Tension

Whether we are talking about the family or any other aspect of life, everything centers around the Great Controversy between God and Satan. We are caught in the middle of this cosmic struggle, and no amount of wishing it would just go away or end will change the reality.

1. One of the difficult parts of this journey of life is the constant tension we encounter between everyone involved. Whether it be an unbeliever in God, or a fellow believer, or even a family member, like it or not there is tension in these relationships.
2. Whether you use the word stress, strain, pressure or tension, it is all the same. It is there as a part of the natural sinful life, and it is also there in the Christian life. Many are surprised and confused by this fact.

Ephesians 6:11-12 – Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

2 Timothy 2:3 – Endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 1:30 – We are in this struggle together. You have seen my struggle in the past, and you know that I am still in the midst of it.

• On the other hand, we are told to live worry free with peace, not troubled or afraid.

John 16:33 – I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.

John 14:27 – I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So, don’t be troubled or afraid.

Philippians 4:6-7 – Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.

Steps to Christ, 70 – A life in Christ is a life of restfulness. There may be no ecstasy of feeling, but there should be an abiding, peaceful trust. Your hope is not in yourself; it is in Christ. Your weakness is united to His strength, your ignorance to His wisdom, your frailty to His enduring might. . .Rest in God. He is able to keep that which you have committed to Him. If you will leave yourself in His hands, He will bring you off more than conqueror through Him that has loved you.

HOW CAN THESE TWO CONFLICTING PARTS OF LIFE BOTH BE TRUE?

You will find the answer in a look at the six parts of our life’s journey where we tend to get off track.

SELF CENTERED

• By nature, I am inclined to think and live with a selfish attitude and lifestyle. Life is all about me with the same mindset as Satan:

Isa 14:12-14 – “How you are fallen from heaven, O shining star, son of the morning! You have been thrown down to the earth, you who destroyed the nations of the world. 13 For you said to yourself, ‘I will ascend to heaven and set my throne above God’s stars. I will preside on the mountain of the gods far away in the north. 14 I will climb to the highest heavens and be like the Most High.‘

John 8:44 – For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies.

The Sanctified Life 91 – When the mind has been long permitted to dwell only on earthly things, it is a difficult matter to change the habits of thought. That which the eye sees and the ear hears too often attracts the attention and absorbs the interest. But if we would enter the city of God and look upon Jesus and His glory, we must become accustomed to beholding Him with the eye of faith here. The words and the character of Christ should be often the subject of our thoughts and of our conversation, and each day some time should be especially devoted to prayerful meditation upon these sacred themes.

EASY

• A sinful lifestyle is not against my natural feelings and desires. It is easy to float with the current.
• It is easier than seeking to be like Jesus. However, living a sinful life is still full of tension from within myself, and in all the others around me who are also about themselves.

James 4:1-3 – What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you? 2 You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. 3 And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure.

Darkness Before Dawn 22 – All who indulge sinful traits of character, or willfully cherish a known sin, are inviting the temptations of Satan. They separate themselves from God and from the watch care of His angels; as the evil one presents his deceptions; they are without defense and fall an easy prey.

COMPROMISE

• Look at Elijah and his dramatic confrontation with the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel. When God manifested himself in a dramatic way, the people had to decide who they would serve.
• When faced with difficult decisions, it is easy to seek a compromise that allows me to have one foot in both camps.

Matt 6:24 – No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other.

Desire of Ages 312 – We cannot serve God with a divided heart. Bible religion is not one influence among many others; its influence is to be supreme, pervading and controlling every other. It is not to be like a dash of color brushed here and there upon the canvas, but it is to pervade the whole life, as if the canvas were dipped into the color, until every thread of the fabric were dyed a deep, unfading hue.… He who desires to know the truth must be willing to accept all that it reveals. He can make no compromise with error. To be wavering and halfhearted in allegiance to truth is to choose the darkness of error and satanic delusion.

James 1:5-8 – If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. 6 But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. 7 Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.

DRIFT

Col 1:23 – But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News.

