by Terry Wane Benton<\/p>\n
Paul said that in athletics no one is crowned unless they “compete according to the rules<\/em>” (II Timothy 2:5). Being “strong in the grace<\/em>” that is in Christ (II Timothy 2:1) means we are diligent to operate our lives of faith “according to the rules<\/em>” unless we don’t care if we are ‘disqualified<\/em>‘ from receiving the prize.<\/p>\n Would we call it “legalism” if an athlete tried to make sure he was abiding by the rules? Would we shame the athlete who studied the rulebook to make sure he was abiding by the rules? If all the other athletes were breaking the rules, should you act like it is no big deal? Should you join in the rule-breaking? When the judges look at the rule-breaker and also consider the conscientious rule-keeper, will the rule-breaker get the prize over the rule-keeper? Will the judges rule in favor of the rule breaker because he judges that he cannot reward rule-keepers because they are awful legalists? Should rule keepers be rejected, while rule breakers be rewarded?<\/p>\n Paul knew he could become “disqualified<\/em>” for the prize unless he disciplined himself to strive for the prize according to the rules. (I Corinthians 9:24-27). See, true grace “teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts<\/em>” (Titus 2:11f). Grace is not a license to sin (Jude 3-4), and one is not allowed to “continue in sin that grace may abound<\/em>” (Romans 6:1ff). Grace teaches us to be servants of righteousness. If we do not abide in what grace teaches, we do not receive the blessings of grace or stay qualified for the prize. Do not let modern teachers turn the grace of God into licentiousness. You must abide by the rules of grace. The prize is more than worth the effort to be qualified according to the rules and to stay qualified according to the rules.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Terry Wane Benton Paul said that in athletics no one is crowned unless they “compete according to the rules” (II Timothy 2:5). Being “strong in the grace” that is in Christ (II Timothy 2:1) means we are diligent to operate our lives of faith “according to the rules” unless we don’t care if we…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[54],"class_list":["post-92588","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-obedience"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":88726,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/love-your-neighbor-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":92588,"position":0},"title":"Love Your Neighbor (Benton)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 17, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Terry Wane Benton The command to \"love your neighbor as yourself\" is a wonderful rule to live by, but even it can be misused. For example, politicians who have little to no regard for the rule of God will reach into the Bible when they think it makes a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":63193,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/what-do-we-do-with-deborah-as-a-judge\/","url_meta":{"origin":92588,"position":1},"title":"What Do We Do with Deborah as a Judge?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 10, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"by Perry Hall Deborah is a conundrum. And we shouldn't be surprised because she is a woman! Joking aside, there is still the fact that Deborah is an aberration when it comes to judges because she is a woman. So much so is this true, that proponents on both sides\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":18871,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-christians-reign\/","url_meta":{"origin":92588,"position":2},"title":"The Christian\u2019s Reign","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 22, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Text: Psalm 2 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Paul makes an interesting statement - II Timothy 2:11-12 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We often talk about being with Christ after our death, but Paul talks about our reigning with Christ. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He\u2019s not the only one to make this point. John also mentions it - Revelation 3:21 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0C.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It is a reign\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Sermon"","block_context":{"text":"Sermon","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/sermon\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":25442,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-elder-and-his-children\/","url_meta":{"origin":92588,"position":3},"title":"The Elder and His Children","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 28, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"by Brett Hogland God Almighty, in His infinite wisdom,\u00a0\"gave some to be...pastors...for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ\"\u00a0(Ephesians 4:11-12). Thus the Holy Spirit, in His revelation of the mind or will of God through the apostles (I Corinthians\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":26703,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-a-sin-to-call-child-protective-services-on-your-dad\/","url_meta":{"origin":92588,"position":4},"title":"Is it a sin to call Child Protective Services on your dad?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 14, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is it a sin to call Child Protective Services on your dad? I had like one beer and got caught by my brother who's a snitch. He took me home and my dad got mad and slapped me, but it wasn't as if I was drunk. He didn't have\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":24477,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/emphasizing-the-physical\/","url_meta":{"origin":92588,"position":5},"title":"Emphasizing the Physical","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 9, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Text: Matthew 12:1-14 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Schools have been placed in tough positions in the recent years \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0They are told to keep religion out of schools. Almost every direct form of discipline has been forbidden to them. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The natural result is the steady decline in the moral standards of their students. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a02.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Parenting"","block_context":{"text":"Parenting","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/parenting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92588","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=92588"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/92588\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=92588"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=92588"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=92588"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}