The New Testament uses a number of athletic metaphor

Metaphor

A metaphor is a literary figure of speech that uses an image, story or tangible thing to represent a less tangible thing or some intangible quality or idea; e.g., "Her eyes were glistening jewels." Metaphor may also be used for any rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via...

s in discussing Christianity, especially in the Pauline epistles

Pauline epistles

The Pauline epistles, Epistles of Paul, or Letters of Paul, are the thirteen New Testament books which have the name Paul as the first word, hence claiming authorship by Paul the Apostle. Among these letters are some of the earliest extant Christian documents...

 and the Epistle to the Hebrews

Epistle to the Hebrews

The Epistle to the Hebrews is one of the books in the New Testament. Its author is not known.The primary purpose of the Letter to the Hebrews is to exhort Christians to persevere in the face of persecution. The central thought of the entire Epistle is the doctrine of the Person of Christ and his...

. Such metaphors also appear in the writings of contemporary philosophers, such as Epictetus

Epictetus

Epictetus was a Greek sage and Stoic philosopher. He was born a slave at Hierapolis, Phrygia , and lived in Rome until banishment when he went to Nicopolis in northwestern Greece where he lived the rest of his life. His teachings were noted down and published by his pupil Arrian in his Discourses...

 and Philo

Philo

Philo , known also as Philo of Alexandria , Philo Judaeus, Philo Judaeus of Alexandria, Yedidia, "Philon", and Philo the Jew, was a Hellenistic Jewish Biblical philosopher born in Alexandria....

, drawing on the tradition of the Olympic Games, and this may have influenced New Testament use of the imagery.

The metaphor of running a race "with perseverance" appears in Hebrews

Epistle to the Hebrews

The Epistle to the Hebrews is one of the books in the New Testament. Its author is not known.The primary purpose of the Letter to the Hebrews is to exhort Christians to persevere in the face of persecution. The central thought of the entire Epistle is the doctrine of the Person of Christ and his...

 12:1, and related metaphors appear in Philippians

Epistle to the Philippians

The Epistle of Paul to the Philippians, usually referred to simply as Philippians, is the eleventh book in the New Testament. Biblical scholars agree that it was written by St. Paul to the church of Philippi, an early center of Christianity in Greece around 62 A.D. Other scholars argue for an...

 2:16, Galatians

Epistle to the Galatians

The Epistle of Paul to the Galatians, often shortened to Galatians, is the ninth book of the New Testament. It is a letter from Paul of Tarsus to a number of Early Christian communities in the Roman province of Galatia in central Anatolia...

 2:2, and Galatians 5:7. In 2 Timothy

Second Epistle to Timothy

The Second Epistle of Paul to Timothy, usually referred to simply as Second Timothy and often written 2 Timothy, is one of the three Pastoral Epistles traditionally attributed to Saint Paul, and is part of the New Testament...

 4:7, Paul writes "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."

In 1 Corinthians

First Epistle to the Corinthians

The first epistle of Paul the apostle to the Corinthians, often referred to as First Corinthians , is the seventh book of the New Testament of the Bible...

 9:24–26, written to the city that hosted the Isthmian Games

Isthmian Games

The Isthmian Games or Isthmia were one of the Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece, and were named after the isthmus of Corinth, where they were held...

, the metaphor is extended from running to other games, such as boxing

Ancient Greek Boxing

Ancient Greek boxing dates back to at least the eighth century BC , and was practiced in a variety of social contexts in different Greek city-states. Most extant sources about ancient Greek boxing are fragmentary or legendary, making it difficult to reconstruct the rules, customs and history...

, to make the point that winning a prize requires discipline, self-control, and coordinated activity. In 2 Timothy

Second Epistle to Timothy

The Second Epistle of Paul to Timothy, usually referred to simply as Second Timothy and often written 2 Timothy, is one of the three Pastoral Epistles traditionally attributed to Saint Paul, and is part of the New Testament...

 2:5 the same point is made. These athletic metaphors are also echoed in later Christian writing.

As with New Testament military metaphors

New Testament military metaphors

The New Testament uses a number of military metaphors in discussing Christianity, especially in the Pauline epistles.In Philippians 2:25 and Philemon 1:2, Paul describes fellow Christians as "fellow soldiers"...

, these metaphors appear in many hymns, such as Fight the Good Fight with All Thy Might, which was sung in the film Chariots of Fire

Chariots of Fire

Chariots of Fire is a 1981 British film. It tells the fact-based story of two athletes in the 1924 Olympics: Eric Liddell, a devout Scottish Christian who runs for the glory of God, and Harold Abrahams, an English Jew who runs to overcome prejudice....

; and Angel Band

Angel Band

"Angel Band" is an American Gospel music song. The poem, in Common Metre, was originally titled "My Latest Sun Is Sinking Fast," and was written by Jefferson Hascall . The lyric was first set in J. W. Dadmun's tunebook The Melodeon in 1860, to a tune by Dadmun...

, which was sung in the film O Brother, Where Art Thou?

O Brother, Where Art Thou?

O Brother, Where Art Thou? is a 2000 comedy film directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and starring George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, John Goodman, Holly Hunter, and Charles Durning. Set in 1937 rural Mississippi during the Great Depression, the film's story is a modern satire loosely...

.

New Testament athletic metaphors were embraced by advocates of muscular Christianity

Muscular Christianity

Muscular Christianity is a term for a movement originating during the Victorian era which stressed the need for energetic Christian activism in combination with an ideal of vigorous masculinity...

, both in the Victorian era

Victorian era

The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...

and in later times.