Don't get Disqualified

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I’ve spent a lot of time lately thinking about and writing about things like righteousness, integrity, respect, etc… I’ve looked at the lack of ethics in our children. Now the breaking news stories across the country have to do with two individuals that President Obama chose to help run our country who have to withdraw their names because things they’ve done in their lives have disqualified them from being considered.

Former Senator Tom Daschle requested to withdraw his name from the nomination for Secretary of Health and Human Services. This is in response to the media’s publication of his failure to pay $146,000 in back taxes.

Nancy Killefer has withdrawn herself from consideration as Barack Obama’s “chief performance officer” over her failure to pay taxes.

I was tempted to go on a political rant but I am trying hard to hold that in check.

The thing I was thinking about today comes from 1 Corinthians 9:24 -27.

I was an athlete through high school and college. Then I got old(er) and moved into coaching. That was a lot of fun but different than actually competing. As the coach, you can guide and direct and encourage but the actual results lie with the athlete. There are some principles from athletics and this passage of Scripture that tie into the current political situation.

Paul starts out by telling us some obvious things. “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize?” Running and winning are therefore not the same thing. In any race, there are going to be those who win and those who lose. You don’t get the prize for showing up. You have to actually finish the race to get the prize. You can be the best through the first 99% of the race but if you don’t finish, it means nothing.

When Paul talks about “Run in such a way as to get the prize,” he means that how you run is important. If you intercept a pass in the basketball court and shoot in the wrong goal, you don't further your chances to win. (One of my players actually scored in the wrong goal once!) There is a right way and a wrong way to run.

The next passage says “Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.” Here Paul is talking about self-control and discipline. These are huge principles in athletics. On the basketball court, it may mean taking some pushes under the basket without retaliation. In wrestling, it may mean dieting to make a weight class. Runners can’t “pig out” before a big race. And the list could go on. Our Christian life is the same way. There are certain things we may have to give up if we are going to win the race God has set for us. It also means disciplining yourself to do some things. Winning a race takes a great deal of positive effort. It takes devotion. It is hard work. It is not always fun. It might mean turning off the TV and getting out your Bible or going to a Bible Study. (Oh, no – Did I say turn off the TV!)

Paul talks about motivation in, “They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.” What you do or don’t do today counts for all eternity. You don’t get a “do over” in life. Once a day or an opportunity is past you, you can’t get it back.

The last point Paul makes is that of disqualification. “I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” One of the hardest things would be to train or practice for a long period in time and then not get to compete because you broke a rule. There are rules that have to be followed in any competition or race and the spiritual race is no exception. Don’t take shortcuts – stay the course. I have known some people who have been disqualified from the race. They may have had amazing gifts and talents. But somehow, somewhere, they broke a small rule, then another, and then another. Pretty soon, they weren’t in the race. Sin is always a disqualifier.

Do you think these politicians thought their past would catch up with them? Do you think they thought it would cost them these amazing opportunities? Do you think they intended to get disqualified?

We all have a calling to run the race - the race of life. We need to run it with self control, with motivation, and according to God’s rules. There is a prize at the end that is worth winning - eternal life in heaven. Don’t disqualify yourself, Stay the course and win the prize.



1 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 my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”
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