September 2, 2007 Message

September 2, 2007
1 Corinthians 9:24-27, Luke 9:23-26
“Whatever It Takes”

This weekend was the start of another football season, not only for the local Bobcats but also for our college teams as well. Perhaps you were able to attend or maybe even watch the game on TV. Although all games are important, we know that some will be more so than others.

It was the last day before a college football team was to play its biggest game of the season.
Unfortunately, the head football coach had just received the horrible news that this star running back had been disqualified from playing for academic reasons. The coach went running to the dean’s office to protest. The dean said, “We caught him cheating on a major examination this week.”
The coach asked, “How do you know he cheated?”
The dean replied, “Well, he sat right next to an ‘A’ student, and on the first nine questions, his answers were identical, word-for-word to those of the ‘A’ student.”
Not satisfied, the coach said, “That doesn’t prove he was cheating. Maybe he really studied this time. Or maybe the ‘A’ student copied from him.”
The dean answered, “Actually it was the 10th question that really clinched it. The ‘A’ student had written, ‘I don’t know,’ and your player wrote, ‘I don’t know, either.’

There are some things important to the game beyond the game itself. And then there can be other things. There is an old joke that goes something like this.

A man in his nineties who was quite ill said to his wife, “You know, Sarah, you’ve always been with me — through the good and the bad.
“Like the time I lost my job — you were right there by my side. And when the war came and I enlisted — you became a nurse so that you could be with me. Then I was wounded and you were there, Sarah, right by my side. Then the Depression hit and we had nothing — and you were there with me.
“And now here I am, sick as a dog, and, as always, you’re right here beside me.
“You know Sarah, I’m beginning to think you’re bad luck!”

I pray when it comes to the most important game of all – the game of life, you are not found cheating or leaving it up to luck – good or bad – but rather working hard to win the goal.

As followers of Christ we know what is required of us – or at least we should know. In our reading today from Luke, Jesus tells his disciples what they should expect: "Anyone who intends to come with me has to let me lead. You're not in the driver's seat—I am.” And then he goes on to say, “Self-sacrifice is the way, my way, to finding yourself, your true self. What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you?” (Luke 9:23-24)

We are to put ourselves second. We are to deny ourselves. We are to allow Jesus to lead us. We are to put God first, as Jesus did. And like Jesus, we are to be obedient to God’s plan for our life.

If you were to live this kind of life, what exactly would it mean to deny yourself? What could you possibly do differently? What could I do differently? Well, I suppose I could focus more on God’s will for and God’s work in my life than on what I might want. Imagine, living according to God’s agenda and not our own! That would be different wouldn’t it?

If we were going to better bring our lives in line with that of Jesus, what is it we would need to do? What commitments does Jesus ask us to make? Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in his book The Cost of Discipleship, wrote: “Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate… costly grace (on the other hand)… is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life.” What is it then we are willing to do to be a disciple of Jesus the Christ? Do we really want to follow Jesus?

The Apostle Paul was pretty clear about what it would take to follow Jesus. Paul’s message was that: It matters how you live your life! It matters how you run the race! It matters how you prepare and train and conduct yourself.
In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 (The Message) he writes, “You've all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You're after one that's gold eternally.” (24-25) Then he adds what it will take, “I don't know about you, but I'm running hard for the finish line. I'm giving it everything I've got. No sloppy living for me! I'm staying alert and in top condition. I'm not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself.” (26-27)

Paul compares following Jesus to running a race and then coaches us as to how we are to run. What does Paul say? He says, “Run hard.” “Give it everything you have.” “Stay alert.” “Be in top condition.” “Don’t get caught napping.” I can remember my track coach in ninth grade saying pretty much the same thing.

In Hebrews, chapter 12, Paul encourages us to: “start running—and never quit! …Keep your eyes on Jesus, (who) never lost sight of where he was headed. (Let his story and everything he had to put up with) … shoot adrenaline into your souls!”(1-2, The Message) Earlier in chapter 6, he says, “keep at it till the finish. Don't drag your feet. Be like those who stay the course with committed faith and then get everything promised to them.”(11-12, The Message)

So, how are we doing? Are we getting closer to the goal or are there things keeping us from finishing the race? Running a good race requires desire and decision, but finishing often takes determination and discipline.

Consider the person who wants to meet with God everyday before going to work? He realizes that in order to have enough time he must get up early, so he decides to get up at 6:30 a.m. The next day he oversleeps because his desire and his decision by themselves could not get him out of bed. He then determines to use an alarm clock to help him get up. But the real test comes when the alarm goes off. Discipline must then come into focus. He must shut off the alarm clock and choose not to go back to bed. Good habits can be developed as a result of consistent discipline.

Self-control, a sense of purpose, efficiency, and discipline are necessary to win. To be successful, we will need to control the self, and to not run aimlessly. We will need to choose our battles, and to stick to the plan.


Someone with control of self is able to say “No” to the self. They are able to eat one potato chip, to complete a task although tired and bored, to observe social, moral and ethical boundaries in the commerce of life, and to delay, defer or even deny gratification.

Someone who has a sense of purpose will never run aimlessly. And they’ll know it when they get to where they are going. Eighty-seven percent of Americans own running shoes but don’t run. Why? They may lack self-control, but more likely, they have no sense of purpose. They have intentions, but not purpose. There is no agenda, no plan, no vision, no strategy. So the shoes sit there. Gather dust. We sit there. We gather rust. We lose.

Someone who is efficient knows when to choose ones battles. Paul said, “Nor do I box as though beating the air” (9:26). Christians in training understand the importance of conserving their energies for the things that really matter in life. They understand that one can get really, really tired of doing stupid stuff that doesn’t matter. Smart Christians invest their training and their efforts in things that build them up and make them stronger.

Someone who has discipline is faithful to their faith, true to the course they’ve chosen, even though it may be painful. Choices may be made that will cause conflict and discomfort. Positions may be taken that will invite confusion and misunderstanding. Decisions will be made that may incite reaction and dismay. But in that pain they stay the course and they stay on course.

This is what it takes to finish the race. This is what it takes to win. Many of you are well on the way. But Paul warns us in Philippians 3: 12-15 that regardless of where we may be, we don’t have it made. So, let’s be careful to avoid celebrating too early with our tasks unfinished and our goals unmet.

In 1994, at the Mobil Invitational track meet in Virginia, runners needed to complete eight laps to win the mile run. That concept eluded this young woman, who sprinted past the competition toward the end of lap seven, and stunned the crowd by doing a victory jig. As she celebrated her perceived victory, the other runners sped by her and by the time she realized what had happened she was way behind and didn’t even bother to rejoin the race.

Paul reminds us of the importance of having our eye “on the goal, where God is beckoning us onward – to Jesus.” He is off and running. He is not looking back. Every detail of his life – his words, his actions, all are done in the name of Jesus, thanking God the Father every step of the way.” (Colossians 3:17)

Keep running. Endure the pain. And stay focused on the goal.
Do whatever it takes!
Be a winner!
And receive everything God has in store for you.