I don’t have any tattoos, but if I did, one would picture a man charging a group of soldiers, with this caption: “Set down my name, Sir.” John Bunyan shows us the scene in his classic allegory, The Pilgrim’s Progress (33–34). I hope Bunyan will tattoo the phrase on your mind as well.

Before Christian stood a palace, “a stately palace, beautiful to behold.” Atop this citadel, the inhabitants walked, clad in gold. How did anyone enter that palace? A little distance from the door sat a scribe, ready to write down anyone’s name who would attempt to enter. But Christian saw that none dared to give their name and approach the door. Outside the palace doors, in fact, stood a great company of men who desired to enter but didn’t. Not one of these many men would give their names and advance.

Why not? In the doorway of that palace stood a small army of soldiers, ready to batter and bludgeon any who drew near. These were “resolved to do the men that would enter what hurt and mischief they could.” The palace itself, any sane man would enter; the palace protected by a small army, only a madman would attempt. And then we see it:

At last, when every man started back for fear of the armed men, Christian saw a man of a very stout countenance come up to the man that sat there to write, saying, “Set down my name, Sir.”

Among his shrinking, retreating peers, one man among them seeks glory, honor, and immortality (Romans 2:6–7). He’ll go forth against the foe, come what may. He tells the scribe, “Write down my name, Sir. Sign me up.”

Once his name was recorded, Christian “saw the man draw his sword, and put a helmet upon his head, and rush toward the door upon the armed men, who laid upon him with deadly force: but the man, not at all discouraged, fell to cutting and hacking most fiercely.” Opposed but undiscouraged, he cuts and hacks most fiercely.

After he had received and given many wounds to those that attempted to keep him out, he cut his way through them all, and pressed forward into the palace, at which there was a pleasant voice heard from those that were within, even of those that walked upon the top of the palace, saying —

“Come in, come in;Eternal glory thou shalt win.”

So he went in, and was clothed with such garments as they.

At this episode, Christian simply smiles and asks for no further explanation of the Interpreter; he knows the meaning already.

Unused Weapons

This man of stout countenance captures a Christian’s holy warfare. This is a reprise of Jonathan storming the Philistines with only his armor-bearer, Samson picking up his jawbone against a thousand men, David requesting to fight the blaspheming giant, Paul foretelling that persecution awaits him yet declaring, “none of these things move me” (Acts 20:24 NKJV), and our Lord Jesus, facing an army in the garden of Gethsemane, and, “knowing all that would happen to him, came forward and said to them, ‘Whom do you seek?’” (John 18:4).

“Church Militant, she has been called in ages past; what is her name now?”

In Christian’s smile, we see Bunyan’s — the man who himself wrote this scene from prison for refusing to cease preaching. For many today, Christianity is conceived of solely as a soft affair, a gentle boat ride, a walk through the meadow. We tour ancient strongholds, but do not mount them. Few mistake our discipline, zeal, or witness as having to do with a militant, advancing faith. Few would depict the way to heaven as fighting through a group of soldiers.

Surely, the factors for this are many. Perhaps our swords have turned prematurely into plowshares, our arrows to bonfire sticks, because we have not faced the persecution that sent our forefathers to the front lines. Or perhaps the “muscular Christianity” movement was onto something, and the feminization of our faith has come on the heels (or in the heels) of the Industrial Revolution. Maybe David Wells is right to say we have been blunted by a pluralistic society, leaving behind a democratized faith — polite, not prophetic. Church Militant, she has been called in ages past; what is her name now?

Take Heaven by Force

Yet for all of that, the Christian life is inescapably one of war. He who would set down his name and lay siege to heaven must know he charges upon real enemies who possess real hatred, and take up real weapons. The enemy undertakes to be your undertaker. At baptism, the Christian renounces the devil, and pledges total allegiance to King Jesus. That is, he declares war. You must “cut your way through them all,” giving and receiving many wounds, to enter the real glory. In the words of Thomas Watson,

Heaven is inherited by the violent. Our life is military. Christ is our Captain, the gospel is the banner, the graces are our spiritual artillery, and heaven is only taken in a forcible way. (Heaven Taken by Storm, 3)

Heaven must be fought for. Both men and women must learn the masculine instinct to persevere to heaven. Paul does not simply suggest it; he commands it: “Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong” (1 Corinthians 16:13). The whole church — full of men, women, and children — must act like men and be strong.

