9:22,23
“To the weak I became weak..”, this is perhaps a reference back to those who refused to eat food previously offered to idols. Maybe their understanding was not quite as developed as that of others, but Paul’s overriding concern was to share the blessings of the gospel, not to prove any superiority he might imagine that he has. Warning signs should flash in our heads whenever we imagine that we are better than others. Paul forewent his rights, had given up on trying to promote himself. Instead he focuses on winning people for Christ. And he did this in order to share the blessings of the gospel, To go back to the theme of my comments on 9:20,21, so often when we “seek to become all things to all people” this means abandoning the gospel.
9:24,25
Why does Paul now talk about running the race, and only one wins the prize? In today’s terms this could be taken as a warning against a pluralistic approach, ie all roads lead to God. No they don’t! “All the runners run”. Men have many different ideas and ways of doing things, but that does not mean they are all right. However, in the context of Corinthians, Paul is stressing the importance of running the race with purpose. Men run human races, or other sporting enterprises, with great dedication, putting in much effort and training and self-denial. And all this to win a perishable prize. We have an eternal prize ahead of us, so we should run with all the more determination the race that Christ has set out for us.
9:26,27
Paul lived his life with purpose. He did not “shadow box”, or play air-guitar! He did things for real. And this involved disciplining his body. So the Corinthians who said you could do what you liked with your body were simply wrong. We need to keep our bodies under control. Otherwise we may be disqualified. A runner who has won the race can be disqualified if he then fails a drug test, We need to ensure that we lives lives worthy of our calling.
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