2 Timothy 4:1-8 Questions 6-7
6. Paul compares his Christian life to a fight and a race. What similarities do you see among these? We were divided on how to interpret this question! Some (like me) saw this as needing to compare a fight and a race with each other, whereas some saw this as asking us to see how the Christian life is separately like a fight, and also like a race . My answer was There is competition. There are opponents in both. We know that we have external enemies (the world and Satan) and also internal struggles against the flesh (1 Pet 2:11) We need to both attack and defend with the armour of God (Eph 6:11-13) ( Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it, 1 Cor 9:24). There is compulsion - a certain force to push against one's limits in order to achieve victory. We said that in both there is an element of struggle rather than comfort. We may be tempted to give up half-way. In both we need endurance against pain. (There...