The Good Fight in the Race of the Children of God!

“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 NIV

Every day is like war within us between the flesh and the Spirit, for the word of God states:

… Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. (Galatians 5:16-18)

Since every day is like war between our own desires of the flesh, and the desires of the Spirit, then why should we constantly battle within ourselves? Is not it better to give up the Spirit and to live a comfortable life? No, we should not give up the fight between them, for the word of God says,

Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. (Galatians 6:7-8)

Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. (Matthew 6:33, Philippians 4:19)

“Everything” and “all your needs,” which are stated in Matthew 6:33, Philippians 4:19 do not mean the desires of the flesh. They mean the supplications of the righteousness, not according to our own standards, but according to the riches of God’s glory in Christ Jesus. This is because our mission is to be the righteousness of God; to get the crown of righteousness from the Lord. This is why we are in this world and why was Christ Jesus crucified, for 1 Peter 2:24-25 and 2 Corinthians 5:20-21 declare:

“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” For “you were like sheep going astray,” but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. (1 Peter 2:24-25)

We are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:20-21)

Hence, our first priority as being the righteousness of God should be becoming ambassadors of Christ, if we know that we are the children of God (1 John 3:1), and have committed our lives to Him. (Hebrews 10:39) This is because the word of God declares:

Jesus, undeterred, went right ahead and gave his charge: “God authorized and commanded me to commission you: Go out and train everyone you meet, far and near, in this way of life, marking them by baptism in the threefold name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Then instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you. I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)

In other words, if we believe that we are meant to be ambassadors of Christ and have continued living our life as His ambassadors until the end of age, as well as doing the will of God, which has been called through the Holy Spirit (John 14:15-17,26)—we can be confident to say: “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)

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:1-2)