Lessons #303 and 304
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word Translation, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New English Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
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Encouragement regarding eternal prize (1 Cor 9: 24-27)
24 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. 25 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. 26 Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27 No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
Recall the message of this section is Strive to be rewarded eternally. We indicated that there are four essential elements to consider in expounding the message. The first essential element is an instruction that we should strive in the spiritual race to ensure we are eternally rewarded. The second way one should go about progressing spiritually to be eternally rewarded concerns the exercise of self-control. This second element is derived from Apostle Paul’s statement regarding the self-control athletes in Isthmian games exercised to win a wreath or a crown. However, he made the point that there is no permanency to the wreath that a winner receives during athletic competition as in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 9:25 They do it to get a crown that will not last or literally they on the one hand now/indeed (do it) so that they might win (a) perishable wreath. We stopped with this sentence in our last study, so it is with it we resume our study today.
Apostle Paul, to encourage believers to exercise self-control in the spiritual race, makes the point the prize received by those in games are not permanent. This is because the verbal phrase will not last of the NIV is translated from a Greek adjective (phthartos) that pertains to decay or destruction hence means “perishable, mortal, not lasting” as it is used to describe humans in comparison to God as we may gather from Romans 1:23:
and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.
It is in the sense of “perishable” that the word is used to describe seed in contrast to the word of God as stated in 1 Peter 1:23:
For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 9:25, the word means “perishable,” that is, “being subject to breaking down into one’s constituent elements.”
All the same, the apostle conveyed to us that what athletes receive for all their devotion to training and to the exercise of self-control is simply something that is perishable. This stands in stark contrast to what believers would receive in the eternal state. The apostle conveyed this stark contrast by beginning the last clause of 1 Corinthians 9:25 with the conjunction but. The word “but” is translated from a Greek conjunction (de) that some time may be used to connect clauses in which case, it may be translated “and” or left untranslated. This is not the case in our verse, it is used to convey a strong contrast between what the apostle stated previously and what he is about to state in the last part of the verse.
The contrast is given in the NIV as we do it to get a crown that will last forever which is an expanded translation since the verbal phrase do it to get a crown is not in the Greek. Literally, the Greek reads we imperishable. The literal Greek is elliptical showing how excited the apostle was when he wrote what follows and so the context helps to supply an appropriate verb. It is for this reason the translators of the NIV included the verbal phrase do it to get a crown. The pronoun it used in the NIV refers to the exercise of self-control implied in the literal translation we gave previously. The point of the apostle is that there is a contrast between what believers, that is, we would receive and what athletes receive for the same exercise of self-control. He describes that future reward using the verbal phrase of the NIV last forever. The expression “last forever” is translated from a Greek adjective (aphthartos) that pertains to imperviousness to corruption and death, hence means “imperishable, incorruptible, immortal,” thus it is with the meaning “immortal” that Apostle Paul used it to describe God in 1 Timothy 1:17:
Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
The translators of the NIV used the meaning “unfading” to translate our word where Apostle Peter used it to describe the kind of desirable beauty God expects of believing wives in 1 Peter 3:4:
Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 9:25, it is used with the meaning “imperishable.” So, the apostle is concerned with informing us that we should exercise self-control because what we expect to be rewarded with is in every way superior to what athletes in the games received in that what we will receive is imperishable and so eternal.
What is it that we are going to receive that is imperishable? The apostle at this point did not specify but from the NT epistles we can provide adequate answer to the question. We begin by stating two things that are imperishable the apostle could not have meant. He could not have meant the resurrection body believers would receive that the apostle wrote about in 1 Corinthians 15:52:
in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.
The verbal phrase be raised imperishable implies a resurrection body. The apostle could also not have meant the eternal inheritance of believers that the Holy Spirit referenced through Apostle Peter, as we read in 1 Peter 1:4:
and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you.
