23 I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it. 24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win. 25 Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. So they do it to obtain a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. 26 Therefore I run in such a way as not to run aimlessly; I box in such a way, as to avoid hitting air; 27 but I strictly discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified. 1 Corinthians 9:23-27

We’re all running in a race. We’re running for something and toward an end. As Christians, the first thing we have to ask ourselves is, “Why am I running in this race? Is it for the perishable or the imperishable?” Simply speaking, if we’re running in the race of life for perishable things, we’re running for things that will not last. We’re running for money. We’re running for status. We’re running for anything that stops the second we die. They are the things we can’t bring to the afterlife. All competition in this world exists for things that will not last. We compete and make choices to build our perishable treaures. And for many, when they’re close to dying or know the end is soon, they regret their choices, the race they have run because they know it was all in vain. We must run the race hard for imperishable things. We run to get the crown that will last forever. It will simplify your life immensely. Whatever you’re doing, stop and think, “Am I doing this for things that will not last or things that will last forever?”

Next, we must run with purpose. We must run with a goal in mind. We must not run aimlessly like a boxer beating the air. What is our goal? Our purpose must be to have the Lord dwell inside of us. We must not become slaves to our environment. Truth, Holy Inspiration, and the merit of His blood must live inside of us. What does this mean? It means when we make decisions and act, we’re not acting alone but acting according to Truth and Holy Inspiration. 

Finally, to win this race, we need to exercise self-control. We need to go into strict training! To win the race for the imperishable with the right goal in mind, we need to exercise self-control. In other words, to run as fast as we can, we need to shed what will slow us down and add what will make us faster. We need to stop what hinders our faith and do the things that bolster it. Does this person hinder my faith? Does this job hinder my faith? Does this thought or idea hinder my faith? If the answer is yes, drop them! They’ll slow you down in the race of life! And do the things that bolster your faith! 

But how do we know what helps and hinders our faith? How do we really know what slows us down or speeds us up? Do we look for answers in a book or look for advice from friends? No! We need to try it out in life. We need to experience it. Faith is an active agent. We need to apply it to our lives and see if it hinders or helps our faiths. We don’t know if something is good or bad for our faith, for our race, unless we execute and apply it to our lives. Then we can say, “After having tried that, I don’t think it’s good for me.” Or we can be surprised by people or a thought or an idea. “I had no idea that was going to be so good for my faith!”

We’re running in a race all runners run. We must run for a crown that will last forever, not things that will not last. We must run to have the Lord dwell inside of us. And to win this race, we must exercise self-control. We must figure out what hinders and helps our faith. We must go into strict training and discipline our bodies to quickly shed what is wrong and add what is right. We need the effort and dedication in our pursuit of Christ. 

Click for Korean Sermon https://soundcloud.com/yhpaik/1987-11-14-mixdown