Victory

II Timothy 4:6-8

In 1998, we won the region championship in middle school football. We beat a school that I will not call by name because I am currently employed by them LOL. I remember that Saturday and the excitement we felt as we received the region trophy. We had accomplished our goal. We were at the top of the world. The trophy was evidence that we were victorious over our rivals. It was evidence that all of our work, struggle, sweat, and even blood was worth it. The beatings we had received in the fight may have hurt, but they were overshadowed by the victory. We would go down as the region champions and that would never be taken from us. There was no rival that could defeat us again because the season was over, our job was done, and the reward was received.

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"For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only, but also to all who have loved His appearing."

II Timothy 4:6-8

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Paul tells Timothy that he (Paul) is about to be martyred. That is what verse six means. His life would be sacrificed like a drink offering to the Lord. His blood would be poured out, and he would depart this life. There is no dread in his voice. There is no fear. Paul actually seems to be anticipating this end. He knows that his struggle will soon be over. When this life ends, he will be with Jesus in Paradise (Luke 23:43). Paul had said as much to the church at Corinth when he said, "To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord (II Corinthians 5:8).

Paul then uses a sports analogy to describe his life in verse 7. "I have fought a good fight, I have finished by race, I have kept the faith" describes his Christian life. There had been fights, but not with people (Ephesians 6:12). He had also fought with his own human nature to resist sin and continue going when his body wanted to stop (I Corinthians 9:27), just as athletes must do. He had run his race to the finish line. He did not quit. He did not stop running and walk. He saw it all the way through, and he kept the faith. It is almost impossible to finish a race when the runner gets in his head and says "I can't! I can't! I can't!". There were times when I was running cross country that I kept telling myself, "One more step", over and over again, but when I said, "I can't", I would quit running and walk. Just like runners in a race, Christians in this life must keep the faith and keep going.

Paul continues with the sports analogy and compares his reward in Heaven to that of an Olympic athlete receiving their reward for first place. Because of the time he spent in Corinth, Paul was familiar with the Isthmian Games (much like the ancient Olympics). In those games, the first place winner would receive a "stephanos". This is the laurel branch crown that we see in images from ancient Greece. It is sometimes called the victor's crown, and only first place received a reward. Paul said that he would receive this crown, but so would every other Christian who ran their race (the Christian life) well; those of us who don't just exist as Christians, but we live our lives in expectation of the return of Jesus, our Master.

I would like to share one final thought that is not directly related to this passage. When I ran cross country, I ran with a friend. Nick was a good runner and was certainly built more like a runner than me. We ran together, and he pushed me to be better. By the region meet, I was running a mile in under 6 minutes (Not bad for someone weighing about 230 lbs). Running with someone made the difficult task of training more bearable. Just like my training, the Christians life is meant to be run with others as well. That is why Jesus gave us the Church. We life this life together to hold one another accountable, and to encourage one another to keep going in the hard times. Church is vital to the Christian life, and it is through the church that we glorify God (Ephesians 3:21).

Father, this life is hard. It beats us up, down, and black and blue. Help us to keep it in perspective of the goal we hope to achieve. Help us to run our race well, to finish our course, and to not lose faith along the way. When we feel like giving up, remind us that we are not running alone. You gave us the Church, and You said You are with us always (Matthew 28:20).