Box in such a way

1 Corinthians 9:26-27

Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; 27 but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.

This verse seems to allude to something that I have been thinking about recently.  Paul makes mention of his desire to “box in such a way, as not beating the air,” which makes me think about the sport of boxing and a rather rudimentary analogy that it brings to mind concerning the sport of “being a Christian.” Allow me to take some liberties with this verse in order to paint a picture.

The idea presented here is one of “disqualification” from receiving “the prize” (1 Cor. 9:24), the prize being that which Scripture calls the “reward of the inheritance” (Col. 3:23), ruling with Christ in the age to come (Rev. 3:21; Luke 19:17). I’ve discussed this at length elsewhere, so the point of this is not to explain the prize itself, but a bit about the process which results in the attaining of that prize. Paul speaks about “buffeting” his body and “making it [his] slave,” two phrases which speak of exercising control over fleshly impulsiveness, because it is our “flesh” or “old nature” that will disqualify us from receiving the prize if we do not continually subdue it. Please remember as I continue with this analogy that it is a truth of Scripture that no man can, in and of himself, make himself holy or perfect. He can only allow or not allow, by the implementing of choices, the Spirit to work inside of him, transforming him into the perfect image of God’s Son. God does the work, but we have the choice to either allow Him to, or not.

In the sport of boxing, the real decisions about winning and losing are determined in the ring itself, wherein the boxer himself gets to put into practice that which he has spent months or years learning. That is exactly what we Christians are to do.

A boxer needs to spend years in training, and that training is comprised of not only exercising his body every day, but also learning about the sport of boxing and the strategic elements required to outwit your opponent in order to win the fight. One of the most important elements needed is the psychological preparedness for the beating that he will most likely receive so that he can recover quickly and press on to win the match. Boxing is all about the fight, and being found victorious afterwards. A boxer expects to get beat up – it is, after all, the whole essence of the sport – but he should sustain the least amount of bodily harm and should exercise the most amount of mental acuity in order to overcome the challenge of the fight. 

In case you are unfamiliar with the sport of boxing, the winner is determined most often by the number of points he’s acquired throughout the fight (number of blows thrown and received, his engagement with his foe, his boxing technique, etc.), and very rarely by simple knock-outs (though those do happen, which assures instantly that the winner is the one still standing). And boxing champions are made over years of fighting rather than in one determining match.

In parallel, we Christians are supposed to be training ourselves in many different ways – by reading and learning and studying the Word of God, by praying and becoming intimate with our Lord and Savior, and by fellowshipping with brothers and sisters in Christ. We are supposed to be learning what God says about how to fight this fight of the faith – how to behave and how to endure as the battles of this life continue. We are to be life-long students of the sport of “living for God,” which means that we will be engaged in real battles from time to time. And the trick isn’t to pray that we never get into a fight, but to rather pray that we have the endurance to last to the end, possessing the spiritual and mental and physical fortitude to outwit our opponent(s) (the world, the flesh, and the devil). Again, this is not derived from our own abilities, but from God’s Holy Spirit whom we allow to work this in our lives.

A boxer will fail at his sport if he only focuses on learning the ins and outs of his sport from books, TV and internet, and small talk with other boxing fans. If he considers himself a boxer and never sets foot inside a ring – enduring the beatings and learning from each subsequent beating – then he’s not really a boxer. He’s a boxing fan. A boxer fights, and he trains himself for the fight… and his worth is determined in the fight.

A Christian will fail (relative to the receiving of the prize) if he only focuses on learning the ins and outs of his sport – living for God – from books, TV and internet and small talk with other Christians. If he/she considers himself a Christian and never sets foot inside the battle, or runs from every battle that comes his way, then he never really learns endurance and perseverance… his faith isn’t tested and strengthened and never perfected. He’s not really a successful Christian. He may be a fan of God, and truly love how awesome God is, but if he doesn’t get in the ring, or stay in the ring, then his worth is never determined. 

Being a Christian is hard work, and you get beat up again and again and again… but each time you stick it out and stay in that ring until the fight ends, your faith is matured. And the maturing of our faith must occur in the real life battles; it doesn’t occur just in intellectual or “side-line” learning. Just as a boxer boxes, we too must fight this fight of the faith. And yeah, it’s tiring and painful and we may want the suffering to end… but once you really understand what the prize is, isn’t it worth it?