Compete According to the Rules
One World, One Dream
2 Timothy 1:3 – 7
(Lin Hao Clip)
There is a nobility in willingly facing pain when it is necessary. Athletics is a peaceful expression of that virtue.
Training
Training was an important part of the ancient Olympic games. These days, training is more of an optional kind of requirement. A person who does not train cannot expect to qualify, but how she trains is up to her and her coach. In ancient times, though, a person who did not train according to a prescribed regime and diet was not following the rules and would not be allowed to compete. They took an oath to intensively train for 10 months prior to the competition.
For that reason, there is more of a connection between verses 4 and 5 than is immediately obvious to our contemporary eyes. We separate preparation from the rules of competition. Think about the preparation of the soldier then, in connection with the preparation of the athlete and combine the ideas to find the complete picture of what Paul is saying:
• Don’t get involved in outside concerns
• Work to please your leader
• Compete and train according to the rules
These are the elements of ultimate approval, both from your coach and from the judge. If you follow these principles, you will be the legitimate winner of a crown.
The crowns
The crowns or wreaths that were worn on the heads of winning athletes were different for different places. At Olympia crowns of olive leaves were awarded. This prize was not the only prize that was received by athletes. They often received substantial cash rewards (not Nike endorsement contracts). Sometimes the prize included dinner for life, or expensive household equipment made of bronze or iron. But, for Olympians, the olive leaf crown, like the gold medal, was by far the most prestigious prize.
Paul is saying, "If you want to win the ultimate crown, you must separate yourself and work hard."
• Don’t get tangled up in sin
• Make sure to please your Leader
• Live up to the recognized standards
Paul is not saying these things in a vacuum. I think he is referring (guardedly) to something that everyone knew about, but nobody would talk about. The Olympics should have been held in 65 AD, but a high level bribe had it postponed for two years, for the benefit of a single competitor.
The Olympic scandal of 67
In the year AD 67 the Olympics were held and six events were won by a quite prestigious competitor:
The events were
• Heralds (a trumpet blowing competition - the winners were then enlisted to announce the athletes)
• Tethripon (four horse chariot)
• Foals Tethripon (four horse chariot pulled by foals)
• Ten horse chariot (not a regular event, he had no competitors, fell off the chariot and had to be helped back up ... and still could not complete the course, but was given the crown anyway)
• Lyre (a self accompanied singing competition invented by this "athlete")
• Tragedy (little is known about this event, it too may have been invented for this venue)
After the games, he publically presented bribes to the judges and was accompanied back to Rome by a large retinue of singers and story tellers who loudly announced his victory. The competitor was none other than the vain and violent Emperor Nero (Suetonius: De Vita Caesarum – Nero).
This "triumph" of athleticism (that was later disqualified in its entirety) took place in the summer of 67. Paul’s letter was written in the Autumn of the same year.
Hard working
Look at a couple of emphases in verse 6. Every farmer gets to taste his crops, but the hard-working farmer should be the first. Once again, Paul is emphasizing competition and reward. The idea of hard work here is illustrated by Simon Peter when Jesus told him to throw his nets on the other side of the boat. He says, "We worked hard all night". It is the idea of working to the point of fatigue. Not just doing a lot of work, but doing it with energy that wears you out. If the farmer has worked till he dropped, he should get the first meal.
The picture becomes clear
• Work hard
• Work to be excellent
• Work with single mindedness
• Work for God’s goals and not the world’s
• Work with integrity
Work for the prize
God has set the bar high
Notice Paul does not consider this to be a small thing. He refers to it as suffering. He knows that working hard, training well, and contending with integrity are investments in time, focus and energy. He knows they are efforts to lay aside personal ambition and pleasure to give everything for the gospel.
We have been entered into an eternal competition against the forces of darkness. God Himself is the judge and our opponents are Satan, the Worldly system, and our own sinful urges. Our goal is to complete the competition with integrity and, since in this book Paul places such an emphasis on evangelism and teaching, it is also helping others to find their way through the obstacles as well. We are set to compete, and like the Olympian, we must compete according to the rules.
... (Clip)Dara Torres is amazing because she is both older than most Olympians, and she is meticulous about the rules
The rules
The rules are not the particular "thou shalt nots ..." that many believe are the hallmark of following God. Paul strongly denounces that kind of legalistic measure. However, he does not deny that there are standards that govern our behavior. These standards are more abstract in character. They call for a governing principle more than stipulations.
In 2 Timothy, Paul is encouraging his son in the faith to live up to his calling. There are specific types of weakness that Timothy is prone to, and Paul addresses them by reminding Timothy of what God expects of him. The list is not exhaustive, but they are the meat of the letter Paul has written. So, as Paul writes to Timothy, what are these governing principles?
Willingly suffer with dignity and strength
Everywhere in this book, Paul refers to his own suffering and tells Timothy that he too should expect suffering. Not only should he expect it, he should embrace it. That suffering was most obvious in Paul in that he was imprisoned by Nero, awaiting execution, but he also acknowledged that the work, discipline, and training involved in being a true disciple of Jesus also constituted a kind of suffering.
