The Difficulty of Steadfastness*

    When Paul admonished the Corinthians to be "steadfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord," he gave a commandment not easy to obey.   It is extremely difficult to continue on a path which, though exciting and thrilling at the onset, can become tedious and laborious as time passes on.

    We are by nature a people who like change.  We don't want to eat the same food every day, or wear the same clothes all the time, or even drive the same route to our jobs every day.  We like variation.

        If a man's job calls upon him to sort nuts and bolts eight hours a day, five days a week, he gets tired of that monotonous routine.  In view of this, it is not difficult to see why some would look upon Christianity as a "routine" which could become arduous in nature.  After all, we worship God continually, we thank Him for our food at every meal, we observe the Lord's supper in the same manner every week.  Often the cry goes out for some kind of change.  "Wake me up!  Excite me!  Thrill me!  Do something to get me out of the sameness of this worship experience."

    This is where the great word "steadfastness" comes in .  One of the definitions of the word, as given by Thayer's Greek Lexicon, is "those who are fixed in purpose."  What a great thought!  When we are fixed in purpose, what matters if we do the same thing every week?  When the Lord instructed us to remember His death on the first day of every week, and we have "fixed that purpose" in our hearts, then it becomes a thrilling experience every time we do it.  I pray that the circumstances of my life will never hinder me from remembering the Lord's death.  The very thought of His having died for us is so precious that a weekly reminder is not overdoing it for the Christian.  When the Christian can fix his purpose on the idea that Christianity is a lifelong experience, and that he will truly offer his body as a living sacrifice unto God, then the matter of steadfastness will become his very life.

Notes:
* Sadly, "steadfastness" demands definition because it is a rare commodity in this day of disposable jobs and constant entertainment.  Consider this definition, "Steadfast ... 2: firm in belief, determination, or adherence: LOYAL."  This definition was taken from Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary, 1991, Merriam-Webster, Springfield, Mass., U.S.A.

 -- Gene M. Carrell

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