Be strong in the Lord and the strength of his might, Christian. Resist the devil, and he will flee. Smother temptation in its crib. Whet your sword. Awaken the hunt for souls. Prepare your mind for action. Quit playing footsie with the world. Death remains for the flippant. Don’t look so perplexed at tribulation as if something strange were happening — but rebut, renounce, defy, fight back, following the risen Christ who split the sepulcher asunder. Here, unceasing warfare; there, unceasing rest. Here, under siege; there, overjoyed. Here, cutting and hacking; there, a crown and homeland.

Taking Names

The true Christ tells us to take up our crosses, cut off limbs, die daily, that we might rise and reign with him in a new world. Those who would dress in gold and walk atop this palace enter through the doorway of many tribulations (Acts 14:22). “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). If they hated him, they will hate us. Jesus tells us to count the cost — of going and of not going.

We follow no squeamish soldier. Christ, in the truest sense, said, “Father, set down my name. I will charge the fray of devils, the furnace of wrath, for them.” His name was the only that could be set down for sinners: “You shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21).

Watch him ride forth — alone. Down, down, down into an animal’s stable. Down, down, down into the muck of his ruined world. There, see him take off his helmet, lay down his sword, and charge forth into that great hoard. Oh, with what deadly force did they assail him! How they beat him beyond human semblance, how they mocked him who gave them tongues, how they chopped mercilessly at the stump of Jesse. Down, down, down into the grave.

But see how he cut and hacked his way through. He slashed the throat of death, crushed the serpent’s skull, and returned with the head of that Goliath who mocked his Israel. He won a gold robe for himself and for others — all who would take up their swords, wear his armor, and follow after him.

The world needs this Christ, not the pretend one of low expectations and groveling suggestions.

Men are ready for a Leader who will unhesitatingly claim the last ounce of his followers’ courage and fidelity. . . . This is no time to be offering a reduced, milk-and-water religion. Far too often the world has been presented with a mild and undemanding half-Christianity. The Gospel has been emasculated long enough. Preach Christ today in the total challenge of His high, imperious claim. Some will be scared, and some offended: but some, and they the most worth winning, will kneel in homage at His feet. (James Stewart, Heralds of God, 26–27)

Enter the Fray

Men and women and children, resolve now, God helping you: “Set down my name, sir!” Knowing the outcome of the conflict, and that we will live to partake of the spoils, how valiant should we be? Hear the song in this day of grace:

Come in, come in;Eternal glory thou shalt win.

Then, live as you would if you could travel back to earth from heaven. Thomas Watson again:

Consider then, seriously, the more violent we are for heaven and the more work we do for God, the greater will be our reward. The hotter our zeal, the brighter our crown. Could we hear the blessed souls departed speaking to us from heaven, sure thus they would say, “Were we to leave heaven a while and to dwell on the earth again, we would do God a thousand times more service than ever we have done. We would pray with more life, act with more zeal; for now we see, the more hath been our labor, the more astonishing is our joy and the more flourishing our crown. (78–79)

Heaven’s palace, any sane man would enter; heaven’s palace surrounded by an army of tribulations, only a madman would attempt — apart from grace. But all who fight and die faithfully behind Christ will outlive the conflict, and be exalted to high towers to shine with immortality in the kingdom of their Father. And such will sing the more joyfully because we knew what sorrow was. Brighter will be the Day, sweeter the rest, higher the joy because we fell and fought and cried. The soldier’s warfare gives way to the soldier’s triumph. Brother and sister, set down your name.

