“When the going gets tough, the tough get going…”

Few sayings better sum up the need to fight through adversity. To Christians, this means not only enduring, but thriving. We must be willing to fight for what we want—especially the Kingdom of God! This is not a life for the faint of heart.

Jesus Christ instructed: “Resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also” (Matt. 5:39). While by no means instruction to become a glutton for punishment or a doormat, this attitude in the face of difficulty can be mistaken for pacifism, believing war and violence are never the answer. Yet the same Christ said, “If My kingdom were of this world, then would My servants fight” (John 18:36).

As God’s people, we are training to wield tremendous power—the same power exhibited by the Father, called the Lord of Hosts (Armies), and by Christ Himself, the Captain of the Lord’s Host. Both Beings presently in the Godhead exercise terrifying force when necessary.

We daily seek to be like our Father and elder brother in every way. But should we develop this facet of God’s character? If so, how can we righteously do so?

The answer comes in Matthew 11:12, where Jesus said something few understand: “From the days of John the Baptist until now the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.”

What does this mean?

The first half of the verse has to do with persecution. Through the millennia, many destined for the Kingdom of Heaven have indeed suffered great violence. John the Baptist himself was beheaded. While it is incredibly rare for anyone today to be persecuted to the point of bloodshed, we all still face spiritual difficulties and setbacks. To combat this, we must be “violent,” which here means “a forcer” and “energetic.”

“Take it by force” simply means “to seize.” Thayer’s Greek Lexicon bolsters the definition, rendering it “to seize, carry off by force…to seize on,” and to “claim for oneself eagerly.”

Put this all together. We are to be people who righteously force outcomes—who energetically “make it happen”—who violently seize every opportunity—and eagerly claim what God has promised for us.

We have been offered the most precious prize available: entrance into God’s Kingdom. Our Father expects us to pursue it with the energy and force such a prize demands!

Thomas Paine rallied Americans to the cause of independence ahead of the Revolutionary War by writing: “The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly; it is dearness only that gives everything its value. I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress and grow.”

This is deeply applicable to the Christian, whose struggle is far greater than that of physical wars—and the reward of victory incomparable!

Active Assault

Men will do almost anything for riches, fame and glory. In the mid-1800s, gold miners staked everything they had on moving west in pursuit of rare metals. They “feverishly” worked exhausting hours—many dying in the pursuit, hence the term “gold fever.”

Professional athletes endure grueling training in pursuit of championships and titles. Devastating, career-ending injuries are risks they are willing to take. Many “live” for their sport, and the tenacity witnessed on the field, track or in the ring makes it evident.

They work hard, devoting countless hours and energy to their goals. As the legendary football coach Vince Lombardi put it: “The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.” He also said, “The man on top of the mountain didn’t fall there!”

Only with great sacrifice and effort comes great reward.

The apostle Paul understood how effective sports analogies are. He paralleled the Christian life to various brutal physical endeavors.

In I Corinthians 9:24, he likened life to a race, asking, “Know you not that they which run in a race run all, but one receives the prize? So run, that you may obtain.”

As the saying goes, “No one remembers second place.” As Christians, we are not competing against our brethren or any other human beings. We are in a race with ourselves. God wants to see if we will finish it—if we will run and win.

If you have been in the Church for any length of time, you know this life is sometimes very difficult. It can be easy to slow down or start walking, as some distance runners do. Some even quit the race entirely!

When discouragement strikes—no matter the situation—we must determine to move forward. Fix your mind on the “prize”—the Kingdom of God—and use spiritual force to seize it. As Paul counseled in Romans 12:12, we should be “rejoicing in hope,” “patient in tribulation” and “continuing instant in prayer.”

Only by daily partaking of “the words of eternal life” (John 6:68) and trusting God to guide our decisions can we effectively move closer to the finish line. Those who have run cross-country races know terrain varies from race to race. Sometimes, conditions are tough.

To parallel the spiritual, there are some circumstances where the race becomes too difficult and requires fasting (Matt. 17:21). Going without food and water will help us draw closer to God and rely on His power to continue forward.

Continuing in I Corinthians 9:25, Paul adds: “And every man that strives for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.”

Strong’s defines “strives for the mastery” as “to struggle, literally (to compete for a prize), figuratively (to contend with an adversary), or generally (to endeavor to accomplish something).” This requires careful decision-making. It requires temperance, which is exercising self-restraint.

While we will not make every decision perfectly, we can all learn from our mistakes and continue to grow in this area.

In verses 26-27, Paul finishes with the running analogy and moves on to fighting: “I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beats the air: but I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.”

Paul, a spiritually violent Christian, landed his punches. When he threw a jab, cross or hook, he connected. When he uppercutted his spiritual problems, he went for the knockout. He knew that even as an apostle with an incredible spiritual resume, he had to stay on top of his own life. Even he could fall away if he did not exercise great care.

