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 a slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." I Corinthians 9:24-27

In our race of life we must be passionate about our desire to live for the glory of the Lord.  In our race of life we must be passionate about living holy lives for the Lord.  As children of God we are no longer subject to the consequences of hell for our sins.  Jesus has paid the punishment of our sins on the cross.  The Lord has also lived a perfect life for us that we could not live.  We are now in a positional state of holiness before God.  It must also be our passion, however, to demonstrate practical holiness and to reflect the Lord Jesus in all areas of our lives.  Romans 6:13 tells us that we must not offer our bodies as "instruments of  wickedness."  We must instead offer ourselves to the Lord as "instruments of righteousness" and holiness.

Before we became children of God we had no choice but to sin.  We were not capable of refraining from sin in our lives.  As children of God we once again have the capability to choose not to sin.  We have the capability to choose to be "instruments of righteousness" and holiness for the Lord.  We often still fail and sin, but we now have the desire and power and capability to choose to obey the Lord.  This desire and power comes from the Holy Spirit now living in us.

As redeemed children of God we are now free from the penalty and power of sin, but sin is still present in our lives.  Our minds and hearts desire to obey God, but the sin still remaining in us wishes to take dominance.  So as children of God we are in a spiritual warfare or battle against sin until the day we die or until Jesus returns.

We must not think that practical holiness and victory over sin will come instantly or easily.  I Timothy 4:7 says that in our spiritual warfare against sin we must train ourselves to be godly.  In the days of the ancient Olympics the runners who competed in the races would undergo "strict training" (I Corinthians 9:25).  This is true of our daily struggle and victory over sin also.  Psalm 119:11 reminds us that one way we train ourselves to be godly and holy is by hiding God's Word in our heart.  We must have a disciplined approach to hearing, reading, studying, and memorizing God's Word.

We must also take time to meditate on God's Word.  We must think about God's Word and strive to apply its truths to our individual life's situations and to every area of our lives.  We must strive to bring even our bodies and our physical appetites under the dominion of the Lord Jesus Christ.  I Corinthians 9:27 tells us that we must make our bodies "slaves" for God and not slaves of our passions, desires, and weaknesses.

In our attempt at disciplined application of God's Word to our lives we will fail many times.  In spite of this the Lord wants us to keep persevering in our struggles against sin no matter how many times we fail.  In spite of sin and failure I Corinthians 9:25 says that the Lord wants us to run our race of life "in such a way as to get the prize."  Our eternal lives are already secure in Christ.  We must run life's race, however, in a way that it demonstrates that we are truly children of God.  May this be our passion and desire!