Striving for the Mastery – Part Four
“Know you not that they which run in a race run all, but one receives the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that strives for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.
I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beats the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” (I Corinthians 9: 24 – 27)
Every competitor in the Isthmus games had to be a COMPETITOR.
The expression “I fight” means I will compete to the best of my ability.
The figure of speech now changes from a runner to that of a fighter. In 684 B.C. the Olympic Games were expanded to include boxing.
“Thus I fight not as one who beats the air…”
This is a description of a person shadow boxing — pretending. The Christian life isn’t a pretend world. It is for real.
To gain an understanding of what was involved in boxing in the Isthmus Games let me share these insights.
The boxer wore only oil and a pair of potentially lethal gloves. That’s all. These gloves were known as “Caestus.” They consisted of leather thongs set with metal knobs of lead or iron. Round one began with the competitors towing a line and starting at a given signal. Round one ended when one of the boxers had been knocked out or killed. Round two began when the boxer who had been knocked out was revived. He was then given a certain amount of time to resume the fight. A line was drawn and he had to tow the line within the time limit. When he did, round two began. The fight ended when one had either been killed or beaten senseless.
We, too, have to toe the line for Jesus.
There was a technical term employed in boxing used in the text. The decisive first blow was the “fist blow under the eye” known in the Greek as the HUP-OPIAZO. “Hupo” meaning “under” and “ops” meaning “eye.” It was the term of that era comparable to our term “knock out.” In our text it is used in the Greek and translated “I buffet” or “I discipline my body.”
Like such a boxer we must mentally use our spiritual resources to control our bodies if we are to be spiritual victors. Fight “not as uncertain.”
If you want a victorious spiritual life it requires being spiritually focused. The word in verse 26 translated “uncertainty” is ADELOS and it means “I do not run without clarity.”
No athlete has come to these games without clarity of purpose. Each knows in what he or she is to compete and is focused on that. Be certain of your role.
What is your goal in life?
Isaac and Ishmael: A Portrait of the Middle-East Today 6/14/98
Genesis 16:1-16, 17:15-21, and 21:1-21
JESUS CHRIST’s birth was the fulfillment of numerous prophecies. One was that He would be a descendant of Isaac. That was a most unlikely reality. By man’s standard an impossibility.
Who was this man Isaac? On the pages of the Bible he stands out on history’s horizon like a mole hill between two mountains. On one side was the summit of his father Abraham. On the other the peak of his son Jacob. Compared to them his life seems insignificant. Yet, as with all things great and small God had a plan for him.
Of him God said to Abraham, “Sarah your wife will bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac: I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his descendants after him” (Genesis 17: 19).
Let the story tell itself, and then let’s draw from it some vital conclusions. READ: GENESIS 16:1-16; 17:15-21; 21:1-21.
God’s plan became man’s parody when Sarah decided to devise a plan to do what she did not trust God to do. The Code of Hammurabi stated:
If she has given a maid to her husband and she has born children and afterwards that maid has made herself equal with her mistress, because she has born children her mistress shall not sell her for money, she shall reduce her to bondage and count her among the female slaves.
Sarah, Abraham’s wife, was a strong willed woman who wanted to exercise her rights when her plan failed.
Hagar, Sarah’s Egyptian maid, “despised Sarah” and “mocked Isaac.” Obviously she was also a strong willed woman with a bad attitude.
God promised Abraham he would have a son by Sarah through whom He would bless all mankind.
Consenting to Sarah’s wishes Abraham at the age of 86 had a son by Hagar. Later God’s promise of a son through Sarah became a reality. These two half- brothers were Isaac, his son by Sarah, and Ishmael, his son by Hagar. Isaac was the son of promise.
I. TWO SIBLINGS: JEWS AND ARABS IN PREVIEW
A. God promised to bless the child of Sarah and make her descendants a blessing. The lineage of the Jewish race began with Abraham and was perpetuated through Isaac and his son Jacob.