The word “inheritance” should broadly be understood to mean “the kingdom of God” with the implication that an element of the rule of God for believers is eternal life. Thus, our inheritance includes the gift of eternal life. Anyway, it is our assertion that the imperishable would neither include resurrection body nor our eternal inheritance because they are the result of our salvation. In effect, resurrection body and eternal life are not to be considered rewards for faithfulness in the spiritual life, but things associated with the gift of God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, salvation is a gift, and it is because of it that we will have a resurrection body and eternal life in association with Christ.
We have indicated what the imperishable that we will receive as a reward for being victorious in the spiritual race could not mean, so what is it that we will receive that is imperishable? The imagery the apostle used helps us to state what they are. Recall that apostle conveyed that athletes exercise self-control to obtain a crown as in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 9:25 They do it to get a crown. We have noted that the word “crown” may be used in a figurative way for an award or prize for exceptional service or conduct. This being the case, the imperishable that we will receive are those rewards that are presented in the NT Scriptures using the imagery of crown. We have considered this usage of crown for rewards in our study of rewards in the third chapter of this epistle. However, for completeness, we will review what we studied in that chapter regarding the use of imagery of crown for reward that is imperishable.
A first description of reward using the imagery of crown is the “crown of righteousness” mentioned by Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy 4:8:
Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
The phrase crown of righteousness is a reward that God will give to believers for doing that which pleases Him or for living righteously in the sense of fulfilling His requirement. This is more evident if we translated the phrase crown of righteousness as crown for righteousness since the Greek syntax involved in our phrase permits this translation. Of course, “righteousness” has the sense here of meeting or fulfilling God’s expectation. In effect, it describes the life that is lived in a right relationship with God in this life so that one does those things that please God. Thus, those who focus on God’s demands and fulfill them would receive this reward. We must admit that there is no way for us to know what this reward or prize would look like, only that it is a kind of reward that believers who meet God’s expectation or standards would receive in heaven. To indicate that it is a reward for faithfulness or compliance to God’s expectation, the apostle indicates that the reward is not only for him, being an apostle with specific commission, but for all believers who meet God’s expectation. This, he conveyed in the last part of 2 Timothy 4:8 and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. This clause depicts God’s grace. Unlike ancient, athletic competition where only one winner receives a prize or reward, God will give each believer this prize or reward so long as he/she meets the conditions for it.
Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
The “crown of life” is that reward that God would give to a believer in the eternal state because of having successfully handled circumstances of life in such a way as to glorify Him. It is, therefore, a reward that is associated with remaining faithful under trials because of the name of Jesus Christ. This explanation is supported by the fact that in the two occurrences of the phrase “crown of life” in the NT, they occur in the context of testing or suffering as indicated in our passage of James 1:12. The other occurrence of this phrase “crown of life” is with the church of Smyrna that was undergoing persecution but was encouraged to remain faithful to receive the crown of life, as we read in Revelation 2:10:
Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Hence, it should be clear that the crown of life is a reward that reflects that a believer proved his/her faith genuine and therefore remained faithful under testing. The fact that this reward is to be given to those who persevered under trial means that not every believer would probably get it. But there is no reason for any believer not to get this since God promised it to those who love him according to the last clause of James 1:12 that God has promised to those who love him.
A third description of reward using the imagery of crown is that of “crown of glory” mentioned in 1 Peter 5:4:
And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.
The crown of glory is for elders who function faithfully in this life. It is also fitting that the Holy Spirit describes their reward using the phrase the crown of glory. For the word “glory” is translated from the Greek word (doxa) which means “glory, splendor, honor, magnificence.” There is no doubt that leadership involves some form of honor or even fame, but elders are commanded not to focus on this at the present time, because there is a time when the Lord Himself will hold in high honor those who executed properly their function as elders. In other words, even though they were the leaders of the flock, but they never ruled with their own honor and fame as the motivating factor. Therefore, in heaven, the Lord will give them that honor that they were not concerned with on this earth. Consequently, the crown of glory reflects not only praise for a job well done but honor on the part of the faithful elder. This reward solidifies my conviction that God had already determined those who will receive certain rewards as implied in what the Lord Jesus stated in Matthew 20:23:
Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.”
