THE CHRISTIAN’S RACE

1 CORINTHIANS 9:24-27; GALATIANS 5:22-23;

Christians are two things; disciples and pilgrims, disciples because we are followers of Christ and pilgrims because we are on a journey towards our home.

Our race or journey is not a sprint; it’s an endurance trek with a destination in mind. So how do we make ourselves fit for this trek? This is my thought today because the problem with ‘today’s Christian’ is that He is either too spiritual or too dependent on the physical abilities he/she has.

Paul best explains our journey in the passage above, the message version puts it like this:

 “You've all been to the stadium and seen 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 are after one that’s gold eternally. 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 about it and then missing out myself”.

*(I find that the message version of the bible gives a very physical interpretation to the scriptures while the King James is more spiritual, combining the two helps)

There are two sides to every commandment God gives; the faith side and the work side. The faith side is the spiritual and the work side is the physical. But it seems that today’s Christian has forsaken that balance and tips the scales in favour of which side is most convenient.

We now run this race in a way that when one part becomes too hard we leave it all to faith and forget the work and when it’s very easy we forget faith and leave it all to work.

To run our race, we have got exercises that we need to do to stay; the conditioning of our mind, body and spirit to win. Even athletes talk about not only being in the right physical condition but also being in the right frame of mind. The same applies to our Christian journey. We cannot stop the exercises of praying, fasting, reading of God’s word and expect that we will grow as Christians. Even the physical exercises of attending church, being good to people, getting an education, practising the things we read and learn; all this things remain necessary for our growth as Christians. Ignoring any side leaves us stuck.

Ever wonder why the greatest apostle is one which had physical opportunities that no other apostle had and one who prayed and spoke in tongues more than all the others, this is to teach us that we cannot ignore the importance of the physical things we do and cannot ignore the importance of spiritual things as well.

The fruit of the Spirit is Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, self-control.

The gifts the Spirit are prophecies, healing, discernment, utterance and many more super powers.

See the difference? The fruit which all Christians have are all things that can only be manifest with faith (spiritual) and work (physical) but the gifts which are add-ons are things largely spiritual.

As we go through the year, Let's remember this balance in every aspect of our lives especially in our Christian race.

Let us formulate plans that will help us run the race remembering that both the physical and spiritual are important.

Faithful is He who has called you who also will do it.

HOLINESS: THE CHRISTIAN’S WAY.

Who are Christians? What are we? What do we represent?

In a world with so many sects and a lot of misinformation, this questions need to be answered again.

The first place where people were called Christians was in Antioch and this was so because they were Christ-like in nature. What is it to be Christ-Like?

Every history book ever written about Christ even by antagonist all share one sentiment that Christ was a good man. He was meek, with compassion and was a lover of men. He was a man with no offence so much so that Pilate had to wash his hands before his crucifixion. He is what we call holy and perfect, without blame, this is what the people at Antioch saw to call these people Christians.

Among Christian circles it is often debated whether or not perfection is possible, whether holiness is possible. Here’s my take on this which I believe is the scripture’s take.

Christians are called to be Holy. The Bible refers to our calling as a Holy calling. Even the Bible says be ye perfect even as your Heavenly Father is perfect. Elsewhere God Himself says be ye Holy for I am Holy.

Our Gospel, the gospel of our salvation is a holy one because Christ came because the former (old) covenant was not perfect to give us a total and complete salvation. So Jesus had to come as the final sacrifice for all our sins, so that no other sacrifice needs to be made for the redemption of man.

And if the blood of the Son of God is not able to make us Holy/Perfect, I don’t know what else can. If the Holy Spirit is not able to make us pure I don’t know who else can. If the plan of a mighty perfect God is unable to make us perfect, holy and pure, I don’t know what other plan can make us perfect.

If our hope and calling is not perfect we might as well be miserable because of what Good is it to us. We go through the same vicious circle that has brought man to where He is now because we fall again and again and subject our world to condemnation and destruction.

You are a Christian and look to live with the Holy God in Heaven, How do you think it possible without a Holy Mind and Spirit?

God has called you and me to Holiness (Yes You!) and has made this possible through Jesus’s blood and the Holy Spirit in us. If any man or preacher tells otherwise, He makes the sacrifice of Christ imperfect and of non-effect. The time we pass on earth is for us to take advantage of this, Humanity’s days are for us to take advantage of this perfect work of Christ.

So as we go through the year my prayer is that the Power in the Blood and the Power of the Holy Spirit work in me to make me Holy, Perfect, Blameless (Not the Christian that keeps falling and rising). This is the Christian God wanted when He sent His Son to die for you and me and when He sent the Holy Spirit to abide with us. A Perfect, Holy and Righteous Man, just like Christ was.

Join me in this Prayer and I am sure before the year’s end we all will have a testimony to share.

Being Holy is an expression of the fullness of His Power in our lives.