Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we and imperishable.
– 1 Corinthians 9:25
There’s so much we could talk about here in 1 Corinthians 9 as Paul is taking what we were praying according to in 1 Corinthians 8:13, specifically for brothers and sisters in Christ making sacrifices so that they don’t stumble.
1 Corinthians 9:25 Focuses on the Eternal Aspect of Self-Control
He takes that in 1 Corinthians 9, and he says, “I sacrifice all kinds of rights that I have specifically for the sake of people who don’t know Jesus, that they may come to Christ. I make myself a slave to others. I’ll do whatever, of course, according to God’s Word I can do to lead them to Jesus.” And then he gets to verse 25. And he uses this illustration of athletes. “Every athlete exercises self-control in all things.”
Let’s think Olympic athlete right now. Think of all the discipline and self-control that go into training to be an Olympian. You change your diet, everything you eat, your schedule. Or you get up at this time in the morning, you work for these many hours, all the way into the evening. You develop this or that muscle, this or that skill. Total self-control. Focus on what? On a perishable wreath, Paul writes, on a medal that will not last. No matter how valuable it may be in this world, it’s going to fade away.
Well, if that’s what people will do for a perishable wreath, how much more for us? He says, “We, an imperishable wreath.” What kind of wreath is he talking about? He’s talking about people coming to know Jesus. Paul’s talking about individual people being saved from their sins and experiencing eternal life. He’s talking about people who 10 trillion years from now, will be enjoying God in all of his glory and new creation, and it will never, ever, ever end. That’s what we have been called to live for. So are you living for that today?
1 Corinthians 9:25 Encourages Us to Lay Down Our Lives for the Gospel
Are you and I exercising self-control and discipline because we’re so focused on people’s souls for all of eternity? Just look around. The people in your sphere of influence, in your home, school, or you work, people you live around, people you shop next to. Every one of them, a soul that will spend all of eternity in everlasting suffering or everlasting joy. So more than Olympians train for an event, let’s train to share the gospel, the good news of Jesus’ love. To lay down our bodies, our lives, to share Jesus with the people around us that they might be saved from their sin, restored to relationship with God, redeemed for all of eternity. Resurrected to experience a new heaven and a new earth with God and all those who’ve trusted in Jesus forever and ever and ever and ever.
God, help us to live for this. We pray today that you would help us to exercise self-control, discipline. To train our minds and our hearts, our lives, our bodies, to be focused on leading people to Jesus. On living in a way that points people to Jesus and on speaking the good news of Jesus. God, help us to speak the good news of Jesus to someone around us today. We pray that the fruit of our lives would be people in eternity enjoying You. We pray that over the people around us. God, give them soft hearts and open eyes and ears to hear as we share the gospel with them. And God, we pray for their eternal salvation in Jesus.
Prayer for the Wasa People
God, we pray this for the Wasa people of India. This small people group speaks the Kashmiri language, among whom there are no followers of Jesus. There’s no church there now. God, we pray that You would raise up some of Your children to exercise self-control for the spread of the gospel among the Wasa. To lay down their lives and discipline their bodies and train to get the gospel to the Wasa people. God, help us to live for this. Help us to live with eternity in view so that when we get to the end of our lives, there will be an imperishable reward, and a picture of people who know and enjoy You for eternity as a result of Your grace in our lives. In Jesus’ name, we pray, according to 1 Corinthians 9:25. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder and Chairman of Radical, an organization that helps people follow Jesus and make him known in their neighborhood and all nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, and Don’t Hold Back.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
