The world often asks itself, “Why are we here?” Some of us already have our answer.

Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy. But to me it is a very small thing that I may be examined by you, or by any human court; in fact, I do not even examine myself. For I am conscious of nothing against myself, yet I am not by this acquitted; but the one who examines me is the Lord.
— 1 Corinthians 4:1-4

I love Paul. I do, for a lot of reasons. But, one of my favorites is that he was confident about his commission in life. Not only that, but he was also unapologetic about his life, which often caused strife. Yet, his labor was for others, starting with Christ. As was his love. So, while he spent incredible amounts of time fighting, his motivation was from the deepest of wellsprings - grace.

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.
— 2 Timothy 4:7-8

One of the most difficult things for any believer to deal with is something I, personally, struggle with every single day. I find it hard to keep my emotions at bay - a good fight enrages me. I don’t always want to fight, but what choice do I have when my enemy never sleeps? What choice do I have, knowing that every day more and more people are being led astray? It turns out, as the Bible says, I do have choices, so that is what I must focus on (I feel a little like Bruce Banner). My encouragement is that I know I’m not alone, not just as a result of reading my Bible, but also through my chats with some of the brethren. After all, we’re all suffering the hardship of standing up for the Lord Jesus Christ in a world that mocks Him, increasingly so. All the more reason to preach the Gospel, right???

For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for I am under compulsion; for woe is me if I do not preach the gospel. For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have a stewardship entrusted to me.
— 1 Corinthians 9:16-17

So, what are my “choices” here? And since there’s nothing really special about me, what does any believer have to choose from? The answer is simple. We have one particular choice that only godly wisdom reveals to us. And as I’ve been teaching from my pulpit as of late, this kind of wisdom is a function of faith, which is, in turn, a function of humility, “GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE” (1 Peter 5:5). That “choice” is to have and maintain the perspective of a good steward. Jesus even taught parables on this (e.g. Matthew 25:14-30)!

The Word of God teaches us that we are not called by our own will, but rather by God’s (1 Corinthians 9:17). This is an important lesson for all of us to ponder because it gives us proper perspective on why we’re left on earth after being born again and saved - God’s purposes, not our own (we don’t call ourselves to service, God does - His calling means His orders). Without this perspective, we are like ships without sails upon a tumultuous sea.

Perspective gives us the strength and ability to fight in order to keep our bearings, to keep heading true north, and to the surprise of some, to sleep in the bow of the ship when it’s time to rest.

I have failed in every aspect of said perspective. I’m not ashamed to say it because the Bible tells me to expect it of myself. I’m not fully delivered yet, and neither was Paul when he wrote, “Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin” (Romans 7:24-25). In light of Holy Scripture such as this, I’ve learned to relax and accept that I’m not perfect and that I’m going to fail, much more than I’d expect some days. So be it.

I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things. If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain to you. But we must hold on to the progress we have already made.
— Philippians 3:12-16 (NLT)

Allow me a moment to close my thoughts on this, as it may seem that there are multiple dangling threads. Deliverance is about perspective. Without proper perspective, we fall prey to the temptation to give credence to mere mankind and his judgements. If we’re not careful, we lose sight of our stewardship of the Gospel. This is the one thing we never want to happen in our lives. If we lose sight of this, we lose sight of everything, beginning with our very purpose for living. We must remember that our lives are “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). We mustn’t ever lose that precious perspective! One key strategy to that end is remembering that God called us to His purpose, not the other way around. We are stewards, given the responsibility and duty to carefully manage His gracious gifts (e.g. our lives - ala Romans 12:1). While doing this, we must always show ourselves grace. We aren’t perfected wholly yet - that’s something we get to look forward to in Heaven.

We’re going to bounce around on the seas, but as believers in Christ Jesus, we’ll never capsize and drown. The good Lord knows whom to trust as good stewards of His grace - those He calls to be His own. While we aren’t perfect stewards, we mustn’t buy the lie that we are complete failures, for that would be a reason to quit fighting. As Paul wrote to his beloved Timothy, “But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called, and you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses” (1 Timothy 6:11-12).

A good steward lays down his life for that which he’s been given charge over - it is, after all, his fundamental purpose. We believers have been given the “ministry of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:18), that is, the very good news about how the God of the Universe has solved the issue of sin. If we keep this as the mainstay of our perspective, not only will we fight, but we’ll want to fight the good fight, our sails filled with the Holy Spirit, Himself! We may bear a few battle scars by the end of all of this, but our inspiration comes from the One who it is said, ”by His wounds you were healed” (1 Peter 2:24).

I thank God every day that I’ve been given this stewardship. I didn’t ask for it, strictly speaking, but now that I’ve got it, I know how important it is that I never lose my perspective on it. I’ll fight for it tooth and nail if I have to. So be it. As Michael Buffer would say, “Let’s get ready to rumble!”

Love in Christ,

Ed Collins