You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? Galatians 5:7
There are many different word pictures we can use to describe life, but this example from the Bible is one of the most fitting. You are heading in a certain direction and toward a goal or finish line. At the end, there is a prize for the one who wins the race. One thing unique about this race is that you are not competing against other runners; only yourself. It is your spirit versus your flesh.
This race of life is not a sprint but rather a long-distance race. Becoming a Christian is only the beginning; you have the rest of your life to live for Christ. Thus, we will look at your Christian life as a long-distance race. You could break such a race down into a few distinct components.
Let’s start with the beginning of the race. The beginning is full of anticipation and high hopes. You start off expecting to win and you are full of energy and motivated to “give it all you’ve got!”. People have been encouraging you to run the race and you have people there cheering you on. There is not a negative aspect anywhere to be seen or heard at the beginning.
This is how the Apostle Paul remembers the beginning of the race of life for the Galatian believers. They ran well: past tense. Yes, that’s generally the way it starts off, but what about now? Many of them had been hindered from obeying the truth. So, how goes your race? Is it going as well as at the beginning? Starting out as a Christian and hearing the “Good News” of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, it’s only natural to be anxious to get started with the race. You are so thankful to the Lord for saving you and you have other believers around you encouraging you in your race, so you get off to a great start.
That was then, but this is now. Once the race gets underway, you may find your enthusiasm waning at times. Add to that, the voices of encouragement may not always be there when you need them. Besides all of that, you may actually run across people who would try to hinder you in your race or even get you to drop out altogether. One thing to watch out for is anyone trying to help you run the race of life who is not going in the same direction. That’s right, there are two different finish lines; one leads to eternal life and the other leads to destruction.
The Galatian believers were hindered in their race by a person or persons. Note the use of the word “who” rather than “what”. There are plenty of challenges in living the Christian life and there will be times between the beginning and ending of the race that will test your faith. The final component of a long-distance race is the finish. This is what it is all about. This is why you run. When you get to the end and finish your race, you want to hear the Lord say, “Well done, My good and faithful servant”. Then you know it was all worth it.
“Father, help me to run my race well all the way to the end. I remember how I ran when I first trusted You. Help me to keep running like that to the end, in Jesus’ name, amen.”
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