These challenges should be embraced. We should not complain that there is
• fear involved in sharing our faith,
• or ridicule involved in maintaining pure conversation
• or difficulty in resisting temptation.
These are the marks of a real competitor. Like the cuts, bruises and aches of an athlete, they are the badges of our efforts. It is in enduring these hardships that our excellence is developed. We may and must admit to the hardship, but never complain, and never, ever shy away from the eager practice of our faith because of it.
The opinions of others are not the opinions of the judges, or in our case, The Judge. The fact that others believe you to be:
• uptight
• boring
• fanatical
• ignorant
and the social pressure their belief brings should have no bearing at all on the practice of our faith.
The answer to complying with this rule, is in being bold. We must make no effort to hide our identity as disciples. It is part of us and we should be clear, not offensive or obnoxious, but clear about it. Our country has a clear prejudice against Christians. We must strive to respect and understand Hindus, Buddhists, and peace pursuing Muslims, but Christians are categorized, judged and ostracized before the event begins.
So be a disciple of Jesus, be up front about it, and steel yourself for the stigma that may come your way. It is all part of the competition, identifying your team.
Treasure the Gospel and work to understand it
Throughout 2 Timothy, Paul warns Timothy to study the Gospel, to hold tightly to it, to avoid false teachers and warn others against them. It is in this capacity that he reminds Timothy of Jannes and Jambres. These are the names given to two of Pharaoh’s magicians who opposed Moses during the time of the plagues. Some believe they were judged and died in the wake of the judgement of Israel over Aaron’s golden calf. Paul’s point is that they are the prototypes of teachers who lead others astray and who will be disqualified.
If you want to finish well and gain your prize from the Almighty Judge of the Universe, you must cherish His story. Be careful and wise about who you rely upon to explain the Bible to you. We have more and easier access to a multitude of teachers than any time in history, through TV, radio and books. There are many attractive, persuasive and energetic speakers out there who are quite mistaken in what they teach. Oddly enough, they dominate religious network television broadcasting.
What should you do?
Read the Gospel for yourself, repeatedly and often. The more you soak yourself in the beauty of God’s word, the harder it will be for somebody to mislead you about what it says or means.
When listening to a speaker, look first to his or her life. Do their lives reflect obedience to God’s word? Some people can speak and do little else. If you have a hard time getting information on their actual personal life practices, be skeptical. Some people live to influence or manipulate others. They are hungry for power, they are thirsty for fame and they crave money or approval. Everything they say and do is bent to those goals. When this is the case, their personal lives will be as guarded as any other celebrity.
But if they are true disciples of Jesus, you will have no trouble finding out about their kindness to others or their less flashy efforts to relieve the suffering of the poor. For example, I am impressed by our Bishop’s efforts to care for his wife’s mother. The last couple of months has been dominated by his and his family’s efforts to move her to a place closer to family where she can be visited and cared for. Love, gentleness and kindness, these are the fruits of a true believer. A power hungry celebrity would not find enough leverage in these kinds of activities to waste his time on them. He is too busy trying to look important to the masses to actually be important to humble individuals.
Pursue the virtues of gentleness and avoid the vices springing from selfishness
You too should find these kinds of actions important. One of the rules of competition is embracing the fruit of the Spirit.
• Love
• Peace
• Righteousness
• Patience
These are all virtues that Paul claims as his own and encourages Timothy to pursue. Selfishness and his cousins:
• greed
• slander
• hatred
• disrespect
• ingratitude
disqualify us from the prize. Everywhere Paul encourages Timothy to be tactful and loving in his dealings with others, even those who must be corrected. We are not going to win the competition by aggressive, violent means. We will win with meekness and humility as Jesus did, becoming a servant ... even the servant of death, and through His humility ultimately overcoming.
Near the end of the letter Paul says:
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. (2 Timothy 4:7-8 TNIV)
Nero was a man of wealth, power, and opulence, while Paul was an imprisoned vagabond, tent maker. By all appearances, Nero was one of life’s winners, while Paul ended in defeat. But:
• Nero competed dishonestly, fought the bad fight
• Paul competed with integrity and honesty
• Nero fell off his chariot and couldn’t finish the race
• Paul stayed on course till the end
• Nero won a crown of bribery and intimidation
• Paul won a crown of righteousness
And you can too. The last rule Paul gives us is to love Jesus’ appearing:
• Love his first appearing as a human baby
• Love His current appearing, every time He shows up in the words and actions of His true followers
• Love His appearing in our own lives when we endure hardship for His sake and He is there
• And love His appearing in the clouds, when He comes again to receive us forever
In this world, God’s people have a dream ... of standing before Him in the next world with joy as He recognizes and honors us for our faithfulness. It is our goal, not simply to arrive, but to arrive victorious and to be accompanied by as many as we can bring along with us.
