1 Corinthians 9:24-27
24 Remember that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize. You also must run in such a way that you will win. 25 All athletes practice strict self-control. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. 26 So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. 27 I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.
What are some principles that Paul is trying to emphasize here:
What are some similarities between athletics and the Christian life?
What do you think he meant in v27 …might be disqualified?
At the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, John Stephen Akhwari, a runner from Tanzania, finished dead last in the marathon. Injured along the way, Akhwari hobbled into the nearly empty stadium an hour after the last runner had crossed the finish line.
The official filmmaker for the games, Bud Greenspan, asked the athlete why he put himself through so much pain to finish the race. Akhwari replied, "My country did not send me 5000 miles to start the race. They sent me to finish it!" (Roper, Out of the Ordinary, Discovery House).
Hebrews 12:1
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Living Water...
If you give even a cup of cold water to one of the least of my followers, you will surely be rewarded. Matthew 10:42
Our deeds on earth merit a heavenly reward when they are motivated by love for Christ. Loving the needy around us pleases God, and we learn how much his heart loves those who are hurting.
Daily Christian Wisdom
We are called to play the good Samaritan on life's roadside...True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar.-Martin Luther King, Jr.
Our deeds on earth merit a heavenly reward when they are motivated by love for Christ. Loving the needy around us pleases God, and we learn how much his heart loves those who are hurting.
Daily Christian Wisdom
We are called to play the good Samaritan on life's roadside...True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar.-Martin Luther King, Jr.
Monday, October 1, 2007
The Salt Principles - continued
Matthew 5:13: "You are the salt of the earth. But what good is salt if it has lost its flavor? Can you make it useful again? It will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.”
Mark 9:49-50: 49"For everyone will be salted with fire. 50 Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another."
Luke 14:34-35: 34 "Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? 35 Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for fertilizer. It is thrown away. Anyone who is willing to hear should listen and understand!"
Why does the human body need salt?
What happens if we don’t have salt?
I Kings 11 (from The Message)
1 King Solomon was obsessed with women… 2 He took them from the surrounding pagan nations of which God had clearly warned Israel, "You must not marry them; they'll seduce you into infatuations with their gods." Solomon fell in love with them anyway, refusing to give them up. 3 He had seven hundred royal wives and three hundred concubines - a thousand women in all! And they did seduce him away from God. 4 As Solomon grew older, his wives beguiled him with their alien gods and he became unfaithful - he didn't stay true to his God as his father David had done. 5 Solomon took up with Ashtoreth, the whore goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech, the horrible god of the Ammonites. 6 Solomon openly defied God; he did not follow in his father David's footsteps. 7 He went on to build a sacred shrine to Chemosh, the horrible god of Moab, and to Molech, the horrible god of the Ammonites, on a hill just east of Jerusalem. 8 He built similar shrines for all his foreign wives, who then polluted the countryside with the smoke and stench of their sacrifices. 9 God was furious with Solomon for abandoning the God of Israel, the God who had twice appeared to him 10 and had so clearly commanded him not to fool around with other gods. Solomon faithlessly disobeyed God's orders. 11 God said to Solomon, "Since this is the way it is with you, that you have no intention of keeping faith with me and doing what I have commanded, I'm going to rip the kingdom from you and hand it over to someone else. 12 But out of respect for your father David I won't do it in your lifetime. It's your son who will pay - I'll rip it right out of his grasp. 13 Even then I won't take it all; I'll leave him one tribe in honor of my servant David and out of respect for my chosen city Jerusalem."
Why do leaves change colors?
Matthew 5:13-14; 16
13"Let me tell you why you are here. You're here to be salt that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. 14 You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept.
16 Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand - shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.
Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.
-Charles Wesley
Mark 9:49-50: 49"For everyone will be salted with fire. 50 Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another."
Luke 14:34-35: 34 "Salt is good for seasoning. But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again? 35 Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for fertilizer. It is thrown away. Anyone who is willing to hear should listen and understand!"
Why does the human body need salt?
What happens if we don’t have salt?
I Kings 11 (from The Message)
1 King Solomon was obsessed with women… 2 He took them from the surrounding pagan nations of which God had clearly warned Israel, "You must not marry them; they'll seduce you into infatuations with their gods." Solomon fell in love with them anyway, refusing to give them up. 3 He had seven hundred royal wives and three hundred concubines - a thousand women in all! And they did seduce him away from God. 4 As Solomon grew older, his wives beguiled him with their alien gods and he became unfaithful - he didn't stay true to his God as his father David had done. 5 Solomon took up with Ashtoreth, the whore goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech, the horrible god of the Ammonites. 6 Solomon openly defied God; he did not follow in his father David's footsteps. 7 He went on to build a sacred shrine to Chemosh, the horrible god of Moab, and to Molech, the horrible god of the Ammonites, on a hill just east of Jerusalem. 8 He built similar shrines for all his foreign wives, who then polluted the countryside with the smoke and stench of their sacrifices. 9 God was furious with Solomon for abandoning the God of Israel, the God who had twice appeared to him 10 and had so clearly commanded him not to fool around with other gods. Solomon faithlessly disobeyed God's orders. 11 God said to Solomon, "Since this is the way it is with you, that you have no intention of keeping faith with me and doing what I have commanded, I'm going to rip the kingdom from you and hand it over to someone else. 12 But out of respect for your father David I won't do it in your lifetime. It's your son who will pay - I'll rip it right out of his grasp. 13 Even then I won't take it all; I'll leave him one tribe in honor of my servant David and out of respect for my chosen city Jerusalem."
Why do leaves change colors?
Matthew 5:13-14; 16
13"Let me tell you why you are here. You're here to be salt that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. 14 You're here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept.
16 Now that I've put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand - shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you'll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.
Catch on fire with enthusiasm and people will come for miles to watch you burn.
-Charles Wesley
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
