Walking with the Wise #96: Persevering Pursuit

"Whoever is steadfast in righteousness will live,

but he who pursues evil will die.”
—Proverbs 11:19

Part of following Christ means learning to persevere when times are tough. In the parable of the sower in Mark 4:1-20, we learn about four different responses to the Gospel. The first is outright rejection as Satan takes away the seed that was sown in the hearer's heart (v. 4, 15). The second soil is described as rocky ground, which is initially receptive to the seed, but when times get tough and persecution or tribulation comes, they fall away, revealing they were never really saved in the first place (v. 5-6, 16-17). The third soil is full of thorns that choke the seed and give no grain (v. 7). This represents those who initially accept the word, but the responsibilities of life and riches crowd in, choke it and kill it (v. 18-19). It is only the seed that falls on the good soil that grows up and yields thirtyfold, sixtyfold, and even a hundredfold (v. 8). This represents those who have vis accepted Christ and continue to walk with Him and who will be rewarded in the life to come (v. 20).

Only those who have steadfastly followed Christ will experience life. That is not to say that someone can’t come to know Christ at the end of life; the thief next to Jesus on the cross is a great picture of those who put their faith in Christ at the end of life. Even then God will forgive, save and reward them, because the eternal life we receive is not based upon us, but upon Jesus and what He has done. However, the Scripture is also clear that we are not to put off salvation until the end of life. While the thief on the cross is the exception, he is definitely not the rule. God desires that we respond immediately to His call and that we continue to persevere in faith in our walk with Him until He comes again, or until we die and go to be with Him.

Are you steadfastly pursuing righteousness? Or are you taking your life into your own hands, knowing that your life could be taken from you at God’s pleasure? If you continue in sin, be warned: the sinful pleasure you experience comes at a price that you will pay for eternity. Repent of your sins and place your faith in Christ. Don’t continue in your sin. Walk with the King and be a blessing. Amen.