Dear Christian, Stop Prizing Physical Strength Over Spiritual Strength
Spiritual Strength
The old saying is true: “If you don’t use it, you lose it.” This applies to learning second languages, athletic skills, and even growing in our natural talents.
If we lack zeal, we will lack power. If we don’t work out our physical muscles we will see a decline in tone, strength, and effectiveness.
This is even true in our spiritual lives. Paul writes this in 1 Timothy 4:8, ESV, “for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”
To our folly, we prize physical strength over spiritual strength.
If we fail to strengthen our spiritual muscles, we will grow less and less spiritually fit. Many Christians expect to walk easily through pain and suffering without working out their trust in God’s sovereignty.
What fools are we to neglect spiritual strengthening and expect to walk through sorrows and suffering easily!
Growing Cold?
In 2 Timothy 1:6, ESV, Paul exhorts the young pastor Timothy: “I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God …” If Paul thought that his child in the faith, who was a pastor and disciple of Paul, needed to grow in zeal and godliness, do we think we are exempt?
If we let our hearts grow cold for Christ, we shall soon feel the effects. When other concerns choke out our love for the Lord, we will find our appetite for Him fading.
There are no reasons for us to have no time to grow spiritually.
This calls into question how high a priority we place on Christ. If Christ is your treasure, growing to know Him will be your pleasure. We all make time for the things we love.
May we strive and fight our flesh and schedules to prioritize feeding upon the Word in our lives.
Just as laying fresh logs upon a natural flame increases the heat of the flame, we must also seek to enlarge our zeal for the Lord. If we don’t use our spiritual gifts and increase our zeal for Christ, we shall soon find that we will begin to lose their original freshness.
Stoking the Fire
So, how do we fan into flame our zeal and love for God? How do we grow our spiritual muscles?
We must be in the Word diligently and regularly. I once heard Ray Comfort say “No read, no feed,” to encourage us to feed our souls before we feed our stomachs.
We would all consider it odd if a married couple said they had a strong marriage yet they rarely talked to one another nor had time for each other. And yet many of us struggle to pray.
We lack desire, we forget, we drift, and we don’t plan or practice praying.
The Bible tells us to pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17); our Lord spent many private times praying alone with His Father (Luke 6:12).
Fires start and grow when they are sparked by another source of fire.
Likewise, our zeal for the Lord will grow greater when we surround ourselves with other believers, hear the Word preached, and partake of the means of grace in the Lord’s Supper. You must be a member of a healthy church if you expect to grow spiritually fit.
Few things warm a cold heart like telling another person about the good news of Christ.
Evangelism gives birth to new zeal and fresh awakenings of grace. In our evangelism I find that I love hearing myself talk to others about the Christ I adore.
May we prize spiritual health over physical health, for the glory of God.
