*ILL>In 1863, as Abraham Lincoln prepared to sign the Emancipation Proclammation he took his pen, moved it to the signature line, then dropped the pen. When asked why, the President replied: "If my name goes into history, it will be for this act; and if my hand trembles when I sign it, there will be someone who asks why I hesitated." He then turned to the table, took up the pen, and bodly signed his name.
<>In the first century, as Christianity was taking root, the first converts (Jewish) were undergoing intense persecution and suffering.
Many of them hesitated, even considered giving up their walk and returning to practicing Judaism, compromising their beliefs for the sake of a more comfortable life.
In the middle of all that the writer of Hebrews wrote this letter to show how Jesus has fulfilled Jewish Law, has called us to spread the truth of the good news, and why it’s imperative that we not quit, but instead move forward in the mission God has called us to.
In the first eleven chapters the writer lays out the arguments, finishing with a listing of the "Hall of Faith," chapter eleven.
But then, in summing up the entire first eleven chapters and moving to his main points, he begins chapter twelve with a sports metaphor: that of running a race, equating that to running and being successful in the game of life, and the commitment of faith.
To be successful in OUR race, we need to heed those lessons:
As we run, there are two things we need to anticipate, and four keys to pleasing God amid the race...
ANTICIPATING...
1) We should expect conflict.
*Heb.12:3-4 -- "Consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."
We’ll face opposition as we’re confronted with pain and suffering that God allows to come our way.
And yet, through it all, we can learn to see God’s hand involved in leading us through it, being confident that...
2) We can and should anticipate victory.
*Heb.12:28 -- "Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude..."
If we look to the finish line we’ll see that Jesus is already there, having already turn the race ahead of us, and having already won the race that is now set before us.
FOUR KEYS TO RUNNING THE RACE, LIVING OUR LIVES IN A WAY THAT WILL PLEASE GOD...
1) We’re to run with enthusiasm and energy.
*Heb.12:1 -- "...let us RUN...the race..."
We’re not instructed to jog, walk, or trot...we’re called to crank up the level of our energy, and run.
>There’s an intensity about running: it requires energy to move forward.
--We’re to set our sights on our goal and run with haste, enthusiasm, and excitement.
*ILL>An easterner who walked into a western saloon was amazed to see a dog sitting at a table playing poker with three men. He asked, "Can that dog really play cards?" One man answered, "Yeh, but he ain’t much of a player. Whenever he gets a good hand he wags his tail."
Well, that’s how we should be...we’re to run with such enthusiasm we can’t keep from showing it.
We’re to run to win, give our best, and run with every drop of energy, every ounce of effort, leaving nothing on the field.
Pleasing God means going beyond just "going through the motions," but running to win the prize.
It means being intense, getting serious, staying serious...doing whatever God leads us to do...with enthusiasm.
2) We’re to run with endurance and determination.
*Heb.12:1 -- "...let us run with endurance..."
The word translated "endurance" here (KJV: patience)literally means persistence.
It means we’re to finish the race.
A similar idea is expressed by Paul in Philippians 3:13-14 -- "Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
We’re not to stop halfway to the goal, we’re not to quit just because the going gets tough, or if results come slowly.
We’re called to press on, not give up...we’re to keep on running until we cross the finish line.
*ILL>In a far country a band of minstrels traveled from town to town presenting music...but hadn’t been experiencing the kind of success they hoped for. Times were hard and most folks had very little spendable money, few could pay to hear the minstrels, even though their fee was small. Finally, one night when the snow was falling outside, the group met. One troupe member spoke: "I see no reason for a concert tonight. Whou would come out on a night like this, anyway?" A second member agreed: "Last night we performed for just a handful and tonight I doubt many will venture out in the snow. Why not give back their meager fees and cancel the concert? No one can expect us to go on when just a few are in the audience." A third echoed: "How can anyone do his best for so few?" They then turned to the oldest member and asked his opinion. He responded, "I know you are discouraged. I am too. But we have a responsibility to those who might come. We will go on and we’ll do the best job we are capable of. It’s not the fault of those who came that others didn’t. The shouldn’t be punished with less than the best we can give." So they went on with the show and never performed better. After the crowd was gone, the old member called the troupe together and read a note that had been handed to him by one in the audience as he left. The old member began to read the note: "Thank you for a beautiful performance." It was signed, simply, "Your King."
<>Our example of endurance is Jesus Himself.
--Heb.12:2-4 -- "...who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame...For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."
If anyone had a reason to quit, it was Jesus. But He viewed the shame of dying on the cross worth it to purchase our salvation.
So, before we consider giving up because the struggle becomes tough, we need to remember that Jesus suffered far more and He didn’t quit.
--Heb.12:4 -- "You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin."
--Philippians 2:8 -- "Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."
3) We’re to run with humility, patience, and dependence.
<>Humility -- *Heb.12:1 -- "...the race that is set before us."
We’re not the ones who "set" the course, we merely run the course that has already been set before us.
GOD has set the course, fixed the path, determined the mission He’s called us as individuals and as a church to accomplish through Him.
So...our job isn’t to change the course, but accept the course, and run it enthusiastically and with endurance.
