The Need for Christian Fortitude

Over the next several weeks I will be offering some quotes and thoughts from Jonathan Edwards’s Religious Affections, a work that has greatly impacted my view of conversion. In this first installment Edwards seeks to make the point that our primary battle is within. We must battle, through Christian fortitude, to counteract the false claims of the enemy, embody the affections that would mirror Christ, and seek to live from a right inner disposition. This reminds me of the process outlined by the apostle Paul, wherein we are told to put off our old sinful self, renew our minds in truth, and put on the new self, which is created in after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness (Eph. 4:22-24). We act out of the abundance of our hearts, and so we must guard it with vigilance, and seek to make much of God in both attitude and action.

True Christian fortitude consists in strength of mind, through grace, exerted in two things; in ruling and suppressing the evil and unruly passions and affections of the mind; and in steadfastly and freely exerting and following good affections and dispositions, without being hindered by sinful fear or the opposition of enemies… Though Christian fortitude appears in withstanding and counteracting the enemies that are without us; yet it much more appears in resisting and suppressing the enemies that are within us; because they are our worst and strongest enemies and have greatest advantage against us. The strength of the good soldier of Jesus Christ appears in nothing more than in steadfastly maintaining the holy calm, meekness, sweetness, and benevolence of his mind, amidst all the storms, injuries, strange behaviour, and surprising acts and events of this evil and unreasonable world.

Jeremy Kimble (PhD, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary) is Assistant Professor of Theological Studies at Cedarville University. He is an editor for Credo Magazine as well as the author of That His Spirit May Be Saved: Church Discipline as a Means to Repentance and Perseverance and numerous book reviews. He is married to Rachel and has two children, Hannah and Jonathan.