When we battle problems, we must employ this kind of tenacity. If struggling with a sin, be violent! Do not take a ho-hum approach—determine to employ energy and force. If we take our problems seriously and humbly ask God for help, He will back us up.

This is the attitude Jesus spoke of when He instructed: “Wherefore if your hand or your foot offend you, cut them off, and cast them from you: it is better for you to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet to be cast into everlasting fire. And if your eye offend you, pluck it out, and cast it from you: it is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire” (Matt. 18:8-9).

While by no means is this a command to literally sever or destroy body parts, the intensity with which we are to tackle problems cannot be missed. Avoid circumstances that lead to sin at all costs. You know your weaknesses and where you must be extra vigilant.

Never Surrender!

Return to Christ’s statement in Matthew 11:12: “The Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence.” While we are not being hunted pillar to post, imprisoned, tortured or executed like some of our forerunners, our lives are not easy.

Keeping the Sabbath and Holy Days, our food choices and our unwillingness to partake in sinful behavior makes us “stick out like sore thumbs.” Paul counseled Timothy, “You therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ” (II Tim. 2:3).

Enduring hardness requires resisting the pulls of society around us. Temptations abound. Distractions are everywhere, seeking to pull us off course.

Continuing, Paul explained, “No man that wars entangles himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please Him who has chosen him to be a soldier” (vs. 4).

We have been “chosen” by God the Father to be soldiers. He knows we can make it! But if we become too wrapped up in what Christ called “the cares of this life” (Luke 21:34), we deviate from the road to the Kingdom of God. It is helpful to periodically—maybe each Sabbath—pull back and take stock of the arc of our lives from this perspective. It can be easy to get caught up in the day-to-day grind. If you find this is happening to you, redouble your efforts.

If you see yourself growing weary, ask God to show you places you may have moved away from His Law. II Timothy 2:5 shows us there is only one path to the Kingdom: “And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.”

The New Living Translation puts it this way: “And athletes cannot win the prize unless they follow the rules.”

We must follow God’s Law to ensure victory.

Even so, sometimes conversion can feel like a wrestling match. We battle foes at every turn—often unseen. Satan and his demons, as well as the pulls of this world, constantly conspire with our human nature.

In Ephesians 6, the same Paul counseled, “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might” (vs. 10).

Only by drawing close to God and using the strength He provides can we hope to win on the spiritual wrestling mat.

Verses 11-12 continue: “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”

This all-out fight can come from every corner.

A Different Type of Wrestling

In a very different way, we also have a wrestling match with God Himself! While we must always do so with the greatest respect, God expects us to come to Him with energy and an earnest desire to pursue Him.

Philippians 2:12-13 instructs us to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.”

Only God can supply us with the strength required to work out—meaning “work fully, accomplish, finish” our salvation. He works in us—meaning to be “active” and “efficient”—to make this possible!

But this involves carefully seeking Him.

Notice how Jacob refused to quit when wrestling with God: “And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a Man with him until the breaking of the day. And when He [the Man] saw that He prevailed not against him [Jacob], He touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob’s thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with Him” (Gen. 32:24-25).

Imagine wrestling with God—with a dislocated hip!

“And He said, Let me go, for the day breaks. And he said, I will not let You go, except You bless me. And He said unto him, What is your name? And he said, Jacob. And He said, your name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince have you power with God and with men, and have prevailed” (vs. 26-28).

While this was a circumstance unique to Jacob, the lesson for us is to stick with it—no matter how hard the path! We must never fall to pieces and quit.

This is what Jesus meant in Luke 18:1 when He explained to the disciples that “men ought always to pray, and not to faint”! In an earlier parable in Luke 11:8, He commended a man for his “importunity,” which Oxford Dictionary defines as “persistence, especially to the point of annoyance.”

Jesus concluded the parable by explaining, “And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For everyone that asks receives; and he that seeks finds; and to him that knocks it shall be opened” (vs. 9-10).

It was in this context that Jesus further explained something specific that we must regularly and earnestly ask God for: “If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him?” (vs. 11-13).

God will not tire of hearing from us. He wants to hear our concerns—our hopes—our dreams. He is eagerly listening.

When we fall short, the Father is quick to forgive. As Solomon explained, “A just man falls seven times, and rises up again…” (Prov. 24:16).

Christians do not stay down! We keep on keeping on, no matter the circumstances, no matter how bruised a battle may have us. While we may lose individual battles, our focus must be on the overall war. The latter half of verse 16 explains it is the wicked who fall and remain in sin.

“Violent” Christians never give up. In our all-out fight for the Kingdom of God, we must employ every tactic and tool available. Entering the Kingdom is not a passive endeavor.

Let’s move forward and “take it by force”!