The Fight of Faith

“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.”

 1 Timothy 6:11-12

I have been convicted recently of how passive and lukewarm I have become in my faith as each day I struggle to make time in Word and come before the Lord.  My faith really feels like a fight now.  What does this mean though?  How and why is faith a “fight”?  I believe that my faith and the faith of other believers is a fight in a few different senses.  The first is that our faith requires that we do daily battle against sin and the pulls of this world.  That one seems obvious.  I find that for myself, however, faith can also be a fight in a much more different sense, and it is this:  the daily battle to keep believing in God and trusting in His promises.  I am both a planner and a perfectionist, and as such I have a hard time asking for help. It is no wonder that one of my greatest sin struggles is self-reliance!  I don’t so much struggle with carrying a burden as I do allowing a burden to be carried for me.  The my weaknesses and inadequacies may feel like failures, the reality is that that they are actually blessings, for the reality is that I can never and will never get through on my own!  My strength is not enough!  As Martin Luther says, “All our striving would be losing.”  This is so true of me: so often I try so hard to go somewhere and end up going nowhere.  I cannot do this alone, and my weaknesses are a constant reminder that I need Someone greater than myself.  And yet, while I know this, Satan threatens to steal my hope and peace by stirring within me unbelief and doubt about God’s promises.  Do I trust that God is great enough, strong enough, and caring enough to take on my burdens?  And so, faith is very much a fight for me—a fight against the very real enemies of unbelief and doubt.   

Since faith is a fight, it obviously requires action.  Just look at what Christians are called to: “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.”   No battle was ever won by men sitting comfortably at home. God has ordained that I and other Christians fight for our faith and for Him.  This is not optional!  And yet I casually and comfortably go about my life as though it were an option.  God calls us to press forward because He knows that if we stand still, it is only a matter of time before we will begin to sink.

I have trusted in my own strength for far too long.  The enemy is very evil, and I cannot face him alone.  But praise God that I am not left to my own strength.  In one of his sermons, John Piper quotes from Scripture, "For God is at work in you both to will and to do his good pleasure."   Piper goes on to explain this by saying. “In other words, when a child of God fights the fight of faith, God is really the one who is behind that struggle giving the will and the power to defeat the enemy of unbelief. We are not left to ourselves to sustain faith. God fights for us and in us. Therefore the fight of faith is a good fight.”   I am so encouraged by this.  I am struggling right now, but I praise God that He is in it and that He has promised never to forsake me.   

Yes, this fight of a faith is indeed a good fight, as difficult and as painful as it may be at times. It is good because I am fighting against the evil enemy.  It is good because I am not fighting in my own strength.  It is good because God is glorified as I humbly allow Him to carry my burdens.  And lastly, it is good because it is the God-ordained way by which I lay hold of eternal life.  My prayer this week is that I will fight the good fight by submitting myself to the will of the Lord by casting my worries and anxieties on Him and trusting in His good promises.  Through His power, I want to fight for freedom—freedom from the doubts and unbelief that manifest themselves in “standing still” in my walk with the Lord.