Running in Circles- 1 Corinthians 9:24-27
Pray-
Running in Circles- 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. 25 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. 26 Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27 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.
A little exegesis: Paul is writing to Corinthians- who are more knowledgable on athletics- than him- They were the greeks- the inventors of the olympics- And locally they had a competition in Corinth every two years. So, Of course they knew that in a race all the runners run-
He was using an image that they had likely seen with their own eyes
Though this may seem like a simple metaphorical teaching- an athletic metaphor- there are some greek words here that are deeply philosophical- the words for the crown that will \ last- which is sometimes translated into english as "incorruptible"- and the same root word is used to describe the crown that will rot and not last forever. When this word is used in the OT- in its negative sense it is used to say something was "Wasted" "thrown to a pit" The word is phthartos- a "ph" followed by a "th"-
Aristotle and Plutarch- and others- used this word to talk about what is really real- is the cosmos phthartos or aphthartos? With or without immutable- unchangeable- eternal value.
Pretty heavy words. Paul has a way of practicing what he preaches- earlier in this chapter he explained that he made himself a slave to everyone in order to win a few to Christ- Here he is demonstrating that- he is simultaneously communicating to a person who thinks in athletic metaphors- and the person who speaks philosophical language- which, coincidentally, were two of the biggest past-times in Corinth. Athletics and Philosophy. Paul spoke in a way others could understand.
The word translated "disqualified"= is adokimos- it can also mean untested- untrained.
As a church- and as individuals- are we sharing our faith in ways that people who have never had a relationship with Christ can understand? Sometimes we fall into using church-language- and we don’t think about if we are truly communicating. We say things we understand- but have we stopped to think if we are communicating in a way others can understand?
When people come to church- do we treat them with respect and be joyful- or do we say things like "I can’t believe my eyes..." or "Why are you in church?- what are you doing here?"
That’s just rude and sloppy. Communicating like that tells me that a person needs to train their tongue and become a bit more disciplined.
Communicate healthily on purpose- say good and right things- not just the easy joke. Say- "I’m so glad you’re here." "It’s good to be with you in worship."
Our teens use a lot of negative humor- and they know- because I am always hounding them about it. I slip into this too. It is communicating laziness. We try to be closer to each other by putting each other down- as if that really makes someone feel good.
So take a lesson from Paul- choose words wisely. Train your mind and your mouth to work for God.
My research: My "Pole Position" experience. I wanted to run a race this week- to give myself a real-life reminder of what being in a race is all about. I thought long and hard about this, like for at least 15 minutes- and then I decided I would play a video game. A racing video game. "Pole Position"- created in good old 1982.
I learned- or was reminded of several things from my race experience:
There are all kinds of signs to tell you what’s coming
You can’t drive without aiming
I was much better the fourth time I played- than the first time. Persistence has everything to do with effectiveness.
Sometimes your going to fast and there are too many things around you to take time to look at the signs.
When you just got it figured out and are going full speed ahead the course takes a sharp turn- you end up having to start all over again.
On the second level of Pole Position- there are more obstacles- the longer you play- the more difficulties you encounter- surprise puddles and oil slicks
I played later with a group. Sometimes this added fun to the experience- sometimes it just added distraction.
Eventually its always game over
In this game you drive on a track- going on the same route- over and over again. All for the hope of getting on the high score list.
My game experience and my study of these verses led me to three important points- on this race for Christ
We need proper training- 2. We need to run with aim and 3. We need to have the right motivation- the right prize.
Training- What is proper training?
I joined a health club one year, they had a weight-loss guarantee, I spent about 200 bucks. I didn’t lose a pound. I asked for a refund. They turned me down. Apparently the deal is you have to actually go to the club, for it to work.
Well that’s not a true story= well its partly true. I have joined clubs in the past and followed through for a while.
But some of us treat our Christian life this way. We join the club, maybe pay the dues- but never really buy into the actual life change. Reading scripture- being convicted and changing. Praying- is training. Worship- is training. Being there for someone else in their suffering is training.
