Finishing Well
2 Timothy 4:7-8 NIV
[7] I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. [8] 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 4:6–8
One of the most poignant moments in the history of baseball was the final farewell of Lou Gehrig in Yankee Stadium. Suffering from an incurable disease, the great and revered first baseman stood at the plate and tearfully said farewell to the fans who had cheered him on for many years. Sooner or later, the time comes when each of us must “hang up the spikes.” That time had come for Paul. What a farewell speech!
He begins with two vivid metaphors expressing his view of his forthcoming martyrdom. First, he sees himself as “a drink offering” about to be poured out. The word he uses is a technical term used of a cup of wine in a Roman sacrifice poured out to the gods. There’s reason to believe that every Roman meal ended with this symbolic act. Though he was about to be executed, he chose to regard this as an offering to God. This was the natural conclusion of his belief that the whole of life is to be regarded as “a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service” (Rom. 12:1).
The second metaphor of his death is “the time of my departure.” This is another of those Greek words capable of various meanings. Two are most often cited. The word is used of the loosening of the ropes when taking a tent down. It is also used of the release of the lines when a ship leaves the dock. Paul sees himself as a soldier, gathering his tent for the next stop, and as a sailor launching out on a new journey. Let’s herald this as the Christian view of death.
1.I have fought the good fight _ ver 7
Ver. 6.—Life’s evening hour. “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.” St. Paul felt sure that the enemies of the gospel would be successful in their designs upon his life. Sooner or later he knew that the lions or the flames, the executioner’s axe or the cruel cross, would complete his earthly course. But as he had made an “offering” of his life to Christ, so he was ready in death to be offered up for the Master’s sake.
I. THE APOSTOLIC READINESS. Although a prisoner, he had been permitted to be a preacher in the neighbouring camp of Cæsar’s palace during his first imprisonment at Rome. But not so now. Amid the Prætorian Guard alone could he testify now; and as the soldier to whom he was chained by the wrist would often be changed, he had the opportunity of speaking to each one in turn the good word of the kingdom of God. His imprisonments had been preceded by missionary journeys, in which he had planted Churches of Christ everywhere—Churches which had become centres of evangelization and edification. He was “ready;” for his character had been moulded by “great tribulation;” so that his soul was purified by the grace of God working there the self-conquests of his nature. The righteous indignation of a strong nature—which we know full well once in his apostolate would have been aroused at his adversaries—had been softened into a calm submission to the Divine will, and he was conscious that God would take care of his own Church in the perilous times which had come. Moreover, Timothy was there to take up the great work and to preach the Word. Paul was ready for the “rest;” and the “rest” was ready for him.
Ver. 7.—The battle finished. “I have fought a good fight” Nothing to nature is more beautiful than the all-glorious sunset; even the storm-clouds make it a more magnificent scene. So it was with St. Paul. Amid the threatening clouds of persecution the Saviour’s glory shone all around and about him, and lighted up the dark firmament of the martyr-experiences.
I. THE PAST FIGHT. He was a man of war in the best sense, and had fought a good fight. He had conflicts in himself—“fightings without, and fears within.” He had opposition from the Jews of the ancient Church, and from the Judaistic Christians, who were trying to pervert the gospel! Rome, that dreaded sedition, looked upon him as a stirrer-up of strife, and though St. Paul was not an enemy of Cæsar, this gave Cæsar’s enemies an opportunity for casting opprobrium on him. He had, too, as we all have, invisible enemies, so that he did not war only “against flesh and blood.” The past fight was a lifelong one with him, for he had at first to withstand even his Christian coadjutors in his determination to proclaim and to preserve the universality and spirituality of the gospel kingdom; he boldly and triumphantly withstood even Peter to the face, and so gave to the Church of all ages the Magna Charta of its Divine freedom.
2.I have finished the race - Ver 7
THE FINISHED COURSE. He could look back upon the race course now, and he varies his imagery. Now he introduces the idea of the Grecian games. We can see the eager athlete girding his loins for the race—a race which taxed all his energies. In heat and cold, amidst enemies and friends, St. Paul “pressed toward the mark.” There is no tone of finality, however, about his language in the strictest sense. The end was only a post which he had to pass, not a grave in which he had to sleep. For to him to live was Christ, and to die was gain.—W. M. S.