The word “glory” in 1 Peter 5:4 has a definite article before it to emphasize that this crown is for a unique group of believers known as elders. More importantly is how we should understand the literal phrase crown of the glory. The Greek syntax permits us to view this in at least two possible ways. Firstly, as the crown that belongs to glory. This will mean that the crown refers to the reward that is reserved for the eternal state. Secondly, we can understand the phrase crown of the glory as “the crown, namely, glory,” or “the crown, that is, glory.” In this way “glory” explains the meaning of the crown. The sense being that glory is the crown. In other words, the reward that this special group will receive is “glory.” It seems to me that both senses are applicable to our context. The reward that Apostle Peter is concerned is eternal and part of that reward is glory or honor. There is in a sense that this crown stands at the top of the other crowns. For, if believers receive the first two crowns, it must be because their elders functioned properly by feeding them with the word. It should be clear that the first two crowns are available to all believers, but this third crown is primarily for the elders. Someone may say that it is unfair for God to reserve this crown for certain class of people. Well, God is always fair in what He does and so has a purpose for this specific reward. Elders/shepherds bear a great burden for God’s flock that other believers know nothing about. Therefore, it is fitting that the Lord will reserve special reward for them. Nevertheless, every believer has the opportunity, in some unspecified way, of sharing this crown. How, you may ask? By supporting those who function as pastors and teachers of the word of God; for if you do so, you will share in this reward. My authority for saying this is what is recorded in Matthew 10:41:
Anyone who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man's reward.
So, we see that pastors should be motivated by their love for the Lord Jesus Christ and the special reward that the Lord has promised them. No pastor/elder should be concerned with fame or honor at this time; rather, his primary concern should be to discharge his duty faithfully before the Lord. For in the end, it is our Lord who will honor them. Eternal honor is superior to human honor. Nonetheless, all pastors or elders should remember that their authority is derived from the Lord Jesus Christ and so must never be autocratic. They should never be concerned with human honor or fame; instead, with great humility they should seek to feed their congregation. This aside, we should be clear that there are rewards in heaven that await believers whose good works or activities survive divine scrutiny. Therefore, each believer should strive to receive these rewards by paying attention to what make any good work or activity survive divine scrutiny as we have considered in the past and will yet reference in verse 27. In any event, the second essential element necessary to expound the message Strive to be rewarded eternally is the way one should go about progressing spiritually to be eternally rewarded concerns the exercise of self-control.
The exercise of self-control to ensure that a believer is eternally rewarded leads to the third essential element that we will get to shortly. The reason for this statement is the word Therefore that begins 1 Corinthians 9:26 that is translated from a Greek particle (toinyn) that is used to introduce an inference based on what preceded and so may mean “so, therefore, indeed.” Here, the Greek particle is used to indicate that what the apostle states in verse 26 is because of what he stated in verse 25 about imperishable reward that awaits a believer who successfully navigates through the spiritual race and emerges victorious. This successful navigation involves the exercise of self-control that the apostle stated in verse 25. Because of the word “therefore” we know that the third element we are about to consider is linked to the concept of eternal reward the apostle referenced in verse 25.
The third essential element necessary to expound the message Strive to be rewarded eternally concerns being focused on the spiritual life. This element the apostle introduced using himself as an example of this third element although he did it using two negative sentences. The first negative sentence is given in 1 Corinthians 9:26 I do not run like a man running aimlessly. This sentence is certainly concerned with the manner of running the spiritual race because the apostle used a Greek adverb (houtōs) he used in verse 24 that the translators of the NIV and majority of our English versions did not explicitly translate but is used to describe the manner of the spiritual race the apostle avoided. The adverb the apostle used is to be understood as an adverb of manner in that it shows the manner the apostle did not run the spiritual race so the adverb may be translated “in this way” or “in such a way” as in the NASB.
