The Challenge of Perseverance
How to persevere
Remove Obstacles (Hebrews 12:1)
Receive Encouragement (12:1-4)
From the People of faith(12:1)
From the Jesus (12:3-4)
From the Word (12:5a)
Receive Discipline (12:5b-11)
Slide
Good morning.
Welcome to Hickory Creek today.
We are in the midst of a New Testament Challenge.
If you are joining us for the first time today, we are, as a church, reading through the entire New Testament over 63 days.
We have nearly finished 5 books of the New Testament so far: Matthew, Mark, Acts, Romans and 1 Corinthians.
If you would like to join with us, I suggest that you start with Tuesday’s readings in Luke and 2 Corinthians and then do the part you skipped at the end.
Transition
Well, if you have been with us from the beginning, you have probably faced some times when you wanted to quit. Maybe you were falling behind and thinking, “I can’t catch up, so forget it.”
Or life has been invading and you just have been struggling to find the time to read.
Well, I want to let you know that you are not alone. I am sure that many have felt overwhelmed at one point or another.
But I want to encourage you to keep going because God has been doing some great work in the lives of those who have been continuing along in the readings.
People are experiencing peace and joy in difficult circumstances.
People are drawing closer to the Lord.
People are being challenged with steps of faith.
God is working powerfully.
And I want to encourage each of you today, if you have given up because you are behind or if you feel you can’t keep going, I want to encourage you to persevere.
And that is what we are going to be speaking about today.
The challenge of Perseverance
Slide
We are going to talk about how we can persevere
not only in this New Testament Challenge,
but in living the Christian life as well,
because there are times that life seems to overwhelm us and living the Christian life seems too hard for us and we think about giving up, turning our back, not persevering in it.
We need to persevere.
But how?
Turn with me to Hebrews 12:1-11 (p. 852)
Slide
We are going to read about how the author of Hebrews tells us to persevere and apply that to ourselves today.
If you remember, in Hebrews 11, the author has just finished going through a list of faithful men and women, who lived their lives by faith and faced many times in life when it would have been easier to
quit on God,
quit on living a godly life,
turn to the ways of the world,
but they did not.
Instead they persevered.
And now, the author begins chapter 12.
Let’s read.
Hebrews 12:1-11
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5 And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons:
"My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,
and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
6 because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."
7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? 8 If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! 10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
Pray
Race like Tour de France
The author of Hebrews starts out in this text and compares the life we are living to a race.
Now, some like to compare this to a marathon, but I like to compare it more to something like the tour de France.
In the Tour de France, the whole race is made up of 21 different stages of differing difficulties.
You win by having the best cumulative time over all 21 legs.
Like that race, Life is made up of a bunch of races that all add together.
Each leg of the race adds up to the whole. But persevering in life is not really about finishing first, it is about finishing well.
How do we finish well?
Now, while I am sure those in the Tour de France want to win the whole race and they have one eye on that, to finish and win the whole race, they have got to do well in the leg of the race they are on, so they put a lot of energy toward that, keeping in mind that this will benefit them for the whole.
We need to do the same thing in this race of life.
We want to keep an eye to the eternal perspective, but we want to be putting some energy into what the Lord has in front of us right now. If we don’t persevere here, we are going to have trouble finishing well. The choices we make now, will either expand or limit the choices we have in the future.
And the reality is that while God does want us keeping our eyes on Him, He normally doesn’t show us more than the next step He wants us to take.
So, this Christian life is like a series of races in which the Lord wants us to persevere in. That’s why the author of Hebrews says, “let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
Ways to help us Persevere
And he gives us several ways to help us to be able to persevere.
The first thing that we need to do to persevere is
Remove the Obstacles
Slide
Hebrews 12:1b
…let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles…
Each of us has potential things in our life that will hinder us in this race, that will hinder us from persevering.
Now when it talks about the sin that so easily entangles, I believe the author is talking about the sin of apostasy, turning our back on the Lord. If we remove the obstacles, everything that hinders, we will not turn away from Him.
Now, many of us are thinking “I would never turn away from the Lord.”