Audio Transcript

It’s the polar opposite of Christ. It’s the polar opposite of the holy life. Selfishness. “Selfishness,” Spurgeon once said, “is as foreign to Christianity as darkness to light.” The darkness of self-centeredness is the opposite of Christ and his gospel, and it undermines every aim in the Christian life. Self-defeating selfishness is still in us. We want to shed it. We must fight it. And that leads to today’s email. “Pastor John, I need your help in overcoming my selfishness. I’m a seventeen-year-old male. People around me, people I love and people who love me — especially my girlfriend — keep saying that I am selfish. I want to become selfless. The problem keeps coming back when I think I’m doing a good job being selfless. I’m sure I am unwilling and just don’t want to admit it. How can I learn to become a selfless young man?”

Well, not knowing you personally makes it a little bit awkward to give specific counsel. So I think the first thing I really should say is that it would probably be wise for you to seek out a mature Christian outside that circle that you’re talking about — perhaps your pastor or youth leader — and share with them some of the specifics of what people are saying that puzzle you, and get their insight into your heart as they know you personally.

Keep in mind that the apostle Paul said, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom” (Colossians 3:16). That’s what you want. You want someone who’s rich in biblical wisdom, who is full of the word of Christ, who can admonish you close at hand. That’s what I can’t do. I have to speak from a distance in generalities. You need somebody who knows you — full of biblical wisdom, full of courage to speak the truth. So, that’s my first counsel. But let me try to say some general things that I hope might help.

Many-Headed Monster

Selfishness is a many-headed monster. It is, in a sense, the most destructive disease of the human soul. Absolutely nobody on this planet except for Jesus escapes the disease of selfishness. The heads of this monster are infinitely diverse — and I know that the word infinitely is an overstatement. I know that. But the point is the variety of manifestations of selfishness are endless in this life. You cut off one head and another grows up.

You might be a couch potato that is always expecting others to serve you your pizza, or you might be endlessly serving couch potatoes, deeply desiring that they make much of you for your service.

“Selfishness is a many-headed monster. It is, in a sense, the most destructive disease of the human soul.”

You might be the most prayerful person in your group, and you may have never confessed personal sin in your public prayers in that group and asked for forgiveness because you don’t want to reveal that part of yourself.

You may call continual attention to the injustices of the world and how others are being mistreated, but others can tell by looking at you that there’s a good deal of virtue signaling going on there as you show how discerning you are and how morally upright you are that you can spot such injustices.

There’s just no end to the subtleties of selfishness in all of us, not just a seventeen-year-old struggling with his own heart.

Face the Monster

We must fight this monster on two fronts. Both are biblical, and the second is dominant — should be dominant, let’s say. But they’re both right, good, necessary.

The first is to face the monster. Stare it down, own it, be brokenhearted by it. Hate it. Declare war on it. Kill it. That’s what Paul meant in Colossians 3:5 when he said, “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you” — and one of the things he mentions is “evil desire,” like selfishness.

That would include praying against it, spotting its first signs and resisting them, claiming your new position of acceptance and justification in Christ and saying, “I am a new creation. This ugly monster is not who I am. That’s not my true identity,” and then renouncing the temptation as alien to your soul, which it is. It is alien to your soul in Christ Jesus.

Now, that’s the first front — that direct, assailing, negative, killing fight that we must take up every day because that’s what the Bible says we should do.

Be Full of Christ

The second front that we fight on is filling our minds and hearts with so much of Christ that the selfish impulses are defeated by being suffocated. They don’t have room in your heart. They can’t breathe there. There’s too much Christ. They die, not mainly because of a direct attack, but because something has taken their place — namely, humble, thankful love for Christ.

So, the analogy is a jar full of toxic fumes. Now, what would be the best way to get those fumes out of the jar? You could attack them directly by attaching a vacuum and sucking them out — or more simply, more effectively, you could pour fresh, clean water into the jar and force all the toxic fumes out by replacing them.

This is how sins are overcome most effectively. Our soul is the jar, selfishness is the toxic fumes, and Christ is the water that pushes it out — specifically, Christ experienced in our knowledge of Christ, in our love for Christ, in our trust in Christ. The experienced Christ — present, reigning, ruling, taking up residence in our lives, fully in fellowship — pushes it out. In other words, the best way to fight selfishness is not to think about selfishness, but to think about Christ, and specifically to think about what a great Savior he is, what a great counselor he is, a great friend, a great Lord, sustainer, champion.

