i have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. [2 timothy 4:7]
read the passage. spend a moment asking God to reveal himself in this passage and especially in the first phrase, fought the good fight. what is God revealing about himself in this phrase? what is God asking of you and i? spend a moment asking for God’s presence to meet you and speak before you read on.
LORD speak to us right now. reveal yourself.
what is God revealing about himself here? 1) he is a fighter! 2) he fights “good” fights, for his “good” to be advanced. do you ever think of God as a fighter. he is!
- he fought to redeem his glory. [rom 9:23-24; rom 3:25; 2 cor 3:18]
- he fought to redeem his world. [eph 1:7-10; rom 8:19-22]
- he fought to redeem you. [col 1:13; 2:13-15]
- he fights now for you daily. [rom 8:33-34; heb 7:25]
he fought the good fight for his glory, his creation, and for you! and he still fights for you! what a God, what a warrior – fighting the good fight!
what is God asking of you and i? to join him in fighting the good fight! what does that fight look like for you? i think it involves the things Jesus has fought for and is fighting for. remember, you don’t win the fight! but we are called to join him. we are called to …
- fight for his glory. every moment is a glory battle. will we chase after other glories, other things that say, “this is the greatest, this will satisfy your soul?” will we fight for others to taste and see the glory of God? or, will we lead them to believe there are other things besides God that are great and satisfy our soul? fight for his glory! fight!
- fight for others to be redeemed. pray for others to know God has won the fight for their soul. he HAS fought the good fight. it is over. but so many are trying to fight their way into God’s presence or fight their way to find glory in something else. fight for others to be redeemed! fight!
- fight for the redeemed. so many believers have lost their way off his path, are glory cynics, or are walking through life having forgotten there is a fight. call out to our Warrior God for them! fight for them to run back to the Savior, to see and believe the glory that God alone has, and to join the fight. fight for the redeemed. fight!
LORD, you fought the good fight, and because of that we are yours, won by your victory over sin and death! LORD, wake us from our slumber to the fight and empower us to join you in the fight to day. let us walk in your victory and may you give us the courage to call others to join us in the fight!
~ john ryan