Matthew and Luke in tracing the genealogy of Jesus, from a human perspective, note this fulfillment.
Most Americans are aware of this promise and marvel at God’s blessings on the Jews (Gen. 17:19). This is appropriate. However, most of us seem to think the Arabs are God’s outcasts. Not so. God also promised to bless the child of Hagar, Ishmael and his descendants (Gen. 17:20). God said of Ishmael “I will make him a great nation” (Gen. 21: 18). It was through the line of Ishmael that the Arab nations developed. These descendants have also been blessed. Note who constitutes the oil cartel in the middle-east. It is the Arab nations.
Ishmael was born before Isaac. He was conceived of Hagar an Egyptian slave girl whom Sarah gave to Abraham for the purpose of conception. When he was born, Abraham prayed that he would be the child of God’s promised blessings (17:18). The expression “Oh, that Ishmael might live before You!” is a plea for him to be the heir apparent.
Evidently these two siblings contested each other on a regular basis. The scripture says that Ishmael was seen “scoffing” at Isaac. The verb tense used means he was always scoffing. Galatians 4: 29 reveals this scoffing involved “persecution.”
The descendants of these two are still antagonists. The perpetual conflict within the West Bank and Gaza as well as the constantly contested borders of Israel is an outgrowth. The Arab-Israeli conflict began in Hagar’s bedroom.
II. TWO SPOUSES: JEALOUSY AND ANGER IN PURVIEW
God never condoned polygamy; nor did He ever bless it even in the lives of some of His servants who violated His command regarding one wife.
Abraham and Sarah both had sacramental names given them by God. Abraham originally was called Abram meaning “honored father.” God renamed him Abraham which means “father of many nations.” God gave him this name when he was old and had no children. Sarah’s name had been changed from Sarai. Her old name meant “princess,” indicating that in her home land of Ur she was a member of royalty. Her new name meant “to rule.” She was to be the royal line by which God’s promise would be fulfilled to Abraham.
Strange as it may seem the first Jew was a Gentile. Abraham who came from beyond the Euphrates was the first person called a Hebrew (Gen. 14: 13). The word Hebrew means “the immigrant.” Sarah was the first female Hebrew, the fountainhead of the Jewish race.
God’s plan was for Sarah to conceive and bear a son.
Sarah amended God’s plan for Abraham to have a son by her young Egyptian maid, Hagar.
Things always go wrong when we decide God can’t keep His word and we have to do for Him what we don’t have faith to believe He can do.
When Hagar conceived, she chided the childless Sarah. Sarah became very jealous of Hagar. The mistress and the maid couldn’t coexist it appeared. Sarah dealt “harshly” with Hagar (16:6) so Hagar fled. In doing so she was violating the law which forbid a bondwoman to leave the service of her mistress.
God sent a angel messenger to Hagar on “the way to Shur.” Knowing Sarah had wronged her the angel nevertheless told her to return to Sarah. Two wrongs don’t make a right. She obeyed and returned. This is a beautiful illustration of submissiveness.
At the well where Hagar encountered the angel she used a beautiful name for God which means “You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees” (Gen. 16:13). The well where this encounter with God occurred she called “Beth-lahai-roi,” meaning “The well of Him who lives and sees me.”
When Hagar submissively returned she and Sarah grew to be even more jealous of one another and eventually this flared into anger. Finally Sarah pulled rank and demanded that Hagar and her son Ishmael be banished. Notice that this caused discord between Abraham and Sarah. Discord consequents when we disobey God. Having two spouses causes conflict.
Reluctantly Abraham complied and sent them into the desert with limited provisions. Poet and artist alike have sought to capture Hagar’s anguish in the desert when their supplies ran out. One of the finest masterpieces in the Dresden Gallery is a painting called “Hagar in the Wilderness.” The child is depicted lying on his back, dying of thirst, while his beautiful impoverished mother lifts her eyes to heaven and prays, “Let me not see the death on the child.” God answered her prayer and opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. God spared them both in keeping with His promise.
