Finishing Well

Finishing Well

Text: Hebrews 12:1-3

OPEN WITH PRAYER AND THANKSGIVING

Well before we get into our text this morning, I want to tell you a little story. A few weeks back, my wife was watching a movie on TV. I was sitting at my desk, reading the news, so I wasn’t really paying a whole lot of attention to the movie she was watching. But there was one scene that caught my attention. It was of this British guy, and he was sitting in a large home office, with paintings on the wall of his deceased relatives, and he was talking to his daughter about those paintings. And I can’t remember exactly what he said, but it was something along the lines of, “This is a painting of my great grandfather – he lost his arm at the Battle of Waterloo, and this is my grandfather, he lost his leg during World War I. This is my Uncle; he was severely wounded in World War II.” And then the man looked at his daughter and said, “You see, being part of this family comes with having a certain duty as well.” Now I wish I could tell you the name of that movie, but I can’t remember it… like I said, I wasn’t paying too much attention to it. But there’s a lot of truth in that line.

Let’s go ahead and open up our Bibles to Hebrews 12:1-3 (READ).

Now we don’t know who penned the Book of Hebrews. Some people say it was Paul, some say it was Barnabas… I personally think it might have been Nicodemus, but we don’t really know for sure who put pen to paper and wrote it… but we do know that it was inspired by God. And our text this morning, coming from chapter 12, comes right on the heels of what theologians have typically called the “The Heroes of the Faith Chapter”; chapter 11. In chapter 11, we are given a long list of Biblical characters who, by faith, did amazing things, and accomplished amazing things. We read about Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. We read about Moses and Rahab, Gideon, David, Samuel, and others. And there’s this long list, and that’s what brings us to chapter 12, which starts out in verse 1 by saying, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses…” In other words, all of these people mentioned in chapter 11… all of these people who had faith, and who by faith, served God, and obeyed God, and walked with God, and were used by God to do miraculous things, and endure all sorts of things, and accomplish all kinds of amazing things… all of those people, are this cloud of witness that chapter 12 verse 1 is referring to. And the writer of Hebrews says, “those believers… those men and women of faith. They should motivate you to lay aside the sin that ensnares you, so that you can run the full race… and finish the race.”

He is saying, “remember the saints who have gone on before us. Remember what they have endured. Remember what God has done through their lives. Remember how God used them in mighty ways, as they were faithful and obedient to Him and His Word.”

They are a witness to us that God will finish what He has started in you. They are a witness to us, that God is not only the Author, but the finisher of our faith. In-fact; that’s what our text goes on to say – that God is the Founder and Perfecter of our faith. Now a lot of times you’ll hear well-meaning pastors say, “those believers who have gone on before us, are looking down on us – cheering us on”. That’s not what this passage is saying here. The Greek word for “witnesses” here in the word “Martys” – it’s where we get our word “Martyr”. What the author of Hebrews is saying to us is that those who have gone on before us, are a witness to us of how God will get you through. They are a witness to us of how God will bring to completion the good work He began in you. And they are a witness to us of how God will use the man or woman who has true, lasting, faith!

In other words, these are people who didn’t just make a profession of faith… these are people who acted upon their faith, they lived it out consistently, day in and day out. They are examples for us… and give us a roadmap so that we can stay on course, and finish the race.

How do we do it? We lay aside every weight, and the sin that clings so closely to us… What’s dragging you down? What’s keeping you from running the race of faith… what weights are you carrying? A weight is anything that is hindering your walk with Christ… it’s anything that’s keeping you from loving God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. The author of Hebrews says, “Lay those things aside.” Now there’s another way to look at that as well. You see, the Greek runners would train with weighted clothing, but when it came time to actually race, they would remove those weights, so that they can run with purpose, and at their full potential. And why is that important? Well, you’ll again sometimes hear pastors say, “The Christian race isn’t a sprint, it’s a marathon.” And to that I would say, “No… it’s an ultra-marathon. It’s like the Badwater 135 – a 135 mile race over crazy obstacles, in blistering heat, going uphill most of the way.” And if you’ve got weights hindering you, you’re never going to finish… you’re going to drop out. So… we are told to lay aside every weight – everything that distracts us, and hinders us from following Christ to the fullest. But we’re also told to not only lay aside every weight, but also the sin that clings to us so closely…