THE PURSUIT OF AN UNWAVERING RESOLVE

Last week I looked for the first time at DVD's of my family and marriage from the late 80's and early 90's. They brought many smiles to my face as well as inconsolable tears. These films were over 20-23 years old. I am 23 years older now, my wife is gone, my kids have all grown up and have their own lives and families, and a big chunk of my life as I once knew it is over, never to return. I looked at my present life and how strange and different it all is now. I realized that if the Lord tarries or He grants me more years that 23 years from now I will be 83. Wow! No wonder why James tells us that our "life is but a vapor"(James 4:14).

So what do I want to do with the remaining days that I have on this earth? How do I live in the reality that my time on this earth will end sooner rather than later? What if today is the last day I have? I found myself going back to the night of April 11, 2009 when the Lord spoke to me about my life and in sober reflection and deep earnestness I made decisions on the my purpose, direction, lifestyle, and to not waste my life. They are called My Resolves.

I wanted to give you an encouragement and a challenge for you to do something this week that I believe can give you a real sense of purpose and a compass for how you spend your days on this earth. The writers of scripture frequently encourage us to be resolved, to be determined to live with uncompromising faithfulness, to have our eye be singular, our soul steadfast, and our will to be strong.

I am so thankful for the influence of godly men and women in my life. I am especially grateful for Jonathan Edwards. When Edwards had only been a Christian for a year, at the age of eighteen he began to write the Seventy Resolutions of His Life. These would set the course of Edwards for the rest of his life. He strove to follow these till the day of his death on March 22, 1758 at fifty-five years old.

John Piper says of Edwards that "there was a single-mindedness that governed his life and enabled him to accomplish amazing things." He firmly resolved himself to love and serve Jesus Christ with all his ability and all of God's help. Jonathan Edwards started at the front end of his life with a these resolutions that were designed to direct his life journey as a Christian and remained with him till the day he died. These were a set of guidelines, a system of checks and balances that he would use to chart out his life-his relationships, his conversations, his desires, and his activities. I would strongly encourage you to read them and gain inspiration. you can read them broken down into themes here at http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/articles/the-resolutions-of-jonathan-edwards

The apostle Paul speaks much about being resolved in his life:

“For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.” (1 Corinthians 2:2)
“It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death." (Philippians 1:20)
“But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” (Acts 20:24)

He also regularly exhorted others about being resolved:

“When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad; and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast resolve” (Acts 11:23).
“Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather resolve this, not to put a stumbling block or a cause to fall in our brother's way” (Romans 14:13)

The Greek word translated "resolved" means to plan or will or purpose to do something; in these cases, something that is of eternal value. I think it is so important to have a compass that points the way for your life like Daniel. "But Daniel resolved in his heart not to eat the king’s food…" (Daniel 1:8).

Every Christian who is going to really grow, progress in their sanctification, and not waste their life needs to be resolved. To be resolved is to strive for and pursue a God-centered, God-ward; God-intoxicated; God-centered, God-driven; God-exalting; God-entranced life. To be resolved teaches me the importance of keeping myself regularly accountable to God, to others, and to myself in this so noble pursuit. Finally, to be resolved makes me prayerfully dependent upon my Lord Jesus Christ to help me by His grace to live out and fulfill my resolves. Otherwise I know in my corruption and weakness they will never happen for me.

The apostle Paul himself prayed for God's help to enable the Church of Thessalonica to fulfill every good resolve. “To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfill every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ. “(2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)

You will not be able to be complacent and stay the same in your life if you write down a series of resolves. In the light of scripture and Edward’s resolutions I prayerfully came up with some resolutions for own my life on April 11, 2009. I would like to give them to you to inspire you to write down your own. I read these regularly to set my course and to keep myself accountable. May they bless and inspire you.

I, Bill Robison, RESOLVE:

1. To pursue and promote the glory of the Lord in my words, deeds, thoughts, desires, and all of my decisions.

2. To forsake all sin in thought, motive, and deed and to live a holy and godly life·

3. To pursue my supreme happiness in God.

4. To not waste my life but make the most of every precious moment of my God given time

5. To live passionately for God with all my might,.

6. To pursue humility before God and man

7. To be ever growing deeper in my love for God and for my fellow man

8. To make frequent and careful inquiry into the condition of my thoughts, heart, and my life.

These I am resolved to do wholeheartedly, and yet aware of my sinful weakness, I humbly ask my God for His merciful grace to enable me to keep these resolves from this night forward until the day of my entry into eternity with my Savior Jesus Christ.

No matter where any of you are in your lives, none of us has arrived. There is so much more spiritual maturity yet to be realized. There is so much more that God can do in and through us. I pray that what I have shared would serve as a strong motivation for each of you to live not for self but for the glory of God.

Would you be intentional to write down your own resolves? I use the word intentional because I believe that it is a discipline that we must practice in order to become a regular practice in our lives. I challenge every one of you to make an effort to incorporate this into your life this week. Watch what begins happening in the kind of person you become. This week I pray that you would take the time to ask yourself before God:

• How do I want to live?



• What is my purpose in life?



• What kind of person do I want to be?

Ask God to help you follow Paul’s example. Ask for God for the grace to give you a desire to grow, to give you a set of resolves for your own life, and for the power to live out these resolves every day.

Resolved to not waste one more moment of my life but to live firmly resolved for His glory, others benefit, and my joy,

Pastor Bill