Welcome back to THE V.O.I.C.E. and a new series on the subject of “Discipline.” I want to say right away that these articles will not appeal to the casual Christian. My targeted audience consists of individuals who desire to rise far above the marshlands of mediocrity and brave through the fogs of frustration to greater heights of holy consecration and service. Is that you?

WHAT’S WRONG WITH BEING AVERAGE?

How deeply grieving it is to the soul to watch the current generation of Christians growing up with this pseudo-innocent desire: “I just want to live an average life, set a good example, make enough money to live comfortably, die and go to heaven someday.” If this sentiment accurately portrays the extent of your ambitions, I pray God will give you a vision of how He could use your life to do something great for Him.

I believe it was Dante’s classic work Inferno that cut to the quick of this Laodicean condition. As his guide Virgil took him on an imaginary journey through hell, something caught Dante’s attention. He asked his guide, “Who are these people whirling about aimlessly in the dusky air?” Virgil explained, “These are the wretched people who are nearly soulless. While they lived on earth, they did not have enough moral passion of heart to be either good or bad. They lived such average, careless lives that they did not earn praise or blame. Because this is true, they had been suspended between a hell that despised them and a heaven that rejected them.” Clearly, Dante’s allegory is not biblically accurate; there is certainly no middle state that exists between heaven and hell. I’m not sure that was his intent to begin with. However, he does a brilliant job of describing half-hearted, half-committed Christians that just don’t care. Did I say, “Just don’t care?” Perhaps that was too strong. Let me say it this way: they just don’t care enough to do something about it. They don’t care enough to make a difference.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

The fact that you’ve read this far in my article shows some concern on your part. Have you ever had the sense that God would never allow you to just be “average, normal, or indifferent?” When you read of greatly used men like David Livingston, D. L. Moody, and Jim Eliot, is there not an internal fire kindled in your heart that speaks of God’s hand upon you? When you read of greatly used women like Fanny Crosby, Frances Havergal, and Amy Carmichael, is there not a quickening of the heart and a fervency of sacred emotions?

What about you? Do you struggle to find satisfaction with the “status quo,” and find yourself yearning, reaching, and dreaming of something beyond where you are today? Is there a vision in your heart? Do you have an earnest desire to be useful to God’s cause? Are you frustrated at the apparent lack of urgency you see in many around you? Is there willingness within you to go wherever and be whatever God would choose even if it cost everything?

PREPARE FOR A LIFE OF DISCIPLINE

If the previous paragraphs describe you then prepare for a life of discipline. You will find in almost every area of life, as G. D. Watson stated, “Others may, you cannot.” You’ll never stumble upon usefulness to God by accident. Every soldier that the Lord carefully selects for special service undergoes intense disciplines. God’s requirements for you will by higher; God’s harness upon your conscience will be tighter; God’s field of service and responsibility for you will be broader; God’s measure of expectation upon your life will be greater. In every way, when God calls an individual out for special service, there must be a life of discipline.

Note: We must be careful on this subject of discipline. Let me interject a warning here. A life of discipline is not a life of self-determination or self-strength; that kind of life often produces pride and a lack of true humility. It is a life of dependence upon the Lord to be Spirit-restrained in every area of allowance and every area of temperance. A life of discipline is a life of detailed faithfulness energized by the power of the Holy Spirit.

It’s possible to have deep desire to serve the Lord and yet never follow through. Many, at the first sight of the cost, have turned away and settled for an average life. Some have not been completely resolved, and become discouraged by the difficulty to the point of quitting. Let me leave you with a few closing encouragements to choose a life of discipline, a life of usefulness. These are a few of the many promised blessings.

1. The blessing of knowing Christ’s presence in a uniquely close way known to very few Christians. (John 12:22-26)
2. The blessing of having confidence of being honored by the Father at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. (Mark 8:34-38)
3. The blessing of receiving a position of leadership and ruling during the thousand-year earthly reign of Christ. (Matthew 25:14-22)
4. The blessing of living a life that produces no regrets. (II Timothy 4:6-8)
5. The blessing of identifying with Christ by living a life of complete surrender as He did during His earthly years. (I Peter 4:12-14)
6. The blessing of sharing with the glory of Christ at His coming. (Romans 8:17)
7. The blessing of living at perfect peace with conscience knowing that each moment has been spent to the glory of God. (Colossians 3:23-25, 4:5)

Consider these blessings and stack them end on end next to a life of considerable difficulty and ridicule. Is this truly what you desire? If so, then prepare for a series on biblical D.I.S.C.I.P.L.I.N.E. In the next issue of THE V.O.I.C.E. we will begin to define 10 diamond virtues that encompass true discipline in a believer’s life. See you then!