Finishing Well — E.A. Johnston

The Biblical Warning of Failing to Finish Well

The older I get, friends, the more emphasis I place on finishing well. I've seen some Christians get right close to the finish line and falter and fall through moral failure or unbelief. We have the biblical record of those who started out well but did not finish well.

Samson dallied with Delilah, and it cost him his freedom, his eyesight, and his power. Noah labored faithfully, obeying God and building the ark, but he enjoyed his wine a little too much after, and it was a cause for embarrassment in his family.

Lot was righteous in wicked Sodom, but the last record we have of him is one of shame and regret. I believe Satan does his best work at the beginning of a ministry and at the end of it. He came against Christ in strong temptations at the outset of his public ministry, and Satan came hard against the Christ of the cross, leveling all of hell's battalions against him.

Watchfulness Near the End of the Christian Race

So Satan is peculiarly active at the entry and the exit of one's service to God, which having this knowledge should help us, and having these examples should be warnings to us to make us more diligent to stay on our watch and stay near the cross lest we too stumble right at the end of the finish line.

In Hebrews 12 .1 we read, We are foreseen. We also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses. Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.

I don't know about you, friend, but I want to finish well. That should be your priority, and in my little lesson today I'm going to share with us how to have victory so we can finish well. And in this message there is a pattern, there is a problem, there is a promise, and there is a place.

I will elaborate upon each of these heads as we proceed. So get the wax out of your ears and sit up straight and pay attention to what God's word has to say about finishing well. Well let's look at first the pattern as seen in Matthew 16 .24 which states,.

The Pattern of Discipleship and Surrender

Then Jesus said unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. So we have an imperative for following Jesus in a life of discipleship. The word deny sums up the Christian life which is lived via the cross.

The word deny means to give up oneself entirely. This suggests that a surrender must occur, and this would imply a surrender to his lordship. The words take up his cross refers to our self-life, that it must go the way of the cross.

This speaks of the Christ life for the self-life, and this is the branch of all we do is we abide in him. And soon we'll run smack dab into the problem. Romans 7 .19 declares, For the good that I would I do not, but the evil which I would not that I do.

The Struggle with Sin and the Promise of Liberty

This is the struggle of the old man in a new nature, which if not brought under control by the spirit, can breed a life of inconsistency. But a life of consistency can be ours, for we have the promise found in 2 Corinthians 3 .17.

Now the Lord is that spirit, and where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. This can be understood. Where the spirit is Lord, that is where he is given. His true deity and sovereignty, there is liberty.

But this is where the fullness of the Holy Spirit comes in. We receive the Holy Spirit at the time of our conversion, but we soon learn that it is possible for the Holy Spirit to be present without being president, to be dormant without being dominant, to be resident without reigning.

The Holy Spirit can be quenched and grieved by sin in the life of believer. But when sin is exposed and self is executed, the Holy Spirit can fill to overflowing and anoint with authority and power. And this leads us to the place which speaks of a quiet place to have a daily devotional time.

The Quiet Place of Daily Prayer

In Mark 1 .35 we read,. And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out and departed into a solitary place and there prayed. If Jesus rose up early to meet with the Father in a devotional life of prayer, how much more urgent it is for us to do the same.

We too must find a place of quietude where we can approach the throne of grace and spend time with our God in prayer. So it is imperative, friends, that we choose a quiet place to confess our sins and claim the promises of God and crown Jesus Lord of our daily living.

A Prayer of Complete Surrender and Perseverance

Perhaps this following little prayer will help you, friend, as it has helped me. Lord Jesus, I surrender all to you right now. I give you all I am and all I have to all you are for you are Lord. Fill me with your Holy Spirit so I may have victory over sin.

Be Lord of my life and help me to establish a daily quiet time with you. Strengthen my faith and enable me to enter into a deeper, more intimate relationship with you, Jesus. Live your life through me by your Spirit and help me to bring you pleasure on your throne and let me finish well for thee and for your glory.

I ask these things in the strong name of Jesus. Amen.