When Jesus spoke to the people and to convey spiritual truths, He often used things that were familiar to them, like sheep, vineyards, servants, land, weddings, food, death, family, fishing, etc. The apostle Paul often does the same thing. In his letter to Timothy, he likens the Christian life to the soldier, the athlete, and the farmer (2 Timothy 2:4-6). These are such good illustrations that I thought I would hone in on these things a little bit more. First, we will look at what Paul says about each of them and then we’ll draw out truths for our lives.
Paul talks about what makes a soldier, an athlete, and a farmer successful in their work. First, they have a focal point and an end result. And then they work really hard to get there. A soldier sets before him the victory. He believes that one day he will be on the winning side. But in order to get there, he has to endure rigorous discipline… giving up the comforts of civilian life and learning combat techniques.
An athlete looks toward the finish line and his goal is to cross a winner. So in order to accomplish this great feat, he must train hard and follow the rules. If he strays from the pathway, he will lose the race. A farmer has one goal in mind… the harvest. Oh, the harvest. But in order to one day see the harvest, he must work really hard and be patient.
Now, what can we learn about each of these examples as we continue our spiritual journey?
The soldier! We are soldiers in a war. No Christian is exempt. We must keep our eyes on the victory, knowing that one day we’ll stand with Jesus as winners. But for right now, we must get up every day and put on that armor and not be afraid to fight using the weapons God has given to us. We must be willing to sacrifice… sometimes our comfort, our desires, and our time. But the sacrifices we make now will be rewarded greatly in the end.
The athlete! The race is still ongoing and we are called to run. We must set our sights on the finish line, knowing that we will cross it one day. So, in order to win this race, we must train really hard… getting up every morning, lacing up those shoes, and getting right back in the race. We keep training by studying God’s Word and applying it to our lives. And we always follow the rules like a true athlete by obeying the mandates in Scripture.
The farmer! We are farmers. We must set before us the harvest… the day when we get everything we’ve been promised. The day we hang up our gloves and we enter eternity. This is what keeps us getting up every morning. But like a true farmer, we must be patient. In our patience, though, we keep working, tilling, watering, weeding. We keep doing the Kingdom work, leading people to truth, telling people about Jesus, and staying on mission with Jesus. The reward for the Christian farmer is the harvest of souls we have impacted that we will meet in heaven one day.
There is much more I could say about each of these, but I just wanted to give each of us some food for thought. Keep fulfilling your responsibilities as a soldier, athlete, and farmer, always keeping your eyes on the reward.