Is the Christian Life a Marathon or a Sprint?
Is Christianity a race or a rest?
Have you ever noticed how the older you get, the harder it is to run?
I used to run 10ks and half-marathons. I once jogged a 50km trail in seven hours. But that was a long time ago. These days, my knees are shot, and running is becoming a distant memory.
I mention this because of this well-known saying: “The Christian life is a marathon.” Funny thing, but you rarely hear old guys saying this. It’s usually fit young pastors who say things like:
The Christian life is not a sprint but a marathon. It requires daily discipline and perseverance. You have to stay in shape and endure many hardships to enter the kingdom.
I used to say stuff like this when I was younger and fitter. I wish I hadn’t. It is one of the worst, most dangerous messages you will ever hear.
Is the Christian life a marathon or a sprint?
It’s neither! The Christian life is Christ in you. It’s a rest, not a race.
Sure, there are some running metaphors in Paul’s letters. The man liked sports. Who doesn’t? But Paul never said you have to sweat your way to salvation. The apostle of grace would be horrified to hear how some have twisted his words into a doctrine of works.
“But what about all those verses on enduring and persevering to the end?”
Every one of those scriptures should be read as an encouragement or exhortation to trust in the Lord. They are not pep talks for the flesh.
Here are two ways we get this wrong:
- “Salvation is conditional on enduring; if you don’t endure to the end, you’ll be lost forever”
- “Enduring to the end proves you are saved – if you didn’t endure, you weren’t saved to begin with”
Yuk. These messages promote fear and unbelief. Jesus came to give us peace, yet many Christians are worried sick. “What if I stumble? What if I don’t go the distance?”
One more time for emphasis: Christianity is not a race. The Christian life is Christ in you. Since Christ has endured and has overcome the world, so have you. In him, you are an overcomer.
In Christ, your race starts at the finish line.
Is the Christian life an ultra-marathon?
These days, some even compare the Christian life to an ultra-marathon. Apparently, marathons aren’t hard enough. We need longer, tougher races to inspire us to dig deeper and work harder for Jesus. The fruit of this message is often stress and dead works.
Jesus did not say, “Come to me, all who are labor and I will give you running shoes.”
Nor did he tell his weary disciples, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place, and we’ll jog a few miles.”
What Psalm 23 says: “The Lord is my shepherd. He makes me lie down.”
What Psalm 23 does not say, “The Lord is my running coach; he makes me train in the rain.”
The Christian life is a rest not a race
Count all the sermons you’ve heard on running, enduring, persevering, and discipline, and I’d guess that number is larger than the number of sermons on resting. We are not good at resting because our preachers and teachers aren’t rested. They’re worn out and you will be too if you listen to them.
Full disclosure: I would be a first-class hypocrite if I told you I was good at resting. I’m as driven as the best of them. I hit the road running every day (metaphorically speaking, the knees, remember?). A new year begins, and I’ve already got my list of goals and targets.
I am the chief of sinners when it comes to not resting. By the grace of God I am learning. I am more rested than I used to be. I’m done with marathons, metaphorical or otherwise. I am learning that the Christian life lived is moment to moment. It’s walked day by day.
Now we who have believed enter that rest…. (Hebrews 4:3)
The world is a busy and stressful place. The church, in contrast, ought to be an oasis of peace and rest. Those who have received the grace of God ought to be the most rested people out there.
It is not your Father’s will to run yourself into the ground. He wants you to find your rest in Jesus (see Matt. 11:29). Resting is the most productive thing you’ll do because it’s in resting that we hear the Lord (see Ps. 46:10).
Can I encourage you to make this your New Year of Rest?
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Patron update: Check out what’s coming in 2025!
Start your year with grace-based Bible study. Check out the new books in the Grace Bible series or get the same content free at the Grace Commentary.
Escape to Reality 
There’s so much that I love about this article but you confused me when you referred to yourself as a chief of sinners. This sounds like a contradiction to what you teach about Christians identity in Christ.
This is from your article in 2015 on Chief of Sinners:
“ The moment Paul became a Christian, he stopped being the chief of sinners. Ditto for you. No matter what you’ve done, the moment you were placed into Christ you became just as righteous and holy as he is (1 John 4:17).
It’s just an expression. Just being honest. I’m saying I often fall short when it comes to not resting. I know who I am in Christ.
Thank you for this encouraging message. Some days I think – “am I even going to make it” after 46 years In Christ. I love your words Paul Ellis. You are a treasure from The Lord.
To the above comment – you are not “ on your own” in this thought, however it doesn’t matter how long the revelation of Christ Jesus has been in you has been there and whether any of us are going to “ make it” as we already have,we are already “there”- it’s the general religious ,pharisaical teaching and the onus still being there that we still have to be and do something as we still aren’t enough or good/ right/ saved enough that needs to be overridden,cast out. Something has gone very wrong – no time or need for finger pointing as Jesus said “ forgive them Father for they know not what they do” that includes us all we all need the revelation of Christ Jesus that Paul received if not this distorted identity of God and us in Christ will prevail. Holy Spirit all we need is You.
Thanks Paul a very happy 2025 to you and yours. Amazing distinction yes it certainly has been preached that the Christian life is a marathon and not a sprint. You certainly made me laugh, 😅 Father God wants to give His children rest not “running shoes”. Our Father God is not a task master either, something that has taken me a long time to process in my acceptance. (Not counting Catholicism my up bringing) my first born again church was highly driven, so God was seen as a task master that expected works. It takes trust/Faith to rest in His works. Christianity is by definition grace upon grace to the undeserving. To unlock this indescribable gift one has to surrender and come to the end of self. Recognizing it’s all about Jesus and not about me. Accept what Jesus says: Matthew 11:28-30. Jesus has accepted us and He has graciously promised He will not cast us out of drive us away. This is great news! John 6:37. Believe He is for us and not against us. Romans 8:31.
Honest question here (your teaching has been massively helpful in my life). If Paul the apostle told us that the Christian life is a race in Corinthians, Timothy, and Hebrews, how do you back up the idea that life isn’t a race? I think I’m hearing the heart behind this as putting on Christ instead of our own endurance, but how can you contradict Paul’s saying that life is a race?
Paul was fond of metaphors, sporting and otherwise. (Many preachers are.) But he never said your salvation was earned through blood, sweat, and tears or that if you stumbled you lost your salvation. I have written many articles on all his sporting metaphors and I would encourage you to check them out. You can find them in the Scripture Index.