Ishmael grew to be a desert-dwelling archer. Our last glimpse of Hagar was her act of securing an Egyptian wife for Ishmael. She found for him a wife from her own land of idols and worldliness. Untaught faith in Jehovah by Abraham and influenced by a pagan wife, a different lifestyle and code of beliefs emerged. This is an illustration of the fact the extension of the faith is only one generation away. If one fails to pass it on to another, it is lost.
When Abraham was 100 and Sarah 90 she conceived and gave birth to Isaac, the child of promise. Sarah is the only one in the Bible whose exact age is given.
God kept His promise to them because Abraham believed (Rom. 4: 19 – 22).
As Isaac grew into manhood he went to dwell at Beth-lahai-roi, the place Hagar had lived. She impacted his life dynamically. She was his nurse and doubtless held him spellbound with stories of the Nile, pyramids, Pharaohs, and crocodiles. Had it not been for the strong and longer lasting influence of Abraham, Isaac might well have followed Hagar instead of the faith of Abraham and Sarah.
The child of Hagar is described as “scoffing” at Isaac, the child of Sarah. He had to learn this from his mother. Hagar had “despised” Sarah from the moment of her conception of Abraham’s son (16: 5). For Ishmael to have ridiculed Isaac would have been to mock all the promises of God inherent in him. This scoffing continues. From the lineage of Isaac came Jesus Christ and the Christian faith. From the lineage of Ishmael came Mohammed and the Moslem faith.
All of this happened because Sarah decided to do things her way rather than waiting on God. Does this same trait ever get you in trouble? The experience of Sarah is a caution against hasty action in times of trials and difficulties. It appeals for trust.
Sarah could not have anticipated that her single, disobedient decision would originate a rivalry which has resulted in the bitterest hatred through the ages which not even an ocean of blood can quench. We should always weigh the consequences of our decisions. They are often made in a moment with a lifetime of consequence. Sarah’s decision has endless consequence.
Likewise, a decision to receive or reject Christ as Savior has eternal consequence.
III. TWO SYSTEMS: JESUS AND ALTERNATIVES IN REVIEW
In Galatians 4: 22 – 31 there is an allegory using Sarah and Hagar to distinguish the difference in law, that is works, and grace. In verse 24 the account is described as “symbolical.” The word means an allegory which is an illustration.
HAGAR represents the Old Covenant of the law, a system of works.
She was a bondwoman. Her son, Ishmael, was “born after the flesh.” Ishmael was born the natural way; according to nature.
Hagar and Ishmael represent what is known as the “flesh principle,” rejecting God’s promise, rejecting the way of faith and trying to fulfill the will of God on your own terms. Persons operating on the flesh principle are trying to merit, earn, or deserve, by their works, what God gives freely.
Hagar represented “Jerusalem which now is,” meaning in bondage to the law.
SARAH represents the New Covenant fulfilled in Christ.
She was a free woman. Her son, Isaac, was “born through the promise.” Isaac was born the supernatural way; despite nature.
Sarah represents “the Jerusalem that is above” — “our mother.” This represents true faith originated salvation with heaven as its source. This depicts salvation by grace.
This account is included in the Scripture to let us know we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ and not by works of the law. It has always been so. We are saved by grace not genes. The true line of descent was Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
This is the line of faith. Abraham had two sons. One, Isaac, had faith. The other, Ishmael, didn’t.
Isaac had two sons, Jacob and Esau. Jacob had faith in Jehovah God and Esau did not.
It is the faith line that represents faithfulness. It still is.
Galatians now list three consequences of being a child of promise, that is, a saved person:
1) Persecution from non-believers, legalist (Vs. 29). As Ishmael persecuted Isaac, so the non- believing world persecutes believers.
