Introduction: This Weekend is Memorial Day weekend, the official start of the Summer Vacation season, and from the looks of our attendance I’d say we have a few people doing just that this weekend. Memorial Day is the day we as a nation set aside to remember those who have died, especially those who died while serving in the military. But I think it is also a good time for us to remember all of the Saints who have gone on before us. Men, women, boys and girls who served the Lord faithfully while on earth, and are now enjoying being in the very presence of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The writer of the book of Hebrews mentions several of these “Saints” in the 11th chapter, and here in the passage we want to read today he refers to them as “a great cloud of witnesses.”
Before we read the Scripture let me give you a little background. The writer is writing this letter or “epistle” to a group of First Century believers that were from a Jewish background. However, someone, perhaps one of the Apostles introduced them to Jesus Christ, and they had gotten off to a great start. In fact, the writer of the Book of Hebrews at one point encourages them not to "forget those early days when they first learned about Christ." He says, remember how you remained faithful even though it meant terrific suffering. He says, "Don’t forget." But now, for some reason it seems that they were actually considering going back to their old religion of Judaism. Things had gotten hard. There were probably being pressured by other Jews to come back and embrace Judaism and to turn their backs on Christ. So in this passage of scripture the writer of Hebrews pleads with them not to do that.
It may be hard for us to really capture his passion and commitment in this passage. But I want you to picture a pastor or prophet standing before this group of people and begging with them, not to quit. Picture Him pleading with them to keep the faith, instead of throwing in the towel.
Follow along as I read
“DON’T EVER FORGET THOSE EARLY DAYS WHEN YOU FIRST LEARNED ABOUT CHRIST. REMEMBER HOW YOU REMAINED FAITHFUL EVEN THOUGH IT MEANT TERRIBLE SUFFERING.”
" THEREFORE, SINCE WE ARE SURROUNDED BY SUCH A HUGE CLOUD OF WITNESSES TO THE LIFE OF FAITH, LET US STRIP OFF EVERY WEIGHT THAT SLOWS US DOWN, ESPECIALLY THE SIN THAT SO EASILY, HINDERS OUR PROGRESS”
“AND LET US RUN WITH ENDURANCE THE RACE GOD HAS SET BEFORE US. WE DO THIS BY KEEEPING OUR EYES ON JESUS, ON WHOM OUR FAITH DEPENDS FROM START TO FINISH.”
“HE WAS WILLING TO DIE A SHAMEFUL DEATH ON THE CROSS BECAUSE OF THE JOY HE KNEW WOULD BE HIS AFTERWARD. NOW HE IS SEATED IN THE PLACE OF HIGHEST HONOR BESIDE GOD’S THRONE IN HEAVEN.”
I think this passage can teach us something this morning about sustaining our spiritual momentum and enjoying a healthy relationship with the Lord for years to come.
1. First of all, if we are going to run a good race and finish well, then we will find strength from those who have GONE BEFORE. You know the Bible is not just a history book. It’s not simply meant to be a record of everything that has happened in the past. Nor is it meant to simply be a collection of moral teachings that we love and respect.
Romans 15:4 says, “"EVEN IF IT WAS WRITTEN IN SCRIPTURE LONG AGO, YOU CAN BE SURE IT’S WRITTEN FOR US." ROMANS 15:4A (MSG)
So these are words that were written with us in mind. These words have something to say to us about how to endure, how to persevere and how to keep running what has been described as the Christian race.
The writer of Hebrews begins this chapter by saying, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge cloud of witnesses." Now in order to really grasp what he’s talking about here, you have to look back at the eleventh chapter of Hebrews. You see in the 11th chapter, he talks about the Hereo’s of the faith, the “All Star Team of Christianity,” if you will.
