For Soul-Building as for Bodybuilding, You’ve Got to Commit to What It Takes

By Joe Dallas Published on July 20, 2016

“Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same thought, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin.” (1 Peter 4:1)

In 1982 I tried doing some serious bodybuilding, putting my then 27-year-old carcass through a torturous regime which I came to love.

My trainer spent a good deal of time not just helping me through my routine, but also in prepping me for a more demanding lifestyle. He emphasized what became the most important, obvious point: If I would embrace the necessity of pain for the sake of gain, I would succeed.

I nodded and I guess too quickly, said, “Of course!”

He glowered. “Don’t be so fast to say yes to this. All your life, when you’ve felt pain, you dropped everything to stop it. That’s normal. But now you’re going to go against a lifetime of training, and instead of quitting when it hurts, you’ll be challenged to embrace pain. Believe me, that won’t come so easy!”

It didn’t take long for me to see his point. Each round of heavy lifting set my muscles on fire, and indeed, it was hard not to stop when the burn hit, because the normal response to pain is to stop doing whatever’s causing it. It’s not that bodybuilders are masochists who love hurting. Rather they, like most athletes, know pain means you’re pushing yourself further than usual, so don’t back off; keep it up.

Surely that’s at least part of what Peter had in mind when he mentioned Christ’s sufferings, then added, “Arm yourselves with the same mind.” In other words, adopt a mindset that says, “It’ll hurt resisting sin; I’m gonna embrace that hurt for a higher goal.”

One of my biggest frustrations as a Biblical counselor is knowing that there’s no way to bypass this, and likewise, there’s no way to talk someone into a willingness to experience pain in the interest of something greater.

I can help a man set up his accountability structure, understand his temptation cycles, learn from his personal history and develop better coping skills. But the rubber meets the road when commitment meets discomfort. Nothing can make that easy. When temptation comes — as it surely will — then he and only he will make the decision either to  endure the pain of resisting it, or to ease the pain by yielding to it. There’s the plain, brutal and unavoidable truth.

If I wait for temptations to go away, I may as well kiss holiness goodbye. Likewise, if I wait for the day when it doesn’t hurt to say no, I’m doomed to a carnal, compromised life.  But when a man says “How can I be equipped to stay consistent when the feelings get rough?” then I’ll put my money on him. Jesus was armed with that particular mindset, mentioned and clarified in Luke 9:51: “When the days drew near for him to be received up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.”

Let’s drop anchor there — He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem.

Our incredible, wonderful Lord! Knowing it was time to face the agony, He set His face in the direction of His own grisly execution — steadfast, knowing exactly what He was facing and knowing what lay beyond.

So again: Our incredible, wonderful Lord!

We can strive to be armed today with that same mindset. We’re not about to stack our piddling temptations against the crucifixion, but the principle’s the same: If we’re serious about Him, we’re serious about this.

One of the best ways to honor Him is to follow Him, with that same steadfast mind. To the cross for a season; to the glory forever.

 

Originally Published at Joe Dallas Online. Used by permission.

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