When I hear statistics like churchgoers are just as likely to abuse their spouses as non-church folk– it makes me wonder if folks are really training. When I read things like, 80% of Christians believe Jesus hung out with the poor- but only 2% of this 80% hang out with poor folks- I wonder what’s wrong. What’s wrong with me?Are people really giving up their lives and asking God to reshape them- re-form them into who they were meant to be- or are we just part of a club? I really hope it’s the firs option. We want to be real people for God not just members of a club.
The church is not a club- it is a way of life- it is people committed to living life like Jesus wants them to live. Its an ongoing race. We believe we are the body of Christ- that God has given us His Spirit and that we are the hope of the world- we don’t believe this out of arrogance- because we are more right than others- we believe this because- Jesus loves us and asks us to train to be like him- and therefore as Jesus did, we love others.
Running with aim- Now believe it or not I ran cross country back in the day. 5 kilometers in length. Each course was different. Whether it was on a golf course, in a city park- or whatever- our Coach would take us on a pre-race ritual. One thing we always did, usually the day before- was a line-of-sight walk through. We would walk the course and look for the shortest distance between points. Our coach would say things like, "When you turn by this tree- aim for that post out there in the distance and run straight at it." So we would walk from that point to the next point and sometimes we would find a chuck hole or a puddle- and he would say remember that’s here- aim around that puddle.
We turn a lot of corners in life- changes happen that we expect- and changes happen that we don’t expect- good and bad. But Paul is telling us when you turn a corner- get your head up and look at where your life is heading- don’t let the corners in life throw you off the course. Find your aim- keep on track. Don’t run aimlessly. Which as a Christian means- keep loving your God- keep loving your neighbor and enemy- keep sharing, forgiving and serving. Keep praying and studying. Don’t get off the course and start running some other race- We are the body of Christ- the hope of the world, Why did God save you and me? we weren’t saved just so that we could have a really good time at church or a really moral family- God saved you and me- because God believes that He can love the world through us and we must run through life with that aim in mind.
The Prize- There once was a rich man who was near death. He was very grieved because he had worked so hard for his money and he wanted to be able to take it with him to heaven. So he began to pray that he might be able to take some of his wealth with him. An angel hears his plea and appears to him. "Sorry, but you can't take your wealth with you." The man implores the angel to speak to God to see if He might bend the rules. The man continues to pray that his wealth could follow him. The angel reappears and informs the man that God has decided to allow him to take one suitcase with him. Overjoyed, the man gathers his largest suitcase and fills it with pure gold bars and places it beside his bed.
Soon afterward the man dies and shows up at the Gates of Heaven to greet St. Peter. Seeing the suitcase, St. Peter says, "Hold on, you can't bring that in here!" But, the man explains to St. Peter that he has permission and asks him to verify his story with the Lord. Sure enough, St. Peter checks and comes back saying, "You're right. You are allowed one carry-on bag, but I'm supposed to check its contents before letting it through."St. Peter opens the suitcase to inspect the worldly items that the man found too precious to leave behind and exclaims, "You brought pavement!!!???"
- funny- but what if there is no heaven?
What really matters? What really is our prize? Would you still be a follower of Jesus if there were no threat of hell and no promise of heaven?. Right now is what really matters. This life- we are to run our guts out- in this life. In this race we are running we are gathering up treasures- that don’t take up any space except in our heart- treasures that won’t rot- treasures of love, of kindness to one another- of acting justly in this world, being honest with ourselves and each other.
There is a heaven- an eternal- everlasting life of love- promised by God- to those that become his followers. But heaven starts here- and now- We pray- "Lord may your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven"- that is our treasure- we get to bring the construction crew of heaven on earth- we get to be about building God’s kingdom- starting right here and right now. That is our prize- as people in love with the Son of God and through this God’s love and by loving our neighbors and enemies we get to touch heaven- even though we are just running around earth. We get to touch heaven! We run in circles and are made of dust- get to build the eternal.
We’re not just running- we’re dancing- God has take our wailing our mourning- and given us purpose and promise that does not end with this life- can you see this God? Run to him. Run to him.