2) Inheritance of a priceless, spiritual nature results (Vs. 30). Isaac was the sole heir. No one outside the covenant of grace, a non-believer will inherit what Christ has in store for all who believe.
3) Obligation is inherent in the inheritance (Vs. 31). The rest of the book of Galatians illustrates this.
If you are willing to live free, you can expect all three of these. The eternal nature of the inheritance makes it all worth while.
Striving for the Mastery – Part Three
“Know you not that they which run in a race run all, but one receives the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that strives for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.
I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beats the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” (I Corinthians 9: 24 – 27)
Every athlete who participated in the Isthmus games had assigned to him a coach. The coach was a person who knew more than he about what it took to be the best competitor in his sport. Every athlete regardless of his sport did the same exercises. What made the difference was knowing the finer point of his competition in his sport. The athlete had to be COACHABLE.
The athlete’s coach was his master. What he said the athlete did. If we are going to be spiritual victors, we must submit to Christ as our master/trainer.
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” (James 1:22)
In a more modern day Coach John Wooden, renowned UCLA basketball coach, would always call his team together before each game and say the same thing to them. “I have done all I can to help you. The rest is up to you. Now go do what I have taught you.”
Jesus has taught us all we need to know to win life’s game by His standard. It is time for us to do what we know to do.
A popular modern day discipline is group Bible study. That is good, but it is time to start doing what we already know to do.
There was a church member who needed coaching. Every time his pastor endeavored to instruct him he would say, “Let’s pray about it.” Finally the pastor said one day, “It is time to stop praying and start playing.” Keep studying, but by all means get in the game. Do what you know to do before you look for more to do, because if you don’t do what you know to do the Lord is not going to give you more not to do.
As a college freshman basketball player I got in the game near the end and scored two points. We won by one point. The next day I was spouting off to friends in the campus post office. I said such things as, “I should be the go-to man on this team. I am hot. I should be a starter. If you see the coach tell him.” They said, “You just told him. He is standing right behind you.” I ran laps that day.
Don’t try to tell Jesus what He should do. You do what He has taught you to do. Prove you are coachable. “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” (James 1:22)
Striving for the Mastery – Part Two
“Know you not that they which run in a race run all, but one receives the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that strives for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.
I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beats the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” (I Corinthians 9: 24 – 27)
In striving for mastery an athlete had to be CONTROLLED.
One common characteristic of every great athlete is self-control. To participate in the Isthmus Games every athlete had to check into the training facility nine months before the games. When they checked-in they checked-out of society. They went into isolation from the public and were completely cut off from everything and everyone outside.
The Greek word describing this experience is AGONIZOMAI. Various translations of the Greek New Testament make its meaning more understandable. Some are:
“Every man who strives for mastery trains himself by all manner of self-restraint.”
Josh Davis, the swimmer who won three gold medals, spoke of his twelve years of training that resulted in a few moments of glory. Our lifetime of discipline will result in an eternity of glory.
“Anyone who enters a contest goes into strict training.”
The many splendid athletes who compete in the Olympics have done so. There is an English word that has come from the Greek word describing this intensive training. It can be heard in the Greek word AGONIZOMAI. Our word is “agony.” A hymn written by Isaac Watts in 1724 speaks to this.
Sure I must fight if I would reign;
Increase my courage, Lord;
I’ll bear the toil, endure the pain,
Supported by thy Word.
Am I a soldier of the cross,
A follower of the Lamb?
And shall I fear to own his cause,
Or blush to speak his name?
When thine illustrious day shall rise,
And all thy saints shall shine,
And shouts of vict’ry rend the skies,
The glory, Lord, be thine.
How controlled by Jesus and His Word are you? Recommit today.
A Secret Source of Strength 6/14/98
Psalm 31:19-24
Page 820 Come Alive Bible
JESUS CHRIST loves the hopeless. He loved Zacchaeus who was hopelessly lonely. He loved Mary Magadalene though demon possessed. He loved Mary and Martha whose brother Lazarus died.