It contains a long list of some familiar names and some not so familiar names of people who all had one thing in common. Their faith and commitment to God was so strong that they were able to overcome any of the obstacles that came their way. None of them ever quit or walked away from their commitment to follow God. Sometimes they were ridiculed for their beliefs. Sometimes they were mistreated. God called some of them to leave their families and go make their home in a foreign land. Some of them eventually paid the ultimate price, giving their own lives for the cause of Christ. The writer of Hebrews makes a point to say that all of those that he listed in Chapter 11, were still living by faith even when they died. They ran with endurance, and their commitment to God was just as strong, if not stronger than it was when they began following Him.
Now for most of these courageous men and women, there was no outward or visible reward for living a life of faith in this life. Just because they followed God, didn’t guarantee them a life of comfort or prosperity. In fact, for most of them it was exactly the opposite. Their faith often meant sacrifice and hardship. God thought so highly of these individuals that He actually said that "The world was not worthy of them." And so these are the people that the writer is referring to here in chapter 12 when He talks about ‘a huge cloud of witnesses.’
In Seminary I always enjoyed listening to the black ministers who spoke in Chapel. Many of them were very gifted speakers and could preach in ways that most of us can only dream of. But in a many African-American churches today, the preachers will stop after making a point and say something like, "Can I get a witness," or “Can I have a witness.”
What they mean by that, is this? “Is there anybody here that can testify to the fact that what I am saying is true?”
I have this picture in my mind of the author of Hebrews addressing these Christians who are considering turning their back on Jesus Christ, and as he pleads with them and challenges them he stops and looks around him to the ‘Huge Crowd of Witnesses that have surrounded him, and says, "Can I get a witness? Is there anybody here who can testify to the fact that what I’m saying is true? Is there anybody in the room that has found the courage to stay faithful, even when it’s hard?”
I can picture hands going up all over the room. Many of those listed in the 11th chapter of Hebrews could step forward and testify about how they had been tempted to throw in the towel, but had remained faithful and endured to the end. Others would stand and say, “when you feel yourselves spiritually drifting, read about the passion of David because David could tell you that it’s worth it. And when you are fearful to obey God, read the story of Abraham and Isaac. They are witnesses to the life of faith and perseverance
Well let me take it a step further. If you want to grow in faith and perseverance, hang around men and women who have a passion for God. Now I want you to think about this for a minute. WHO DO YOU KNOW THAT ENCOURAGES YOU IN YOUR FAITH AND SPURS YOU ON TO BE ALL THAT YOU CAN BE IN CHRIST? Does a name come to mind? You see, if you want to continue to grow in your relationship to God and sustain a passion for following Christ, then you need to surround yourself with people who are passionately in love with Jesus Christ. Now take your outline and write that person’s name in that blank.
Let’s move on to number two.
2. If I am to finish well, I will need to put off that which TRIPS ME UP.
Our text says, "Let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress."
Unfortunately, to many of us are being weighed down by these things and they not only are they slowing us down but they are also wearing us out.
In this verse, he says there are two kinds of things that we may need to let go of in order to keep from being tripped up.
FIRST HE SAYS WE NEED TO LET GO OF THE UNGODLY. Which simply means we need to let go of sin. One of the things that happens when we read the Bible is that it brings us face to face with our own shortcomings. He is saying that we need to let go of those things that we know are wrong. The Holy Spirit may be pointing out areas in your life right now that you need to let go of, in order to continue growing in your faith.
You know it’s wrong. You know it is hindering your Christian growth. But for some reason you haven’t let go. If the Holy Spirit is bringing something to your mind right now then you need to let it go, because it is hindering your relationship with God. Like a Father wants what is best for His children, God wants what is best for you. He wants you to let go of whatever this is, because He knows that unless you let go of it that it will eventually destroy you.
THERE’S A SECOND KIND OF WEIGHT AND THAT WE NEED TO CONSIDER LETTING GO OF, AND THAT IS WHAT RICK WARREN REFERS TO AS THE UNNECESSARY.