Nobody would want to knowingly, but that is why it is important that we remove the obstacles in our life. Because Satan can subtly use these obstacles to through us off course and soon we find ourselves pursuing a direction and course that does not bring us to the finish line.
Listen to this parable that Jesus told about a farmer sowing seed.
Parable of the Seed
Luke 8:4-8, 11-15
5 "A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. 6 Some fell on rock, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown."
11 "This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. 14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.
True believers will persevere.
To persevere, we need to remove the obstacles, the things that hinder us from persevering, the thorns in our life, life’s worries, riches and pleasures.
Now this does not mean we turn to a life of asceticism where we whip our bodies and deny ourselves anything enjoyable.
This does mean that we maintain perspective of all things and let nothing supersede our relationship with God.
Esau
Later in this chapter in Hebrews, the author talks about Esau and how he let other things supersede a relationship with God. He had misplaced priorities.
Now if you don’t remember who Esau is, He was the firstborn between him and Jacob who became Israel and had 12 sons who were the different tribes of Israel.
Look at what the author says in
Hebrews 12:16
16 See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. (from New International Version)
Esau sold his rights as the first born to Jacob for a bowl of stew.
Now eating is not a sin in and of itself. It is something that the Lord has built into us to need. But when we put anything ahead of a trusting in the Lord, we are hindering our ability to persevere.
Esau had misplaced priorities. He prioritized a full belly above his inheritance rights. He prioritized short term sensual enjoyment over long term lasting reward.
When we prioritize that way, we will be hindered from finishing well.
That is not persevering.
Perseverance by definition is getting through difficult times, not avoiding them at any cost.
We need to realize that there are things in life that are not necessarily bad in themselves but hinder us from running this race called life well.
Application
When we prioritize
our relationship with God
behind our job
behind activites,
behind our hobbies,
behind sensual pleasures,
behind TV,
we are hindering our ability to persevere because even though we may not see the consequences of it now, we hinder the choices we will have later because of the choices we make now.
This is why it is imperative that we keep our eyes upon Jesus while we focus on the thing He has called us to do as a next step, the next stage of the tour de Life
Esau sold his birth right for a bowl of stew.
Esau felt the pleasure of a full belly and probably felt satisfied.
But it was only later that he faced the consequences of that decision.
Hebrews 12:17 reminds us that
17 Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears.
Remove the obstacles that will hinder you from persevering in the Christian life.
Keep your relationship with the Lord as your priority.
The author tells us not only to remove the obstacles but that we should
Receive God’s Encouragement
Slide
And the author gives us a number of places where we can receive that encouragement.
First, we are to
Receive Encouragement …
…From the People of Faith
Slide
The author starts our chapter 12 with
Hebrews 12:1a
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,
In Chapter 11, the author just finished talking about all of these great men and women of faith. And now he says, all of these people of faith should be an example to us.
They persevered through terrible circumstances.
Many of them faced far more difficult circumstances than we face.
I want to read the end of that chapter to you.
Hebrews 11:24-26, 32-12:1
24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. 26 He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.
32 And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. 37 They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated- 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.
39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. 40 God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.
12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses…
We have so many Christians who have gone before us, who have set for us an example of perseverance and an example of getting through life, that we too should persevere.
Not only that, but we have so many among us now who can encourage us in our journey with the Lord.
If we are to persevere in life, we need to be part of a church, a church where people
care about one another and
encourage one another, and
love one another.
Your perseverance is dependent upon it.
We need to receive encouragement from people of faith.
But not only should we receive God’s encouragement from the People of Faith but also
…From the Perfecter of Faith
Slide
Hebrews 12:2-3
2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
When we fix our eyes on Jesus and recognize what He did for us, we should be encouraged in our own struggles and sufferings.
“Hey, even though this is hard right now, I know that God is good and He is preparing a place for me right now.”
“I don’t understand why I am going through this, but I know what Jesus did for me and I trust Him by faith to work this out for my good.”
Since Jesus persevered through incredible suffering and now is seated at the right hand of God in glory, we can look to Him who was the perfect example of faith in the midst of suffering
so we can “not grow weary and lose heart,”
so we can persevere in life
As we do that we can look forward to receiving that crown of righteousness that Paul talks about near the end of his life.