Hebrews 2:1 – So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it.

 “Pearl of Great Price,” November 22, 1898 – Those who are doers of the Word have found the pearl of great price. The truth is as an anchor to the soul, both sure and steadfast. When men drift away from the principles of truth, they always betray sacred trusts. Let every soul, whatever may be his sphere of action, make sure that the truth is implanted in the heart by the power of the Spirit of God.

Counsels for the Church 94 – If you lose confidence in the Testimonies you will drift away from Bible truth. I have been fearful that many would take a questioning, doubting position, and in my distress for your souls I would warn you. How many will heed the warning?

The Review and Herald, December 29, 1896 – Many know so little about their Bibles that they are unsettled in the faith. They remove the old landmarks, and fallacies and winds of doctrine blow them hither and thither. Science, falsely so-called, is wearing away the foundation of Christian principle; and those who once were in the faith drift away from the Bible landmarks, and divorce themselves from God, while still claiming to be His children.

1 Testimony Treasures 573 – Many are now losing their interest and confidence in the truth because they have taken unbelief into close connection with themselves. They breathe the atmosphere of doubt, of questioning, of infidelity. They see and hear unbelief, and finally they cherish it. Some may have the courage to resist these influences, but in many cases their faith is imperceptibly undermined and finally destroyed. Satan has then succeeded in his plans. He has worked through his agents so silently that the barriers of faith and truth have been swept away before the believing ones have had any thought of where they were drifting.

PAIN

• When we commit ourselves to God, and seek to serve Him faithfully, then difficulties come, we often ask WHY? Since He usually does not answer directly, it can be difficult to trust Him.
• It is also true that pain does not seem to be distributed evenly. So, we can begin to doubt Gods fairness in times of trouble.

John 16:33 – I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.

Romans 8:28 – And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

My Life Today 185 – When trials come, remember that they are sent for your good…. they are sent in order that you may receive from the Lord of glory renewed strength and increased humility, so that He may safely bless and support and uphold you. . ..

Our High Calling 316 – He always knows much better than we do, just what is necessary for the good of His children, and He leads us as we would choose to be led if we could discern our own hearts and see our necessities and perils, as God sees them. But finite beings seldom know themselves. They do not understand their own weakness.

Testimonies to Ministers 503 – The dealings of God with His people often appear mysterious. His ways are not our ways, nor His thoughts our thoughts. Many times, His way of dealing is so contrary to our plans and expectations that we are amazed and confounded. We do not understand our perverse natures; and often when we are gratifying self, following our own inclinations, we flatter ourselves that we are carrying out the mind of God.

GOD CENTERED

• God is always seeking to draw us to Him, and we must fight the danger of accepting Him in our minds but not our actions.

Heb 10:35-36 – So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! 36 Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised.

1 Thess. 5:8 – But let us who live in the light be clearheaded, protected by the armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.

Phil 3:20 – But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior.

Rom 2:7 – He will give eternal life to those who keep on doing good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers.

Manuscript 13,1897 – Man has revolted from God and has ever since endeavored to make his scheme of doing as he pleased a success in securing happiness. But whenever he has sought to fill his mind with any other object than God, he has been disappointed. There must be an altogether higher grade of thought, an altogether higher class of studies, and higher objects for you to seek to obtain than you have had in the past. The disorders and imperfections of human words and human characters can be restored only by the Lord Jesus Christ. He, then, should be the object of your contemplation, the theme of your conversation. You must have an altogether higher exercise of thought and action if you would understand the great plan of redemption.

2 Mind, Character, and Personality 642 – Each one possesses in himself the source of his own happiness or wretchedness. If he will, he may rise above the low, sentimental feeling which makes up the experience of many; but so long as he is self-inflated, the Lord can do nothing for him. Satan will present ambitious projects to daze the senses, but we must ever keep before us “the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Crowd all the good works you possibly can into this life. “They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever” (Daniel 12:3).

(All scripture quoted is from the New Living Translation. All other quotations are from Ellen White, except as noted.)