But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. (Philippians 3:7-8, NIV)
Golf is considered the unofficial national sport of Scotland, its birthplace. The original rules of the game and the first courses were developed there more than six centuries ago. The Open Championship was first played there in 1860 and many of the great golfers of the late 19th Century and early 20th Century were Scottish, such as Old and Young Tom Morris, Willie Park Sr. and Jr., James Braid, and Tommy Armour. There are some great and colorful stories written about this era, but even as a golfer I must to admit that my favorite story of a Scottish sportsman is that of Eric Liddell.
We should find patterns of service and thoughtful investment into others’ lives.At the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, Liddell received global attention when he refused to run in the heats of his favored 100 meters because they were held on a Sunday. Eric felt like that would be a compromise of his faith, so instead he competed in the 400 meters which were held on a weekday. He surprised everyone by winning the gold medal in that event. Liddell’s accomplishment made him a national hero in Scotland; however, he refused to capitalize on his success by seeking fame and fortune. Instead, he went to China the following year to serve as a missionary until his death in a Japanese internment camp in 1945.
Eric Liddell understood that life in Christ was not about him. He saw the bigger picture of life and circumstances. He recognized the opportunity and platform he had been given to serve others, and he did it faithfully. It’s impressive that such a young man would have so much spiritual maturity and wisdom to pursue God’s will exclusively. For most people, spiritual maturity does not translate into professional ministry or missionary life, but it should always lead us to serve others with our lives. We cannot live as Christ and be focused on self.
This series has illustrated in each lesson how the natural human tendency is to pursue mountaintop experiences for self, even in our faith journey, but I’ve tried to point out that we live life in the valleys because that is where we produce fruit that benefits others. As followers of Jesus, we should pursue wisdom and spiritual maturity. But resting in our maturity is not a relaxed state. Rather, we should find patterns of service and thoughtful investment into others’ lives—fruit of the spirit that impacts others. If that seems like tiresome work, then we probably have the wrong idea of what it means to love and serve others like Jesus did.
Religion takes a lot of work, and it feels that way! Following Jesus should not be like this. He said, “My yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Still Paul followed the denunciation of his worldly and religious accomplishments in today’s verses with this: “I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death.”
Paul understood that maturity in his relationship with Jesus, meant that he would identify more closely with Jesus. This included experience in suffering! Paul actually found life-giving power in the troubles that came his way. This is something I don’t fully understand, but then again, like you, I’m on a great spiritual journey that consists of passing over mountaintop experiences so that I may live in God’s restful valleys where I partner with him to produce eternal fruit.
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Josh Nelson
November 21, 2017
Copyright 2017 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
Other devotions in this series:
Stage 1: Beginning with Repentance
Stage 2: Establishing God’s Process for Growth
Stage 4: Living Eternally