Running the Race
A Look at the Life in Christ from the Book of Romans

• Do you want practical advice on how to overcome sin?
• Are you uncertain of how to share your faith?
• Have you been frustrated or hurt by your fellow believers?
• Do you wonder why God allows trials?

All these questions and more are answered in Running the Race. This 10-lesson course, perfect for both individual and group study, approaches the book of Romans from the standpoint of the life we live in Christ. Each lesson looks at a separate aspect of running this race that we're all in, taking us from the starting block to victory at the finish line!

Table of Contents

Lesson 1: The Runners: Sinful Man and the Sinless Christ

This lesson sets up the race: we begin with who we are – sinners desperately in need of a Savior. Then we move to the one who qualifies us to be in this race at all – the sinless Christ.

Lesson 2: Developing Strength: How Trials Form Our Character

When we are saved and begin to run the race called the life in Christ, we’re completely out of shape. We have no stamina. We don’t really know what we’re doing. We need to develop strength … not physical strength, but spiritual strength. This lesson takes an in-depth look at how trials can do just that.

Lesson 3: “I Want to Look Like That!”: Purity

If you’re engaged in sports, you often have a hero. An ideal you are striving to reach. The same is true in the Christian life: our hero is Jesus, and one of the ideals he embodies – and that we must strive to attain – is purity.

Lesson 4: Gatorade Isn’t Enough: Overcoming Sin

Sin is a powerful force that we are called on to fight against every day. But if we try to conquer sin in our own strength, we are doomed to fail. Fortunately, God had given us nine sticks of dynamite to explode the hold of the devil in our lives!

Lesson 5: Accepting Your Teammates: Differences in the Body of Christ

One of the challenges we face as we run this race is the fact that there are differences in the body of Christ. Not the fun differences of spiritual gifts and talents, but the difficult differences of belief and action. In this lesson, we learn what God has to say about accepting our teammates.

Lesson 6: Team Spirit: Love

Team spirit is important as we run this race – and the team spirit we are called upon to have is love. Explore seven aspects of love from Romans 12 that are vital for us to practice in the Body of Christ.

Lesson 7: “He Tripped Me!”: When People Hurt You

As we run, we are guaranteed to encounter bumps in the road of life … and one of the biggest is the fact that people are going to hurt you, both intentionally and unintentionally. When that happens, we need to follow three principles: three important pairs of do’s and don’ts.

Lesson 8: Know Your Strengths: Spiritual Gifts

As a spiritual athlete, it’s important to know your strengths. We all have been given spiritual gifts – areas of particular skill, strength, and expertise. Explore the spiritual gifts in Romans 12 and how to use your gifts effectively in the Body of Christ.

Lesson 9: In the Public Eye: Living in The World

We’re not running this race on a private track with no one but the saints watching … we’re running in full view of a fallen world and we interact with that world every day. Discover what Romans has to say about two aspects of that interaction: relating to the government and relating to society.

Lesson 10: The Art of Recruiting: Telling the Good News

It’s time to study the art of recruiting! We need to get out there and convince other people to join us in the race: in short, evangelism. Learn the five most important points in spreading the good news!