“ARE YOU DETERMINED?”
In spite of all that happened to Job, he was a man of determination. When his wife challenged him to curse God and die (Job 2:9) he replied, “What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips (Job 2:10). When his three friends called him a blowhard, “Should a wise man answer with windy knowledge” Job 15:2; “Should your babble silence men” Job 11:3; as well as many unflattering comments he remained steadfast in his integrity. Job said, “All the while my breath is in me, and the spirit of God is in my nostrils; My lips shall not speak wickedness, nor my tongue utter deceit. God forbid that I should justify you: till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me. My righteousness
I hold fast, and will not let it go: my heart shall not reproach me so long as I live” (Job 27:3-6).
The Apostle Paul was a man of determination. When he and Barnabas were in Lystra, Paul was stoned and dragged out of the city, thinking he was dead (Acts 14:19). So what did Paul do? He quit! He hid! No, “he rose up and came into the city.” (Acts 14:20). Determination. Paul was determined in his preaching, as is recorded in the Corinthian letter, “For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2). Here are some principles that will help us to be determined as Job and Paul.
We must be DECISIVE. The hardest part is deciding. The eunuch in Acts eight was decisive. “See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized” (Acts 8:36). Have you ever been in line at McDonalds and the customer in front of you can’t make a decision. They’ve had the same menu for fifty years. How long does it take to decide if you want one patty or two? To have determination you must make a decision. We must be DILIGENT. Peter reminds us, “And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge” (2 Pet. 2:5). As Christians, we must be diligent in our service to God. That helps us produce determination.
We must be DISCERNING. Discern between good and evil. Moses challenged the Children of Israel in his final writings, “I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live” (Deut. 30:19). To make the right choices for which we are to be determined, it takes discernment. We must be DISCIPLINED. Paul’s determination was bolstered by his discipline. He wrote to the Corinthians, “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway” (1 Cor. 9:27).
How determined are you?
Larry