“The best way to fight selfishness is not to think about selfishness, but to think about Christ.”

If our lives, our minds, our hearts are overflowing with wonder at the greatness and the beauty and the worth of Christ, and the immeasurable value of what he’s done for us, it is not likely that we will be perceived as selfish. Selfish people are preoccupied with themselves and not with Christ. They have a longing that they be recognized, made much of, focused on, instead of Christ being recognized, made much of, focused on.

Consider Him

This is a matter of authentic, heartfelt emotion. You can’t produce this like a show. The goal is to feel — truly feel — the preciousness of Christ. That’s the goal. It has to be real. This is what Paul meant when he said, “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Philippians 3:8). That’s the key. That was not a show for Paul. He wasn’t putting on airs. He was expressing the deepest affections of his heart. “I love Jesus Christ more than anything.”

So, the strategy for overcoming selfishness is Hebrews 3:1, “Consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession.” Or Hebrews 12:3, “Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself.” This is the work of a lifetime, not the work of a moment — every day, focusing our mind’s attention and our heart’s affection on Christ and the kind of person he is and the greatness of the work that he has done.

I think Jesus had the danger of selfishness in mind when he told his disciples, who had just experienced great victories over Satan, that they should not rejoice in this, but that their “names are written in heaven” (Luke 10:20). In other words, it’s more effective in overcoming sin that we’d be amazed that we’re saved than that we’re successful — even successful by God’s power. You would think ministry success is a good thing to rejoice in, but Jesus says it’s even more important to rejoice that you know Christ, rejoice that you have a relationship with Jesus — that you spend time with him now, and you will spend eternity with him later.

Happiness with Open Arms

Let me say one more thing quickly before we stop. Since Jesus said to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, it’s clear that Jesus acknowledges there is a proper self-love. This is not self-esteem. This is doing what will bring infinite and eternal joy to your own soul. That’s self-love — doing what will bring infinite and eternal joy to your own soul.

And that’s what Jesus offers us. And then Jesus makes our desire for our own eternal happiness the measure of our desire for other people’s happiness, which is very radical. “Love your neighbor as [you love] yourself” (Matthew 22:39). Are you pursuing your own happiness? Yes you are. You are. Then make that the measure of your pursuit of other people’s happiness — other people’s good.

So, I would simply add this to your strategy against selfishness. Whenever you pursue something for yourself, which you will, you must — you eat, you sleep, you get exercise — ask this: “Do I have an effective desire in my heart that others would share with me in this temporal or eternal good and happiness?” It’s not selfish to seek your own happiness if part of — essential to — your own happiness is the sincere desire to include others in it.

Audio Transcript

We talked about holiness and good works last time, and why our holy deeds are not filthy rags. That’s a common myth that needs to die. And we’re back on the topic of purpose, looking at what it means to be successful in our 9-to-5 jobs. That’s because today in our Bible-reading plan we read Proverbs 16:3 together: “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.” That makes me think about work. And I know many of you listen to this podcast on your drive in to work in the morning, so this seems especially relevant right now. We’ve focused several podcast episodes on careers and calling, overworking, laziness, purpose and personal productivity — all those things we’ve covered, and for that see the APJ book on pages 67–94.

We get so many questions here because we don’t want to waste our lives. And that means we don’t want to waste our jobs. We invest so much of our lives at work, and it’s a place to pursue excellence. But why? And how? To what level? What does success look like here, on the jobsite and in the office? The question to get us started is from Dylan. “Hello, Pastor John. In Colossians 3:22–24, Paul exhorts his readers to ‘work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.’ Does this mean that any work not done in excellence is sinful? And how do we apply God’s view of work to cleaning our house, writing a paper for school, or working a 9-to-5 job? I have been feeling guilty about the way I handle these things for months now, and I’m not sure if I’m just being lazy, self-righteous, or am I disobeying the Lord?”

