2 Timothy 1: 5
“An athlete is not crowned unless he competes
according to the rules.”
What do athletes and Christianity have in common? They both have rules that must be
applied and adhered to so they will finish well, and it seems that Paul is
comparing the Christian life to a footrace. The analogy of the Christian in training and the athlete are
a theme through out the New Testament.
The Bible tells us to renew our minds in Romans 12:2, and that does not
happen without hard work, but we are told in 1 Corinthians 9:24, “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but
only one gets the prize? Run in
such a way as to get the prize.” A
wise athlete will always look to a coach or trainer who can help him run
better, connect with the ball better, run a play as it was designed, and in the
Christian life we need that life coach to tell us if we are running our race in
keeping with the will of God, the apostle Paul did this when he went to
Jerusalem with both Barnabas and Titus, and it is recorded in Galatians 2:2.
I’m not a golfer but I find it interesting that a great
golfer can lose his game, and Galatians 5:17 tells us a Christian can also do
the same thing. “You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth?” (Galatians
5:7) In this case, they were told
that they needed Christ plus, and the plus was rules that came from the mind of
men, and added grace and faith plus, and the plus is like putting weights on a
runner, he will not finish the race.
If that is where you are discarding these rules designed to
look good to man, like do not eat pork, or you must read your Bible each day
for 30 minutes and pray for 30 minutes; the implication is that by doing so you
become more acceptable to God, it’s grace plus. Paul gave this counsel to churches at Philippi; “Holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of
Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.” (Philippians 2:16) Paul is saying to follow the
instructions of the manufacturer, read and obey and you will finish the race.
Like the athlete, the Christian has others who are watching
the race, some are cheering for you, but some want you to become discouraged
and to quit the race God has planned for you. As you prepare for your race, keep this Scripture in your
mind; “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a
great cloud of witnesses let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin
that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out
for us.” (Hebrews 12:1)
And you should ask who are these witnesses, people like the person you
work with who is immoral, your children, your wife/husband, the neighbors, and
everyone who comes in contact with you, plus the angels, the rulers, the
authorities, the cosmic powers both good and evil. It is a very large group that is watching your race, and
your cheerleaders are God the Father, His Son, and the Holy Spirit, plus the
angels.
In sales they have a saying “WIIFM” what’s in it for me, so
let me share the “WIIFM” with you.
“Now there is in store for me the crown of
righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that
day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his
appearing.” (2 Timothy
4:8)
If your race has not gone well, if the enemy of your soul
has added weights to your race, if you have lost sight of the goal, my prayer
for you is that you will believe what was written in the manufacturers handbook
about living life on planet earth.
Know that God has a plan for you, it was designed just for you, read
about it in Jeremiah 29:11.
From the Back Porch,
Bob Rice
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