Now this one’s a little more subtle, cause it’s not necessarily sin. It just keeps us weighted-down to the point that we aren’t able to run a successful race. It could be something as simple as the fact that your life is so full, that you don’t really have any time or energy left to pursue your relationship with Christ. As we learned during the 40 Days of Purpose campaign - when you live a purpose-driven life, you don’t worry about your own agenda. Instead you concentrate on God, and fulfilling His plan for your life. One of the things that can help you persevere in the Christian Marathon, is to adamantly get rid of things in your life that weigh you down, distract you, and steal your passion for Christ.
Look at 2 Timothy 2:3. He says, "ENDURE HARDSHIP WITH US LIKE A GOOD SOLDIER OF CHRIST JESUS. NO ONE SERVING A SOLDIER GETS INVOLVED IN CIVILIAN AFFAIRS - HE WANTS TO PLEASE HIS COMMANDING OFFICER." (NIV)
Paul is saying that a good soldier gets rid of anything that is unnecessary. That he doesn’t allow civilian affairs to distract him from being the kind of soldier that His commanding officer wants him to be. In the same way there may be things in our lives that are distracting us from being the “soldier” that our Commanding officer, the Lord Jesus Christ wants us to be. So take a minute and finish the statement - IN ORDER TO FINISH WELL, I NEED TO LET GO OF WHAT? What is it, that God has brought to your mind that you need to get rid of in order to finish well?
3. THIRD, TO RUN A GOOD RACE, I WILL HAVE TO CHOOSE TO PERSEVERE UNTIL I CROSS THE FINISH LINE.
Notice back in our text, he says , "let us run with endurance this race that God has set before us." Throughout History greatness has often been defined by the ability to persevere in the face of hardships and overcome obstacles.
Early in his career, some one said that Vince Lombardi, the Hall of Fame Football Coach of the Green Bay Packers, knew very little about the game of Football. Thomas Edison’s teachers gave up on him and said that “He was too stupid to accomplish anything.” Henry Ford, failed and went broke 5 times, before inventing the “Model T.” Beethoven’s music teacher once said that his chances of ever being a successful composer were hopeless. Albert Einstein performed so poorly in his high school courses, that his teachers actually encouraged his parents to pull him out of school.
In this race we call life, God is far more interested in how we finish than how we begin.
Look at the next verse on your outline, "THEREFORE MY DEAR BROTHERS STAND FIRM. LET NOTHING MOVE YOU. ALWAYS GIVE YOURSELVES FULLY TO THE WORK OF THE LORD BECAUSE YOU KNOW THAT YOUR LABOR IN THE LORD IS NOT IN VAIN." 1 Corinthians 15:58 (NIV)
Another translation says, "be steadfast, be immovable no matter what the hardship." So no matter how long the storm lasts, no matter how dark and scary things get, no matter how difficult things become, don’t quit. Don’t throw in the towel, stick with it. Can I get a witness?
The Apostle Paul could certainly testify to that. In fact he does in the 11th chapter of the book of 2 Corinthians. He says, “I’ve been in prison. I’ve been flogged. I’ve been exposed to death time and again. Five times I was beaten with 39 lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I’ve been shipwrecked. I’ve had to constantly stay on the move because every where I went people wanted to kill me. I’ve been deprived of sleep. I’ve gone without food. I’ve been cold and naked.”
Then he in the 28th verse he says, “you know, all that’s bad but let me tell you what’s even worse, I had to take care of a bunch of churches.” If you read between the lines, it’s almost as if Paul is saying, “it’s one thing to be beaten and it’s another thing to have to deal with people in the Church.” But Paul went on to say, But I didn’t let them get to me, “I never gave up.”
None of the hardships that Paul had to face discouraged him bad enough that He wanted to quit. None of them kept him from pressing on. And none of them quenched his passion for following Christ.
Paul is telling us that it is important to make a decision at the very beginning that you are going to stand firm; that you are going to be steadfast and immovable, when hardships and difficulties come your way. That’s good advice, because the Christian life isn’t a ‘bed of roses.’ There are going to be some valleys, there are going to be some ‘bumps’ in the road. There will be some times when God seems distant and there will be some circumstances that you can’t explain or make sense of. Paul is saying don’t wait until the hard times hit to make your decision to continue to follow Christ. He is saying, make the decision now, that regardless of what happens, regardless of what difficulties come your way, that you are going to continue to follow Him.
