Paul describes the Christian life as a race. He was running after the crown, and he also told us to run after the victory. Not everyone can get it. There are many people who are competing, but not all until the finish line. There are so many people who have preached the gospel, there are many people who have started running, but they have never arrived at their destination. They failed. And this is very sad.
Have you been in a race? On the last day, can you reach the finish line? I pray to God so that you can succeed, so that you depend on God's power to achieve it. It's really a tragedy if you start it but can't finish it. If you call yourself a Christian then you have started the race. You have started this noble calling. I pray that you will not fall in the middle of the road without reaching the finish line. Paul told us to run so that we could get there. What is the point of starting to run but not achieving the goal? It's better not to start. Look at the gifts available in front! What is the prize? That's it, get Jesus! There is not a single thing in this world that is worthy of being pursued. Move on so you can get him!
How do you get someone? By winning his love! Not by catching it and putting it in a box, or locking it in the room. You will not get anyone this way. What you get is a prisoner. You don't win it. You win someone if you win his heart. And if you have a lover, you know exactly what I mean. You will do everything to get that person's attention. And your heart will be shattered when that person's attention to you begins to fade. At least, you are trying to win the love of that person. Then you buy candy, flowers, to the point that you waste your money inviting that person to enjoy expensive dishes. And you are getting confused, how to finance all this? But it's still worth trying. You push yourself to be able to win the person's heart for you. So what does it mean to win Jesus and his love? The meaning is to make him ours. In what ways can you win Jesus? You cannot reach him and say, "He is mine, not yours." No, you must win his love!
Winning Jesus! Make him mine! That is my ambition. This world is like sand in your hand, this world will pass away. Have you ever tried grasping sand? You hold the sand, the stronger your grip, the faster the sand will come out of your hand. The harder you hold it, the faster it disappears from your hand. If you hold it loosely, there is at least a little left in your hand. Such is the existence of this world. The stronger you hold the world, the faster it passes from you. It's amazing! There are people who run fast chasing worldliness, but at the end of their lives, they seem to have almost nothing. And other people who don't seem to care so much about this world, there still seems to be something left. Extraordinary thing. This is what the world is like. He passed. This world is a mortal crown. Is that why you run around?
So, the picture given is a picture of an athlete. What type of athlete are you? We are all in a race. We all run after something in this world. The problem is, what are you running after? You must determine your goal right. So, the picture we see is a picture of an athlete.
You must be spiritually ambitious. Running around in pursuit of goals means you must have determination. You have ambitions to get there. How can you get to the finish line if you have no desire to get there? Or, if you don't have the ambition to achieve it? A person will not enter this race if he is not ambitious to reach the goal. He made every effort because he wanted to get there. You must have dreams!
You might say, "What? I think the ambitious name is worldly." No, it depends on what your ambitions are. Ambitious earthly humans have worldly ambitions. But spiritual man has spiritual ambitions. Ambition is the spirit to win Christ, to get it. Isn't that an ambition? Just like someone who wants to be rich, he wants to get the world, he wants to get this and that. That is what is called ambition. My ambition is to get Christ! I am a very ambitious person. I want to run even faster. I want to win him. Remember that spiritual humans have spiritual ambitions. Do not think that spiritual human beings have no ambition. Having no ambition means not going anywhere, doing nothing. Paul said, "Therefore run away so that you get it! Don't hit the wind. Don't run around in circles. Pursue the goal! That is what matters. Win the prize." What prize? Paul tells us about this gift in 2 Timothy 4: 8, which is the crown of righteousness. Yes, he also mentions that in Philippians 3: 9, "and is in him not with my own truth because I obey the law, but with truth because of trust in Christ, that is the truth that God bestows upon faith". Isn't that beautiful? Paul intends to get this crown of righteousness. The crown, Paul said in 2 Timothy 4:8, is what will be bestowed upon him. That's how you win him, by doing things that please him. Jesus delivered this beautiful sentence: "I always do what pleases the Father." Put the sentence in gold. Put the sentence on your wall. "I always do what pleases the Father." That sentence is provided for those who win the crown of truth.
Paul said in 2 Timothy 4:8, "I have finished fighting. I have been through this race. I have reached the finish line." Paul, at that time, I could imagine him as an old man, maybe around 60 years. Her hair has turned white. He was in prison, waiting for his execution. He is dying. Is she sad? Is he sorry? Not! "I have run, and I have reached the finish line." Did he regret ending the race, when he arrived at the finish line? Not at all! That's why he ran around. "I have reached the finish line! Now, a crown is available to me!" May God enable us all to say this - that we have reached the finish line, we have got the crown!
