The Fatal Race

1 Corinthians 9:24-27

“Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown.  Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.” NKJV

We are all in the race of life. Our motivation and goals may be different. How we run the race may vary. Some may be low achievers and others work-a-holics, some gifted and others not so gifted. But, we are all in the race. The Apostle Paul brings out several key issues about the race we are running.

One of the key issues about the race is, “What are you racing for?” Are you racing for a perishable or an imperishable crown? What is the reward for which you are racing? Is it temporal or eternal? What will be your achievement, reward, and legacy of your life? Are all your time and effort being spent to have nicer things for you and your family, or to have more fun and enjoyment? I heard the story one time of a man who was witnessing to a friend. The friend retorted that Christianity is just a bunch of “pie in the sky,” to which the Christian responded, “Yes, it is pie in the sky, but it is also steak on your plate, while you wait. God wants us to enjoy life, but the reward God has for us is much greater than what the world has to offer.

The Apostle Paul also tells us that winning the prize depends on how we run the race. One of the guidelines to winning is to be “temperate in all things.” To be temperate is to be self-controlled and balanced in all that we do. We need to avoid accesses and habits that can ensnare us. We need to be on guard for the tyranny of the urgent that steals away our valuable time, resources, and energy, resulting in failure to achieve those important goals of life.

Paul says that to gain the prize, we cannot run with “uncertainty or as one who beats the air.” We need to stop, pray, think, and plan what we are doing. We need to be intentional in our thoughts, speech, and action. We need to weigh the consequences of what we are doing. Lastly, we need to run our race according to the guidelines of the Author of Life, or we may “become disqualified.” What a sad thing to spend your life running the race the best you know how, but at the end you find yourself “disqualified” because you didn’t run it according to the Book.

“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.” (Hebrews 12:1-2)

Andy Clark