When passing a water station, why do long-distant runners grab their water on-the-go? Sure, time has something to do with it. But, greater still is the fact that it is easier to keep running than it is to stop and get started again. Inertia is “The tendency of a body to resist acceleration” or “the tendency of a body in motion to stay in motion…” (Amer. Her. Dict.). Ever take a break from strenuous activity and found it difficult to get back to work? Ever tried to change a habit and, then, let it slip for a day or two? Was it easy to get started again or was it a struggle to get back on course? Momentum lost is not easily regained.
Nothing about being a Christian is static. From the moment we rise out of the waters of baptism, we are walking “in newness of life” (Rm. 6:4). Our journey is a walk of faith (2 Cor. 5:7). We are moving forward – pressing “on toward the goal of the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Ph. 3:14). Our eyes are fixed on Jesus as we “lay aside every encumbrance” and “run with endurance the race that is set before us…” (Heb. 12:2). We must keep moving!
As the Apostle Paul begins his first epistle to the church at Thessalonica, he makes mention of the fact that he is constantly remembering their “work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ…” (1 Th. 1:3). Paul’s underlying acknowledgement in mentioning this familiar triad of faith, hope and love (cf. 1 Cor. 13:13) is the ongoing labor of the brethren to whom he is writing. Faith is not merely mental assent to an agreed upon set of facts, it is the active, ongoing implementation of the will of Christ in our daily lives. Because of all that Jesus has done; because of all that He is doing; and because of all that He will do for us, we must “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58). When tempted to slow down and let others do the Lord’s work for us, think about the importance of momentum. Keep moving as Jesus direct us in His word for we have not as yet reached “the rest” that is promised to the faithful (Heb. 4:1).
— Glen Elliott —