Evidently the apostle Paul liked sports. He likens the Christian life to running a race (I Cor.9:24a). It is likely that this imagery came from Paul’s acquaintance with the Isthmian Games which were held seven miles east of Corinth in a place called Isthmia. Every few years Olympic-type games were held there in honor of the sea-god Neptune (Poseidon). The Corinthians were very familiar with these games. Next to the Olympics, these were the most important athletic events in Greece – a country that was passionate about its sports. According to Jamison, Faucet, & Brown, in order to enter the Isthmian Games, each runner had to take an oath that he had been ten months in training, and that he would violate none of the regulations. From the analogy of the Greek athletic events, using imagery which would be very familiar to his readers, Paul made several points in this metaphor which are analogous to the Christian life:

• Running a race requires giving it one’s all (vs.24b)
• Running is agonizing and requires self control (vs.25a)
• Runners run with single-minded focus (vs.26)
• Running requires discipline (vs.27a)
• Runners must run according to the race rules (vs.27b)

This study is going to deal with just one sub-point in Paul’s analogy, namely that running a race requires single-minded focus. It may be only one part of the whole illustration, but it is an important theme that is seen throughout the New Testament. It is an essential part of Christian living.