The Christian life is spiritual warfare, and like any war it comes with setbacks, obstacles, wounds, and casualties. But unlike physical warfare, our battle has no bullets, no bombs, and no bunkers (II Corinthians 10:3-6). Our enemies are many; they are camouflaged in the most sinister ways, and have the most subtle tactics. One enemy - our own sinful flesh - is with us constantly, and relentlessly seeks to overthrow us.
Sometimes we are full of vim and vigor. Our new nature feels strong and fresh. Standing against our enemies and carrying out the orders of our Lord Jesus Christ feels easy and natural. But other times we feel weak, weary, and discouraged. What are we to do? How do we stay in the fight? How do we find a job? How do we keep moving forward?
A Scriptural Principle
Before we look at three practical questions to help us stay in the fight, let's first look at Scripture to see the principles we need to apply.
Let's start with Christ's comments on the widow woman in Luke 21:1-4. The Lord says:
1 And [Jesus] looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury. 2 And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites. 3 And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all: 4 For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had.
This is repeated in Mark 12:42-44. When the Holy Spirit sees fit to repeat things in Scripture, we should pay extra attention! There is much that can be mined from this passage, but for our purpose here today let's focus on a spiritual application - a principle that we can drawn out and practiced. This woman was a widow. She had suffered a terrible blow on the battlefield when she lost her husband. It was not only the emotional grief and burden, but it also struck her means of living. The difficulty of spiritual warfare is not always some cackling minion of Satan tormenting us with temptations and roadblocks when sharing the gospel. Sometimes it is just the circumstances of life in this difficult, cursed, sin-filled world. Yet what does this widow woman do? She casts in her two mites. More importantly, what does Jesus do? He notices her. He knows her circumstances, and He sees that she "cast in all the living that she had." Are you in a tough spot right now? Has the battle left you with only two mites? Don't fret over it. Don't compare yourself to those who have an abundance right now, and therefore have more to give at the moment. Give what you have. Do what you can. The Lord knows, and He notices.
Let's also look at Jesus' parable in Matthew 25:14-18. The Lord says:
14 For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. 15 And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. 16 Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. 17 And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. 18 But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money. 19 After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. 20 And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. 21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 22 He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. 23 His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord. 24 Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. 26 His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: 27 Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. 28 Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents.
Now before anyone objects, yes, this parable pertains to the kingdom of heaven (physical), which is different from the kingdom of God (spiritual). And yes, there are two more verses (28-29) that complete the parable by addressing the consequence for the unprofitable servant that I did not include here. Context is important. But for right now, we're focused on a spiritual application - a principle that we can drawn out and practiced.
So what principle can we see here? Something very similar to Luke 21:1-4. This lord did not give equally to each of his servants. One servant reviewed five talents, one received two, and one received one. But the expectation for each servant was the same: work with what you've got, and make it profitable. Notice that this lord commends the servant who had five talents (and doubled it) in the same way that he rewards the servant who only had two (and doubled it). The only servant who is rebuked is the one who had the least, and did nothing with it. In fact, part of this lord's rebuke to that unprofitable servant is that the servant should have at least invested it to gain a little bit of interest.
Has the battle left you without much to work with right now? Invest what you have! It doesn't matter that others were given more to work with - you are only responsible for investing what you have right now for your Lord.
The parable of the talents compared with a soldiers bullets - maybe you feel like you don't have enough right now. So what do you do? Make every bullet count. Also the parable of the widow with two mites - it may not be as much as someone else had, but it was all you had to give, and Jesus recognizes that. Don't hold back because you only have two mites right now!
Those passages from Scripture teach us an important principle. Would a soldier drop out of fight just because he was running low on bullets? Would his commanding officer give him a pass just because the battle had gotten tough and supplies were limited? Of course not. Those things are not grounds for an exception - those things are the reality of war!
You've only got two bullets left? Make them count! And then start throwing rocks. When you run out of rocks, grab a hefty stick. And if the stick breaks, start using your fists. Stay in the fight. Find a job. When you can't run, you walk. When you can't walk, you crawl. When you can't crawl, you find someone to carry you.
Use what you have, however small, and do something with it. That is how you keep moving forward.
Three Questions to Stay in the Fight
So there is the principle as demonstrated in Scripture. But when the battle rages hot, sometimes it's hard to think clearly. When our wicked old sin nature harasses us with the temptation to lay down and quit because "we don't have anything left to give," the fog of war can be thick. And let's be honest with each other: when well-intentioned brothers and sisters in Christ put a lot of undue pressure on us to perform at their level right now because they have five talents to invest right now, and because they have more than two mites to give right now - when we feel the unjustified sting of a guilt-trip corroding our desire to stay in the fight - what do we do?
We might come up with some complicated solution, but complicated solutions are more prone to breaking. The best solutions are the ones that are simple and easy to use. In this case, three simple questions can help us stay in the fight.
Question #1: What should I do?
Question #2: What could I do?
Question #3: What can I do?
Asking yourself what you should do focuses you on the Lord's instructions as given in Scripture. What does He require of you? Asking yourself what you could do allows you to explore ways to follow the Lord's commands. Those ways might be tried-and-true methods used by other Bible-believers, or they might be something your church is does corporately, or it might be some creative new approach that you are praying about and searching the Scriptures to confirm. The final question is the important one for staying in the fight, though. Asking what you can do is what allows you take inventory of what you have to give right now, and to take action with it.
Moving Forward and Staying Balanced
Asking what you can do is a powerful question that removes a great deal of undue pressure and discouragement, but it does not entirely absolve us from asking the other two questions. “What can I do?” is where we start, but not where we stay. It is a question that moves us forward incrementally; it does not excuse us from forward movement, and it does not excuse us from greater movement during those times when we find ourselves with five talents instead of just two.
Keeping the three questions in proper balance also keeps us on target. “What can I do?” in isolation could send a person into a cycle of unfocused, unproductive little tasks.
Likewise, we have to recognize that whether we have five talents, tow talents, or one talent, each one of us is limited. You can't do it all, and neither can I. The Lord never intended that. We are part of the body of Christ. Ears can't do what eyes do, and eyes can't do what feet do (I Corinthians 12:12-24). When we say “yes” to one thing, we are by default saying “no” to many others. When we say “no” to one thing, we are default making space to say “yes” to something else. Take inventory of what you have to give, and then find a place where what you have to give can yield the greatest return profit for the Lord. If you rush around saying yes to everything that you could do or that you can do, you may find yourself in exactly the spot that you don't want to be: weary, burdened, discouraged, unfocused, and less profitable.
Don't Neglect Prayer
One final word before we conclude today's post. Don't neglect prayer. As you ask yourself these three questions, as you take inventory of what you have to give, and you tend to the wounds the battle has given you, don't neglect prayer. No solider can be effective without communicating with his commanding officer. Jesus Christ is your Captain - talk to Him (Hebrews 2:10). No soldier will properly heal without a visit to the medic. Jesus Christ is the Great Physician - talk to Him (Luke 5:31). Every solider needs a resupply of food, water, bullets, and boots. Jesus Christ has promised to supply all your need - talk to Him (Philippians 4:19).
Stay in the fight. Find a job. When you can't run, walk. When you can't walk, crawl, When you can't crawl, ask the Lord to carry you.
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