For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: – II Timothy 4:6-7

Paul wrote in his final letter…I have finished my course,…These are remarkable words of which we often do not appreciate the full significance. Paul came to the end of his life, having finished his course. He had not fallen by the wayside. He had not let discouragement or obstacles stop him. How did he get to this point? Did he live an easy life? No. In fact, it was the opposite.

• Paul was saved as a wicked, vile murderer. He could have used what he was before salvation as an excuse for quitting. He could have said, “Because of…,” but instead, his mindset was “in spite of…”
• Paul was not accepted by the brethren. He could have quit “because of…” Instead, he pressed on “in spite of…”
• Paul had limiting, sometimes debilitating afflictions. He could have quit and offered the excuse “because of…” Instead, he persevered “in spite of…”
• Paul faced persecutions—beatings, a stoning, and imprisonments. He never said, “Because of…,” but his mindset remained “in spite of…”
• Paul made mistakes in ministry. At times, he put his personal desires above God’s leading. He could have made the argument that he was quitting “because of…” Instead, he refused to quit “in spite of…”
• Paul was betrayed by friends and co-laborers, those in whom he had invested his life. He could have quit because he had been hurt. His letter to Timothy could have said, “Because of…,” but instead, it said, “In spite of…”
• Paul wrote to Timothy in II Timothy 3:9 that he had enemies who actively opposed him. He did not stop or change his message to “because of…,” but continued with “in spite of…”

Finishing the course is not about talent, pedigree, or perfection. It all comes down to whether you are a “because of…” Christian or an “in spite of…” Christian. We have too many “because of…” Christians who use circumstances and failures as an excuse.

Paul was an “in spite of…” Christian. Which will you decide to be?