Excerpted from Life on the Highest Plane – Ruth Paxson (1928):
Revelation 2:25,“But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.”
“Hold Fast.” In these days of growing apostasy the Christian is meeting with very severe test to his faith, love, zeal and fidelity. The man who rejects the foundation truths of God’s Word considers the man who holds them fast an intellectual outcast and consigns him to the slums of scholarship. This is a day in which men are suffering persecution for their faith.
As the shadows deepen and the darkness of the apostasy falls more heavily over Christendom every man who is loyal to his Lord will have to go forth…without the camp, bearing his reproach (Hebrews 13:13). But with a tenacity of faith that nothing can shake; with an ardency of love that nothing can quench; with a warmth of zeal that nothing can dampen; and with a constancy of fidelity that nothing can weaken, the spiritual man will “hold fast” to all that is his in Christ till He comes.
Words of Grace for Strength
In physical battle, a command is often given to hold the line, which may be a geographical position or feature considered to be the most defensible. But as Christians, we are engaged in a spiritual battle, one of greater importance than any earthly, physical battle can ever match. And the position we are commanded to hold fast to is that which we have in Christ.
We are in a battle to hold fast for faith, hold fast withfaith, and to aid in the struggle for the eternal destiny of the non-believers we meet in our daily lives. This battle will continue until the Lord calls each of us home individually; or He comes for all of us at the Rapture of His Church. We are to hold fast where we are (in our faith-walk, in our lives, in our church and community).
Spiritual warfare is not a battle we are unequipped for, nor are we ill-equipped if we prepare for the battle utilizing the tools which our Lord has provided for us. In Ephesians 6:10-20, we find our armor and armament, as well as instruction for their use. Living in these last days we are called to stand for our faith, to stand for the truth, to “Hold Fast” to what we have in Christ.
Increasingly, we will face persecution for taking that stand; intolerance and derision will be the hallmarks of a life lived openly in obedience to the call of Christ to reach a world of non-believers. As the world descends further into the abyss of sinful darkness empowered by Satan and his demonic forces, those who “Hold Fast” until Christ returns will be rewarded for their faithfulness.
We have the Word of God to instruct us; we have the Holy Spirit to guide, teach and empower us; and we have the sure and certain return of Christ to inspire and embolden us to “Hold Fast.” Jesus is coming soon, and we must, by faith, hold fast in obedience. Greater is He who indwells us than he who rules the current world.
We cannot be pried from divine hands, the grasp of the Son surrounded by the grasp of the Father. Nothing can prevail against God, and we can hold fast to that in faith as well. It is the church, the Body of Christ, built on the bedrock of Christ, which prevails against the gates of hell.
Spirit unquenchable, indomitable, unbreakable. It is His, and we are His, so it is ours.
“Hold Fast.”
Dr. Tuck Whitaker and Andy Coticchio
Rafter Cross Ministries