7. Fought. Compare 1 Tim. 6:12. Paul’s commitment to be Christ’s ambassador involved a life of constant warfare with the forces of evil, whether men or demons (see on 1 Cor. 9:25; Phil. 1:27, 30; 1 Thess. 2:2). The apostle wore well the “whole armour of God” as he bravely stood “against the wiles of the devil” (Eph. 6:11).
A good fight. Literally, “the good fight.” The definite article emphasizes that supreme fight “of faith” (see on 1 Tim. 6:12) in which all Christians are engaged.
3.I have kept the faith
when Paul says he has “kept the faith,” he is saying that he has competed according to the rules. Apparently, the Greek athletes took a solemn oath before the games that they would compete honorably and honestly. Here is Paul, at the end of the race, affirming that his vows had been kept. The keeping of vows has come on hard times. Long-range commitment is often replaced by short-range gratification. A woman was reportedly asked on her fiftieth wedding anniversary, “In all of these years, did you ever consider divorce?” “No, never. Murder often, but never divorce!”
The faith. Compare 1 Tim. 6:12. While fighting “the good fight” and running “the course” that God had assigned him, Paul had the satisfaction of knowing that, though he had often faced great hardships and temptations, he had not failed to guard and preserve the faith entrusted to him (see on 1 Tim. 1:11; 2 Tim. 1:12). Paul’s example of faithfulness was to be a challenge to Timothy and to every future minister of the gospel. Personal faith depends upon adherence to God’s Word. Every Christian will “guard the faith” by his personal representation of its principles. The sincerity of a Christian’s personal faith is measured by the extent to which he reflects these principles.
8. Henceforth. Gr. loipon, either “in the future” or “as far as anything else is concerned.” Nothing is left for Paul except the glory of his heavenly
4. The Reward- the crown
Finally, there is the reward. The crown in the Greek games was a laurel wreath awarded to the victor. In the case of our Christian race, the crown goes not only to Paul, but also “to all who have loved His appearing.” Any thought that only “superChristians” get special awards is abolished
I. THE FUTURE IS PROVIDED FOR. “Henceforth [or, ‘as to the rest’] there is laid up for me.” Christ will not let any one of his faithful servants go uncrowned; all receive the prize—only their crown will be the perfecting of character, as the flower blossoms in its summer beauty. Heaven is the everlasting summer of the saints; and there “the crown of righteousness,” which never was fully attained upon earth, will be given to all those who endure unto the end. Sometimes it is called “the crown of glory,” sometimes “the crown of righteousness,” and sometimes “the crown of life;” for the crowns of God are not the tinsel of earth’s corruptible gold, but crowns of conscience, mind, and character—in one word, crowns of life.
II. THE RIGHTEOUS JUDGE WILL BE THERE. He before whom all hearts are open, he whose judgment is according to knowledge, and who understands all the unknown and unnoticed conflicts of every earnest soul. He is the righteous Judge
At that day. That is, the day of Christ’s second advent, “his appearing” (see on 1 Tim. 6:14 cf. 2 Tim. 1:12, 18). The righteous dead will then be resurrected to eternal life (see on 1 Thess. 4:16, 17; Rev. 20:2). Paul knows of no immediate entrance into heaven at death; the second advent is “that day” when the redeemed will be rewarded with eternal life.
Not to me only. Paul here gives further evidence that he expected no immediate entrance to heaven at death. The righteous, both dead and living, will receive their reward of eternal life at the same time, “at that day” (see on 1 Cor. 15:51–54).
Love. Gr. agapaō (see on Matt. 5:43; John 21:15). The word suggests much more than mere impulse; it demands that the whole life, every phase of thought and action, be oriented with respect to the person loved. The joyous prospect of the second advent controls the Christian’s use of his time and money, affects his choice of friends, and provides a powerful incentive to eliminate defects in character and to become more like Christ (see on 1 John 3:3).
Appearing. Gr. epiphaneia, “visible manifestation” (see on 1 Tim. 6:14).