Title: Olympians Reach for the Goal
Text: Hebrews 12:2-4
The Big Idea: Spiritual Olympians, with a “go for the goal” mindset, keep their eyes on Christ.
Series: Spiritual Olympians: Going for the Goal, is based on Hebrews 12:1-13 and designed to coincide with the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, August 8 – 24 and beyond. It is a series developed from Go for the Goal: Become a Spiritual Champion, Mainstay Ministries.
Introduction
Eric Liddell was a famous Olympian who ran in the VIII Olympiad in Paris, France in 1924. He was a devout Christian who went on to be a missionary to China. But back to the 1924 Olympics. He chose to drop out of the 100 meter race rather than run on Sunday. Despite not being favored to win the 400 meter he went on the win that race, earn the gold medal, and set a new Olympic Record of 47.6 seconds. His story is immortalized, so to speak, in the 1981 film Chariots of Fire.
Video Clip: Chariots of Fire Finale – Eric Liddell winning the gold in the 400 meter in the 1924 Olympics. (YouTube.com)
It is apparent that Eric Liddell ran his races and lived his life with his eyes fixed on the Christ whom he honored in all he did.
Eric Liddell is a model of the teaching of our text today.
1. Spiritual Olympians keep their eyes fixed on Jesus
“We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus…” Hebrews 12:2a
Keeping our eyes on Jesus involves two actions:
• The first is looking away from other things. It means shifting our gaze, so to speak, from one thing or all other things to one thing.
• The second action is to concentrate one’s gaze on one thing.
When our children were little the professionals working in the field of child behavior used terms like “hyperactive” and “impulsivity” to describe a child who was highly energetic or off-the-wall or inattentive or easily distracted – well, hyperactive and impulsive.
Now they are diagnosing children (and adults) who have trouble focusing as suffering from “attention deficit” or “hyperactivity disorder” or sometimes both with the acronym “ADHD.”
Beginning in preschool, Olympian Michael Phelps couldn’t sit still, stay quiet, or pay attention. One teacher told his mother, “Your son will never be able to focus on anything.” (news.aol.com/health/article/an-olypians-gold-medal-focus)
Isn’t it amazing that ADHD diagnosed Michael Phelps developed the steely discipline and laser-like concentration necessary for him to become an 8 gold medal winner in Beijing?
When an Olympian participates in an event it is not as though the world stops and nothing else is happening or matters. Life always goes on. I like the little saying, “Life is what happens while you are making plans.” Even when we are laying out our plans for a day or a lifetime… times passes and stuff happens.
We cannot escape dealing with the our obligations and the things that happen. We do not ignore our families so we can focus on Jesus. We do not quit our jobs so we can look unto Jesus. We do not neglect the needy because we need to fix our eyes on Jesus. But what we do is this: We focus on Jesus when we ask for wisdom in handling our family matters. We focus on Jesus when we seek the sufficiency of his grace in every situation. We focus on Jesus when we see opportunities to care for others.
We see the child that challenges our self control and we shift our eyes from the child to Jesus in order to see what Jesus sees, and feel what Jesus feels, and to find the will and way to react as Jesus would react.
Spiritual Olympians keep their eyes on Christ because they must, if they hope to complete their races.
2. Spiritual Olympians depend on Jesus from the start to the finish of their lives of faith.
“We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish…” Hebrews 12:2a
This passage is shrouded in a bit of controversy over the understanding of Jesus as the author / pioneer and finisher / perfecter of our faith.
• One understanding is that Jesus was the first to truly live out a life of faith from beginning to end. Jesus, whom we understand to be “fully human and fully God” ran his race and reached his goal, completing his mission. So we fix our eyes on Jesus who is our example to emulate in our own respective races. Philippians 2:5-11
• Another understanding is that Jesus is the agent who begins, continues, and completes his work in us. Among references to support this thought is Philippians 1:6, “He who has begun a good work in you will continue his work until it is finally finished on that day when Jesus Christ comes back again. (Leon Morris, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Hebrews, P 134)
I am left wondering why it cannot or is not in fact both? Should we not keep our eyes fixed on Jesus who is both an example to emulate and model our own lives after and the agent of change who is in the business of transforming us into the persons God wants us to become. Paul wrote, “Be not conformed to this world but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think [and act]. Romans 12:2
In Romans 8:28 speaks of God’s predetermined desire that we all be conformed to the image of his Son, Jesus Christ.