Often, I like to imagine Paul as he advances towards the execution site, he stands up, his white hair blown in the wind. He has served God for around 30 years. He has finished the battle. There were many signs on his body - scars, shipwrecks, starvation, and sickness on his journey. Some suspected that he had malaria on his journey. This person stepped up, a soldier of Christ, carrying the sign of Christ throughout his body, as he said to the church in Galatia, "No one troubles me because I carry the marks of Jesus on my body. Look at the scars on my back, wounded punches, stoned, put to death." Wonderful people! There, he stepped towards his final victory: the height and majesty of death. I imagined him there, stepping towards his death sentence. As a Roman citizen, he must not be crucified. He will be beheaded. He stepped forward, happily, joyfully. It could be, the person who runs the death sentence is fascinated to see him! The peace he displayed, like the peace of an angel's face. Just as when Stephen died, it was said that his face was like the face of an angel. And now, this time it's Paul's turn. And his face must be glowing like an angel when he stepped into the place of death. He happily bowed his head in prayer, lowering his head under the sword, "I have reached the finish line. And now is the crown." Oh, beautiful day! Great prospect! It's a big joy if we can compete and win the crown!
Is this worth it? This is the last thing we want to reflect on. Is it worth getting Christ and losing everything? Is that all right? Right now, I hope you can understand it. Of course, this is very feasible. What can the world offer us? Are Christians in Indonesia less fortunate because they have to endure all this suffering?
And another question we need to think about is: if it's possible to get Christ without losing everything, then why should we lose everything? In ancient times, bishops were like kings. They are wearing purple cloth, and some of them are still dressed like that now. They act like kings. They took a luxury train pulled by six horses. They live in the luxury of nobles, with large gold rings that people kiss, and wear jewelery on all their fingers. These people act like kings. To be honest, they made me sick. Once, someone came to one of the bishops and said, "Did you know? You are a very wise person. "And the bishop was very flattered. On top of all the wealth he has, he is called a wise man. Really fun. He said, "Why did you say that?" "Well, because Peter and Paul, and the other apostles were stupid." "Oh? Why do you say that? You don't say that." "Because Peter, Paul and the other apostles won the crown, they won Jesus, and got eternal life because they lost everything. But you are wiser. Oh, you are so great! You get all this without losing anything. You can live like a king, enjoy the food of the rulers, travel with a train pulled by six horses, have many employees and servants, and everyone looks down respectfully to you and praises you. Peter and Paul never received such great treatment. They are fools! You are a wise person!" He was indeed a very wise person. He is a wise man according to the measure of this world, but foolish in the eyes of God.
If you can win Christ without losing everything, why do you give up everything? If Paul could win Christ, and still be able to become a great person like before he met Jesus, being a government official who even had the authority to carry out persecution and execution, if he could still maintain his high position in the academic world, why did he give up all this? Can you get Christ while maintaining all this? You can get the best of both worlds. You embrace the world in one hand, and Christ in the other, you get everything! Why is Paul so stupid? Does he have to let go of the one to reach the other? Think about this, friend, Jesus said, "Whoever wants to save his life, he will lose his life. But whoever loses his life for me, he will get eternal life. "Don't get me wrong, brothers and sisters. Don't think that you can have the world and Christ, which is to get the best of both. That is not what Jesus said. I myself will not lie to you either. I tell you the truth. Paul will be the most foolish person if he can obtain Christ without losing everything. Did he say he had lost something? No, Paul said, "Because of him I have given up all that" - pay close attention - "and consider it rubbish, so that I may get Christ." I want to tell God's Word honestly to you.
I have let go of everything and see it as rubbish. I turned my face away from it all, and I did not see it as something that was worthy of being missed. I want to win Christ and get him! Do Christians in Indonesia and China suffer in vain? Do we have to be sad for them? Does God act unjustly to them? There are people who have said, "Didn't God have done unfairly to Christians in Indonesia and China? We enjoy good things, but they have to suffer? It's really unfair! "Yes, maybe there are those who see it as unfair, but those who get the benefits. They are people who will enjoy good things. We are the fools. You don't need to be sad for them. They will get a crown, and we will become spectators if we don't fail on the Day of Breeding. You don't need to be sad because of them. Jesus said, "No one has lost a house, field, father, mother, brother, sister, or anything, who will not get it in the present and future life, one hundred times added to eternal life." can get these things. You can win Christ, but it requires all your sacrifice - a precious pearl. Is that worth it? I think it's very worthy! Because only then can you know the living God, you can know the love of His kindness, which is more valuable than this life.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I am happy to have the opportunity to share about God that I love with you all through Facebook. Hopefully useful and may God always bless us.
