Let's Go On!
A.W. Tozer encourages Christians to move forward in faith, reversing any spiritual retreat and seeking a new and better place in God.
A.W. Tozer emphasizes that the will of God should be the ultimate goal for every believer, urging that any movement towards God is a step forward, including repentance and restitution. He warns against the dangers of spiritual regression, both individually and collectively, and calls for immediate action to reverse any backward steps taken. Tozer encourages self-examination and challenges Christians to reclaim the vibrant spiritual experiences that once defined their faith. He inspires the congregation to leave behind past failures and to boldly pursue a deeper relationship with God, as the promise of a blessed future awaits.
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The will of God is always the proper goal for every one of us. Where God is must be the place of desire. Any motion toward God is a forward motion. Even repentance is not a retreat toward the past but a decided march into a more glorious future. Restitution is not a return to yesterday but a step into a blessed tomorrow. There is such a thing as going backward in the spiritual life. There is such a thing as a retreat from a spiritual position once held by us as individual Christians. And there is such a thing as denominations and missionary societies making a wholesale withdrawal from ground once won at tremendous cost.
If we find that we have gone back, then we should immediately reverse the direction and again go forward.
The great truths of superior spiritual experiences, of high levels of personal living, of rapturous communion with the Three Persons of the Godhead, of victory over the flesh, of the gifts and power of the Spirit: what has happened to these? Once they marked us out and made us peculiar. What about it today? These are fair questions and they demand an answer. If candid self-examination reveals a departure from the green pastures where once our fathers grazed, what then? Let there be no wasting of time in a futile mooning over the past. Rather let us arise and go! Let us go forward to a new and better place in God. The land lies before us. Let us go in and take it.
Sermon Outline
- The Will of God as Our Goal
- The Dangers of Spiritual Retreat
- Reversing Direction and Moving Forward
- Conducting a candid self-examination
- Arising and going forward to a new place in God
Key Quotes
“Any motion toward God is a forward motion.” — A.W. Tozer
“Let us arise and go! Let us go forward to a new and better place in God.” — A.W. Tozer
“The land lies before us. Let us go in and take it.” — A.W. Tozer
Application Points
- Conduct a candid self-examination to identify areas where you may have gone backward in your spiritual life.
- Reverse any negative patterns or habits and move forward in faith.
- Seek a new and better place in God, trusting in His will and guidance.