Cross the Finish Line With Joy

CROSS THE FINISH LINE WITH JOY! Acts 20:24 (17-25) NKJV --- KEY PRINCIPLES - Joy in your spirit, peace in your soul, and refreshment along the way (v24) - The power of ministry is THE HOLY SPIRIT (v22-23) - Your course is your life in God and your calling in God (v24) - God has made it His responsibility to provide for all your needs (v20:33, Matt. 6:33) - Course First, then Ministry (v24) - No Comparison (2 Cor. 10:12) - Distance, Direction, and Duration (e.g., The life of Paul, the disciples and Jesus) --- STEPS TO STAY ON COURSE (Proverbs 4:20-27, NKJV) Contained within verses 20 through 27 are specific rules for successfully staying on our course. We are given the following guidelines: - Our ears: Listen to God's Word (v20) - Our eyes: Give attention to what God is saying (v20, 21, 25) - Our mouth: Read God's Word (v24) - Our entire man: Hold on to God's Word in your heart, Seek the God-kind of life (v21, 23) --- JUST LIKE PAUL We found our lives by losing it and love our lives by not counting it dear (Matt. 16:24-25; Phil. 1:21-24; 3:7-12). Paul had learned to love God's will over everything else, and he realized that obeying his Savior yielded the greatest joy and fulfillment. The Lord wants us to be like the apostle Paul, being so devoted in our love and service that nothing could ever keep us from obeying Him wholeheartedly. Paul no longer desired to hold on to his life. He sought only the furtherance of God's kingdom and the honor of Christ, no matter what the earthly cost was. "None of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself." Paul would rather die because he had done God's will than live for many more years outside of His will. "We run to add life to your days, rather than adding days to your life." Living for Jesus makes life more meaningful! --- ACTS 20:24 - I DO NOT ACCOUNT MY LIFE OF ANY VALUE Paul's main concern was not preserving his own life; what counted most was that he might finish the work to which God had called him. Wherever and however it ended, even if it cost him his life, he would finish his course with joy. On his lips and in his life would be the prayer that "Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death" (Phil. 1:20). For Paul, life and service for Christ are represented as a race that must be run with absolute perseverance, endurance and faithfulness to the Lord. --- ACTS 13:24-25 (NKJV) "After John had first preached, before His coming, the baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John was finishing his course, he said, 'Who do you think I am? I am not He. But behold, there comes One after me, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to loose.'" --- STRIVING FOR A CROWN (1 Corinthians 9:24-27, NKJV) "Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified." --- PAUL'S VALEDICTORY (2 Timothy 4:6-8, NKJV) "For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing." --- THE RACE OF FAITH (Hebrews 12:1-3, NIV) "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."