In 2 Timothy 4:6-8, after Paul has endured incredible hardships, as he sits in prison, he says in
2 Timothy 4:6-8
6 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
He is saying, I have persevered
8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
Those who long for His appearing,
Those who are persevering in the Christian life,
Those who have their eyes fixed upon Him while taking the steps He has shown them in the short term.
James says in
James 1:12 - Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
Persevere by being encouraged by Christ and what He has done for us and what He is preparing for us.
We also need to receive God’s encouragement
…From the Word of Faith (12:5a)
Slide
Hebrews 12:5
5 And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons:
The author is about to quote the Old Testament to his readers.
He is saying that we need to know God’s word and receive encouragement from it. It is through His word that we know about so many of those who have been faithful, that we know about Jesus and what He has done for us, that we know how the God who loves us has called us to live to be holy and to experience the full and abundant life.
We need to know the word of God
This is why we are going through this New Testament Challenge.
I have talked to so many people this past week alone
who have been encouraged by the readings,
who have been growing in their understanding and knowledge of God,
who have been strengthened to do things that they did not think they could do,
but now they are doing and doing even with joy.
The word of God is a great encouragement to us so we can persevere in this Christian life.
So, we remove the obstacles in our way so they don’t trip us up, we receive God’s encouragement through People, through Jesus, the perfecter of our faith and through the Word of our faith, the Bible.
But we also are helped to persevere when we
Receive God’s Discipline
Slide
Hebrews 12:5-11
"My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,
and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
6 because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."
7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? 8 If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! 10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
To Persevere to victory, to see a harvest of righteousness produced through us, we need to receive God’s discipline.
We have a choice when going through a difficult time.
Do we receive it as encouragement to focus on the Lord in our life
Or do we rebel against it and turn from the Lord?
There are going to be times when we choose poorly and are disciplined through the consequences of our actions.
This is for our good though.
Listen to what the psalmist says
Psalm 119:67, 71
67 Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word.
71 It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees.
We need to view those times of discipline as God treating us as sons and daughters that He loves and that He wants better for.
Hardships – Due to no fault of our own
There are also times that we endure hardships due to no fault of our own, but only due to sin that is in the world.
We need to endure those hardships as disciplining us to rely more on the Lord than on the world.
I talk to person after person, who during the hard times, has drawn closer to God.
The job loss due to a bad economy
The bad medical report
These situations often are designed to help us rely more on the Lord and His peace and comfort than on the fleeting comfort of our circumstances or what the world offers.
I look back at some of the most difficult circumstances of my life, that were the most unpleasant that I could experience, and now I see what God did in my life through that, I turned to Him more, relied on Him more, and drew closer to Him than I ever did before.
It was an experience that helped me and trained me to rely on Him more.
Our problem though is that we tend to forget and have to go through hard circumstances again to help us remember to rely more on Him.
Receive God’s discipline in our lives to help us to persevere.
Paul writes in
Romans 5:3-5
we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not disappoint us.
Hope.
Perseverance produces character and as we grow in character, we gain hope.
Hope for eternity.
Hope for being closer to the Lord in the next leg of this Tour de Life
Hope for experiencing peace and joy here and now.
And hope for those around us that can be encouraged by the Lord’s work in and though us.
What a blessing to see God work through you to help others.
Are you persevering?
If you are struggling to persevere, I want to give you 2 things to do to get you back in the race.
Jump in the New Testament Challenge if you have not.
Become part of a church. If not this one, then another Bible teaching and preaching church that will encourage you persevering in this race of life.
This church is committed to helping people come into a relationship with Jesus Christ and growing in that relationship, because He is the only real hope there is for this world.
We are going to close in a song called “God of this City” to help remind the church and encourage Christians to persevere because God wants to use you to reach others.
To reach them with hope
To help them persevere so they too can experience the fullness of life and receive the crown of righteousness that the Lord will award to all of those who long for His appearing, to those who persevere and produce a crop 30 60 or 100 fold.
Sing with us now and be encouraged to persevere and be used as a tool in the mighty had of God.
God of this City
Pray
