Run, Run, Run!

Christ Church Magazine, July 2012

The summer Olympics is officially called ‘The Games of the XXX Olympiad.’ As you read the Bible you realise that there were various ‘Games’ familiar to the New Testament writers who often use sporting illustrations to make their point.
The preparations for the Games have been truly inspirational: it has been a massive undertaking and it is hard to imagine where the project manager started! Vast resources have been drawn in to deliver the plans.
The sheer number of venues and the infrastructure required has sucked in construction engineers and specialist builders from a large radius around London. Venues have ranged from being either historic sites which needed to be revamped or specialist facilities built for the occasion.
Transport links have been improved so that athletes are able to make their journey in within 20 minutes (now that is amazing to the ears of a seasoned traveller in London like me!). The price tag was announced as an eye-watering £2bn (that now seems to be cheap compared to EU bailouts). Thousands of volunteers will augment the security operation provided by the Police and the armed forces.
Yet, for all the preparations made, the event will focus on the athletes who compete to achieve the goal of winning a medal. Those who have competed in the past provide inspiration for competitors today and set records for others to try and break!
Under the hand of the LORD God we recognise that a far bigger plan has been put together for our lives. The Lord Jesus’ great plan of salvation is to see his followers endure the challenges of daily life and to cross the finishing line. The difference is that he has already blazed a trail for us to follow: ‘Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith’ (Heb 12v1-2). This encourages us to model our lives on Jesus – the one who endured the pain and shame of the cross before he returned to glory. Followers of Jesus are to persevere through hardships, knowing that when they finish the race they will join Jesus in glory.
Jesus is not simply a hero of history or a name in gold leaf on a champion’s board. He is alive in active in heaven.
He will be at the centre of the celebrations. People from every nation will gather to adore the Lord Jesus: all who have fixed their eyes on him and run with perseverance the race of life, will one day reign as champions with him.
Let’s enjoy watching the 2012 Games and re-awaken our resolve to fix our eyes on Jesus as we run the race ahead of us.
Paul Kingman

Christ Church Magazine, July 2012