Have you ever known a person who had been faithful for many years, only to find out they recently left the church or embraced false teaching? You thought they would remain steadfast to the end. It prompts us to know more about standing fast in the faith. Steadfastness describes the ability to maintain constant spiritual focus despite external fluctuations. Synonyms in scripture include: stand fast, stand firm, continue, persevere, endure, remain true, abide in, immovable, unmovable, faithful, faithful to the end,.
What can we do to remain steadfast? Peter said, “…be on your guard lest, being carried away by the error of unprincipled men, you fall from your own steadfastness, but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”(2 Peter 3:17-18). Ceasing to read and study God’s word, is a recipe for spiritual disaster. It leaves us vulnerable to false doctrine. We should always hunger to know more about our Lord and His will for us, because this is how we abide in Him (John 15:9-11).
Peter wrote to Christians experiencing intense persecution. He was very concerned that they were spiritually faltering, “Resist him [Satan], standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings” (1 Peter 5:9). Peter wrote in his second letter, ”You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked.” (2 Peter 3:17). Today, we are engaged in spiritual warfare. Satan uses his cunning devices to lure us away from God’s word, so Peter’s words serve to warn us.
The writer to the Hebrews addressed Christians who were considering turning back to Judaism. He reminded them of all the faithful ones who had gone before them, from Abel to the prophets (Hebrews 11). Beginning chapter twelve, he drew an amazing word picture of a grand arena. Spectators in the stands, like a great cloud of witnesses, were cheering on the runners in the race below. Who were the witnesses? They are the faithful ones he wrote about in chapter eleven, from Abel to the prophets. Christians, all of us, are running the great race. Their exemplary lives shout to us, “Be steadfast! Don’t give up! You can win the crown!” He continued, “Lay aside every weight, and the sin that so easily ensnares us, and run with endurance the race that is set before us.” Then he told how to win the race, “looking to Jesus, the author [originator] and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Jesus endured a shameful death on the cross because He saw the joy ahead of him. We, too, must focus on the joy waiting for us, the crown of life we will receive if we are steadfast to the end!
Today’s Verse:“God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him” (James 1:12).
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By Teresa Hampton