One Trait at a Time: Training Like an Athlete

Wisdom Scripture

Luke 2:40 (NIV)

40 And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.

Wisdom Quote

Wisdom is the quality of discerning what is true, what is ethically right, and what should be done in different situations.[1]

[1] Nettelhorst, R. P. “Wisdom.” Ed. Douglas Mangum et al. Lexham Theological Wordbook. 2014: n. pag. Print. Lexham Bible Reference Series.

Train for Godliness

God calls His children to exercise significant effort to grow in Christ—not to earn His favor, but because of His grace; not to deserve His love, but in response to His unconditional love.

Training Like an Athlete

Listen to Paul’s counsel to Timothy:

“Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe.”
—1 Timothy 4:7–10

Timothy is to train himself like an athlete, which involves discipline, effort, and consistency.

Notice that because Paul trusts in the living God, who is our Savior, he labors and strives. Because you do not earn your salvation, you can train hard with full confidence that the living God has saved you by His grace.

The Language of Discipline: Three Greek Words

The Greek word translated as “train” is gymnazo, from which we get our English word gymnasium. Paul is essentially saying, “Exercise yourself for godliness.”

He adds that we are to labor and strive. The Greek word for labor is kopiao, which, according to the standard Greek lexicon, means “to exert oneself physically, mentally, or spiritually; work hard, toil, strive, struggle.”[2]

The verb translated as “strive” is agonizomai, which means “to fight” or “struggle,” like an athlete or a soldier. Our English word agonize derives from this Greek word. You are to agonize to become more godly.

Have you ever used an app to track calories or a smartwatch to count your steps? Compare the effort, energy, and planning you put into physical fitness with the effort you put into your spiritual fitness.

[2] Arndt, William, et al. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. 2000: 558. Print.