Jesus gives us the resources to fight our personal battle of faith and promises us his victory.

Boxing and marathon racing. What do these sports have in common? They're not team sports. Some games and events were never intended to be played by a team. Such sports demand the best from one person. Individuals are accountable for themselves in the end and must have the self-discipline and motivation to attain their goals.

Christianity is a team undertaking, that is true. The church is the living body of Christ, made up of many members who work together and help each other. But in the end, each individual is personally accountable to God. Each of us will have to stand alone before the judgment throne of God.

Personal sin and salvation

Someone once said that who we are in secret is who we really are. We can sometimes put on a good front, but as Mark Twain once wisely put it: "Everyone is a moon, and has a dark side which he never shows to anybody, if he can help it." We can sometimes hide who we really are from everyone—everyone, that is, except God. God knows our hearts. The heart denotes those thoughts and emotions hidden in the deepest recesses of our minds. The Bible reminds us that God, in his omniscience, "judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account" (Hebrews 4:12,13).

Who are we before God, when we sit alone with our thoughts? What occupies our minds? How do we spend our time when we're by ourselves? What are the greatest desires of our hearts? A deep look inside is frightening. We find sin. There is no escaping it.

Where do we find rescue? The Bible says: "No man can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for him—the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough—that he should live on forever and not see decay" (Psalm 49:7-9). That is to say, we cannot expect our teammates to save us. We will not get to the goal because we were assisted by another player. And there's another perspective. We cannot even attain the goal for ourselves by our individual and personal performance. No matter how pious we try to be, no matter how noble our efforts and intentions, we fall short (Romans 3:23). We cannot earn the prize, nor do we deserve it.