That’s what the writer of Hebrews is saying to these Jewish believers, He’s saying, “Don’t turn back, keep pressing on.”
So let me ask you to complete this next statement. I KNOW GOD WANTS ME TO KEEP ON DOING WHAT? What’s one area in your life that you need to persevere? Where is it that you need to keep pressing on? Write it down.
4. NEXT, IF I AM GOING TO RUN THE RACE WELL, I’M GOING TO KEEP A SINGLE-MINDED FOCUS.
He says we do this “by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish.” Now before we go any further, I want you to notice what he doesn’t say. He doesn’t say that you should keep your eyes focused on your small group. Or on your pastor, or even on Sulphur Spring Baptist Church. Unfortunately all of those things and all of those people will eventually let you down or disappoint you in some way. It is only when the Lord Jesus becomes the primary focus of your life, that you’ll find enough strength to endure this marathon called the Christian life.
If the 40 Days of Purpose didn’t cause you to love Jesus more, then we have failed. It was never meant to point people to Sulphur Spring Baptist Church, or to point you to people. Our main purpose for going through the study was to point you to Jesus Christ, the Author and finisher of our faith.
Now it sounds really spiritual to say keep your eyes on Jesus, but just how do we do that? I want to take a few minutes to discuss that question. This spring we went through the 40 Days of Purpose and many of you grew in your faith. But now, it’s almost Summer and the pace is going to pick up. So how do we maintain our focus on Jesus during the busy, hectic, days of Summer? Well this much I know; it won’t happen by accident. In fact, implicit in the word "focus" is the idea of concentration and intention. While life is a race, it is impossible to develop an intimate love relationship with the Lord on the run.
Our hurry up lifestyles hinder our ability to keep our eyes focused on Christ. We rush to get the kids to school on time; we rush to the office to beat a deadline. In the afternoon we rush to pick the kids up from school and get them to ball practice or dance on time. Then we rush home for a quick bite to eat before bedtime.
Our society promotes a hurry-up lifestyle. Fast food restaurants, Pharmacies, Dry cleaners and Banks all have drive through windows. Domino Pizza promises to give you a free pizza if they don’t deliver it within 30 minutes. Even our sporting activities have been effected by our fast paced lifestyle. When ESPN and CBS started airing more college basketball games, the rules committee decided to put in a ‘shot clock’ to speed up the game and keep teams from stalling and running out the clock, something North Carolina used to be famous for.
This hurry up lifestyle has effected the church as well. It wasn’t uncommon years ago for a pastor to preach of 45 minutes or even longer. Now most pastors have cut that to 20 – 30 minutes, because according to the experts the attention span of the average person in America is now only about 15 minutes.
Many of us have what Tom Cruise, in the Movie, “Top Gun” described as “A Need for Speed.” Unfortunately this need for speed is setting us up for a monumental spiritual struggle. Our constant activity and hurry up lifestyle drains our souls. Our bodies and souls need rest, Jesus knew this, which is why he said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Here’s the truth I don’t want you to miss this morning. If you’re going to keep your focus on Jesus through the hectic days of Summer, then you’re going to have to make some time for Him. Time to be alone in His presence. You’re going to have to slow down long enough to hear His still small voice when He speaks to you.
To hear God and know God, we must make time for Him. We must be able to find a quite place where we can spend some quality time with the Lord free of distractions. Those times will not only help you grow, but they will replenish and nourish your soul. So I encourage you right now to write down certain days and times throughout the week that you are going to spend with the Lord, even if you have to “schedule it” or put it into your day-timer.
Look at Philippians 3 on your outline. The Apostle Paul says, "WHAT IS MORE, I CONSIDER EVERYTHING A LOSS COMPARED TO THE SURPASSING GREATNESS OF KNOWING CHRIST JESUS MY LORD, FOR WHOSE SAKE, I HAVE LOST ALL THINGS. I CONSIDER THEM RUBBISH, THAT I MAY GAIN CHRIST." (NIV)
Paul says that nothing, absolutely nothing is more important than our relationship with Christ. So slow down long enough this Summer to re-focus your attention on the Lord, and allow Him to give you strength, and replenish your weary soul.
