Retreat or Resolve?

The other morning, a portion of my Bible reading was in Luke 18. The last part of the chapter has stayed with me – in particular, verse 39. For context, I will start with verse 35…

And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging:
And hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant.
And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.
And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. Luke 18:35-39

The simple thought that has been running through my mind is this:

The blind man did not allow a rebuke to keep him from Jesus.

I told you it was a simple thought. 🙂 But, as I sat in my recliner that morning, I was reminded of times that I have allowed a rebuke to discourage and yes, even keep me from going forward with the Lord. This blind man did not allow a rebuke to silence him. If he had, he would not have received the miraculous healing from Jesus.

“And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him,
Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight.
And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.
And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.” Luke 18:40-43

Not only did the blind man not allow the rebuke to stop him, the harsh words from the multitude actually seemed to strengthen his resolve. When rebuked, he didn’t stop crying out. No! He cried out “so much the more”!

(Now, let me clarify – sometimes, God will use another individual to rebuke us. There have been plenty of times when I have definitely needed a stern rebuke and the Lord has loved me enough to either reprove me in my Bible reading or send someone my way to point out my error. How very thankful I am for that!)

But, be assured, if we are striving to seek after God…to go forward in our walk with Him…we WILL face opposition…no doubt about it! My question this afternoon is this:

Will opposition cause us to retreat or strengthen our resolve?

Like the blind man, our opposition may come in the form of a rebuke. As I continued to think of my own personal experiences, I came up with some other possible scenarios. Not all of them are necessarily direct opposition but all can definitely cause us to come to a grinding halt.

REGRET – This is a huge tool of Satan. He loves to continually remind us of past faults and failures. After all, he is the accuser of the brethren (Revelation 12:10). Be assured, if we are tormented with past mistakes that we have already confessed and forsaken, those thoughts are not coming from God. Will we continue to allow regrets to rob us of future victories or will we resolve today to stop looking in the rearview mirror and instead go forward for God?

REJECTION – Matthew 15:21-28 tells us of a woman who was rejected by Christ Himself! But, as we read the end of the story, we realize that the Lord was only testing her. I wonder, how do we handle rejection? If we are serious about going to greater heights with God, will rejection sideline us or cause us to dig our heels in deeper?

RELATIONSHIPS – There truly is JOY in serving Jesus, and so much the more when we are able to do so with our family! Circumstances may not allow us to serve right along side each other – God may lead some to serve in other areas – but the joy comes from the fellowship as we share what the Lord is doing in our different areas of service. Sadly, this is not always the case. Will we allow our relationships who have no heart for God discourage us from living for HIM? Will their indifference, lack of support, or even ridicule cause us to retreat?

Perhaps, while reading this, some instances when you have retreated have come to your mind. I think all Christians face that sometime in their lives – maybe many times. Proverbs 24:16 says “For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again…” The important thing is that we recognize the opposition, get back up and in the battle. Remember, as with the blind man, if we refuse to retreat, it is opposition that can actually strengthen our resolve!

“Let us not be surprised when we have to face difficulties. When the wind blows hard on a tree, the roots stretch and grow the stronger, Let it be so with us. Let us not be weaklings, yielding to every wind that blows, but strong in spirit to resist.” ~ Amy Carmichael