Fight the Good Fight
(2Ti4:1-8)
God is good.
His nature is good, and
His purpose and method are all good.
Faith is acknowledging and longing for Him, and
The life of faith is fighting the good fight until going before Him and receiving the crown.
"Goodness refers not to being nice and not fighting but rather
A fight is necessary before there is victory, the crown and going before the throne.
A good fight is what is required from those who compete, as
Their attitude must be for following the rules, doing their best until the end and
Surrendering to the decision.
While preparing to win is to do it faster, higher, more accurately and more beautifully,
The absolutely necessary aspect is to follow the rules at all times.
The Bible indicates the king of rule breakers: Satan (Rev9:11) who
Illegitimately challenged the throne in heaven and fell down to Hades (Is14:12-15).
Though as the living being, the supreme good that Adam could do was to live (Ge2:7),
He was deceived by the devil and broke the word of God (Ge2:17, 3:4-6), becoming
Defeated by the devil and become his slave (2Pe2:19).
The Bible further demonstrates those who failed because
While their purpose was good but their method was not:
Cain who resented the fact that just his brother's sacrifice was received and
Thus killed him (Ge4:3-12); and
Korah and his sons who complained about Aaron's priesthood and
Thus were all killed by an earthquake (Nu16).
Aaron's rod that budded was kept inside the Testimony of the sanctuary
As a sign to the rebellious (Nu17:10).
Jesus appeared and said, "Destroy this temple and I will raise it again in three days (Jn2:19),
Because through the death and the resurrection of the temple of His body,
He would fight the good fight and reveal that He is good for
He came as the life-giving spirit to give life to the souls of all men (1Co15:45), as
The greatest good on the Sabbath was giving life (Mt12:1-8), and
The greatest good a man can do was to follow the Son of Man (Mt19:16-22; Lk18:18-23).
As He died, Jesus said, "It is finished (Jn19:30), declaring that He:
Gave glory to the Father who let the Son fight the good fight and inherit heaven (Jn10:17-18; He1:2; Php2:6-11);
Condemned the devil the rule breaker (1Jn3:8); and
Redeemed all men with His blood and gave an opportunity for them to fight the good fight (1Pe1:18).
The Father raised Him from the dead and
He received the Victor's crown and ascended to the heavenly throne.
The Holy Spirit came to
Those who believe in the name Yeshua and
Calls and gathers them into the church.
The church is where believers run the good race (1Co9:24-27):
The race to humble oneself more, the race concede to others more,
The race to be more patient, the race to cover others more etc.
It has an usual race compared to the world because of
The good purpose of wanting to live for oneself and
The good method of raising others to life.
O Lord,
If our Church of Jesus knows
The purpose of being resurrected when the Lord returns,
Let us not only do our best but also
Be sure to not break any rules and become disqualified.
Let us all fight the good fight, finish the race and keep the faith until the end!
Amen.