The Commands of Christ
Commands of Christ • Sermon • Submitted
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· 6 viewsRunning the race to the end. Finishing well.
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May 26, 2021 The Commands of Christ – 11e
Adult Bible Study
Open:
What “race” do you remember participating in—a gunnysack race, a three-legged race, a schoolyard challenge, an Olympic tryout? Did you win, fall down or choke?
I was never an athlete. If I didn’t come in last, it was close to last. But generally I finished.
Recap:
Series Foundational Scripture: Matthew 28:18-20 esp. vs.20 … teaching them [the disciples of all nations] to observe all that I commanded you…
We continue to cover the commands that relate to Christ is Lord:
Deny Yourself | Take Up My Yoke and Learn from Me | Follow Me | You Have Heard It Said … but I Say to You | Pray This Way | Do This in Remembrance of Me | Remember What I Said
Jesus said in:
Matthew 10:37–39 (NASB95)
“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. 38 “And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 “He who has found his life will lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake will find it.
Even though Jesus did say it, do you think Jesus just meant just follow Him for a little while?
For as long as it was convenient for us?
Comfortable for us?
Profits us?
The Greek tense of the verb to follow is the indicative present active which would indicate (from what I can tell) that Jesus wants us to make following Him an active, established fact of our lives that continues on perpetually.
All the way to the end of this life.
As we look at our text tonight:
It seems that the apostle Paul was a sports fanatic. If he were on earth today, he would love the World Cup soccer matches, the Stanley Cup playoffs and the Super Bowl. Most of all he would love those feats of strength and endurance we call the Olympic Games. Paul would enjoy the thrill of it all but he would also see in the athlete’s performance a powerful example of what it means to follow Jesus.
Those of us who have been “in the race” for a while know it's not just about beginning “the race.” It is about following Jesus all the way to the end and finishing well.
Dig:
Following Jesus to the End of the Race of Life
READ: 1 Corinthians 9:19-27.
1. What comparisons can you think of between a race and the Christian life?
There is a start, an in-between, and a finish.
It is a definite, intentional start — you don’t just wake up to find yourself running a race — the same is true for a relationship with Jesus.
It takes great effort to get from the start to the finish. It takes great spiritual maturity to not give up in-between.
The finish is cathartic — you feel good about finishing — regardless of place.
Question 1. The Christian life, like a race, involves determination, training, discipline and endurance. Christians keep their eyes on one goal—to please Christ.
Do you personally find it to be a helpful comparison? Why or why not?
The image of a footrace bothers some people because of the element of competition. It sounds like we are trying to win over other Christians who lose. But the only competition Paul points to is winning the prize, the reward offered by Christ to those who faithfully follow him. Each of us can win the prize.
Emphasize with the group, though, that Paul is not talking about “winning” or earning our salvation. He is talking about receiving rewards from the Lord for our faithfulness to Him in this life. Even the idea of rewards may bother some Christians, but Paul did not hesitate to strive for the crowns that Christ graciously offers to all who endure in their commitment and obedience to the Lord.
2. Paul explains his motivation for running the race in verses 19-23. What present-day examples might be substituted for the groups Paul was burdened to reach with the message of Jesus?
Drug addicts, the sexually deceived, the sexually exploited (sex trafficking), paroled felons, etc.
Questions 2-3. The group may list several categories of people who seem outside the normal realms of Christian evangelism: homosexuals, atheists, convicted criminals. Certainly Paul was not advocating participation in their behavior in order to win them to Christ. He was encouraging Christians to be willing to make an effort at genuine friendship and then to use that relationship as a platform for presenting the message of Jesus to them.
3. Does “becoming all things to all people” (see v. 22) mean we participate in their sinful behavior? Explain your answer.
NOT participating, but yes, getting to know them. Putting SELF aside long enough to get to know and understand others. Trying to understand their perspective.
Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves;
do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.
Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God;
just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit but the profit of the many, so that they may be saved.
Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves.
Each of us is to please his neighbor for his good, to his edification.
For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, “The reproaches of those who reproached You fell on Me.”
We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone.
4. What is “the prize” Paul challenges us to run for (vv. 24-25)?
Let no one keep defrauding you of your prize by delighting in self-abasement and the worship of the angels, taking his stand on visions he has seen, inflated without cause by his fleshly mind,
and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God.
I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Question 4. The prize that the Lord offers is a reward for faithful service to him. The Bible sometimes calls these rewards “crowns.” They are visible symbols of a believer’s devotion and obedience to Christ during his or her life on earth. Those who serve Jesus with sincere motives and a desire to please him will receive a mark of their faithfulness that will be worn forever.
5. Do you think of gaining a prize or reward when you serve the Lord in some way? Why or why not?
Only because it is promised. NOT because I want one.
6. What may be involved in the “strict training” (v. 25) of an athlete and how does that apply to the Christian race?
Question 6. An athlete must discipline his or her mind and body to focus only on the goal. The Christian needs the same discipline to fully follow Jesus and to keep their focus on pleasing Christ in all things. This life is not a practice run; it’s the real thing—and we are to pay the price required to win the prize.
Some examples of the “strict training” are giving up “good” things in order to focus on what is most important, continuing the disciplines of training even when we get tired, putting aside any habits or practices that might hinder our pursuit of the prize, and cultivating an attitude that motivates us forward.
7. In verses 26 and 27 Paul switches from the image of running to the sport of boxing. How does this new picture broaden your understanding of what it means to follow Jesus?
Question 7. Just like a runner disciplines herself to win, a boxer puts himself through a strict program of exercise, diet and training. The image of boxing focuses even more on bringing our desires under control so that we are prepared and strong for whatever an opponent may throw against us. The runner competes for the prize; the boxer must be ready to face an enemy who seeks to defeat him.
8. What might disqualify an athlete from winning the prize?
Cheating by breaking the rules, steroids, “throwing a contest,
Question 8. An athlete might lose their prize if they cheat in some way or take a drug that gives them an unfair advantage. At our future evaluation before Christ, every hidden thing will be revealed. Our motives, our methods, our secret thoughts and hidden agendas will all be exposed. If anything impure or dishonest is revealed, we may be disqualified from receiving the reward Christ offers. It’s important to remind the group that Paul is talking about a reward for faithful service, not salvation. Being disqualified will lead to a loss of reward, not the loss of salvation. We are saved by God’s grace alone, not by our works.
What might disqualify a Christian from gaining the prize?
Also if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not win the prize unless he competes according to the rules.
What if a relay runner has another runner, say, the last runner quit? The whole race is then in vain because of one person.
It was because of a revelation that I went up; and I submitted to them the gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but I did so in private to those who were of reputation, for fear that I might be running, or had run, in vain.
Reflect:
How would you honestly describe your personal fitness for the Christian race: have never really started? too out of shape to run? getting my second wind? feeling like I could run forever? ready to drop out?
If you are falling behind, what will it cost in your life to get back in the race, running for the prize?
Pray that God would help you to focus your life on Jesus and on pleasing him. Pray also that he would give you not only a passion to run the Christian race but also endurance to finish well.
As a group, think about or talk about people in your community who are not being reached very effectively with the gospel: the poor, an immigrant population, latchkey kids, the elderly. How can you apply the principles of 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 and begin to reach one of these groups? What are your fears? What might be the rewards of such a commitment?
LifeGuide Topical Bible Studies - Following Jesus: 8 Studies for Individuals or Groups.
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