Measuring Success
Revelation 3:7–13
Yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. Revelation 3:8

How do you measure success as a Christian? The investment firm of Morgan Stanley Dean Witter measures success “one investor at a time.” Their customers measure success by the return on their portfolios. Others measure success by the size of their houses, by what they pay for their cars, or by their bank accounts. How should a Christian measure success? One answer is Jesus’s commendation of the church in Philadelphia: “You have kept my word and have not denied my name.” This is the only real measure of success in the Christian life. The church in Philadelphia was not famous. It was not large or rich or prominent. It had only a small amount of strength. But because it had kept Christ’s word and had not denied his name, Christ’s letter to the church is one of unqualified commendation.

But there is another way of looking at the question. Jesus goes on to say to the church in verse 11: “Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” How does a Christian measure success? It is to be still standing when the battles of life are over or when Jesus comes.

I have always remembered a line from the first of the many popular Rocky movies. Because of a promotional fluke, Rocky Balboa has come out of oblivion by being given a chance to fight the heavyweight champion of the world, Apollo Creed. No one thinks Rocky has a chance, and he doesn’t really, though he loses the fight in the end only by a close decision. But Rocky takes the challenge seriously and goes into rigorous training. He gives it everything he has. Yet as the day of the fight draws near, in a reflective mood, he confides to his girlfriend, Adrian: “There’s no way I can beat Apollo Creed. I just want to go the distance.” He meant he just wanted to last the fifteen rounds.

That is not a bad approach for Christians. How do you measure success? One way is just to go the distance. Jesus Christ says, “Hold on! Don’t give up! Don’t let anyone take your crown! And remember, I am coming soon!” Can you remember that? Can you hang on? Jesus doesn’t ask for heroics. He just wants those who are his to persevere. But to those who do persevere, who endure to the end, he promises his own new name, the name of a conqueror, and a crown of glory that will never tarnish or be snatched away.

Taken from Come to the Waters by James Boice ISBN 9798887790954 used with permission from P&R Publishing, Phillipsburg NJ 08865

Scripture quotations are from the ESV (the Holy Bible English Standard Version) copyright 2001 by Crossway a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. All rights reserved.