Keep On, Press On

Obedience to God is a day to day and a lifetime requirement. It has no expiration date. It does not change according to culture change or evolution of ideas of people over time. God’s truth in the Bible is timeless and it is applicable today as it was many centuries ago. God’s Word and what it teaches remain the same. People change, culture change, ideas change, and practices change but God’s Word remains the same. And, it shall remain no matter what changes happen in the world. Therefore, the requirement for Christians to obey God never changes. Even when society dictates another code of conduct and another standard of ethics, obedience to what God says in the Bible will remain the same. The obedience God had required from people in Bible times is still the same requirement of obedience for us today.

There are people who believe that the teachings of the Bible is obsolete and it should be changed because people’s outlook and preference change. Christians, however, stick to the truth which is the Word of God. For Christians, obedience to God cannot be dictated by man’s preference. People’s standards change. People’s ideas change. Why depend on something that is temporal and earthly? If we rest truth based on the changing beliefs of society, then truth will be changing according to what we want. This nullifies that authority of God as supreme over us. We make ourselves our own god by deciding what is true and when to obey God’s Word. Daily obedience for a lifetime is what God requires from His people.

“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.”

– Matthew 24:35 (WEB)

“This is the end of the matter. All has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments; for this is the whole duty of man.”

– Ecclesiastes 12:13 (WEB)

Endure up to the end. Christians are in the world but they are not of the world. There will be many troubles in the world and those who follow Christ should be prepared and armed to face them.

Jesus describes in Matthew 24 that a time will come when the world will hate those who follow His name. The disciples asked Jesus what the signs of the end of the age are (Matthew 24:4-12).

• Many will come and say “I am the Christ” and will lead many people astray.
• We will hear wars and rumors of wars.
• Nations will rise against nations and kingdoms against kingdoms.
• There will be famines, plagues, and earthquakes in various places.
• God’s people will be delivered up to oppression and will be killed.
• God’s people will be hated by all nations for His name’s sake.
• Many will stumble, deliver up one another, and will hate one another.
• Many false prophets will rise leading many astray.
• Iniquity will multiply and the love of many will grow cold.

Read through each one and see how dark the world has become. We partly see all these coming true in our present age. People hate sound doctrine and refuse to listen to the truth. They are lovers of the world. They hate righteousness. They hate what Jesus teaches.

The important question then for Christians is “What shall you do in this difficult time?” Will you press on or will you quit?

Christians are called to obey God at all times and up to the end of life here on earth. Let us pray for God’s Spirit to empower us, fill us with wisdom and discernment, and make us strong in our faith and love for the Lord Jesus Christ that we may be able to stand the evil times. Let us endure to the end and let us continue to wear the armor of God as we persevere in faith through the rich grace of God because the one who endures to the end will be saved.

“But he who endures to the end will be saved.”

– Matthew 24:13 (WEB)