One of the most touching of images I have taken away from the Olympics this year is that of the women gymnasts. I was especially moved during the finals for the gold in the balance beam, when three women (girls) fell off the beam. Each pulled herself back onto the beam and completed her routine. And then after the dismount and landing, no matter how shaky, each athlete was welcomed at the bench into the arms of a loving coach who celebrated their victories and reassured them in their defeats.
That’s what Jesus is like… a loving coach upon whom we depend to lead us and teach us and see us through our victories and our defeats.
Spiritual Olympians also look to Jesus as a model or example of futuristic thinking…
3. Spiritual Olympians run their races with glory in mind (No Guts, No Glory!”
“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.” Hebrews 12:2b
Olympians do not just show up for their events every four years… their lives are characterized by rigorous training and conditioning.
It was fun to watch Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh throughout the Olympic Games. They won the gold medal in Women’s Beach Volleyball in 2004 and they returned in 2008 determined to win it a second time. They competed against he best the world has to offer. They competed in extreme heat and they completed their final set in the rain. They were often evenly and sometimes overly matched but in the end they emerged the victors not only because they are magnificent athletes with wonderfully developed skills and compete as a perfect team… they are in exquisite physical condition. After they won the gold Walsh said, “We felt like warriors out there…” (Karen Crouse, Americans Win Second Consecutive Beach Volleyball Gold, New York Times, August 21, 2008)
May-Treanor and Walsh endured whatever had to be endured. They suffered any and every inconvenience and injury along the way to the gold. They sacrificed in ways we will never know because they had their eyes on their second gold medal. They were thinking futuristically.
“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.” Jesus essentially said, “Whatever I have to go through does not matter in light of the joy that lies before me and the benefit it brings to those who follow me.
The Apostle Paul wrote, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me – the crown of righteousness that the Lord, the righteous Judge will give me on that great day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his glorious return.” II Timothy 4:7-8
Spiritual Olympians, like gold medal winning Olympians or Jesus Christ, or the Apostle Paul never lose sight of where they are headed… and neither do we!
How does keeping our eyes on Jesus affect our ability to run our individual races?
4. Spiritual Olympians do not stop running before they reach their goal.
“Think about all he endured when such sinful people did such terrible things to him, so that you do not become weary and give up.” Hebrews 12:3
The idea of finishing whatever you start is not a new thought. Finishing what one begins is kind of a no-brainer. However we are instructed to consider or think about Christ and his experience as being of importance to our own spiritual lives.
To consider means to calculate, add up the facts, or analyze toward the end of drawing a conclusion.
• First of all we calculate what Jesus did and compare our experience with that of Jesus Christ…
• And then the desired conclusion is that we determine we will not lose heart or give up despite whatever hardship we may face along the way. (Leon Morris, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Hebrews, P 135)
Having grown up in Iowa I was very proud of Lo Lo Jones and have great admiration for her in all that she has over come in becoming a world class person and athlete. During the 100 Meter Women’s High Hurdle race for the gold, Lo Lo had a commanding lead when her heel struck the 9th hurdle. Afterward she said, “All I could think of was getting back on my two feet and standing strong.” And of her loss she said, “If you can’t get over all ten you can’t be an Olympic Champion.” She was truly a class act who demonstrated gold medal character even in defeat. (Philip Hersh, No Medal in the Race, but God for Lo Lo Jones later, LA Times Sports, August 24, 2008)
If you saw the race, she pulled herself together and finished the race.
As Spiritual Olympians we may hit a hurdle now and then, we may get discouraged, but we don’t quit. We may collapse after we cross the finish line but we do not lay down on the track and concede the race. We finish what we start and we finish as strong as we possibly can.
I would like to leave you with a few “how to do” what we’ve been talking about today.
How can we learn to fix our eyes on Jesus… how can we begin each day and make our way through each day and end each day looking to Jesus the author and finisher of our faith? These are only suggestions and certainly not at all comprehensive, but if you are looking for a starting point you might find these helpful.
1. Begin your day with a simple prayer. My favorite is lifted from my own practice of Fixed Hour Prayer. Every morning, at the conclusion of my devotional reading and prayer I pray:
“Lord God Almighty and Everlasting Father, you have brought me in safety to this new day and I give you thanks. Preserve me with your mighty power that I may not fall into sin, nor be over come by adversity, and in all I do direct me to the fulfilling of your purpose, through Jesus Christ my Lord. Amen.”
2. Read your bible every day. You might find it helpful to read a chapter from the Old Testament, a Psalm, a chapter from Proverbs, and a chapter from the New Testament each day. You might like to begin by reading and reflecting on the life and teachings of Christ by reading systematically through the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. You might appreciate spending an extended time in the sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7. The idea is to read and reflect on God’s Word and how God is speaking to you through your reading.
