Are You Discouraged? Why?
By Uriah Smith
In one of the familiar hymns which we so often sing, occur these words:—
“Yet let nothing spoil your peace;
Christ shall also conquer these.” This language is spoken of those “foes within” which so often “betray us into sin.” How will Christ conquer these? He will in the end, by an exertion of his own almighty power, destroy them, by destroying death and him that hath the power of death, that is the devil, the author of all those evil propensities by which men are drawn away and enticed. While it is a great source of encouragement to know that this will be so in the future, and the promise is one which is most precious and very full of comfort, its practical benefits, so far as they affect our present circumstances, are at best but indirect. The trouble we have with these foes is now; and the question with us is, is there any way in which they are conquered for us in the present tense? Yes, there is a sense in which Christ proposes to conquer these foes for us even now. He does not do this independently of any action on our part, but he conquers them by giving us the strength we need to overcome them. So while it is true that our inward foes are not conquered for us absolutely without our co-operation, while we cannot stand idly by and have them brought and thrown lifeless at our feet, it is nevertheless true that we are not required to prosecute this warfare at our own charges, nor to depend for final victory on our own strength. Our Lord has made provision for every emergency. He has arranged to supply every want, and told us to whom to apply in every time of need. Yet with all this we find some at times giving away to discouragement, and saying that they might as well give up the struggle; for they cannot accomplish the labor they have to perform, nor successfully prosecute the warfare in which they are engaged. If we had to depend on our own resources, we might well feel and talk and act thus; but when we consider that all needed help is promised us from on high, this puts altogether a different complexion on the matter. With this fact in view, those who yield to discouragement, and propose thereupon to cease their efforts to run the Christian race, do one of three things: They disbelieve the Lord’s promise to give them help when needed, or they insult his majesty by acting on the supposition that all the help he can impart is insufficient to meet the necessities of the case, or they despise their birthright by proclaiming that they care nothing for the object to be gained nor for the means by which to gain it. How is this treating the Lord? Take an illustration: A person of wealth and ability takes another person into his employ. He assigns him a certain piece of work to perform. He gives him at the outset minute instructions, and informs him that at certain stages of the work it will be necessary for him to incur considerable expense, and at other times it will be necessary to bring to bear great power in order to accomplish certain operations. But he tells him to come right to him whenever any expense is incurred, for he has ample funds, and will supply all that may be needed; and when power is demanded he has all the mechanical contrivances and other means necessary to furnish it, and will produce them as occasion requires. With matters thus arranged the man commences the work. Soon he incurs some expense, and thrusts his hand into his own pockets, and finds nothing to meet it. He comes to a hard place in the job, takes hold to exert what little strength he can, personally, and finds he can move nothing. Then he sits down and says, “I am discouraged. Here is expense that I cannot meet, and work to do that I am not able to perform. It’s no use trying. I will give it all up.” What would his employer think of such service? Would he not say to him somewhat sharply, “What do you mean? Did I not tell you to come to me whenever funds were required and I would furnish them? And did I not tell you that for all the hard places, I had the means to produce the necessary power, and would furnish them at call? Do you doubt my word? Do you distrust my ability to meet my pledges? If so, I prefer some other person in your place who will show me more confidence and respect.” Just in this way does every discouraged Christian treat the Lord. What right had the man in the illustration to become discouraged and treat his employer as he did? What right has the Christian to act exactly thus toward the Lord of glory? Our short-comings and failures are owing to the fact that we try to meet the expense out of our own pocket, and carry on the work in our own strength. The fault is not with the Lord, nor with his plan. The plan is marked throughout with infinite wisdom, and the armory of Heaven is full of weapons, all placed at our disposal through the key of faith and the channel of prayer. Let there be no talk of discouragement nor of giving up the struggle. But let there be a going to the Fountain for life and vigor; let there be appeals to the Wise for wisdom, to the Strong for strength. The Lord has the means we need, even the gold tried in the fire; he has the clothing we must procure, the white raiment; he has the wisdom, the eye-salve with which he counsels us to anoint our eyes that we may see. With the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength; and if we are his children, and work in, the way he directs, that strength is ours.