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One Word
Dying
from exhaustion, he fell before a stunned audience,
whispering only one word.
That single word was the last he ever spoke.
The breath that uttered it was the last he
took. What
message was so important that hills and valleys didn't
deter Phidippides that day in 490 B.C.?
Why did he wear himself out on the road from
Marathon to
Athens
? What one
word was sacred enough, vital enough, and glorious
enough to claim his own life?
"VICTORY!"
The Athenians had defeated the Persian army
in a battle at Marathon, a small town about 26 miles
from the city of
Athens
. Phidippides'
legendary feat inspired the modern-day "marathon"
but his message inspires the soul.*
Sam
Dilbeck writes: "Phidippides sacrificed his life
to spread the word of VICTORY.
However, it was but ONE WIN in ONE
BATTLE in ONE WAR in ONE AGE.
Since his marathon, many wars have raged, with
no lasting peace.
Five hundred years later [after Phidippides'
marathon run], Jesus traversed the road to
Calvary
and sacrificed His life to accomplish true and lasting
victory. It
is the ULTIMATE TRIUMPH over the ULTIMATE
ENEMY in the ULTIMATE WAR for ALL AGES!
It inspires the heart and saves the soul."
How
is it that Jesus' DEATH
provided VICTORY?
Jesus'
death on the cross provides: VICTORY
OVER SIN.
Our sin puts us at hostility with God (see
Isaiah 59:1-2; James 4:4).
However, Jesus paid the price for our sins by
dying on the cross on our behalf.
"He himself bore our sins in his body on
the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for
righteousness."
By His stripes, WE can be healed, and
forgiven (1 Peter 2:24).
Jesus'
death on the cross also provides: VICTORY
OVER DEATH.
Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection assures
us of our OWN resurrection at His second coming
(read 1 Corinthians 15).
Based upon this assurance, the Apostle Paul
writes of the hope of Christians: "So when this
corruptible has put on incorruption, and this MORTAL
has put on IMMORTALITY, then shall be brought to pass
the saying that is written: 'Death is swallowed up in VICTORY.'
'O Death, where is your sting? O
Grave, where is your victory? '
The sting of death is sin, and the strength of
sin is the law. But
thanks be to God, who gives us the VICTORY
through our Lord Jesus Christ"
(1 Corinthians 15:54-57).
YOU
can share in this VICTORY over SIN
and DEATH through
YOUR FAITH – a faith that trusts
God (Hebrews 11:6), repents
of sin (2 Corinthians 7:9-10), confesses
Christ (Romans 10:9-10), is baptized
(immersed) into Christ for the forgiveness of sins
(Acts 2:38), and continues to follow God for the rest
on one’s life (1 John 1:7).
Are
YOU sharing in Jesus'
victory?
God bless you!
David
A. Sargent, Minister
Church of Christ at Creekwood
1901 Schillinger Rd. S.
Mobile, Alabama 36695
*
From Sam Dilbeck. Note: The
story of Phidippides may be the conglomeration of incidents in the lives
of two historical figures: Phidippides and Eukles.
However, the story above has persisted and is the basis for the
modern-day marathon.
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