THE TEST OF ENDURANCE
“Let not him that
girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off.” -1 Kings 20:11
The
test of endurance is certainly one of the severest tests of faithfulness to
which the elect church, the body of Christ, is subjected. It is the test which
gauges and registers the strength of every other virtue and grace, and no
soldier of the cross will be crowned with the laurels of victory who has not
stood this test. The
Christian life is a warfare, and the above words of one of the kings of Israel
to a boastful enemy of the Lord’s people are applicable, not only to every new
recruit in the Lord’s army, but similarly to all who have not yet finished the
good fight of faith.
The first gush of enthusiasm in the Lord’s service, much as we may and do
appreciate it, may be but the hasty production of the shallow soil of a heart
which immediately receives the truth with gladness, but having no root in
itself, endures but for a time, and afterward, when affliction and persecution
ariseth, immediately they are offended. (Mark 4:16, 17) Such characters cannot
stand the fiery tests of this evil day, whereof it is written-“The fire [of
that day] shall try every man’s work, of what sort it is.”-1 Cor. 3:13.
Therefore, says the Apostle Peter, “Beloved, think it not strange concerning
the fiery trial which is to try you as though some strange thing happened unto
you.” All of the elect church must be so tried; and blessed is he that shall
endure unto the end. The sure word of prophecy points to severe conflicts and
great trials in the closing scenes of the church’s history. Elijah, a type of
the body of Christ, finished his earthly career and went up by a whirlwind in a
chariot of fire-strong symbols of storms and great afflictions. John, another
type of the church, was cast into prison and then beheaded. And we are
forewarned of the great necessity of the whole armor of God, if we would stand
in this evil day.-Millennial Dawn, Vol. II., Chap. 8.
It therefore behooves every one who aspires to the prize of our high calling to
brace himself for the severer conflicts and trials of faith and patience that
may suddenly and without a moment’s warning be sprung upon him. In the battle of this day, as in all other battles, the
effort of the enemy is to surprise and suddenly attack and overwhelm the Lord’s
people; and the only preparation, therefore, that can be made for such
emergencies is constant vigilance and prayer and the putting on of the whole
armor of God-the truth and its spirit.
“In your patience possess ye your souls.” No other grace will be more
needed than this in the fiery ordeals of this evil day; for without great
patience no man can endure to the end. All along the Christian’s pathway, ever
and anon, he comes to a new crisis: perhaps they are often seemingly of trivial
importance, yet he realizes that they may be turning points in his Christian
course. Who has not realized them? There comes a temptation to weariness in
well-doing, together with the suggestion of an easier way; or there springs up
a little root of pride or ambition, with suggestions of ways and means for
feeding and gratifying it. Then there comes, by and by, the decisive moment
when you must choose this course or that, and lo, you have reached a
crisis!
Which way will you turn? Most likely you will turn in the direction to which
the sentiments you have cultivated have been tending, whether that be the right
way or the wrong way. If it be the wrong way, most likely you will be unable to
discern it clearly; for your long cultivated sentiments will sway your
judgment. “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man; but the end thereof is
the way of death.” (Prov. 14:12) How necessary, therefore, is prayer, that in every
crisis we may pass the test successfully. Nor can we safely delay to watch and
pray until the crisis is upon us; but such should be our constant attitude.
The life of a soldier ever on the alert and on duty is by no means an easy
life, nor do the Scriptures warrant any such expectation. On the contrary, they
say, “Endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ;” “Fight the good fight
of faith.” etc. And yet many Christian people seem to have the very opposite
idea. Their ideal Christian life is one without a breeze or a storm: it must be
one continuous calm. Such a life was indeed more possible in former days than
now, though the world, the flesh and the devil always have opposed themselves,
and always had to be resisted by every loyal soldier of the cross. But now the
opposition is daily becoming more and more intense; for Satan realizes that his
time is short, and he is determined by any and every means to exert his power
against the consummation of the Lord’s plan for the exaltation of the church.
Consequently we have had within this harvest period many and severe storms of
opposition, and still there are doubtless more severe trials to follow. But
those who, with overcoming faith, outride them all-who patiently endure, who
cultivate the spirit of Christ with its fruits and graces, and who valiantly
fight the good fight of faith, rather than withdraw from the field, such will
be the overcomers to whom the laurels of victory will be given when the
crowning day has come.