Olympic Gold

By Andrew Ready

The Olympic games have been an amazing spectacle recently. There are not many events that can command such a worldwide audience, and which bring together people from so many countries for the same purpose.

Many people realise the modern Olympics are a far cry from the ancient games of Greece. There are some fairly obvious differences; the ancient Greeks did not ride bicycles for example. Any combat events did not have the same safety measures and often were fought to the death. For all the ‘noble’ ways in which the ancient Greeks are portrayed, there was also a very depraved element to their society. A famous fighter was Arrichion of Phigaleia. He is one of the only people to ever win an Olympic event whilst dead. The story goes that his oponent had him in a strangle hold in the Pankration, a wrestling based combat event. While blacking out from lack of oxygen Arrichion managed to break either his opponent’s ankle or fingers, the account varies. His opponent was in so much pain that he surrendered, however by the time the judge went to raise Arrichion’s arm as the victor he had already died. His body was crowned with the olive wreath. His dead body then received a hero’s welcome when it returned to his home town.

It is interesting to note the type of self-sacrifice that is glorified in our society. Recently there has been an ad on TV thanking all the families of athletes who for years have been up at the crack of dawn to get their kids to training. Many famous olympians will testify that they could never have achieved such great heights without the support of their families. Broadly speaking, we recognise people who have made sacrifices, and particularly value this when they have done so to strive for a sporting goal. I do find it a little funny, however, when I tell people my church is a half hour drive away from my house. They always look at me a little strangely. ‘Oh’, they say, ‘That’s a long way to go!’ Maybe they are right, but it is only once or twice a week, and sometimes I wonder what their reaction would be if I was making that drive every day to train with the Adelaide Crows instead. Rather than a bit ‘over the top’ I tend to think they would not think twice about the distance or the time given.

In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 the Bible compares our Christian walk to an athlete who works towards a goal. These verses make an important distinction, however. While Olympic gold is an amazing achievement, it is still only a temporary prize. Four years later your glory can easily be snatched away. From 1900 to1920, tug-of-war was an Olympic event. I am sure those who won the tug-of-war were ecstatic with their achievement, and yet now this sport does not even feature at the games. The glory has not even lasted 100 years. Winning in any Olympic event surely takes a lot of blood, sweat and tears. We can admire all who have achieved such things, yet we must remember there is a prize we are to strive toward which is incorruptable, and lasts even beyond death. While Arrichion’s body was buried with his crown, the crown itself was unable to pass beyond the grave to go with him.

These verses also say ‘Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize?’ Then later in the passage it says ‘therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air’. Paul, the author, is drawing another disctinction using the analogy of training. For every story of Olympic glory there are many, many more of years of sacrifice that have only led to heartache and shattered dreams. What a joy it is to understand the difference; our walk with the Lord is a reality, not a dream we are chasing. The ‘reward’ is not just in the age to come, but knowing His life, His peace, and His joy here and now as well.