The sentence of 1 Corinthians 9:26 I do not run like a man running aimlessly is a negative way the apostle conveyed that he is not distracted from the spiritual race. We use the term “spiritual race” because of the word “run” that the apostle used that we have previously explained to be used in the sense of spiritual progress. You see, the word “run” is translated from a Greek word (trechō) that literally means “to run” but in our verse it has the sense of “to strive” so the apostle used the word to describe how he strives in the spiritual life or how he tries to progress spiritually that involves his personal spiritual progress and his ministerial work. The apostle used a present tense in the Greek that here has the sense of habit, that is, that the apostle had formed the habit not to strive in the spiritual race in the way he described. That aside, the apostle was emphatic in what he stated in the sentence we are considering. Two indicators point to this. The first indicator is that in the Greek the apostle used an independent pronoun “I” that is not necessary since the Greek form of the verb translated “run” already conveys that the apostle described his own striving. Therefore, when he used the independent pronoun, I, he meant to emphasize what he wrote. A second indicator of how emphatic the apostle was is his use of a strong negative to convey that he was not being distracted in his spiritual race since the word “not” is translated from a Greek negative (ou) that is used for an objective negative, denying the reality of alleged fact. We are saying that the apostle states in an undeniable way that he avoids being distracted in his spiritual race. By the way, the translators of the NIV added words not used in the Greek text, probably to make the Greek sentence clearer to the English reader. We say this because the sentence I do not run like a man running aimlessly is literally I in this way run as not aimlessly.
Apostle Paul, as we have indicated, is concerned to state that he was not distracted or that he was single-minded in the spiritual race or progress although he gave this in a negative way in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 9:26 I do not run like a man running aimlessly or literally I in this way run as not aimlessly. People normally run with a goal. They run either because they want to be physically fit, or they do so to train for an athletic competition. The apostle positively meant that there is a specific goal that he has in mind as he runs the spiritual race or progress. We say this because the word “aimlessly” is translated from a Greek word (adēlōs) that appears only here in the Greek NT; it pertains to being without a special goal or purpose hence means “uncertainly,” that is, showing lack of certainty or goal. Since the apostle stated what he does in a negative manner, the meaning of the Greek word he used enables us to state positively that he has a focus or a goal in his spiritual progress. We can even say that he has his eyes on the goal. The apostle does not have any doubt, that is, there is no uncertainty in his mind that if he ran the spiritual race in the manner that satisfies God he would be rewarded. The apostle had already communicated to the Corinthians that God would reward faithfulness in carrying out a specific task He assigns an individual in 1 Corinthians 3:8:
The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor.
The apostle assured the Ephesians, and so all believers, that God will certainly reward good work as we read in Ephesians 6:7–8:
7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, 8 because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
The human author of Hebrews makes the same point that believers will be rewarded for doing good as we read in Hebrews 6:10:
God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.
Anyway, the apostle is certain that there is a reward for running the spiritual race in accordance with God’s word. A person who runs the spiritual race in the manner that conforms to God’s word will be rewarded since the apostle elsewhere indicates that only athletes who compete in accordance with the rules of the games are rewarded as he stated in 2 Timothy 2:5:
Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor’s crown unless he competes according to the rules.
That aside, when the apostle wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:26 I do not run like a man running aimlessly or literally I in this way run as not aimlessly he meant that he was focused on his spiritual life since he was certain that God will reward those who faithfully execute the spiritual race.
There is no doubt that the apostle sees the spiritual life metaphorically as involvement in competition of the games. It is for this that he negatively states his focus on the spiritual life by using another event involved in the games carried out in the stadium. Another event in the games is boxing so he used it secondly to state negatively regarding his focus in the spiritual race. Hence, we read in the second sentence of 1 Corinthians 9:26 I do not fight like a man beating the air. It does not seem to be that the apostle was concerned with boxing, but he was. This is because the word “fight” is translated from a Greek word (pykteuō) that appears only here in the Greek NT; it means to fight with fists, that is, “to box.” Boxing involves beating or striking someone with the fist hence the expression like a man beating the air although literally the Greek reads in such a way as not beating (the) air. The word “beating” is translated from a Greek word (derō) that may mean “to strike” as it is used to describe Jesus’ protest when He was slapped during His trial before the high priest, according to John 18:23:
“If I said something wrong,” Jesus replied, “testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?”
