The ‘Weight’ Keeps You Going
Ever seen an old grandfather clock? It has a large, heavy brass pendulum weight that swings back and forth, tick, tock, tick, tock... You might think ‘What a burden for a 100-year-old clock to bear,’ but if you open the glass case and unhook the pendulum you’re making a big mistake. What you need to understand is that while the weight is a burden, it is also ‘the weight’ that keeps the clock going!
Paul said, ‘I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.’ God allows us to experience frustrations and burdens in order to develop our patience and humility and make us more dependent on Him. Unlike us, He knows ‘it’s the weight that keeps us going’.
That’s why: ‘The Lord disciplines those He loves… As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as His own children… our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in His holiness.’ (Hebrews 12:6–11 NLT)
What ‘weight’ is God using to produce the nature of Christ in you? Paul goes on to say, ‘Away then with sinful, earthly things; deaden the evil desires lurking within you; have nothing to do with sexual sin, impurity, lust, and shameful desires; don’t worship the good things of life, for that is idolatry.’ (Colossians 3:5 TLB) In other words, instead of letting your earthly nature rule, ask the Holy Spirit to bring forth new life in you.