Run the race that you may win!
1 Corinthians 9:24-27 “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. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore, I do not run like a man aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize”.
When you see the caption “run the race that you may win!” the competitor in all of us thinks about the prizes we strive to win. These are things with monetary value. Paul is speaking here about winning a prize that is imperishable and eternal…..heaven. Philippians 3:14 “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus”. Paul’s emphasis here is on forward momentum. To move forward you cannot be focused on thoughts and visions of the past. This prize is to be with Christ and to look forward to being in heaven. To run the race we read the Bible, pray, and to see our actions and attitudes change to be like Christ. When we are spiritually disciplined, we are brought closer to God. We are all justified freely by God’s grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
Today run the race for the prize that will last forever.
Praise, Thank and Pray each day, keep a journal and see how God works in your life!
