A Devotion from A.W. Tozer
Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that
you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and
successful. JOSHUA 1:8
Probably the most widespread and persistent problem to be found among Christians is the
problem of retarded spiritual progress. Why, after years of Christian profession, do so many
persons find themselves no further along than when they first believed?
Some would try to resolve the difficulty by asserting flatly that such persons were never
saved, that they have never been truly regenerated. They are simply deceived professors who
have stopped short of true conversion.
With a few this may be the answer, and we would accept this explanation as final did we not
know that it is never the deceived professor who laments his lack of spiritual growth, but the
true Christian who has had a real experience of conversion and who is sure that he is this very
moment trusting in Christ for salvation. Uncounted numbers of such believers are among the
disappointed ones who deplore their failure to make progress in the spiritual life.
The causes of retarded growth are many. It would not be accurate to ascribe the trouble to
one single fault. One there is, however, which is so universal that it may easily be the main
cause: failure to give time to the cultivation of the knowledge of God.
The temptation to make our relation to God judicial instead of personal is very strong.
Believing for salvation has these days been reduced to a once-done act that requires no further
attention. The young believer becomes aware of a living Savior to be followed and adored.
The Christian is strong or weak depending upon how closely he has cultivated the knowledge
of God. Paul was anything but an advocate of the once-done, automatic school of Christianity.
He devoted his whole life to the art of knowing Christ.
Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus
my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I
may win Christ…. That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of
his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death…. I press toward the mark for the prize
of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:8, 10, 14)
Progress in the Christian life is exactly equal to the growing knowledge we gain of the triune
God in personal experience. And such experience requires a whole life devoted to it and plenty
of time spent at the holy task of cultivating God. God can be known satisfactorily only as we
devote time to Him. Without meaning to do it we have written our serious fault into our book
titles and gospel songs. “A little talk with Jesus,” we sing, and call our books God’s Minute, or
something else as revealing. The Christian who is satisfied to give God His “minute” and to
“have a little talk with Jesus” is the same one who shows up at the evangelistic service weeping
over his retarded spiritual growth and begging the evangelist to show him the way out of his
difficulty.
A thousand distractions would woo us away from thoughts of God, but if we are wise we will
sternly put them from us and make room for the King and take time to entertain Him. Some
things may be neglected with but little loss to the spiritual life, but to neglect communion with
God is to hurt ourselves where we cannot afford it. God will respond to our efforts to know
Him. The Bible tells us how; it is altogether a matter of how much determination we bring to
the holy task.