The word may mean “to beat” as the word is used when Apostle Paul recounted his encounter with the Lord Jesus, as we read in Acts 22:19:
“‘Lord,’ I replied, ‘these men know that I went from one synagogue to another to imprison and beat those who believe in you.
The word is used fifteen times in the NT but only twice by Apostle Paul in his epistles. In its other occurrence of the word in the apostle’s epistle, the translators of the NIV used the meaning “slap” to translate it in 2 Corinthians 11:20:
In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or pushes himself forward or slaps you in the face.
Anyway, the Greek word is used in our passage of 1 Corinthians 9:26 in the sense of an unskilled boxer who misses his target during a boxing context or in shadowing boxing. An unskilled boxer or even a skilled boxer may miss striking the opponent if he dodges the blow directed to him in which case his energy would be wasted as also in shadow boxing. Thus, Apostle Paul indicates that he is not like that kind of boxer that misses his target or a shadow boxer. Again, that is his way of saying that he is focused on his spiritual life to ensure that he never misses functioning according to the word of God so that he would be rewarded. For if he ran the spiritual race not in accordance with the word of God, he would be like that boxer who missed his target or a shadow boxer and so hits the air without any benefit.
By the way, the word “air” is translated from a Greek word (eros) that may mean “sky” as it is used in Revelation 9:2:
When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss.
The word more commonly means “air” in the sense of the atmosphere above the earth’s surface as the place the Lord will meet with believers when He returns as we read in 1 Thessalonians 4:17:
After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
Air is used in our passage of 1 Corinthians 9:26 as what the wind consists of. So, beating the air as we have stated is wasting of energy because there is no target that is hit by the boxer.
Be that as it may, the two metaphors of running and boxing the apostle used are intended to convey that he was focused on his spiritual life because of the certainty he had regarding being rewarded in the eternal state if he carried out the spiritual race in keeping with God’s requirement. He was progressing spiritually with the goal of reward in his mind. In fact, what the apostle stated in 1 Corinthians 9:26 is similar to what he stated in Philippians 3:13–14:
13 Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
The apostle portrayed the single-mindedness of his purpose in the spiritual race using images of a race. He helps us to recognize what is involved in being focused on the spiritual race. We should be forward looking to the eternal reward that God will give those who faithfully run the spiritual race. This means that we should not live in the past. The apostle says that he forgets what is the past as he continues to strive forward to the goal of being rewarded in the eternal state and of being in a joyous state with the Lord Jesus Christ. The thing in the past for the apostle could be his failures or his success. Thus, a believer should not dwell on past failures or spiritual successes. Anyone who runs a race could not be looking backwards because such will make it difficult to be focused on winning the race. We must keep moving forward as that is what running involves. A person who constantly looks back in the spiritual race would not be successful. It is no wonder that the Lord Jesus used a metaphor of ploughing to indicate that a faithful disciple never looks back as we read in Luke 9:62:
Jesus replied, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
A believer who is focused on the goal of eternal reward should not allow anything to distract the individual. Often, pleasures have the tendency of distracting us from focusing on our spiritual life. This is because we are not remembering the goal of receiving eternal reward. When we are focused on the reward of eternal state, we should endure whatever suffering that is before us and we will put material things in true perspective so that we will not be distracted. In fact, we should pay attention to what the Holy Spirit said of Moses, who because of the goal he had in mind, renounced the glories of royal family of Egypt as we read in Hebrews 11:26:
He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.
The spiritual race is a struggle that we cannot keep our eyes off the goal of being eternally rewarded. We have eternal life because of faith in Christ and so we are guaranteed to be with God for all eternity, the issue that we are concerned is the reward that the Lord will hand out in the eternal state. Therefore, if you want to be highly rewarded in the eternal state you should remain focused in your spiritual life. In any event, the third essential element necessary to expound the message Strive to be rewarded eternally concerns being focused on the spiritual life.