A sense of futile hopelessness is so foreign to the Lord that the word “hopeless” does not occur in the Bible.
Knowing human nature our Lord realizes it exists and proposes an antidote. The Psalmist describes himself as a person for whom persons have set a snare and caught him in their net. Have you ever felt trapped, hopeless? Framed in such a feeling three release principles are noted.
God’s people need to know God’s word in order to know what to do in times of uncertainty. Recently we visited the Hadassah Hospital in Jerusalem to see the famed beautiful stained glass windows by renowned artist Marc Chagall. The twelve Jerusalem Windows in the synagogue represent the twelve tribes of Israel. The captivating window of the tribe of Issachar is stunning. Issachar was an agricultural tribe that loved the land so much they would not even leave to go to war (Genesis 49: 14,15). Tradition says that Zebulun and Issachar made a pact. Zebulun would enter the commercial arena in order to allow Issachar time to study the Torah. Therefore, the gift the Issachar tribe gave David was that they “had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do” (I Chronicles 12: 32).
God’s people need to study God’s Word in order to understand our times and know what to do. In this time of uncertainty and apprehension let’s explore a rich passage.
I. BE OF GOOD COURAGE (Psalm 31: 24a)
This brings to mind what has been called Jesus’ favorite text: “Be of good cheer.” This He said to the helpless paralectics, the woman who touched the hem of His garment, the terrified disciples in the storm, before His ascension – “In this world you shall have tribulation but be of good cheer.”
Fear of conditions might cause some to try to retreat into the past or flee into the future, but reverence for God brings us to confront the current with courage. Almost anyone can show physical courage. It refuses to stand by convictions. Don’t be a moral turn-coat. Be courageous enough to die rather than compromise.
In the day of Charles II, Margaret Wilson, a woman of great faith, was falsely accused and sentenced to death. She was tied to the stake on the beach at low tide and offered release for recanting as the tide rose. Her last words – “Christ only is my Master.”
Our word COURAGE comes from the Latin word meaning resulting from two basics: cor and ago. “Cor” is the word for “heart” and “ago” the word for “to put in motion.” When the heart is put in motion there is courage.
Courage refers to the condition of the heart. Richard I, King of England, was called Richard Coeur de Lion, Richard the Lion-Hearted. Meaning King Richard who has the heart of a lion. It was a reference to his courage in battle.
The opposite of courage is not only cowardice, but conformity. There is a story of a soldier in Alexander’s army with an incurable disease. He was always at the front of the fight. Alexander ordered his doctors to spare no effort to find a cure for such a brave warrior. Miraculously they did. Once healed he coward toward the rear of the ranks in protection of his life. It is better to be stunned into courage by pain than healed into cowardice.
II. HE SHALL STRENGTHEN YOUR HEART HEART is the Hebrew word for mind, purpose, intention, or insight.
If you have been mentally wandering these last few minutes come on back and fix your mind on what is about to be said. It is a revolutionary concept that can change your life.
It is said of God “He will strengthen your heart.” Such a concept has been veiled in meaning. The organ of the heart is a marvel. This rugged four-chambered, four-valved pump which handles 5,000 gallons of blood a day, almost enough to fill a railroad tank car. It supplies the circulatory system through 12,000 miles of vessels, and in the course of the average lifetime beats two and one half billion times. There is an additional strategic function of the heart long unknown.
Now without regard for that statement a British researcher at Southhampton University and author Dr. Alan Watkins help our understanding. In his book Mind-Body Medicine: a Clinician’s Guide to Psycho/neuro/immunology he speaks of the heart as the body’s powerhouse which has a “hitherto unrecognized role in balancing the entire human system.” He states the heart produces 50 times more electrical energy than the brain and a thousand times more electro- magnetic energy. Being the strongest power source in the body it coordinates all the other body systems, including the brain, commonly thought to be the dominant organ.
The process is known as “entrainment.” It produces harmony throughout all of the body.
