The long journey of the Olympic Games began more than 2,700 years ago. Records of Olympic history show that the ancient Olympic Games were held in Greece as early as in 776 BC. It was then that the basis of the Olympic Movement began to evolve into a philosophy of life: exalting and combining the qualities of body, will, and mind in a balanced whole. Out of this philosophy the Olympic Ideals were born, placing noble competition, sport, peace, culture, and education at the very core of Greek civilization.
In 1896 the first modern Olympic games were held in Athens where about 300 athletes competed in 9 different sports. Since that time the Olympics have been held around the world. Now, at the dawn of the 3rd millennium, the Games are returning to the country of their birth and the city of their revival, Athens, Greece. August 13 will bring together thousands of athletes and coaches to participate in 28 Olympic events hosted at 35 different venues in the city. Times have changed but the quest for victory, the quest for gold, has not.
How many of you would like to go for the gold? Turn to someone by you and say, “I am going to go for the gold.”
While they arrive and prepare for competition in Athens this week, realize the Olympics were taking place during the time the Bible was being written. In fact, we can find the Olympics intertwined with Scripture. Paul said in Romans 8:35-37 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." 37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
In the Greek, Paul said is we more than a hypernikao, or we are more than Nikes. I have on my Nike clothes, how many of you wear Nikes? Do you remember what the word Nike means? It doesn’t mean stinky athletic shoes, the word Nike, used here in Romans, is a word that was used to only describe Olympic winners. Jeff Johnson, Nike’s first employee, created the name of the company using the name Nike which symbolized the Greek goddess of victory. Paul, using the language and examples of the day, said we as believers are more than just some made man Greek goddess, we are victorious in Christ Jesus, the only one who can provide victory. God chose to take the word Nike, overcomer, and make you more than Nike’s, more than Olympic winners, more than overcomers, more than conquerors.
As you know, I am a big sports fan and I enjoy the Olympic games, the dedication these athletes have to be the very best in their sport venues. How many of you have seen the movie Chariots of Fire? I find that to be an inspiring movie, based on the true story of Eric Liddel who acknowledged the talent he had to run was from God so he could become an Olympic champion, though he would not compromise his faith for an earth victory, refusing to run on Sunday so he was entered in another distance. He would not back down when even a member of the royal family of England tried to persuade him. We don’t see much of that dedication today.
As we observe the athletes, behind them is a lifetime of dedicated training, night and day, 8-12 hours a day for a few moments of glory, and not all who train ever get the opportunity to compete for the gold.
We watch on television the athletes who compete but we don’t know the days they wanted to quit, the days they were tired of the training, the days they were tired of not being able to go out with friends because of the lifestyle of discipline they developed. We don’t realize how tired they became of diets, of pain, of struggles been then there came the day when they were tapped to go for the gold, and the day when they stood atop the victory platform, the gold medal securely placed around their neck when all those days of difficulty are forgotten and the crowd cheers and anthem of their country plays and the flag waves in the breeze of victory.
Listen, there is a day coming if you and I go for the gold, that Jesus will announce over the loudspeakers of heaven, “This is my faithful servant, well done. You are more than a Nike. You are greater than an Olympic champion, come and enter your victory rest.”
You might ask, what am I talking about? I am speaking of what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 3 when he said there was a day coming when many of you will receive a reward. I want to also say, Paul commented there would also be those who would go unrewarded, headed for total meltdown. You might be here saved, on your way to heaven, a Christian with a passport but there is more to heaven than just having your name written in the Lambs Book of Life. Look at verses 12-15 12Now anyone who builds on that foundation may use gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. 13But there is going to come a time of testing at the judgment day to see what kind of work each builder has done. Everyone’s work will be put through the fire to see whether or not it keeps its value. 14If the work survives the fire, that builder will receive a reward. 15But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builders themselves will be saved, but like someone escaping through a wall of flames.
Sound like some Christians will experience a meltdown. People who build their lives on gold, silver, and jewels will have works that will survive, but we know wood hay and straw don’t survive long when matched up. Go for the gold!!! Make a change in our community, state, nation and world.
Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9, 24Remember that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize. You also must run in such a way that you will win. Does that mean that only one person here has the potential for gold? Not at all, they give out gold medals for different events, and each of us have certain gifts and talents, each of us have a unique calling from God in our lives. When we do all that we can, when we buffet out bodies for the sake of the call, Gold will be hung around our necks, jewels embedded in our crown.
Paul continues, verse 25 All athletes practice strict self-control. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. 26So I run straight to the goal with purpose in every step. I am not like a boxer who misses his punches. 27I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.
You may not be an Olympic runner, that wasn’t Paul’s point, he was pointing out as spiritual runners, we need to press on. He knew there would be times when you would feel like you might not make it, but understand, God does not want you to lose, He has designed you to win, to be more than Nikes.
Say this, God wants me to win. Some of you need to hear yourself say that.
On those days when I don’t feel like continuing the race, on those days when I don’t feel like preaching, on those days when I don’t feel like I want to pray, on those days when I don’t want to run up to the hospital to see someone in need, am I the only one with days like that? I think we all have them. Those are the days you need to tell yourself, God wants me to win. Lets says that again, God wants me to win.
Paul said he wrestled, he said he boxed. I like boxing. I know there are people out there who don’t. I don’t like street fighting, it is not a good idea, there is no payoff. I use to tell kids when I was a youth pastor not to get involved in playground fights. If they thought they should fight, train to get paid for the pain. Paul said I fight, not as one who beats the air but as one who is going for the gold. You have friends who just beat the air, fighting, fighting, fighting, but seeing no victory in their lives, they are just beating the air, shadow boxing. Paul said we need to fight right because we have an enemy and you will have those days when you have been knocked to the canvas but you need to say, I am not going down for the ten count, I may have lost a round but I will not lose the bout. God wants me to win! So you get back up and you fight against those enemies, you fight against those habits and you win because God wants you to be a winner.
