In a way, Christians are all in the Olympics! We are running the race that determines our eternal abode. We run to win and the prize is the most valuable we will ever seek. No money or property will purchase it. Only self-control under the banner of Christ grants a chance for winning.

The apostle is very clear and speaks to all who would enter the race that leads to everlasting life with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. It is an old/new teaching to whom all Christians for twenty centuries can relate. It is couched in terms both familiar and relevant.

For you and me, now early in the twenty-first century, it keeps us in touch with sublime revelation that remains at once practical and dependent on faith. As one ponders the brevity of one's life, the truth shines in all its splendor. This …