The 2024 Summer Olympics have just begun in Paris this week and I have watched a few competitions on YouTube. Maybe you have done the same? I especially enjoyed watching the women’s Gymnastics and was so excited to see our American team win gold today!
As I watch the summer Olympics, I am reminded of 1 Corinthians 9.
Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. 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. -1 Corinthians 9:24-27 NLT
I want to talk about what it really means to be the bride of Christ
I think it is so easy to look at 1 Corinthians 9 and use that scripture as an excuse to compete against other brother’s and sisters in Christ. But I don’t think competing against each other in order to “win souls to Christ” was Apostle Paul’s original intent here. I believe God wants us to work together as a team, as a united church. A church that is united with Jesus and united with each other.
There are phrases in church culture that really bother me. Phrases like “win souls to Christ” and “be Jesus to someone.” Why does this bother me? Why do I struggle with this? I think it’s the message that these phrases are implying. As the church we are to “win souls to Christ” as if we ourselves receive the gold medal for doing so. As the church we are to “be Jesus to someone” as if Jesus isn’t enough. The church is not the savior of the world – Jesus is! The church will not receive the gold medal – only Jesus gets that glory. The pride behind these mentalities bothers me greatly.
Jesus is the gold – Jesus is the prize!
If we as the church focus on competing against each other to get as many people saved as we can, in order that we may receive the glory, then our hearts are in the wrong place. A glory for ourselves is a glory that will fade away. But if we see that Jesus is already running a race and we humbly ask him how he wants us to run alongside of him, giving him all the glory as the true savior of the world – that’s when we are successful as the bride of Christ. Running to win doesn’t mean running alone, it means running with Jesus who has already won.
However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. -Acts 20:24 NIV
I myself cannot be someone else’s savior. But I can complete the task that Jesus has given me by sharing the good news with others that Jesus is their savior. I am not saying that we as Christ followers shouldn’t help others. But I recently had a mindset shift as several of my brothers and sisters in Christ have helped me in a time of need. They have not been helping me in order to do the right thing or to be a “good” Christian, they have been helping me because they believe Jesus loves me. Jesus has been using many people in the church to help me through a difficult season. Through the help of others, I have felt so loved by God.
This past weekend my car died; it wouldn’t start no matter what I tried. I called a nearby automotive repair shop, but I was still going to be stuck at home with two young boys for a while. I would also need to call a tow truck and this whole situation wasn’t going to be cheap. The next day a dear friend of mine drove me to the farmers market where I was scheduled as a vendor to sell my handmade cards. She got me coffee and made me feel so loved. That was just the beginning. At the farmers market I made the most profit I have ever made as a vendor (so far), and I felt so loved by God. In the afternoon I got a text from another dear friend asking if she and her husband could come look at my car. They met me as soon as I got home, and God used these two amazing people to lavish His love upon me.
My friends inspected my car and thought the battery might need to be replaced. The only problem is, I have a Dodge Journey and the battery is located at the most difficult spot possible. This problem didn’t stop my friends though. They took off my front left wheel and worked hard to get the dead battery out. These two wonderful friends of mine then took my dead battery and bought me a new one. I tried paying for it, but they wouldn’t let me. They put the new battery into my car and then put my wheel back on.
We checked to see if the car would start and what a wonderful sound it was when my car actually turned on. The most wonderful sound – a working car! I was not going to be stuck at home all week – thank you Jesus! These two amazing people saved me hundreds of dollars by fixing my car AND they did all the work for free! That is what it looks like to be the Bride of Christ! I felt so loved by God through my friends this weekend!
In this season, as I experience the love of God through my brothers and sisters in Christ, I have learned that I shouldn’t be helping others in order to check off a to-do list, but because I know that God deeply loves other people, and He wants to use me as a tool to show them that. serving is not about us – it is always about Jesus. I cannot be Jesus to someone – that is an impossible expectation. But I can walk alongside Jesus and allow him to use me as a bridge for others to get to Him. This takes Humility, daily surrender and a willingness to obey the voice of God. The church is not Jesus, the church is a tool being used by Jesus. The church does not receive the gold medal – Jesus does!
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 trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. -Hebrews 12:1-2 NLT
As the church, as the bride of Christ we were given an opportunity to join Jesus in the work He is already doing. This is not our right, we are not the superhero, and we do not receive the glory. This opportunity is a gift and a privilege to share the good news with the world – that Jesus is the Savior. The only way the bride of Christ can do this job well is by holding the hand of our groom – Jesus. It is only by Jesus and through Jesus that we the church will ever be able to run our race successfully. Not so we can win the gold but rather to show the world who is the gold – Jesus Christ.
Thank you for your thoughts. I am not a competitive person…but I do try to improve my own “run”….to keep growing in whatever ways God reveals to me that I need to focus on right now. I am glad about your car, by the way, and the help you were given.