The fourth and final essential element necessary to expound the message Strive to be rewarded eternally concerns self-discipline. This fourth element is related to the third because there is a connective between verse 26 and verse 27. The connective is translated No in the NIV although the Greek used a conjunction (alla) that here is used to contrast what is stated in verse 27 to that of verse 26 and so may be translated “but” as it is done in majority of our English versions. In verse 26, Apostle Paul conveyed that he was not distracted which we turned into positive statement of him being focused on the spiritual life. In verse 27, he states what he did that was contrary to not being focused. Hence, the apsotle tells us that he exercised self-discipline in the spiritual race because he strives to control everything in his life that would interfere with the spiritual race. It is this that he stated in first sentence of 1 Corinthian 9:27 No, I beat my body and make it my slave.
The concept of self-disciplined is conveyed in the sentence I beat my body. This is the second time we encounter the word “beat.” This second time the apostle used a different Greek word from that used in previous verse. The second “beat” is translated from a Greek word (hypōpiazō) that in Greek Literature is used in the sense of to give black eye to someone. However, in the Greek NT, the word may mean “to wear out” as it is used in the Lord Jesus’ parable of the woman who pleaded with a judge to help her for which the judge granted her request to keep from being worn out by her as we read in Luke 18:5:
yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually wear me out with her coming!’”
Another meaning of the Greek word is “to put under strict discipline,” “to exercise self-control.” It is with the meaning of “to discipline” that the word is used in our passage of 1 Corinthians 9:27. In effect, the idea of the word is to keep one’s body under complete control, with the implication of rough treatment given to the body, possibly as an aspect of discipline.
It is self-discipline that the apostle had in mind not only because of the word translated “beat” but also because of the word “body.” The word “body” is translated from a Greek word (sōma) that refers to the body of a human or animal. Human body is to be understood in different ways. The body could refer to the seat of sexual function as it is used to describe the state of Abraham when the Lord promised him of having a son, as we read in Romans 4:19:
Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead.
The body may refer to seat of mortal life so that Apostle Paul used it to indicate being alive in contrast to being dead as to be with the Lord in 2 Corinthians 5:6:
Therefore we are always confident and know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord.
The body may refer to organ of human activity so that it is the activity that is done through the body that will be evaluated before the Judgment Seat of Christ as stated in 2 Corinthians 5:10:
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
The word may be used for the entire person as it is used in Apostle’s Paul declaration of what some in Corinth said about him, as we read in 2 Corinthians 10:10:
For some say, “His letters are weighty and forceful, but in person he is unimpressive and his speaking amounts to nothing.”
The phrase in person he is unimpressive is literally the bodily presence weak. The word may mean “physical” as in James 2:16:
If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?
The phrase his physical needs is literally the things needful for the body. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 9:27, the word is used with meaning of the entire person, that is, a person considered as a whole (both physical and immaterial). Therefore, the apostle conveys that he disciplines his entire being not merely his physical being as some suppose that the apostle was concerned with ascetism whereby he denied his body several things such as fasting or other self-denials of normal things of life. No, the apostle is concerned with discipline he applies to his entire person.
To ensure we understand the apostle is concerned with the discipline of the entire person not just the physical body the apostle explained the first sentence I beat my body with a second as given in the verbal phrase of 1 Corinthians 9:27 and make it my slave. The conjunction “and” is translated from a Greek conjunction (kai) that often is translated “and” in our English versions. However, it has several other usages. For example, it may be used to introduce a result that comes from what precedes and so may be translated “and then, and so.” It may be used to emphasize a fact as surprising or unexpected or noteworthy with the meaning “and yet” or “and in spite of that” or “nevertheless.” It may be used to mark an explanation so that what follows explains what goes before it, leading to the translation “that is, namely, and so.” It is in this later usage that the word is used in our verse of 1 Corinthians 9:27 so the verbal phrase make it my slave explains further what the apostle meant in the preceding sentence I beat my body.
