Philippians 1-2

(August 4, 2015)

                Nothing can ever really obstruct the progress of the Gospel.  I think that we lose sight of that sometimes, and we see the challenges in our lives (and those acting against us) and we lose faith to the point where we believe in the lie that the work of God can be frustrated.  But nothing could be further from the truth, and Paul is perfectly correct in saying that even those things that appear to be working against the Lord are actually furthering the Gospel.

                The best analogy is of an author.  When Dickens wrote A Tale of Two Cities, there was absolutely nothing that Madame Defarge could do that would ultimately frustrate Dickens.  Even should Defarge take on a life of her own (as authors sometimes suggest), Dickens could modify circumstances to see that his literary purposes we achieved because, ultimately, Dickens was not bound by the same constraints of ‘reality’ as was Defarge.

                Why can we see that, and not see the same to be true in our relationship with the Great Author and Finisher of our Faith.  He is writing the book of our lives, and He is not bound in the ways that we are bound.  He knows the end from the beginning and can make all arrangements for us to be blessed by His works.  Our Author’s works cannot be frustrated by us or others any more than Dickens could be frustrated by the works of Madame Defarge.