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FCF: Pride and selfishness lead us to pursue after things of this world which can never satisfy.
But God sets before us a higher calling, a holy ambition.
Prayer for Illumination
We tend to fall on one end or the other between two extremes: unbridled, earthly ambition and apathy.
In our society, ambition is generally looked upon as a good thing.
Webster defines ambition as “an ardent desire for rank, fame, or power” or as “a desire to achieve a particular end” https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ambition#note-1
Ambitious people are marked by a willingness to sacrifice comfort or other good things in pursuit of a greater goal.
They are not content with the status quo, they want more.
We generally respect highly paid CEO’s and wealthy people and we celebrate the “self-made man” in America.
We teach our children that working hard to get ahead is a good thing and we use phrases like “keep your eye on the prize” to show that temporary sacrifices are worth the long-term gains.
There is some recognition within the wider culture that sometimes people take advantage of others in their pursuit of fame and wealth, but we often downplay the severity of these type of offenses as “cleverness.”
Games like Monopoly celebrate the “whatever it takes to win” mindset.
There’s even a cheater’s version of monopoly now!
The other extreme which plagues our society is apathy.
People who are tempted by apathy gravitate towards laziness and ease.
Comfort is king.
In reality, this can be another form of ambition; other things are sacrificed in pursuit of the goal of comfort and ease.
Everything is evaluated in terms of “will it make my life easier?”
Things which don’t enhance the ease and comfort of my life are downplayed as unimportant or undesirable.
Both of these—earthly ambition and apathy—are unbiblical
They end up sacrificing the things which truly matter.
They pursue after things which are fleeting and temporal, at best, and downright destructive to our souls, at worst.
They idolize the self.
We need Christians with a holy ambition.
What does Paul mean by “ambition” or “striving”?
Paul uses a form of the word φιλοτίμω philotimo, which could be literally translated as “loving honor,” but in reality is much more complex than that.
In fact, a BBC article on the word called it “the Greek word that can’t be translated” http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20170605-the-greek-word-that-cant-be-translated
At least in modern Greek culture, this word has been said by some to be the “highest of all virtues” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philotimo
The word that Paul uses has both positive and negative connotations.
Negatively, it’s used in some non-biblical Greek literature about politicians who travelled around trying to raise support.
In this sense, these politicians were often derided as self-promoting, seeking fame and their own advancement—loving their own honor.
This fits well with the English concept of ambition
But it’s also frequently used in a positive sense.
It can be used in the sense of “doing what’s right” or “integrity.”
Pursuing someone else’s honor, “self-sacrifice;” Paul uses a similar expression in Rom 12:10
Paul uses it three times in the NT, always in a positive sense, to talk about pursuing after some worthy goal:
So, we see that the type of ambition that Paul is describing is very different from the type of ambition that the world praises.
The attitude of holy ambition is Humility.
Vain, worldly ambition says, “Look at me! Look what I did!”
Holy ambition says, “Look at Christ! Look what he did!” (v.16b, 19)
Vain ambition says, “I did this myself.
No one but me can take credit for this.”
Holy ambition says, “God did this through me, and I dare not take credit for this.”
(v.
18)
The motivation of holy ambition is holy discontentment
Earthly ambition is motivated by discontentment with the status quo with respect to money, possessions, status, etc.
Ambition is motivated by a “never satisfied” mentality.
Ambitious people are never content with how much money they have, how big their house(s) is/are, how many cars they have, how powerful they are, etc.
Holy ambition is motivated by a discontentment with one’s spiritual state and the spiritual state of those around them.
They desire a closer relationship with God.
They’re never close enough!
They look around and see those perishing around them and they’re not happy with that!
They want to reach people for Christ.
The object of holy ambition is God’s glory and the salvation of mankind.
Holy ambition has as its goal the exaltation of God, not of self
Paul cites Is 52
The problem is not that Christians in America are too ambitious, it’s that we’re not ambitious enough!
We set our sights on goals that are far too low and unworthy, things like wealth, fame, power, pleasure, and comfort.
But these ambitions are fleeting and unable to satisfy the deepest longing of our souls!
When Jesus speaks to the Samaritan woman at the well, the disciples are baffled at his reply to their offer of food:
When is the last time you were so hungry for doing God’s work that you couldn’t eat?!?!
When is the last time you gave up earthly comforts or pursuits so that you could share the gospel?
What is your ambition?
Paul’s ambition was to preach Christ where Christ had not yet been named.
His ambition led him to make sacrifices
He didn’t even take a wife!
He delayed traveling to places he desired to go to until he could fulfill his obligations where he was (v.
22-24)
He traveled to dangerous places, was thrown in prison, beaten, shipwrecked
But following this holy ambition led him to be able to say “from Jerusalem to Illyricum I have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ” (v.
19)
Awaiting his death, Paul could confidently say:
What is this church’s ambition?
When is the last time this church made an organized effort to reach its community?
What is this church doing to take the gospel to the people who live nearby?
I’m not just talking about inviting people to church, because that doesn’t work anymore like it did in the 1950’s
What’s your church’s ambition?
What is the goal that you’re striving for as a church?
This church, like many others in America, is comfortable.
We don’t have a revival because we’re not willing to have one.
I’m not talking about scheduling something on a calendar.
That’s not how revivals work.
Revivals happen when people in the church start hitting their knees, confessing sins, tearing down idols in their lives, surrendering to the calling of God on their lives, and sharing the gospel with those around them.
When that happens, the door opens wide for the Spirit and he moves!
The hard truth is this—you haven’t had a revival because you don’t want one.
Holy ambition requires a holy discontentment with the spiritual status quo.
They’re uncomfortable.
They force you to deal with your sins.
They force you to deal with other peoples’ sins.
They break you out of your comfort zone.
They might even result in you packing your bags and getting a passport.
Comfort is the enemy of revivals.
What is your holy ambition?
Not everyone is called to “preach Christ where he has not been named”
First off, the number of places where Christ has “not been named” are few and far between, if any.
God calls some to be missionaries, some to be pastors, some to be nurses, etc.
But he calls all of us to participate somehow in his mission to reach the world with the Gospel.
What is your part?
I know of many so-called “Christians” who are unwilling to even consider whether God whether God would have them to serve in full-time ministry.
If you’re not even willing to consider it and pray about it, you ought to seriously question your salvation.
God will not accept a partial offering of your life.
He wants it all.
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