He illustrates it by observing a flock of birds. Have you ever seen a large dense flock of birds flying along and all at once they all instantly dart in the same direction in response to a threat. That togetherness is entrainment. Dr. Watkins says biological systems entrain. The heart sets the pattern. In humans it only happens in response to a positive emotional state. All body systems have their body clocks which have their own rhythm. When there is a positive emotional state these rhythms synchronize. When this happens the brain works better, the immune system functions better, and your hormonal systems is at its best.
Have you ever been engaged in an upsetting conversation and when it is over and you have calmed down you think of so many good things you wish you had said. Well during that upset state your entrainment wasn’t good and your brain wasn’t at its best.
When our Lord says He will strengthen our heart He is saying He will help your brain, immune system, and hormones work together to your fullest advantage. All of this happens when the Lord is allowed to strengthen your heart by you thinking with the mind of Christ. That is, having His thought on each issue. Such positive thoughts impact all of your life.
When Stephen (Stefano) of Colonna, a man of great faith was captured by assailants they asked him in derision, “Now where is your fortress?” Placing his hand over his heart he said, “Here is my fortress.” It is our citadel of defense against all opponents.
Little wonder the Scripture says, “Man looks upon the outward appearance but God looks upon the heart.”
Your heart is the center of your intellectual, moral, emotional, and spiritual life. Is it right with God?
Anxiety is replaced by acclaim. Praise acknowledges the Divine Person. Love accepts His purpose.
III. HOPE
HOPE is the happy anticipation of good, favorable and confident expectation. Earnestly anticipating and expecting through experiencing delay and disappointment.
Little wonder God calls hope “the anchor of the soul” (Hebrews 6:19 [NASB]).
Hope realizes that it sometimes takes God time to work. It is the catalyst which makes divine ferment possible. It is the incentive which leads to unrealized perfection. Without hope man is less than a beast, he is a malfunctioning organism.
The media has exposed us to persons devastated by hurricanes, tornadoes, raging fires, floods, and crimes in homes, schools, and streets. Many have been absolutely inundated with sorrow and grief resulting from these tragedies. Some have rebounded some have not. Often one thing makes the difference —- hope.
Doubts often slip into our lives like termites in a building. These termite-like thoughts eat away at our faith. This happens when:
A. Things I think should not happen, happen.
B. When things I think should happen don’t happen. Then what do you do?
C. When things I think should happen NOW, happen later.
God knows what He is doing regardless of the waiting period.
These three things cause termites of doubt to work. It is then the All-Pro of termite extermination is needed. That is, hope.
Famed American cardiologist, Dr. R. McNair Wilson remarks in his autobiography, Doctor’s Progress, “Hope is the medicine I use more than any other …. Hope can cure nearly anything.”
“Saturday Review,” reported, “Hope …. is medicinal. This is not merely a statement of belief, but a conclusion proved by meticulously controlled scientific experiments.”
To be most effective this hope must be Christo-centric. Timothy expresses this in four all- inclusive words: “Christ Jesus our hope….” (I Timothy 1: 1).
Victor Frankel in writing of his days in a Nazi prison camp wrote: “The prisoner who lost faith in the future – his future was doomed. With his loss of faith in the future, he also lost his spiritual hold; he let himself decline, and become subject to mental and physical decay.” Hope ties us to eternity.
There are two ways of looking at life’s defeats and delays:
THE WAY OF THE DISILLUSIONED – Some attribute the disillusionment of hope to youth. Life having not fulfilled the disillusioned one’s aspirations, thus, they resolve to make the best of it by being tough. Such a one guards self against the awareness of hope. They become fearful that it is a sign of weakness. They become oblivious to it as a source of strength.
Hope in the future fills the present with energy.
THE WAY OF THE CHRISTIAN – Hope accepts trials. It exists alongside the potential for despair. Hope isn’t blind – it sees through the eyes of God.
“My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness.”