The Bible often compares the Christian life to running a race. We find words like endurance and perseverance frequently used in association with it, because the Christian life is not a quick sprint. Believers are in it for the long haul.
Not only is it a race we must run well, but it's also a race that we must finish well. It isn't enough to lead the pack for years, only to fall back in the end.
The apostle Paul wrote to the church at Corinth,
"Don't you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified." (1 Corinthians 9:24–27 NLT).
Paul was saying, "I train. I discipline myself. I guard myself because I am running this race to win."
It's important to note, however, that Christians are not competing with each other in this race. God has given each of us a lane to run in and a course to follow. I am not trying to outrun other Christians. My goal is not to place first but to do well – for the sake of giving my best to the one who gave his best for me.
Along these same lines, Paul said, "Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:13–14 NIV).
Here Paul was giving the picture of a runner, perhaps in the final lap. Every muscle is straining. The runner has the goal in sight and is not going to look back. He is not going to allow himself to be disqualified. He is determined to make it across the finish line.
Speaking to the Ephesian elders, Paul also made this statement: "But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24 NKJV).
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Like Paul, I want to finish my race with joy. I don't want to fall away. I don't want to be defeated or tripped up. I want to cross the finish line.
Sadly, the pages of the Bible are filled with many who did not cross that line – many who had great potential. They started well but ended miserably.
Saul, the first king of Israel, comes to mind. Tall, handsome and brave, he was anointed by God to be the king. The Bible tells us that "the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied" (1 Samuel 10:9). Here was a man with tremendous potential to do good for his nation, but he disobeyed God and allowed pride and paranoia to destroy him. Ultimately he came to a tragic end on the battlefield. Saul quite accurately summed up his own life when he said, "Indeed I have played the fool and erred exceedingly" (1 Samuel 26:21). In the end Saul had no one to blame but himself. Everything was there for him to make a difference, but he threw it away.
Then there was the mighty Samson, who was supernaturally blessed with superhuman strength, able to vanquish his enemies with relative ease. Yet he squandered and wasted his potential in continual compromises, which culminated in his own death. He had his moments of greatness, his moments when God worked through him. But it was Samson's fault that his potential never was fully realized.
Gideon came from humble origins, yet he was handpicked by God to lead the children of Israel into battle. He was mightily used by the Lord to vanquish his enemy, but in the end he lowered his standards and fell into immorality and pride. His beginnings were good. He had his high points. But everything came crashing down in the end.
Like Gideon, King David was from humble origins and became known as the man after God's own heart. He was a good king, and God did use him. But like his predecessor, Saul, he also played the fool and erred exceedingly, almost throwing his whole life away. To some degree, he undid some of the great good he had done. Fortunately in the end, David came to his senses, repented and was restored. But it was not without facing the continual repercussions of sin in his own life. He still paid a price for it. David started well, sputtered and almost was destroyed. Yet in the final stretches of his race, he pulled through.
Then there are those who did finish well. One of them was Caleb. And as we read about him in Joshua 14, we find a recurring phrase associated with him: "wholly followed the LORD." Caleb was looking forward. He wanted fellowship, intimacy and closeness with God. That sustained him through the most difficult times.
When you are in love with Jesus Christ, you will see him for who he is. And as a result, you will see this world for what it is. As that classic hymn says, "Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace."
The Christian life is a race we must run with endurance, and it's important that we finish it. May we all finish well.
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