Finishing Strong By Keeping The Faith Series

I give my permission for this sermon to be used in its fullness for the glory of God. May all who read it and hear be blessed.

FINISHING STRONG BY KEEPING THE FAITH

In 1964, Billy Mills came out of nowhere to become the first, and only American to ever win the Olympic 10,000-meter race. Billy was an unknown runner and was not picked to finish among the top 10 runners. However, not only did Billy Mills win the race, but he also broke the world record.

Winning the Olympics is an incredible feat. But there is another race that is by far the greatest race you will ever run. This race is a spiritual race for eternity, and it is the most important race of your life. Those who finish this race will receive an eternal crown that far surpasses all the great treasures of this world. It is God’s desire that you run this race, that you finish the race, and that you win the race by keeping the faith and finishing strong.

2 Timothy 4:7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only, but also to all who have loved His appearing. NKJV

PRESSING ON TO FINISH STRONG

Picture in your mind a runner who is in the greatest race of his life. He is weary and tired. His muscles are straining with fatigue, and his body is telling him to quit, but he continues to press on, because no matter what it takes, he is determined to finish the race. His goal is to not just finish, but to finish strong. Step by step he presses on until suddenly, he sees the finish line and with all of his might, he sprints the final lap and crosses the finish line. That’s the kind of race God wants you to run.

This is what Paul meant in Philippians 3:14 when he said… I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. NIV

You are in a spiritual race that is by far the greatest race you will ever run. How you run this race will be the difference between great eternal rewards and no rewards. To run this race, we stay the course, we must keep the faith, and press on until the race is finished.

In the theater of your mind picture a ribbon tightly stretched across the track to mark the finish line. The crowd is cheering as a group of world class athletes are sprinting with all their strength down the final home stretch. At the last moment, an athlete breaks away from the pack and with the last ounce of strength he surges across the finish line breaking the ribbon and winning the race. For that athlete, crossing the finish line is one of the greatest moments of his life. It is the result of years of hard work and training. His whole life has been shaped around the focus of that one single goal, to finish his race and win the prize. But here’s what I want you to see… that athlete is you. You are the one running this race with one goal in mind; to finish the race and to finish strong by keeping the faith.

THE FINISH LINE…

The race to the finish line is very important because you only have this moment to run your race. The moment you step into eternity you have crossed the finish line and your race is finished. For some, the finish line may still be several years down the road. But for others, the finish line is much closer. The real question is, what kind of finish will you have? One of the most important truths about your race that you must never forget is that it is NOT how you start that matters but how well you finish. It is critical that you remember that truth.

There are many who start out on fire for Jesus and have a great start, and then suddenly they run into trouble. They experience trials and temptations. They face hardships and obstacles and they lose faith, or for some, they just get distracted and stop running their race. But as a believer in Christ, your number one goal is to finish your race and to finish strong by keeping the faith to the very end.

That’s God’s call for your life especially for this New Year…

Yes, you will face obstacles. You will face trials… You will get knocked down. But that does not give you permission to stop running. When the devil trips you up, get up and keep running. Don’t give up the faith, and don’t stop running until the race is finished.