The first thing, with regard to his guilt, or feeling guilty, is that the Bible handles guilt in two ways — and both are very important, not just one. One is the blood of Jesus that covers all our sin, including how we do our work (and none of us does our work as well as we could; we’re always falling short of the ideal). One is the blood of Jesus that cancels our guilt. And the other is to resolve to walk and work faithfully before the Lord in the freedom of that forgiveness.

If we try to use the blood of Jesus as a free pass to walk in sin, our conscience will rise up and protest, thank God. And if we try to walk in faithfulness and obedience without relying on the blood of Jesus for forgiveness and enablement, we will either fail in despair or we will look like we succeed and become proud. It’s the two together — the blood of Jesus and the resolve of walking and working faithfully, obediently — that’s the key to the peaceful life of being forgiven before God and being vigilant over our hearts and minds as we go about our daily tasks.

So, what is God’s will for how we should do our ordinary work? And then in particular, what does working “as for the Lord” mean in Colossians 3:23? Let’s get the bigger picture first.

Before the Face of God

In the Bible, God makes a total, absolute claim on our lives, all of our lives — including all of our work of whatever kind. Everything in our lives is to be done before the face of God — in reliance upon God’s grace, according to God’s guidance, for God’s glory.

Listen to these amazing passages. This is Colossians 3:17: “Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Isn’t that amazing? Every word, every deed “in the name of the Lord Jesus.” Or 1 Corinthians 10:31: “Whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” Or Proverbs 3:5–6: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways” — all your ways — “acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” Or Proverbs 16:3: “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.” Or one of my favorites, from Romans 14 (just because it’s so amazingly sweeping in calling us to live Godward lives):

The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living. (Romans 14:6–9)

Amazing. I love it. Oh, how I want to live to the Lord, before the Lord, always with reference to the Lord. All those texts have one basic message: We belong to God. We are not our own. Everything we do, from morning till night, is to be done in a Godward way, before his face — in reliance on his grace, guided by his will, aiming to make him look magnificent and glorious as our all-satisfying treasure. That’s what work is for. That’s what all of life is for.

And I don’t know whether Dylan knows my book Don’t Waste Your Life, but there’s a chapter called “Making Much of Christ from 8 to 5,” which tries to grapple with, How do you go about doing your daily work so as not to waste what it’s for?

How Do We Work?

Now, just a few words about Colossians 3. Here’s the text that Dylan is exercised about. It’s got the phrase in it, “work . . . as for the Lord and not for men.” It goes like this: “Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord.” As for the Lord. So, work “as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ” (Colossians 3:22–24).

“Everything we do, from morning till night, is to be done in a Godward way, before his face.”

So, work “as for the Lord.” And Paul modifies this command in five ways so we can know — there’s not much doubt here — how Paul thinks about this. There are five modifiers to what he means by “as for the Lord.”

1. Not to be done with “eye-service,” as men-pleasers: That is, you’re not just angling to impress others when you do your work. God, not others, is the one you have in view. You’re working in a Godward way first, not a manward way.

2. The opposite of eye-service is “sincerity,” he says. In other words, you really mean the good that your work is aiming to do. The work is not to impress others. The work is what it is. It’s for the good of others.

3. “Fearing the Lord”: in other words, fearing displeasing the Lord — having a reverential desire to please the Lord in the way you do your work.

4. Working “heartily”: literally “from the soul” — that is, not half-heartedly but putting your whole self into it.

5. Expecting a great reward from the Lord: Even if man gives you nothing for it, that doesn’t matter in the end. What matters in the end is that you’re going to get totally overabundance — a poured-down, pressed-together, overflowing-in-your-lap reward from the Lord.

Now, all five of those guidelines for how we do our work for the Lord are given to us not because the Lord needs our work. He doesn’t. Acts 17:25: “[God is not] served by human hands, as though he needed anything.” God doesn’t need our work. That’s not the point. Paul gave us these instructions because this will bring the greatest joy to us when we work this way, and it will show that God is our greatest treasure.