A Word from 1 Corinthians 9

Have you ever trained, or studied, or worked hard to accomplish a goal? You were an athlete, and you lifted weights to improve your performance. You were a student who put in long hours to ace a test, or an employee who developed new skills to land a contract. In these and so many other areas, success is often the results of sustained and often strenuous effort. And in today’s word from 1^st Corinthians 9, we’re invited to invest similar effort in achieving God’s goals for our service to Christ.

Paul was telling the Corinthians how hard he’d been working to make sure that everyone had a chance to hear the gospel. In fact, he put in extra effort to support himself, so that others could receive the good news without having to pay for it. And so, using his life as an example, Paul said this:

“Don’t you know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? So run to get the prize! Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that won’t last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I don’t run like someone running aimlessly; I don’t fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave, so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” (9:24-27)

Now obviously, we’re not all apostles or preachers. But we’re still called to be part of the family of God through whom the love and grace of Jesus get shared and demonstrated in the world. And that goal offers us a crown that will last forever! But it also demands of us that kind of effort that prepares us to run the race well.

So today—and in the weekend ahead—how will you train to “win the prize for which God has called us heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:14)? May we run in such a way as to get the prize. Amen.