SO TAKE A MINUTE AND WRITE DOWN ONE THING THAT YOU WILL DO THIS SUMMER TO STAY SINGLE-MINDED.
Well let me give you this last one very quickly.
5. I WILL ENDURE THE SUFFERING TO SEE THE SMILE.
In verse 2 of our text we read, that Jesus was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy He knew would be His afterwards." The writer of Hebrews uses Jesus as an example of someone who had an eternal perspective. He looked past the suffering of the cross to the joy that would be His when He would be united with those that He’d redeemed. He looked past the suffering of the cross to the joy that would be His when He was once again in the presence of His Heavenly Father.
The author seems to be saying that on the other side of the finish line is the smiling, face of our heavenly Father. So in this race called life, we need to regularly look up, and look ahead to the finish line. When life gets hard and when the rat race starts getting to you, look up and you’ll see your heavenly Father cheering you on. As Christians we can endure difficulty and pain because we know that this life is not all there is. We know and understand that we were created for God’s pleasure.
Some of you are going through difficult times right now. You may be wondering a where God is in all this? Don’t give up. Keep going. Look up, Keep your eyes focused on the Lord. The writer says, “Look past the obstacle to the finish line and the joy that will be yours.”
In Philippians 3:14 the Apostle Paul said, "I STRAIN TO REACH THE END OF THE RACE AND RECEIVE THE PRIZE FOR WHICH GOD THROUGH CHRIST JESUS, IS CALLING US UP TO HEAVEN."
Maybe you should fill in that next statement. I AM ABLE TO ENDURE THE PRESENT BECAUSE I KNOW _________ WHAT?
I know…..The pain will be gone. Because I know….The relationship will be restored. Because I know …..I’ll be with my Father. Write something in that blank.
Well, as we conclude this morning, I want to leave you with this final thought. In the sixth chapter of the Book of John, we read of a miracle that is recorded in all four of the gospels and you are probably familiar with the story. It’s the story of Jesus feeding the multitudes. In fact the Bible says there were 5,000 men there, not counting women and children. And on that day, Jesus took a little boy’s lunch of 5 small barley loaves and two small fish. Jesus took it, blessed it and they began to pass it out. And the Bible says everyone ate until they were completely full. We all know that part of the story.
But the Bible says that the very next day the crowds tracked Jesus down again and they ask him to "Do another miracle for them." And Jesus, knowing what was in their hearts said, "The only reason you’re following me is because I gave you something to eat yesterday." He goes on to tell them that life is much more than food and physical provisions. He then begins to teach them about life. When He was done, a lot of those gathered around Him looked at one another and said, "This is difficult for us to understand." And then in verse 66, these tragic words are written: "From this time, many of His disciples turned back and no longer followed Him." And as these people turned and walked away and went back to living their lives their way, Jesus looked at the twelve disciples and said, "Are you guys going to leave Me, too?” I love Peter’s response. Peter looked at Jesus and said, "Where else would we go? You alone have the words to eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God."
I believe that for all followers of Christ, there comes a day and a point of life where every person who follows Christ is faced with this very same decision. At some point, you have to step up and say, I am casting my lot. I have made my choice. With this one and only life, I have I am going to follow Jesus no matter what happens.
I hope that you will make the decision right now, that no matter what might come your way this Summer, and in the years to come, that nothing will keep you from following Jesus Christ. The writer of Hebrews gives us one more reminder in Hebrew 12:3, "SO KEEP YOUR MIND ON JESUS, WHO PUT UP WITHMANY INSULTS FROM SINNERS. THEN YOU WON’T GET DISCORAGED AND GIVE UP." (CEV)
**Part of this sermon was taken from a sermon by Rick Warren which was part of the "Purpose Driven Life" series.