Running in Circles- 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. 25 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. 26 Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27 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.
A little exegesis: Paul is writing to Corinthians- who are more knowledgable on athletics- than him- They were the greeks- the inventors of the olympics- And locally they had a competition in Corinth every two years. So, Of course they knew that in a race all the runners run-
He was using an image that they had likely seen with their own eyes
Though this may seem like a simple metaphorical teaching- an athletic metaphor- there are some greek words here that are deeply philosophical- the words for the crown that will \ last- which is sometimes translated into english as "incorruptible"- and the same root word is used to describe the crown that will rot and not last forever. When this word is used in the OT- in its negative sense it is used to say something was "Wasted" "thrown to a pit" The word is phthartos- a "ph" followed by a "th"-
Aristotle and Plutarch- and others- used this word to talk about what is really real- is the cosmos phthartos or aphthartos? With or without immutable- unchangeable- eternal value.
Pretty heavy words. Paul has a way of practicing what he preaches- earlier in this chapter he explained that he made himself a slave to everyone in order to win a few to Christ- Here he is demonstrating that- he is simultaneously communicating to a person who thinks in athletic metaphors- and the person who speaks philosophical language- which, coincidentally, were two of the biggest past-times in Corinth. Athletics and Philosophy. Paul spoke in a way others could understand.
The word translated "disqualified"= is adokimos- it can also mean untested- untrained.
As a church- and as individuals- are we sharing our faith in ways that people who have never had a relationship with Christ can understand? Sometimes we fall into using church-language- and we don’t think about if we are truly communicating. We say things we understand- but have we stopped to think if we are communicating in a way others can understand?
When people come to church- do we treat them with respect and be joyful- or do we say things like "I can’t believe my eyes..." or "Why are you in church?- what are you doing here?"
That’s just rude and sloppy. Communicating like that tells me that a person needs to train their tongue and become a bit more disciplined.
Communicate healthily on purpose- say good and right things- not just the easy joke. Say- "I’m so glad you’re here." "It’s good to be with you in worship."
Our teens use a lot of negative humor- and they know- because I am always hounding them about it. I slip into this too. It is communicating laziness. We try to be closer to each other by putting each other down- as if that really makes someone feel good.
So take a lesson from Paul- choose words wisely. Train your mind and your mouth to work for God.
My research: My "Pole Position" experience. I wanted to run a race this week- to give myself a real-life reminder of what being in a race is all about. I thought long and hard about this, like for at least 15 minutes- and then I decided I would play a video game. A racing video game. "Pole Position"- created in good old 1982.
I learned- or was reminded of several things from my race experience:
There are all kinds of signs to tell you what’s coming
You can’t drive without aiming
I was much better the fourth time I played- than the first time. Persistence has everything to do with effectiveness.
Sometimes your going to fast and there are too many things around you to take time to look at the signs.
When you just got it figured out and are going full speed ahead the course takes a sharp turn- you end up having to start all over again.
On the second level of Pole Position- there are more obstacles- the longer you play- the more difficulties you encounter- surprise puddles and oil slicks
I played later with a group. Sometimes this added fun to the experience- sometimes it just added distraction.
Eventually its always game over
In this game you drive on a track- going on the same route- over and over again. All for the hope of getting on the high score list.
My game experience and my study of these verses led me to three important points- on this race for Christ
We need proper training- 2. We need to run with aim and 3. We need to have the right motivation- the right prize.
Training- What is proper training?
I joined a health club one year, they had a weight-loss guarantee, I spent about 200 bucks. I didn’t lose a pound. I asked for a refund. They turned me down. Apparently the deal is you have to actually go to the club, for it to work.
Well that’s not a true story= well its partly true. I have joined clubs in the past and followed through for a while.
But some of us treat our Christian life this way. We join the club, maybe pay the dues- but never really buy into the actual life change. Reading scripture- being convicted and changing. Praying- is training. Worship- is training. Being there for someone else in their suffering is training.
