun as staying up late to watch television. The benefits of staying pure and clean with my mind and body seem insignificant compared to the immediate gratification of sensual pleasures. The idea of climbing up this mountain of assurance suddenly looks far less glamorous than it did at camp. We fail to see immediate benefits from our first three steps, and it gets tempting to march right back down the mountain and back into the valley fog of our former worldly, carnal, self-indulgent, lazy, sinful life. The battle we once fought against the world, the flesh, and the devil is over, because we have just stopped fighting. In almost every way conceivable, we have raised the white flag of surrender to the world’s music, language, entertainment, and sin.

Perhaps this is where some of you are right now. You made some great decisions at camp, and immediately following summer camp you began to take some steps up the mountain. But now, you’ve been back to school for a few months, and you’re beginning to slip right back into the world. You’ve stopped reading your Bible, stopped praying, stopped standing up for the Lord in your personal testimony, stopped telling others about Christ, and just stopped climbing. Beware! You are not far from going right back to the point of doubting your salvation. You’ll begin to question whether you have a true relationship with Christ. You’ll begin to wonder which family you are truly in. You’ll begin to ponder the very foundation of your faith. “Do I really believe this? Is this really true? What do I believe?” Satan is hot on your trail, and he’s about to put your Christian life to an end! Wise up, Christian! Don’t be a fool!

What you need is to take the fourth step up the mountain, patience. Yes, this is it: add to your temperance, patience. Now that you have said “no” to yourself for so long, and now that the pressure is on to conform to the world once again, you must seek God for some patience to endure.

STEP FOUR: PATIENCE = NOT QUITTING UNDER PRESSURE!

The idea of patience is continuing to battle with a resolve to win. Perseverance is another good word we could use here. It’s a determination not to quit when the pressure mounts. My soul, I have known so many people, especially teens, who started out with some really good standards and great zeal to serve the Lord, but when the pressure mounted and a friend pushed hard enough and long enough, they gave in. I know Christians who have made a determination to be in God’s Word every day and not miss a day of devotions, but when it became inconvenient in a short period of time, they stopped.

No doubt, there are some Christian girls reading this right now who started this school year with a high standard of physical purity. You were determined not to cheapen your body for some “Johnny-come-lately’s” perverted pleasure. But now, already, you have met some supposed “dream-boat” who is about to sail away with your purity and possibly virginity! How about you young man? Yes, you who made those sincere decisions to never again darken your pure heart with pictures of indecent women, who are now at this very time filling your mind without absolute trash from Hollywood.

Have you forgotten the seriousness of sin’s consequences? Have you so soon yielded yourselves as the servants of sin all over again? Have you so soon allowed all the progress you have gained to be lost? Have you so soon turned your back on the One that you made sweet commitments with last summer! Have you so soon ceased to resist the devil? Have you so soon turned back to the filthy feeding trough of this world? Have you so soon climbed back down the mountain? SO SOON! Why, you didn’t even endure with the Lord for a little time. WHY? Is it because you have no faith? No! Perhaps because you lack virtue or knowledge or temperance? No! You failed to add patience! Face the facts, you quit under pressure!

BE DIFFERENT! BE A LEADER! BE PATIENT!

I have rarely met a teen who, when placed under the heat of group pressure, didn’t quit, but every time I have, I have been standing face to face with a leader! You need to take this step. Decide that you are not going to quit no matter what. Take your eyes off of everyone else, forget all the others who are failing, and keep looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith. Don’t quit under any circumstance. It doesn’t take any kind of a leader to quit under pressure. Be different! Stand up and don’t quit! You say, “But Phil, doing right is so hard!” Whoever said that doing right would be easy!?

Wherever you may be right now, what you need to do is start making your way up the mountain again. You will discover as Pilgrim found out in “The Pilgrim’s Progress,” that regaining lost ground is always twice as difficult as claiming new ground. NONETHELESS! Get going now with the attitude of patience; “I will not quit this time under pressure!” Make your way up the mountain this time with twice the determination. Let past failure only prod you on more earnestly with a godly vengeance to clear yourself of these matters. Let the stinging reminder of lost time only quicken your step and place ardor to your onward march. May each agonizing breath speak the words, “Dare not look back, dare not look back, dare not look back!”

Perhaps there are many of you who have not quit; praise God for you. Let this simply be a beacon of light to shine upon the jagged rocks that sink so many ships of faith because of laziness and carelessness. Do not let the guard down now. You have run well, let nothing hinder you from climbing on further. You may be just moments away from a great test of your faith. Plant your feet deeply in the soil of God’s undying love for you. Steady yourself on the rocks of some specific promises of God’s purpose for your life. Set your face like a flint toward the victory ahead of you, and brace yourself for the coming blow. Then, run with patience the race that is set before you. Add to your temperance, patience.

Next issue (I dare not say “next week!”) we will look at our last three steps up the mountain. Once you take the step of patience, the last three will fall into place quickly. Encouraging, isn’t it?!