Paul said he wrested. He said we are working for the takedown. We don’t wrestle against flesh and blood but against spiritual principalities and powers, against rulers in high places.
Listen, some of you have some time ago in the past convinced yourself we cannot win. We cannot win our community for Christ, we cannot win our friends and neighbors for Jesus. School is a little over a month away and you have convinced yourself we cannot win our schools for Jesus but I am standing here today speaking from the Word of God, and I know God wants you to win!
You are going to have to wrestle. Elections are less than 90 days away, but we are not wrestling against the government, or someone else who said this or that, we are wrestling against the powers of hell that cause people to behave, say and do things which are against the principles of God. It is the powers of hell that don’t want you to go for the gold but God wants you to win. We need to start pinning the devil to the mat, we need to come at him with our prayer lives and with the word of God, God wants us to win!
You might think you are not good enough to win, something in your past has left you so you cannot make the team. Listen, if you have Jesus in your life, you are already on the team, Jesus paved the way winning the preliminaries for you on the Cross of Calvary. If you are a believer, you are on God’s Olympic team and we need to be wrestling, we need to be fighting, we need to be running for God. Are you ready?
The Bible says you are the salt of the earth, you are the light on the hill, you are the want God wants to use to bring light into this community. God wants you to win! I am beginning to feel like doing a little preaching.
You can come up with your excuses, you can begin to talk about the things of your past, in training they call these setbacks, and you need to set them back because God wants you to win.
You might be here thinking you are inferior, who doesn’t? You might be here and say, yes but other people have greater abilities. So what? God is not looking for your abilities, he is looking for your availability. He is looking for people who can see past the obstacles and say, I can win. Peter said in 2 Peter 110, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall. Doing what God has called you to do, you cannot lose, you will never fail. The Bible says the gates of hell shall not prevail against you so we can take this community for Christ.
Understand, there is a price, Olympic winners don’t get up one morning and say “I am going for the gold today.” You don’t get the gold without earning it.
New Hope will be a righteous influence in this community when we decide we are going to do something radical for Jesus, when we decide we are going to have a personal prayer time daily with Christ, when we decide if no one else will kneel before the Lord, we will kneel. When I don’t feel like it, when I am too tired, or other things come pressing in, I will still come and have a time of personal prayer, I will commune with my Lord. I will pray for the church, I will pray for the community, I will pray for my friends and relatives to come to know Jesus. I am going to memorize Scripture no matter what it takes, no matter how hard it seems. I am going to overcome the hurts, habits and hang ups of life through the Scripture.
We need to buffet our minds and our bodies. Do you realize we have the capability of memorizing 40,000 volumes of an encyclopedia? You can memorize the entire Encyclopedia Britannica if you discipline your mind to do it. You can get up when you are tired, you can accomplish great things and win the gold if you will only discipline yourself.
Some of you are thinking, this is getting a bit fanatical, I might burn out if I start doing all these things. I have never met anyone who has burned out doing what God has called them to do. God will energize you so you can keep on keeping on, so you can become an Energizer bunny for Jesus, keep on going, and going, and going. Together we can team up and turn the world upside down for Jesus, they did it in the first century and it is time we do it in the 21st century.
Paul said they beat him 39 times, 3 with rods, that he was shipwrecked, floating around in the water for a day and a night, he was put in prison, stoned, left for dead, kicked, laughed at, spit upon but he said he got up and came back to town from the other side. Paul was not going to be defeated.
People may laugh at you, say they are not going for the gold but one day we will stand before God and He will say well done as he puts the god on us as we will forget the price we paid, the pain, the hours, because we have attained the gold.
While it looks like darkness is swirling around us, God is putting together an army that will win, people who will dedicate themselves, who will pay the price. Sleepers don’t get the gold, you don’t win the gold laying in bed or sleeping in church. They are up early and in bed early, they know training. Only in the Westernized Christian church do we overlook it takes training. We are so use to instant. Only in America can you pay 39.95 and learn to play the piano in 4 easy lessons, or for $45 lose 20 pounds in two weeks.
Get disciplined, set up a training schedule, do you best and make room for God to do the rest.
When Jesus raised Lazarus, he told the men standing around to roll away the stone. They did their best in moving the stone then Jesus said Lazarus, come forth. Jesus used their hands, doing their best. What is Jesus wanting to use your hands to move out of the way so His miracle can come through.
Rick Borden, heir to the Borden milk fortune, gave his best to God. He could have spent his life in comfort, had the all money he would have ever needed, instead, he responded to God call on his heart to be a missionary to China where, during the cultural revolution, he gave his life for the cause of Christ beside a river in China. When they found his body, this 30 year millionaires son had a note he was clutching in his hand. It said, “No reverse, no Retreat, no regret.” We need more Rick Borden’s who will say the same, no reverse, no retreat, no regret, I am going to follow Jesus no matter what.
At a youth camp on the east coast, the campers selected another camper to give the chapel devotions each day. As cruel as kids can be, they thought it would be funny to select a camper who had MS. When the youth went to the platform, he shuffled his feet to get there while some of the kids laughed. When he finally made it to the microphone, he struggled for 10 minutes to get out two sentences. Ten minutes. He said, God blessed me, and I’ll serve him. After he had done his best, God did the rest. The power of the Holy Spirit fell on that place and young people literally ran to the altar and for over an hour they wept and cried as God worked on their hearts as they cried out for repentance. When the service concluded, 50 young people were called into service for Jesus Christ. How did it happen? Because some kid with MS did his best and God did the rest.
People, don’t you think it is time we did something?
