Day 19- Striving for a
Crown
My reading of Philippians 3 yesterday directed me
toward 1 Corinthians 9 today, specifically verses
24-27 when Paul talks about striving for a crown.
I’ve read these verses before as they parallel
an athlete’s preparation, motivation and determination
to succeed. But after yesterday’s reading on
pressing “toward the goal for the prize of the
upward call of God in Christ Jesus,” it gives
striving for a crown much more meaning and depth.
“Do you not know that
those who run in a race all run, but one receives
the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.”
(verse 24, New King James Version)
Obviously the race we run for God doesn’t
have just one winner, but Paul is using sports as
an analogy- my favorite! As a competitive athlete,
when I compete I have one ultimate goal- to win gold.
So I do what it takes to win- train my body in a specific
way to be the strongest, quickest, most explosive.
I practice everyday for hours on end perfecting all
the little details that go into a great performance.
And I go into the competition with my focus on those
things I have been practicing, how to do them all
to my very best ability. I think this is an interesting
point. My ultimate goal is gold, but in the competition
and leading up to it, although I picture the gold
medal sometimes in my mind, my focus is on the things
I need to do right in order to win the medal. Our
goal here on earth that we’re pressing toward
may be an eternal crown, but while we’re here,
we need to focus on the steps we need to get right
in order to get to that crown.
“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.”
(verse 25, New International Version)
In a sports competition you can win
a gold medal. By the grace of God, I was able to win
an Olympic gold medal nearly ten years ago. As awesome
and cool as that is, it really won’t last. The
embroidery on the ribbon is already unraveling. I
let everyone touch it, hold it, and wear it so the
gold plating is fading off. It’s scratched.
I accidentally dropped it once and now part of it
is dented. I’m not knocking the Olympic gold
medal; it is a reward for a job well done here. But
it will not last forever. I cannot take it with me
when I die. Paul is telling us here that we need to
strive for the crown that lasts forever. I want to
clarify that this crown Paul is talking about isn’t
your ticket to heaven and eternal life. We can have
eternal life simply through grace by our faith in
Jesus Christ. The crown is a reward for our service
to God while we’re here on earth. And Paul is
telling believers to strive toward that crown like
it’s the ultimate gold medal in your life.
“Therefore I do not run
like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like
a man beating the air.” (verse 26,
New International Version)
If this is the ultimate gold medal,
you can’t just la-ti-da your way through training
and expect to win. It’s the same in our lives.
If we want to earn that crown, we need to train, practice
and fight for it every single day. We need to be serious
about it. We can’t just talk about it, we need
to take action and seek after it. I grew up in church
and around the Bible. I’ve committed my life
to Christ and recommitted my life to Him. I’ve
done Bible studies, I’ve witnessed to people,
I’ve encouraged people through His Word, but
sometimes I wonder if I’ve ever really chased
after the crown the way I’ve trained for a diving
meet. When I train for diving, I am focused, I spend
hours upon hours every day, I’ll think outside
the box on how to make myself better at it. I study
videos of it, I talk to people about it, I pour my
life into it. I honestly can’t say that I’ve
dedicated myself to God or the pursuit of a crown
like I’ve trained for diving. Wow, that’s
an eye-opener for me.
“I discipline my body
like an athlete, training it to do what it should.
Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I
myself might be disqualified.” (verse
27, New Living Translation)
In diving, no matter how much talent
you have, if you don’t train well and you aren’t
prepared, you won’t qualify for the Olympic
Games, maybe not even the Olympic Trials, much less
win a gold medal. What I mentioned above really resonates
here. In diving I really dedicated my life to the
pursuit of winning gold, and those around me could
see it. I think that’s what Paul is talking
about here. We need to be truly striving for that
crown, that prize, not just talking the talk, but
really walking and living it out. Others need to see
us living it out, not just hear our words. I could
tell you til I’m blue in the face that I’m
the best diver in the world, or I do a front eight
and a half somersaults, but you will be watching me
to see if that is in fact true. We need to live out
our faith, striving toward that crown, not just to
obtain the crown, but so that those around us see
the evidence in our life. How about starting with
this, don’t just tell your friend, “Hey,
I’ll pray for you.” Stop what you’re
doing right then and pray with them. Let them hear
your words to God, let them experience it.
It is time we start living out
loud people and get serious about running this race!
Lord,
Thank You so much for continuing to work on my heart
over the last 19 days. You’ve helped me stay
honest and really look inside myself and see where
work needs to be done. I ask that You continue to
press upon me the importance of Your Word and our
relationship. God please help me begin to live out
loud and really walk out Your Word in this life, taking
steps at striving toward that crown.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
