Paving The Way For Perseverance Series

OUT OF THE SALTSHAKER AND INTO THE WORLD

Part Five—Paving the Way for Perseverance

Hebrews 12:1-3

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Pastor Brian Matherlee

Read 12:1-3

Key verse: “Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Hebrews 12:1

A young fellow wanted to be a star journalist but lived in a small town (not much possibility). One day the dam upstream broke and the town was flooded. He got in a rowboat and headed out to look for a story. Finding a lady sitting on her rooftop, he tied up the boat and told her what he was after. (They both watched as various items floated by).

She says, "Now there’s a story." But as he surveyed the sight he said, "No, that’s not a story." Finally he watches a hat float by and then turn 180 degrees, go back upstream a ways, do another 180 degree turn, and go back down stream again.

The fellow says, "Now there’s a story. I have never seen a hat do that before!" "Oh no, that’s not a story the lady said. "That’s my husband Hayford. He said that he was going to mow the lawn come the devil or high water!" (sermoncentral.com)

Making a difference in the world around us requires staying power!

I see 4 keys in this passage to sticking with God’s plan to love and reach the world we live in:

1. We’re on a great team

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses.” (v.1)

a. We are not alone-one of the great things about coming together on a weekly basis is that we see our teammates, our Christian family and we know that whatever has happened in the past week, somebody will care about us and support us on Sunday.

b. Three kinds of people are watching

i. People of faith-who’ve gone before and are with us now and they’re cheering. The author of Hebrews tells us of these people in chapter 11. Which of the people in this chapter inspire and encourage you?

ii. People who are spiritually hungry

iii. People who are antagonistic-and they hope we will fall.

2. Lighten up!

“Let us throw off everything that hinders.” (v.1)

a. The Greek word translated “hinders” refers to any kind of weight. It was used in the sense of making training and competing most effective.

b. These weren’t bad things. They were things that could have prevented a better outcome.

c. The people of the day wore flowing robes. Trying to run in that kind of get up would be difficult so they ran naked! At least without the flowing robes. I suppose they ran faster because of embarrassment too!

d. There are many good things in life that hinder our excelling in the Christian life. It doesn’t mean we aren’t Christian…it just means we don’t have the depth of living God would really want us to experience.

e. 1Corinthians 9:24-25, “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.”

f. It takes discipline to get rid of good things to take hold of the best things.

g. Is there something good in your life that might be holding you back from fullest surrender to God?

3. Break the chains

“…the sin that so easily entangles.” (v.1)

a. This verse tells me that I have a part to play in overcoming sin. Paul says, “Let us throw off…the sin”.

b. Obedience in this area is critical to being Christian.

c. Entangling sin is a drag on Christian living.

d. It is going to take effort to throw off sin.

e. In his book Fuzzy Memories, Jack Handey writes: There used to be this bully who would demand my lunch money every day. Since I was smaller, I would give it to him. Then I decided to fight back. I started taking karate lessons. But then the karate lesson guy said I had to start paying him five dollars a lesson. So I just went back to paying the bully. (Too many people feel it is easier just to pay the bully than it is to learn how to defeat him.)

f. How do we break the chains? ABC’s of success:

i. Acknowledge sin-don’t gloss over it

ii. Begin a different pattern

iii. Confess your sins to one another

4. Watch where you’re going

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus” (v.2)

a. Author and perfecter of our faith-Jesus made faith possible and showed us how to live.

b. For joy…endured-Pain, shame & humiliation of public disgrace for the pleasure of eternal life.