Finish Well

Christian race to make the kingdom of God is more than how well you started, it is all about how well you are ending it. Christianity is about knowing and building upon Christ, the solid foundation for the strength that can uphold believer in this morally and spiritually fallen world. As the spiritual collapse continues and people compromise faith in God, Christians are encouraged to be deeply rooted in the scriptures and heed the warnings about the last days perilous times. Timothy 4:7 - I have fought the good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. The followings are discussed: Beware of Evil; Know the Scriptures, and Complete the course.

Beware of the Evil: The society is fast breaking down with many tragic events in the recent times. Our society is battling with issues that weaken moral standards. The society is falling to terrorist activities, political scandals, economic hardships and various forms of moral decadence. Paul warned against strange and abnormal acts of the last days. He stated, 'in the last days perilous times shall come'; people will love themselves and things of the world more than God and life becomes more dangerous physically and spiritually (2 Timothy 3:1-15).

In the perilous times people will boast about their accomplishments and in their arrogance they will reject God and disregard others. It is the time that people will lack discipline, self-control and natural feeling of love and concern for others. They will be totally selfish and uncaring about others and God. Their worship of God will be for outward appearance instead of keeping and abiding by the saving knowledge of Christ. Dangerous people may also find their ways into the Church. They will act as believers, but without having life-changing power of Christ in them (2 Timothy 3:6-9). There will also be false teachers whose teachings will be against the truth of the gospel.

Know the Scriptures: Sound knowledge of the scriptures guards against tendency of being led astray morally and doctrinally, it protects believers from spiritual deception. One of the best ways to understand the scriptures is to follow good examples of the true teachers and ministers of the gospel. Apostle Paul was a role model for Timothy (2 Timothy 3:10-13). Paul showed a good example of steadfast faith in God. He suffered a lot for faithfully preaching the gospel. In his sufferings he did not compromise faith and God delivered him out of them all. God will uphold and give grace to those who are living faithfully for Him.

The scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, correction and righteous instructions. The Bible teaches how to identify and avoid sin and live a life that is acceptable to God. It teaches about salvation and things that will help Christians to mature spiritually and do good in the society (2 Timothy 3:14-17). The Bible provides all we need to confidently serve God and earn His salvation.

Complete the Course: Christians must receive the final charge which is to 'preach the word' at the right time; we are commissioned to reach out to the world, preaching and teaching God's word. Aside sharing the word of exhortation and admonition they may need to confront and correct some people. If they find themselves in such a situation, they must exercise great patience and pass the instruction carefully so that those who are being corrected will not misinterpret the message and turn from sound biblical instructions (2 Timothy 4:1-5). The messages must come from the scripture and the lessons drawn from the passages. The preaching should be Christ-centred and bring glory to God.

Believers are charged to finish their race of faith strong and well. They are required to put themselves into Christ's position as Paul did for repentance and Salvation of others (2 Timothy 4:6-8 ). Some people started Christian race very well but along the line they got discouraged and dropped out. Such was tragic end of them. They were overcome by trials and temptations. Unlike Paul there would be nothing for them at the end of the race. Receive the challenge, stay on course in the race that leads to heaven and finish well. Lesson texts:2 Timothy 3:1 thru 4:8.