my dad and I used to enter as many pictures as was legal in the
photography exhibition here at the fair. It would take us, or my dad
anyway, weeks to get all of the pictures ready - enlarging those that
needed it, mounting them on to the correct size of cardboard, filling
in the entry tags, etc.
Once the deadline for entry was over, we endured the
crucial task of waiting for the items to be judged. At that time you
would hear my dad say, “Ah, a blue ribbon - they must have some
judges that know what they’re doing!” Or, he’d find one that
didn’t receive a ribbon - or received second to a so-called lousy
shot and you’d hear him say, “Man, where did they get these judges
- they’ve probably never taken a picture in their life; what do they
know about photography?!” Not really, my dad never had to worry
about that since he would usually clean house in the photo division,
unless, of course, I had a picture entered in the same category that
he did.
Seeing the ribbon that you had earned, though, was always
a great joy for the both of us. There was nothing better than seeing
a photo that you had taken hanging on the wall with a big blue
ribbon hanging off the posterboard that it was attached to! But,
there was one ribbon that my dad and I both hated to get. We
talked about it just the other night and decided that, for us, there
was nothing worse than receiving an honorable mention ribbon at
the fair.
The reason we hated it was because that after receiving
enough honorable mention ribbons to wallpaper a small bathroom
in pink, we decided that, at best, the ribbon meant that were the
best of the average. Because the cream of the crop had recieved
the bright red and blue ribbons there was nothing left but average,
middle of the road - and they declared you the best of the mediocre.
And, at worst, the ribbon simply meant that you had a judge with a
kind heart that hated to see someone who had gone to the trouble
of entering the contest not receive a ribbon. “Oh, look at this poor
soul, he must have forgotten to take off his lenscap - let’s give him
a pink ribbon to make him feel a little better.
Whatever the reason for receiving the pink, we grew to hate
seeing it. “Why did they even bother, we’d say - I don’t want to
know if I was that close to receiving a real ribbon”
The same is similar for any sport. The derbie is being held
tonight and I can guarantee you that every one of those drivers
wants to be the last car moving in that rink when the night is
through. Every one of those drivers is probably pretty exited about
the idea of being in that competition tonight. But, once the night is
through, there will only be one victory party. The exitement for the
rest of the drivers will be gone - upset that didn’t receive the prize
money for first place. No party will be thrown just because a driver
was in the race.
Once the Olypics are over, no party will be thrown just
because a person had an opportunity to be in the Olympics. The
Party will be thrown for the athlete who takes home the gold.
If the Cubs ever make it to the World Series - there will be
exitement in Chicago. But, if the Cubs lost that Series - which I’m
sure they would - no celebration would be thrown in the streets of
Chicago just because the Cubs had made it to the World Series.
They would only celebrate in the event that the series was actually
won.
I wonder why it is then, that if we will settle for nothing less
than number one in the arena of sports, (Second place is just best of
the last - NO FEAR) that we as believers will settle for just being a
Christian and never pursue the Best of Show. We will fight all of
our life to climb to the top of the corporate ladder, and then will
settle back and seek mere comfort in our Christianity.
I Corinthians 9:24-27, “Do you not know that in a race all the
runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as
to get the prize. 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. Therefore I do not run
like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating
the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I
have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the
prize.”
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only
one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize . . .”
What does Paul mean - don’t all Christians get the prize? Yes, but
I am firmly convince that there will be a difference in reward.
Otherwise, Jesus wouldn’t have said that the, “son of man is going
to come and then he will reward each person according to what he
has done” (Mt.6:27). And Paul wouldn’t have said that “the one
who sows gernerously will also reap generously” (II Cor. 9:6). Nor
would he have said, “If any man builds on this foundation using
gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be
shown for what it is, because the day will bring it light. It will be
revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s
work. If what has been built survives, he will receive his reward.
If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but
only as one escaping through the flames” (I Cor. 3:12-15). That
last phrase screams, “honorable mention.”
Motivated by that conviction - I want to win the best prize
offered - I do not want to just escape through the flames.
Whatever Heaven has, I want it. I do not want to settle for
honorable mention; I don’t want to crawl in through heaven’s gates
and say with a sheepish grin, “Golly, I just made it by the skin of my
teeth didn’t I?”
“. . .Run in such a way as to get the prize. 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 . . .”
So, Paul tells us that if we want this Eternal Best of Show
we must enter into strict training. But, how in the world do we
train for the “Christian” race?
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud
of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin
that so easily entangles, and let us run with perserverence the race
marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and
finisher of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the
cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the
throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from
sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart”
(Hebrews 12:1-3).
If I was training for the Olympic, would I eat junkfood - no. I
would get rid of the junk and eat only those things that were
healthy.
The passage is telling us that if there is anything standing in
the way of us pursuing a Godly life and “running the Christian race”
then we must get rid of it. Because there is nothing we have here
on earth that is worth endangering our reward in heaven
Keith Elder told a story at the teen camps a few weeks ago
that went like this: a man was on his way to heaven and was told
that he was allowed to bring one suitcase full of items that were
precious to him to heaven. After much thought, he decided to
bring all of the gold bricks that he had been investing in throughout
his life - they were the most priceless thing that he owned. Upon
arriving at the gate, he opened his bag for inspection. St. Peter
looked at the bricks of gold and said, “Why in the world did you
bring us more pavement?
That’s quite a thought - the most priceless item on the earth is used
for asphalt in Heaven. The very element that we use to adorn kings
will be stepped on and marched on for the rest of eternity!
So, get rid of anything that hinders your christian life because it is
not worth honorable mention.
Why? Because our reward will never perish; the treasure that we
are laying up in heaven will never fade away - it will be with us for
eternity
“. . . Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do
not fight like a man beating the air . . .”
Paul sums up by saying that living a godly life, and “laying
up in treasure in heaven” was not time wasted - but it was the
wisest thing that anyone could do with his time.
Have you ever seen someone who just ran without purpose?
I can think of a boy named Jason at Bible College who used to just
run around campus for no apparent purpose with a sort of wild
look in his eye - well, he looked like a fool.
Paul wasn’t like that - he fought his hardest to win the prize,
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept
the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness,
which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day”
(II Tim. 4:7,8)
“. . . No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have
preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the
prize.”
Even though Paul was constantly doing the work of the Lord -
preaching to others, etc. - he still worked on and focused on his
relationship with Jesus. He “made his body his slave.” In other
words, he only allowed himself to do those things that would help
him earn the Best of Show, rather than honorable mention
“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been
made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ
Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to
have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is
behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the
goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in
Christ Jesus” (Phillipians 3:12-14).
When I saw Patty from accross the campus I knew that I wanted
her to be mine - I wanted the Gold (pointing to ring). She was the
best - and I wanted nothing less, no consolation prize for me - no
honorable mention.
Knowing that I wanted the gold, I knew that there was
some things that I would have to give up in order to make a
marriage relationship between the two of us work.
The same is true in our relationship with Christ. There are
many things that we have to lay down or “throw off’ in order to
enter that “marriage” relationship with him
