1 Corinthians 9.24-27
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”
Just as an athlete endures bodily stress in order to build physical strength and endurance, so it is necessary for a Christian to endure the stress of the trials of life in order to build spiritual strength and endurance.
The word for “discipline” that the apostle uses in this passage is the Greek hupopiazo. It literally means “to strike under the eye,” and was the ancient Greek equivalent of our modern phrase “beat black and blue.” In other words, it describes what someone does when fighting an opponent.
The Greek word he uses for “keeping his body under control” is doulagogo, which means “to subdue, bring into servitude.”
This is a vivid description of the inner battle between the old nature and the new nature. Paul is telling us that our old nature is an internal opponent that we often need to beat into submission. This is especially true when we are experiencing difficulty or adversity, because in those situations the old nature wants to BCD. It wants to whine and complain.
But as we have made crystal clear in this series, authentic Christianity doesn’t BCD.
There is a principle in physical training that applies to spiritual training: Go to failure. An athlete builds max strength and endurance when he does repetitions of an exercise to the point of failure. This means he keeps doing reps until he simply has no more strength. He goes to failure.
Average athletes quit at the first sign of serious discomfort. The best athletes — the elite — experience the pain, but they push through the pain and keep doing reps until they cannot do any more. They train to failure. This is productive discomfort, and it is a distinguishing characteristic of elite competitors. It is also a distinguishing characteristic of authentic Christianity.
When you experience difficult circumstances in life, don’t stop. Keep trusting God and keep going. Embrace productive discomfort and keep doing the reps of obedience to God’s word. And here is what will happen: God’s grace will empower you, especially at the point of failure. When all strength is gone and you just can’t do another rep, that is where the Lord will supply you with his strength and power.
When you are in the storm, don’t flinch. Trust the Lord who created you, redeemed you, and calls you to himself. Trust the risen Christ who did not flinch when he faced the horrors of the cross, and then defeated death itself.
“… let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith … Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.” (Hebrews 12.1-3)
The Lord is calling.
