It's 100 years old this year.

The Nobel Prize.

It's better than an Oscar, an Emmy, a Grammy, or a Tony. More prestigious than a Pulitzer, or even a MacArthur -- the so-called "Genius Award." Blows away lesser honors such as Immys, Ammys, Bammies, Jammys, and Nammys.

Of course, you knew that. No one is ever going to confuse a Nobel with a Nammy.

The bottom line is this, according to Attaché magazine: By winning the Nobel Prize, you achieve immortality. You join a pantheon of modern giants, an exclusive club of luminaries such as Albert Schweitzer, Marie Curie, William Faulkner, T.S. Eliot, Martin Luther King, Jr., Albert Einstein, and Mother Teresa. Should you win one, encyclopedias will profile you, newspapers will cover you, colleagues will envy you, and the public will stand in awe of you.

Clearly, the Nobel looms head and shoulders above other awards, dwarfing all earthly honors. Like the Olympic gold, it is international -- winners have hailed from nearly 50 countries. Like the MacArthur, which went to a couple of Washingtonians last week, it carries an unquestioned cachet of brilliance with it. The selection process is neutral, and the cash, at nearly one million bucks, is substantial. The awards bash is a good one -- champagne, dancing, a banquet dinner with the Swedish royal family at the Golden Room in Stockholm's Town Hall. The Nobel is a canonization, a coronation, and a deification -- all rolled into one. (Bruce Anderson, "How to Live Forever," Attaché, March 2001, 49ff).

The 2001 Nobel Peace Prize was announced earlier this month, going to Kofi Annan and the United Nations. Some of the nominees were a stunning surprise, such as Stanley Williams -- a death row inmate who writes gritty children's books and coordinates an international nonviolence effort for at-risk youth. Equally unexpected was the nomination of soccer -- yes, soccer -- for the Peace Prize. Although more than a dozen fans died during stampedes and riots at soccer games last year, a Swedish lawmaker insists that the game helps international relations.

Go figure.

On many occasions, the Peace Prize has gone to VIPs -- folks such as Yitzhak Rabin, Nelson Mandela, and Mikhail Gorbachev, to name a few. But you certainly don't have to be a prime minister, a president or a powerful politician to grab the glory. In 1999, the Nobel went to "Doctors Without Borders," and in '97 it was awarded to an ordinary American named Jody Williams and her International Campaign to Ban Landmines.

In other words, the Nobel can go to nobodies. And so can another high honor -- the "Noble Prize" described by the apostle Paul.

In his second letter to Timothy, Paul looks back over the course of his ministry and observes, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith" (4:7). Using the imagery of an athletic contest or race, Paul describes himself as one who has competed fairly, and kept his solemn promise to put out his utmost effort. Coming close to the finish line, he squints into the future and says, "From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing" (v. 8).

This is the Noble Prize: "the crown of righteousness." Better than the crown of flowers that ancient Jews wore at feasts, and more coveted than the wreaths given to victorious Greeks at athletic contests, this prize is to be presented by the Lord Jesus on the day of judgment, on that day when the Lord of life confers honors on all who have kept the faith and looked expectantly to his appearing. It's not a Nobel Prize, it's a Noble Prize -- in place of a check for 9 million Swedish crowns you are given the crown of everlasting life.

It's the gift that keeps on giving, eternally.

But how do you qualify for such an award? In many ways, you run the same kind of race that the winners of the Nobel Peace Prize have run. You fight the good fight and you finish the race -- as tough as it might be. Yes, the struggles of Christian living can be grueling, the obstacles you encounter can be daunting, the suffering you face can be intense. But the Lord WILL stand by you and give you strength (v. 17), and if you endure there will be a reward: The Noble Prize, the crown of righteousness. It's a prize that didn't come easily for Paul, and it doesn't come easily for us -- it requires tremendous exertion and endurance.

Within the life of the church, we show our determination to finish the race through the practice of stewardship. Stewardship is our commitment to be good caretakers of what God has given us, and it involves dedicating a portion of our time, our talent, and our money to God … week after week, month after month, year after years.

Stewardship, you see, is not practiced through a one-time gift, just as training for a marathon is not accomplished by a 50-yard dash. Both require dedication, determination, and the willingness to devote significant time and talent and treasure to the achievement of a goal.

In just a few minutes, we will be making our Grow-One Sunday commitments for our 2002 Stewardship Campaign. I will be challenging you to take one step up in your giving, to give one percent more of your total income to God's work in this church and this world. If I were coaching you to run a marathon, I'd be doing exactly the same thing -- challenging you step up your running by a set percentage each week.

If you run this stewardship race with me, you'll be amazed at the results. You'll find yourself in better shape -- in better spiritual shape -- than you've ever been before. You'll feel closer to the God who promises to stand by you and give you strength, through all the challenges of life. And you'll be amazed at what this church can accomplish with the dedicated gifts of all of its members. Small groups of people can do world-changing and prize-winning work, when they fight a good fight, and finish a long race.

Just ask Jody Williams. Jody is a woman who first learned of the dangers of land mines when she met children in Nicaragua and Honduras who had lost limbs to the weapons. On the Sunday after Thanksgiving in 1991, she attended a meeting in Washington at the offices of the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation. That gathering yielded a new branch of the foundation: The International Campaign to Ban Landmines.

"When we began, we were just three people sitting in a room," she recalls. "None of us thought we would ever ban land mines. I never thought it would happen in just six years."

But it did happen, thanks in part to her doggedness and resolve. With the help of the Internet, Williams managed to do in six years what dozens of powerful organizations, including the United Nations, had been unable to do in dozens. In December 1997, a land mine ban was signed by 121 countries.

"It's breathtaking what you can do when you set a goal and put all your energy into it," she says. Whether you are devoted to banning land mines around the world or feeding the hungry around the block, it's essential to strive for your goal and finish the race. The crown of righteousness is reserved for those who are fearless and determined and willing to act on their beliefs. (CNN.com, "Jody Williams: The woman who waged war on land mines")

Will YOU be fearless and determined and willing to act on your beliefs -- when you fill out your Estimate of Giving Card? It's breathtaking what you can do when you set a goal and put all your energy into it.

As we run this race, it's also crucial to keep the faith. That means keeping the faith of Jesus, the one who says, "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me" (Matthew 25:40). When we use our gifts to feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, and clothe the naked, we are not simply helping the helpless -- we are assisting our Lord.

"We are not really social workers," said another Nobel Peace Prize winner, Mother Teresa of Calcutta. "We may be doing social work in the eyes of people. But we are [really] touching the body of Christ." Whenever we share love and peace and joy with others, we are touching the body of Christ in the world today. This is the heart of what it means to keep the faith as we strive to do good in our relationships with family members, coworkers, and neighbors in need. "It is not how much we do, but how much love we put in the action that we do," stressed Mother Teresa. "… we have an opportunity to love others as [God] loves us, not in big things, but in small things with great love." (Mother Teresa, Nobel prize acceptance speech, 1979, Oslo, Norway, http://www.tisv.be/mt/nobel.htm)

The crown of righteousness is given to those who fight the good fight, finish the race, and keep the faith. The heavenly prize is awarded to all who put love into action -- not necessarily in big things, but in small things with great love.

So dust off your dancing shoes. Get ready for the heavenly banquet.

The Noble Prize is coming, above and beyond all earthly honors. Amen.