3. Begin your day and end your day with a favorite hymn… perhaps chose a “Hymn of the Week” to express your thoughts, emotions, and devotion to God. David Mains suggests beginning with a hymn like When Morning Gilds the Skies.
When morning guilds the skies, my heart awakening cries: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Alike at work or prayer to Jesus I repair: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Be this while life is mine, my canticle divine: May Jesus Christ be praised!
Be this the eternal song, through all the ages long: May Jesus Christ be praised!
4. Pray the Lord’s Prayer throughout the day. Include the Lord’s Prayer in your morning prayers, pray it at midday, and before you go to sleep.
It is not a rote and meaningless or a vainly repetitious thing to consciously refocus your heart on the Lord throughout your day. The Lord’s Prayer expresses your desire to lift high the name of God in worship; to invite the sovereign will of God to be done in your life; to express your dependence on God for all of your needs; to confess your constant dependence upon the work of Christ for our sins and our desire to forgive those who offend us; and to seek the Spirit’s strength in facing the trials and temptations that remain in the course of the day.
You may find it meaningful to use the Lord’s Prayer as a model for your own prayer. When you pray, “Our Father, who is in heaven, hallowed be your name…” pause and express your own words of devotion. And when you pray, “Your kingdom come, your will be done…” pause and speak to God about the issues in your life in which you especially seek his guidance. And when you pray, “Give us this day our daily bread…” pause and bring to mind and mention those things for which you are seeking God’s provision. And so on…
5. Read Charles Sheldon’s classic In His Steps: WWJD, which was first published in 1896. Since that time it has remained the 39th bestselling book of all time. Sheldon was a pastor living in Topeka, Kansas when he wrote it and reportedly used the chapters in a series of Sunday evening messages. It is the basis for the familiar questions: “What would Jesus do?”
You might also want to pick up a copy of the 1964 film produced by Ken Anderson which uses the In His Steps title and is based on Sheldon’s book. It is available online or through your Christian bookstore…
The purpose in reading the book is to begin then to ask yourself the “what would Jesus do” question throughout the day as a way of keeping your eyes fixed on how Jesus would have you run your race.
6. Review Hebrews 12:1-2 throughout your day. Remember the cloud of witnesses cheering you on. Confess and remove the friction factors that slow you done and the signature sins that trip you up. Run with patient endurance the race the God has laid out before you. Remember to keep your eyes fixed on Jesus.
7. Make Jesus your last thought every night when you lay your head on the pillow. You might find it meaningful to pray a prayer from the ages: Lord, grant me and those I love a peaceful night and a perfect end. Amen.”
Conclusion:
Part of the course God laid out before me included ten years in a rural community in northwest Kansas. The church owned a quarter section of farm land and used the crop each year to subsidize the church budget. The farmers in the church worked together to till, plant, and harvest the crop.
Having come from agrarian roots, I was in my glory there and Bonnie and I both enjoyed participating in the rhythms of rural life… particularly during harvest when Bonnie would prepare a huge meal for the harvesters on the day they came to cut the church wheat. There would often be six or eight combines running in unison around the field, there would be tractors and grain carts that emptied the combine hoppers on the fly and then empty their loads into trucks waiting to haul the grain the fourteen miles to the CoOp (Decatur County Farmer’s Cooperative Association) in Oberlin, Kansas. But before you could cut the wheat you had to drill the wheat… you use a grain drill for wheat rather than a planter – though it seems to me they serve the same function.
One year I was allowed to plant or drill the wheat. It was a proud moment in my life and I set about the drilling with relish. When the drill boxes were empty I had to back up to a truck filled with seed wheat at the end of the field and shovel the wheat into the boxes. On one occasion Merlin Anderson and his Uncle Gil Anderson had stopped by to see how the planting was going. I thought it was going great until I heard Uncle Gil yelling to Merlin, over the roar of the tractor, “His rows would be a lot straighter if he would stop looking back over his shoulder all the time.”
The course God has laid out before us is indeed that… before us. And we would do well as Spiritual Olympians to not worry so much about what lies behind us and focus on what lies before us because Uncle Gil was right. Our lives will be a lot straighter if we fix our focus on the Christ before us.
So let us end where we began. Lift your eyes above the things of this life,
fix your eyes on Christ, the author and finisher of your faith, let Him teach you to think and act like Him, and lead you through it all… to Him.
