If you want to glorify God through godly ambition, prepare for difficulties. . . . Difficulties strip down and violate our comforts, keeping us rooted in what really matters. . . . I think we as Westerners could use a big dose of faith that comes from the risk of dangerous gospel assignments. But in looking for the big risk, we can also overlook the little risks, and the faith that comes from accepting them. Sometimes the ministry we walk right past each Sunday or the neighbors we wave to at a distance are the very risks where gospel ambitions lays claim to us. . . .
Piper has this to say:
Find the hard stuff, get satisfied in Jesus, find him sufficiently motivating, and enjoy the fellowship of his sufferings. Have you ever heard anybody say, "While walking on the primrose path of sunshine I discovered the deepest and most lasting fellowship with Jesus"? Never. . . . Always and without exception - and I have never heard anybody gainsay this - human beings say, "I met him most, I went deepest with him, I enjoyed him, I saw more of him on my dark road, on my hard road." And so why would we not embrace commanded hard roads like evangelism or anything that will stress you?
That's in-your-face biblical logic for us all. Nothing mortifies the craving for comfort more quickly than embracing a hard road. . . . Let me ask you: what Spirit-constrained risk is God calling you to take? . . .
Gospel ambitions can be audacious because they stake out some unorthodox assumptions. Paul is saying, "Even though I have gifts and responsibilities, I'm not too strategic or important to be uprooted for the sake of the gospel." As he spoke to the Ephesian elders, he made it clear that he prized the gospel above his reputation. That's why he didn't shrink back from declaring "the whole counsel of God" (Acts 20:27).
Paul also talks about how he prizes the gospel even more than friendships. What makes this especially poignant is that it obviously wasn't easy for him. Paul was deeply relational. He wasn't just circulating through the body of Christ unaccountable, unattached. The Ephesian elders were his buddies, his mates. He'd lived with them and served them with tears. As Paul's ship sails away, you can imagine the elders saying, "The gospel just took the best we've got." That's pretty audacious. But God understands. He sent out his best as well, in the person of Jesus Christ. . . .
Risk is nothing to be ignored. It must be accounted for and acknowledged. But while you spend some time studying the reality of all the risks staring your ambition square in the eyes, don't lose sight of the most important thing. Risk for risk's sake is reckless. God isn't calling you to that. But he's calling you to great risk for the gospel. So strive for a faith where the gospel looms largest in your vision. Strive for joy that find its greatest fulfillment in the expansion of the gospel. . . .
From time to time opportunities for extraordinary risk come to our lives. Are you prepared to see those opportunities and respond to them with godly ambition? But don't wait for the extraordinary - the Christian life is inherently risky every day, if we care to take it seriously. It will risk our comfort, our agendas, our downtime, our nest eggs, and our reputations, in big ways and small.
Whatever that risk is, are you resolved to pursue Christ? Do you prize the glorious truth of his righteous life, his death in our place, and his resurrection and return? Are you determined to, like Christ, pursue downward mobility?This refreshes my vision for embracing a hard and humbling road for the sake of the gospel. I want to place myself where I know God has called me to work out my salvation with fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12) and proclaim the glorious hope of the gospel to those around me through my actions, words, and heart attitude. And by the grace of God, I want to not only place myself where I know I will be required to grow but also fully embrace and engage with his work in me.
The gospel focus of ambition steadies my soul as I look at the risk of ambition in the present and future. God is unchanging, and He will not lose me or stop pursuing me. The gospel is unstoppable, and I cannot mess up badly enough to ruin its purposes. My call is clear: to pursue Christ in each season and each day. My God is bigger than any other very real risk or uncertainty. My salvation is sealed, and I have a hope and future with Christ. Let me rejoice in the God of my salvation even today!
No comments:
Post a Comment