The Race of Life
Is the end in sight for you?
Paul is at the end of his life. His ministry is over and so is a life of sacrifice to preach the gospel. He sums up his life for Timothy, who would become his successor, with three statements:
7I have fought the good fight; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith. 8Therefore there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that day; and not to me only, but also to all who have loved his appearing. – 2 Timothy 4:7-8
The race of life is not one to be taken lightly. We already read something of this in the first Psalm:
1Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; – Psalm 1:1
The three verbs here are used in the negative because they describe what the believer does not do:
- does not walk – he does not follow the counsel of unbelievers
- does not stand – he does not follow the way of sinners
- does not sit – he does not find himself among scoffers (2 Pet 3:3)
Look at the progression of the unbeliever. Walk is still an active verb. The man at least walks forward. Then he stops walking and stands, and so the action reduces. Finally, he sits down and gives up. This is how the unbeliever lives.
You and I are not unbelievers and we are all busy with our own race of life. We keep walking (walking, moving forward); we may sometimes stop when we get tired; but we are not allowed to sit down. Ask any athlete who competes in a marathon or longer race (Two Oceans, 56 km; and Comrades, 89 km). You may get tired, you can still stand up and start moving forward again, but once you sit down, few athletes come back from that position to finish the race. The build-up of lactic acid in your muscles means that once you have sat down, the cramps become so bad that you cannot get up, even if you want to. These are the pains of life in a spiritual context.
The race of life is not about how you started it, but how you finish it. Paul mentions to Timothy that he finished the race. There is a reward waiting for him. For the believer in Jesus Christ, however, there is one aspect that we must not forget: you do not know how long your race will be. Paul could say with certainty that the end of his journey was at hand. He knew what the Roman soldiers had planned for him. However, he achieved three goals:
- He fought the good fight – he continued to do what God called him to do.
- He finished the race – he was faithful to the assignment until the end.
- He kept the faith – he did not give up.
Have you already achieved these three goals? Think carefully about the answer you give to each statement. We do not know how long our race is. This is the difference between the best example we can give, an earthly race, and the reality that God’s distance for our personal race is unknown to us and is not the same as other people’s race. Do not compare yourself with other believers, not even those who are closest to you. At best follow their good example. Even believers recorded in the Word made the mistake of comparing their circumstances with those of others in the hope of justifying ourselves.
19And this he said, signifying by what death he should glorify God: and when he had said this, he saith unto him, Follow me. 20And Peter turned, and saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, which also leaned on his breast at the supper, and said, Lord, who is he that betrayeth thee? 21When Peter saw him, he said unto Jesus, Lord, and what of him? 22Jesus answered him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Followest thou me. – John 21:19-22
- Who was the disciple that Peter spake of?
- What is Jesus’ answer to Peter’s question?
- What is Jesus’ command to Peter?
Do not exchange or compare your race with that of another. Each of us is called to live life to the fullest this year. You never know when the end of your race will come. If you got tired of walking last year and stopped to rest, refocus and keep moving, before you sit down and can’t get up again.
What is your and my task for 2025?
Your answer only needs to be two words.
Finally, what text would you give to someone who is unsure about the race of life that lies ahead of them, and how they should finish the race? Discuss.