The apostle did not mean that he was physically hitting himself but that he disciplines himself physically and mentally so that he is in complete control of himself. You see the expression “make…slave” is translated from a Greek word (doulagōgeō) that appears only here in the Greek NT; it means “to enslave, subjugate.” Hence, the apostle meant that he dominates his body or makes it obey him. The way such a thing happens is if a person knows how to discipline self. Hence, the apostle leaves no doubt that when he says he beats his body, he means that he disciplines himself as evident that he dominates self through discipline so that he does only what he allows. The discipline of the body implies that the apostle battles himself to ensure that he is not controlled by his sinful nature. In other words, he disciplines himself so that when the sinful nature tries to interfere with his ministry or his spiritual progress, he dominates it through the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. We are saying that the apostle does what the Holy Spirit demands of believers as he wrote in Colossians 3:5:
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
The apostle battles the sinful nature so it can be said that he dominates it by rejecting to follow its dictates in his ministry and in his spiritual progress. All of us believers are to do the same, as the Holy Spirit conveyed through Apostle Peter in 1 Peter 2:11:
Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.
Anyway, we are arguing that the apostle tells us that he strives to be under the control of the Holy Spirit through being careful to discipline his entire being so that his sinful nature does not dominate him. Proper discipline in the spiritual life would involve being under the control of the Holy Spirit since we have previously noted that “self-control” is an aspect of the fruit of the Spirit.
Our statement that the apostle is concerned with being filled of the Holy Spirit, that is, being under His control is supported by the reason he had to exercise self-discipline as we read in the last clause of 1 Corinthians 9:27 so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. The apostle is concerned that his preaching of the gospel to others and teaching the word of God would not be such that those preached to or taught are benefited but not himself in the sense of eternal reward.
By the way, the word “prize” does not appear in the Greek text, but it is implied by the context. That aside, the concern of the apostle is being disqualified from receiving eternal reward. As I stated at the beginning of this section, there are those who teach that the apostle was concerned with loss of salvation because the old KJV instead of the sentence of the NIV I myself will not be disqualified for the prize reads I myself should be a castaway. Based on the word “castaway,” such individuals teach the apostle is concerned with loss of salvation ignoring completely the context. Of course, the NKJV has corrected its translation using the word “disqualified” as found in the NIV. The word “disqualified” is translated from a Greek adjective (adokimos) that may mean “deprave” in the sense of being twisted as it is used to describe the nature of the mind of those who reject God in Romans 1:28:
Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.
The word may mean “not to stand the test” or “to fail a test” as Apostle Paul used it in the instruction to the Corinthians to check themselves to determine if they are living as Christians should, as we read in 2 Corinthians 13:5:
Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?
The word may mean “rejected” as it is used to describe the two men that opposed Moses as we read in 2 Timothy 3:8:
Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth—men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned, are rejected.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 9:27, the word means “disqualified” or “unqualified.” If the apostle did not discipline himself to be controlled by the Holy Spirit in the spiritual progress, he would be disqualified from receiving a prize. As explained in the TLNT (Theological Lexicon of the NT) it is probably that the apostle was alluding to the preliminary test at athletic competitions, where the judge, after an examination, “eliminated” certain contestants who were “not acceptable,” or in the case of defeat, refused to award them a prize. Regardless of what imagery the apostle had in mind, his point is that a believer can be disqualified from receiving eternal reward if the person did not carry out the spiritual progress under the control of the Holy Spirit. In effect, we are being warned about the importance of doing whatever we do as Christians under the filling of the Holy Spirit. Thus, you should strive in the spiritual race to ensure you are eternally rewarded. You should exercise self-control. Be focused on the spiritual life. Maintain self-discipline in all areas of your life, implying that you should constantly remain under the control of the Holy Spirit if you must be eternally rewarded for your spiritual progress on this planet.
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