When I hear statistics like churchgoers are just as likely to abuse their spouses as non-church folk– it makes me wonder if folks are really training. When I read things like, 80% of Christians believe Jesus hung out with the poor- but only 2% of this 80% hang out with poor folks- I wonder what’s wrong. What’s wrong with me?Are people really giving up their lives and asking God to reshape them- re-form them into who they were meant to be- or are we just part of a club? I really hope it’s the firs option. We want to be real people for God not just members of a club.
The church is not a club- it is a way of life- it is people committed to living life like Jesus wants them to live. Its an ongoing race. We believe we are the body of Christ- that God has given us His Spirit and that we are the hope of the world- we don’t believe this out of arrogance- because we are more right than others- we believe this because- Jesus loves us and asks us to train to be like him- and therefore as Jesus did, we love others.
Running with aim- Now believe it or not I ran cross country back in the day. 5 kilometers in length. Each course was different. Whether it was on a golf course, in a city park- or whatever- our Coach would take us on a pre-race ritual. One thing we always did, usually the day before- was a line-of-sight walk through. We would walk the course and look for the shortest distance between points. Our coach would say things like, "When you turn by this tree- aim for that post out there in the distance and run straight at it." So we would walk from that point to the next point and sometimes we would find a chuck hole or a puddle- and he would say remember that’s here- aim around that puddle.
We turn a lot of corners in life- changes happen that we expect- and changes happen that we don’t expect- good and bad. But Paul is telling us when you turn a corner- get your head up and look at where your life is heading- don’t let the corners in life throw you off the course. Find your aim- keep on track. Don’t run aimlessly. Which as a Christian means- keep loving your God- keep loving your neighbor and enemy- keep sharing, forgiving and serving. Keep praying and studying. Don’t get off the course and start running some other race- We are the body of Christ- the hope of the world, Why did God save you and me? we weren’t saved just so that we could have a really good time at church or a really moral family- God saved you and me- because God believes that He can love the world through us and we must run through life with that aim in mind.
The Prize- There once was a rich man who was near death. He was very grieved because he had worked so hard for his money and he wanted to be able to take it with him to heaven. So he began to pray that he might be able to take some of his wealth with him. An angel hears his plea and appears to him. "Sorry, but you can't take your wealth with you." The man implores the angel to speak to God to see if He might bend the rules. The man continues to pray that his wealth could follow him. The angel reappears and informs the man that God has decided to allow him to take one suitcase with him. Overjoyed, the man gathers his largest suitcase and fills it with pure gold bars and places it beside his bed.
Soon afterward the man dies and shows up at the Gates of Heaven to greet St. Peter. Seeing the suitcase, St. Peter says, "Hold on, you can't bring that in here!" But, the man explains to St. Peter that he has permission and asks him to verify his story with the Lord. Sure enough, St. Peter checks and comes back saying, "You're right. You are allowed one carry-on bag, but I'm supposed to check its contents before letting it through."St. Peter opens the suitcase to inspect the worldly items that the man found too precious to leave behind and exclaims, "You brought pavement!!!???"
- funny- but what if there is no heaven?
What really matters? What really is our prize? Would you still be a follower of Jesus if there were no threat of hell and no promise of heaven?. Right now is what really matters. This life- we are to run our guts out- in this life. In this race we are running we are gathering up treasures- that don’t take up any space except in our heart- treasures that won’t rot- treasures of love, of kindness to one another- of acting justly in this world, being honest with ourselves and each other.
There is a heaven- an eternal- everlasting life of love- promised by God- to those that become his followers. But heaven starts here- and now- We pray- "Lord may your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven"- that is our treasure- we get to bring the construction crew of heaven on earth- we get to be about building God’s kingdom- starting right here and right now. That is our prize- as people in love with the Son of God and through this God’s love and by loving our neighbors and enemies we get to touch heaven- even though we are just running around earth. We get to touch heaven! We run in circles and are made of dust- get to build the eternal.
We’re not just running- we’re dancing- God has take our wailing our mourning- and given us purpose and promise that does not end with this life- can you see this God? Run to him. Run to him.
posted by Palouse Fed. Church at 4:50 PM
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