INTRODUCTION
1 Timothy 4:7 says “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.”
“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.”
The more I live the more I realize that in this life there is a constant battle, If we’re not fighting one thing we are battling something else, if we’re not at odds with someone, we’re at odds about something.
I’ve come to learn it’s not the battle in itself but how we fight the battles in our lives. Do we fight a good fight, are we weak in how we fight, or do we look to the Lord to fight our battles for us.
When I tried to fight my battles myself, most of the time I was the loser, not all the time, but very often depending on what battle I was fighting. Often times I didn’t even go to the Lord in prayer, or even expect Him to fight for me; I thought I could do it on my own.
But once I got into the word of God and heard how God would fight my battles for me, and I wasn’t doing too well on my own anyway, then I realized it was time to make a drastic change.
But what really made sit up and take notice was that I wanted to make heaven my finally home, and I was not going to get there without the help of God.
THOUGHT 1 – Verse 4:7
In verse 7 of 2 Timothy the bible says “I have fought a good fight,”
As Christians we will have to fight our spiritual battles, it could be a fleshly desire, a trial we’re going through, regardless of the fight, we will come out on top if we include the Lord in the battle.
But we can’t quit in the middle of the fight and expect to be the winner we’ve got to go the distance we’ve got to toe it out.
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The word goes on to say “I have finished my course,”
The Apostle Paul said to “Walk by faith and not by sight.” Finishing what has been started is the key to our spiritual success. It’s no time to throw in the towel, but to stand firm and take another step toward and for Jesus Christ.
And then he ends this verse with saying “I have kept the faith.”
Our faith is the one thing that no man can take away from us. It is tried every day, but faith should be embedded in our hearts, and if it is it will carry us throughout every physical and spiritual battle we encounter.
Saints we are constantly in a battle for our souls. Many times we feel lonely, unloved and unwanted, but we are never alone, Jesus is right there to lift us up, to heal us, to deliver us if we just look to Him by faith.
THOUGHT 2 – Quitters
There’s a saying quitters never will, and winners never quit, in John 4:34 “Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to finish His work.”
Our job is to do the will of Lord, to finish the work Jesus started, to spread the gospel, be in prayer for others, and be a servant unto the house of God.
Hebrews 12:1 says, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.”
We so often examine other people’s ways, but we need to examine ourselves to look at what’s going on inside of us, we need to “Lay aside every weight” in our lives.”
Only God and we know what is holding us back. It takes prayer to diagnose the spiritual dryness or hardness that can affect our souls.
Then we need to “Run with Patience,” a lot of times we get restless running this Christian race, seems like everything is moving to slow.
We have to be able to go through something, persevere, we have to run this Christian race without letting things and people hinder or get in our way.
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There’s one thing we must understand, when we became a Christian the course or the race was already set before us by God.
We may be able to change courses in this world but we can’t change the courses that God has set, THE RACE SO TO SPEAK IS SET BEFORE US. GOD HAS SET A SPIRITUAL MAP BEFORE US TO FOLLOW.
We need to pray His Word, and an outpouring of the Holy Spirit to follow the path God has set before us.
THOUGHT 3 – Forgetting
Philippians 3:13 says “Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before.”
To many times we tend to mix the world and religion, in other words people try to gain the best of both worlds, but Paul said he was forgetting those things he’d left behind, he was holding on to Jesus, and holding out for the price of the high calling which was in Jesus Christ.
When we allow our minds to be distracted by a lot of things, we will not be able to accomplish nothing if we don’t have aim and purpose of soul.
Paul said forgetting those things which are behind. All the things in our past should just be reminders of our life before Jesus, we are born again, and we have a new life hidden in Him.
Paul didn’t stop to think of all the difficulties he’d overcome, he mentioned them in passing to make a point, not to dwell on them, but he thought of what was yet to be accomplished.
He was reaching forth, stretching out after the things in front of him.
CONCLUSION
As Christians we should always strive to reach for a higher stage of holiness, a deeper revelation of God’s Word, a stronger sensitivity of the moving of the Holy Spirit.
If we hold on and hold out, there’s a prize awaiting us, a crown of rejoicing, the crown of righteousness, that crown that is incorruptible, the crown of glory, and the crown of life.
I Peter 5:4 say “And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.”
But that’s only if can hold on and hold out until He come.
INVITATION TO DISCIPLESHIP
Romans 10:9-10 “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
BENEDICTION
Jude 1:24-25 “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever.” Amen
