“But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.” (1 Peter 2:20b-21, NIV)
To “follow in his steps” means not only going wherever He may go; but because He has left us “an example,” it also means doing as He has done. To be like our Lord is not (in the vernacular of the school house) an “elective course”; it is our calling! – Luther
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.” (1 Corinthians 9: 24-27, NIV)
Excellence, discipline, and humility.
We extol these three qualities in any athlete. Likewise, these three qualities together are essential for faithful discipleship.
Are we living our lives — every hour of every day — “in such a way as to get the prize,” which is life in all of its fullness and length? Are we engaged in the private, hidden, work of “training”– in the words of Paul to his protege Timothy — “to study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that need not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth”?
Paul’s words remind us to aspire to excellence in all that we do. He reminds us to adopt the discipline of “strict training” so that we will be prepared for any of the so-called surprises of life, and that we will be fit to finish the course. He reminds us to be humble, lest we ourselves are disqualified as the price of our pride.
Excellence + Discipline + Humility = Faithful discipleship. – Luther
“My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.” (James 1:19-20, NIV)
There is not a more succinct statement of what the disciple of Jesus should aspire than what we read in today’s scripture.
Whomever first uttered the bromide: “The reason God gave us two ears and one mouth is because we should listen twice as much as we talk,” was on to something. We all should major in listening and minor in speaking!
When you “listen” with every sense the Lord has given you, you will see what others do not see; you will hear what others cannot hear; and when you are compelled to speak, your words will convey the wisdom of God. – Luther
Daily Encouragement 