For this week's episode, we will study whether the Olympics was a significant influence in the Bible. Get your Bibles ready and turn then to 1 Corinthians 9:24-27.

During the time of filming, it was the Tokyo 2020 Olympics season! The passage we’ll be studying is from a book written for the people of Corinth, one of the direct locations of the Ancient Olympic Games. You can look up Isthmia which is in Corinth.

The Ancient Olympics started in 766 BC in Greece as an athletic-religious festival in honor of Zeus. You may be wondering what sports there were back then. It started just with a foot race but later on, there were equestrian events, throwing the discus and javelin, boxing, wrestling, and long jump.

It’s crazy to think that the Ancient Olympic event was actually popular during Paul’s time of writing the book of Corinthians. It was a major event during that time. Because the Corinthians could relate so well with this, Paul used references to those games.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27.

Paul was committed to sharing the gospel regardless of the cost. His life was transformed because of a direct encounter with Jesus.

1. Run to win. Live with a goal in mind. What’s your purpose in life? Know your gift. Everyone has at least one. Mine is teaching. Having a goal helps you set your priorities.
2. Be disciplined. Whenever I think of discipline, two things come to my mind, losing weight and workouts. There are so many distractions right now. There’s boba, there are a lot of new cafes emerging that have good food. You have to wear a mask in the gym and it’s hard to workout with a mask on. When you’re set with your goal, those are all distractions. Same with the christian life. We pray, read the Bible, go to church or bible study and serve. There are so many excuses we can make. But what are you living for? Check that. Be disciplined.
3. Know what you’re living for. We’re living for God who gave us everything. We run with an eternal prize in mind. Sometimes, being a christian can be hard. We intend to show love to others but that love is misunderstood as hate. We are not to expect that the christian life is easy because we’re just pilgrims in this world. Phil. 3:20 our citizenship is in heaven. To some people, we’re the weird ones and we’re Jesus freaks. But that shows that you’re actually different. In the end, we will get our heavenly prize, not a perishable wreath. We will be with Jesus for eternity in a place where there is no suffering, tears or pain. Rev. 21

With that, I encourage you, like an Olympic athlete, run to win, be disciplined, know what you’re living for.

Camera Set-up:
Sony a6100 with 16-50mm kit lens - https://amzn.to/2VD4Fim
Zhiyun Crane M2 3-Axis Gimbal Stabilizer for Light Mirrorless Camera... https://amzn.to/3Fg0YkT