Page 114 - Discipleship Ministries Student E-Book

2. God has a special plan and many responsibilities He wants us to accomplish on His behalf. He will
give us a limited time to accomplish this plan and He will empower us to accomplish it completely, if we
will be willing to comply with the prompting of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to
harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

3. We can get sidetracked by Satan and not accomplish our God-given duties. In the book of Hebrews,
the author in chapter 12 reminds us of the faithfulness of dozens of people in the Old Testament. Each,
by faith, obeyed God and ended up in this list of the heroes of faith. Here is how the group is
introduced:

Hebrews 12:1-2 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside
every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before
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us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him
endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

Notice that throughout our Christian journey, we are to keep our eyes focused on Jesus Christ. But the
verse also tells us that a couple of things can sidetrack our journey: worldly weight and sin which clings
to us. In other words, the weight of this world and the sin we allow to remain unconfessed can take us
off the path and lead us to waste our time on a false journey.

Paul warned the church at Corinth to discipline their bodies by self-control. In other words, he was
telling them not to get sidetracked in their spiritual journey, lest they be disqualified, as a racer does
when he leaves the track.

I Corinthians 9: 24-27 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize?
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So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a
perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the
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air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should
be disqualified.

Again, Paul uses the metaphor of a race to help us understand that our life has a start and a finish, and
that we must be diligent in running so as not to disqualify ourselves in any way.

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2 Timothy 4:7-8 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth

there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me
on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

In 2 Timothy 4:10, Paul tells us about a man named Demus who deserted him, and Paul tells us why:
because he loved this world. The lures of the world, the riches and things it had to offer, caused Demus
to leave the path and journey down another road. Obviously, Paul warned us in Hebrews 12:1 that
every believer is susceptible to altering their course if they take their eyes off Christ.

4. God promises special rewards to those who are faithful. But he also promises a LOSS of reward to
those who stray from the path. Check out these verses:

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