We often speak of our probation as a sojourn in a strange land. In scripture, it is also spoken of as the good fight of faith, a race to be won, a voyage on a troubled sea and a journey from Egypt to the promised land. All these figures for our probation are suggestive of the various trials which we must be prepared to meet on our walk toward salvation.
Sojourners in the world
A sojourner is a temporary resident who does not consider his present dwelling a permanent habitation. In his prayer after the last supper, Christ said: “I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth” (John 17:15-17).
Here we clearly see we are strangers in the world in which we live and we see that it is the word of God which sanctifies us, making us estranged from this world and purifying our minds of worldly interests. If the word does not have such an effect, then it has not truly entered into our hearts.
Let our hearts be good ground
Remember the parable of the sower. When the word falls on human hearts, it is likened to natural seed falling on the wayside, among the thorns, on stony places or on good ground. As the seed will not successfully grow on poor ground, the word will not grow unless it finds good ground in our hearts. Finding good ground, it will become a living thing bringing forth fruit.
To be fruitful, we must not let the word in our hearts be choked by the cares of this world or the deceitfulness of riches. Such concerns will drain away our spiritual energy and we will fail to bring forth fruit unto perfection. If our hearts are good ground, the word will bring forth fruit, sometimes more abundantly than others, but the fruit will certainly be there and we will find ourselves strangers and sojourners in this world.
Fight the good fight of faith
There is a battle to be fought, a victory to be won. Before we can fight it, however, we must identify our enemy so we can overcome him.
In I Peter 2:11 we read, “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul.” The enemy is not far away, it is part of our very being — our “fleshly lusts.”
In Genesis 4 we see how Cain gave way to his fleshly weakness of envy, which led him to slay his brother Abel. And in the gospels we read how Judas, giving way to the natural impulse of greed, betrayed our Lord Jesus Christ. Both Cain and Judas became servants of sin, allowing natural desires to control their actions.
We must learn to master ourselves, brothers and sisters. We must must take a firm grip on ourselves and bring our bodies and minds into subjection to the will of God.
Equipment for the spiritual soldier
We are exhorted to equip ourselves for the battle by “putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation” (I Thess. 5:8).
In Ephesians we are admonished to “be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.” “Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” (Eph. 6:10-12).
Here, the enemy is those who dominate the world but are in turn dominated by sin. Thus we must overcome the temptations which arise from within and the influence of wickedness from without.
A journey by boat
The wicked are like troubled waters which cast up mire and dirt (Isa. 57:20). It is here we see ourselves like a boat, so easily thrown from our course by those who know not God.
We are in the midst of a troubled sea in a boat of faith. We must labor to keep ourselves upright, not letting these forces flood in upon us or we will sink and be overcome. The forces around us should not be taken lightly any more than we would take a stormy sea lightly.
Even as good sailors, we must not become panic-stricken in times of trouble. Stormy seas will come and when they do, we must call upon all the knowledge we have in order to sail our boat and bring it safely to shore, even if it sustains damage in the attempt. As with boats that are well used, we cannot expect to wholly avoid damage.
When Christ comes, he will still the troubled waters. Let us hope and pray that when he comes, we have remained afloat in the midst of this troubled world.
Running a race
Hebrews 12:1 reads, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” And in I Corinthians 9:24 we read, “Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.”
Here is exhortation to persistence and to remove from our lives those things which drag us down in our attempt to develop spirituality on the way to the kingdom.
From Egypt to the promised land
In I Corinthians 10:1-14, Paul points out the journey of the Israelites is an example to us. Once we start our journey out of bondage to sin, we are exhorted not to make the mistake of turning back to Egyptian darkness. We are also urged not to lust after that which is forbidden, or murmur against God because trials arise on the way.
In conclusion
In summing up our exhortation, we must recognize we are only sojourners in this world. In maintaining our position we need to wear the whole armor of God, fighting against sin within us and without.
Even though we sustain a battering in the process, we need to keep our boat upright in the storms of life. And we must run our race with determination if we are to receive the crown of eternal life. Further, we must not grow impatient as did Israel of old. Let us look forward, not back to the pleasures of Egypt.
If we bear in mind these thoughts, they will help us remain strangers and sojourners now as we look for our citizenship which is from heaven. When Christ comes, we will then be able to take our place as permanent citizens in the kingdom of God.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One