<>Dependency --*Heb.12:2 -- "fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of faith."
With Jesus as the focus of our faith, and the source of our power and victory, we’re to be committed to and dependent upon Him.
It’s His plan, His church, His ministry, His mission that He has entrusted to us.
So...it means we’ll accept his timing, operate in His strength, and keep on keeping on.
4) We’re to run without encumberances, without anything hindering us.
*Heb.12:1 -- "...let us also lay aside every encumberance and the sin which so easily entangles us..."
*QUOTE>Anonymous has said it this way: "The first step in solving any problem is to begin."
Well, the first step in running the race, the place to begin is getting suited up, and getting pared down.
Preparing to run requires getting rid of all that will hinder us from winning the race.
<>Two categories of hindrances are mentioned:
a) That which serves as an encumberance...a drag...that slows us down or hinders us from running our best.
b) That which entangles us...that which actually stops us from running at all.
*ILL>It was a cold January morning in a little town in Wisconsin, on the southern shore of Lake Superior. The annual Dog Sled Derby on the ice was about to take place. A one-mile course had been staked out by sticking little fir trees into the ice, and the whole race was easily visible to the crowd because of the steep slope of the shore. It was a youngster’s meet, the contenders ranged from large boys with several dogs and big sleds to one little fellow who didn’t seem over five years old with a little sled and a single little dog. The racers took off at the signal and the little fellow was quickly outdistanced. He was hardly in the race at all. All went well with the race until about the half-way mark, when the team in second started to pass the team in first, and came too close. The dogs of both teams got into a fight, and as other teams came up, ALL the dogs got into the fight. Soon, all the crowd could see was a big black mass of kids, sleds and dogs...except the little boy and his single little dog. They steered clear of the problem, and were the only ones to finish the race...because they were unencumbered.
*"lay aside" means taking off, setting aside, deliberately ridding ourselves of extra weight.
It’s something we can do...a choice we can make.
They are encumberances because we’re carrying them along as extra weight. They’re holding us back.
<>Some examples of encumberances we’re to lay aside...
--An over-emphasis on personal finances.
--An over-emphasis on personal / professional success.
--An over-emphasis on our routine, our habits, our comfort zone.
*QUESTION> Let me ask you some pointed questions:
--If God were to lay upon your heart this year to give to His cause money that you had previoiusly set aside for a new house, would you?
--If God were to lay upon your heart this year to go back to school, train for a new position or ministry He wants you to enter into, would you?
--If God were to lay upon your heart this year to participate in a L.I.F.E. Group, a Bible Study group, or a ministry that would be meeting the same time as your Poker group or your favorite television show, or soccer practice, or shopping night, would you?
You see, laying aside the encumberances is a picture of unloading anything and everything that would hinder you from running the race your best.
Laying aside the encumberances requires re-structuring our lives, our lifestyles, and our priorities, bringing them all into compliance with the Lord’s will.
*"sins that entangle us" -- There’s a picture here of that which wraps around our legs, keeps us from moving forward at all.
Some advocate the wrong idea of categorizing sins into bad vs. really bad, between venial and mortal. That’s not a Biblical concept at all.
*ILL>I’m reminded of the man who successfully walked from New York city to San Francisco. He was asked about the obstacles he had encountered along the way. His response surprized many: "It was not the steep slopes of the mountains or the hot stretches of the desert. The thing that came the closest to defeating me was the sand in my shoes."
<>The sin that entangles us is ANY sin.
Sin itself is what keeps us from living the holy life God calls us to.
*QUOTE>W.S.Plummer: "We never sin rightly till we see it as against God...All sin is against God in this sense: it is His law that is broken, His authority that it despised, His government that is set at naught...Pharoah and Balaam, King Saul and Judas each said, ’I have sinned;’ but they didn’t repent. The returning prodigal, however, said, ’I have sinned against heaven and before Thee,’ and David said, ’Against Thee, and Thee only have I sinned.’"
Sin occurs in two ways, exists in two forms:
a) Sins of commission.
These are the things we’re doing that are against God’s instructions and which are in direct defiance toward and in competition with our loyalty to God, and which come against His majesty and Lordship in our lives.
--Lying, stealing, lust, adulterty, taking His name in vain, dishonoring our parents, living only for our pleasure, hurting others, etc.
b) Sins of omission.
These are those things we’re NOT doing that God has instructed us TO do as His disciples.
--Not forgiving people who’ve sinned against us, not giving God at least a tithe of our income, not telling anyone of how Jesus has changed our lives, not helping those who are in need, not encouraging those who are down, not praying, not studying God’s Word, not assemblying with other believers to worship God, not taking care of the body God has given us, not paying bills on time (bad testimony), etc.
Trying to run before we’re untangled is a foolish proposition.
We won’t run far, we won’t accomplish anything.
We’ll get weary in a hurry by trying to run God’s race in our flesh, and all tied up.
*So I invite you today...to a commitment.
I invite you to do something publicly and yet privately at the same time.
It’s time to lay aside, and time to step up.
We have a race to run, one that is set before us.
Will you join me in running?
Unhindered, to the finish line, for God’s glory!
