Confession Implies Spiritual Warfare
Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold of eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses. 1 Timothy 6:12
Read 1 Timothy 6:11-21
When reading the words of our text, you might think of a wrestling match, which requires a lot of exertion. Paul speaks of this struggle by using the term, the good fight of faith. This is quite different from the war of words Paul wrote about in verse four. In the fight of faith, we are being called to lay a firm hold on eternal life. It is important to remember that Timothy’s activity happened in response to God’s calling.
To address this issue in the context of our text, the Lord wrestled with Timothy and took hold of him. Whenever the Lord takes hold of a person, He will never let him go. However, we are weak and do sometimes lose our hold on the truth, so we are no longer standing fast. We must remember to be continually engaged in the fight of faith, the fight of light against darkness, good against evil, otherwise we will easily fall into doldrums, idling our time away.
When this occurs, we become lethargic and are not ready to battle the attacks of the adversary, Satan. Before you know it, he has you in his grip. For this reason, you and I must continually be on our guard, always training our spiritual muscles. The best training takes place with folded hands. Only in this way will we become conquerors. Do you feel your weakness? Go to the Lord, for His power is great!
Thought: Do you realize that you are constantly engaged in spiritual warfare?
Psalter 35:5,6 (based on Psalm 18) For who is God, and strong to save, Beside the Lord, our God of might? ‘Tis He that makes me strong and brave, The Lord Who guides my steps aright. Thy free salvation is my shield, My sure defense in every strait; Thy hand upholds me, lest I yield; Thy gentleness has made me great.