Conclusion
Jesus
Let us look only to Jesus, the One who began our faith and who makes it perfect.
— Hebrews 12:2 NCV
Do you know who holds the record as the world’s best free-throw shooter? If you’re thinking Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, or Larry Bird—you’re way off. It’s probably not a fair question really. You’ve almost certainly never heard of the man—unless, that is, you make a habit of reading the Guinness Book of World Records. His name was Tom Amberry and, back in 1993, this seventy-one year old podiatrist set a world’s record by shooting and making 2,750 free-throws in a row! Each time he stepped up to the line, bounced the ball three times, focused, shot, and… swish! Every time. He would have made more, but they had to close down the gym. What was his secret, you’re wondering? When interviewed, he said very simply, “Concentration! The more I read about it and looked into it, the more I realized the only way you do it is—practice. You have to perfect all parts of your technique; then it’s just focus and concentration. You have to put all other thoughts out of your mind.”
Focus. Having delved deeply into the lives of seventeen men and women of faith, the author of Hebrews tells us that each one of their examples was intended to focus our attention in one single direction.
We have around us many people whose lives tell us what faith means. So let us run the race that is before us and never give up. We should remove from our lives anything that would get in the way and the sin that so easily holds us back. Let us look only to Jesus, the One who began our faith and who makes it perfect. He suffered death on the cross. But he accepted the shame as if it were nothing because of the joy that God put before him. And now he is sitting at the right side of God’s throne. Think about Jesus’ example. He held on while wicked people were doing evil things to him. So do not get tired and stop trying. (Hebrews 12:1-3 NCV)
Focus. Focus. Focus. How do we live a life faith? How do we emulate the myriad examples of those who’ve gone before us? How do we become a hero of faith ourselves? The answer is—focus. Like Tom Amberry, the author of Hebrews prompts us to put everything else aside and then to focus only on Jesus, to “keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end” (TEV).
First and foremost, we are obliged to focus our eyes on Jesus because he alone deserves to be the center of our attention. True biblical faith, as we’ve already discovered, means believing in God, believing God, and being willing to act on those beliefs—in other words, it’s a matter of the mind, heart and will. But biblical faith is also rooted firmly in the person and work of Jesus Christ from beginning to end. Jesus, as the Hebrew author points out, is the “author and perfecter of faith” (NASB). That is to say, Jesus himself planted the initial seed of faith within your heart by his Spirit and he will nurture and cultivate it your whole life through. What we need to understand is that it’s all about him!
The purpose of you life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. It’s far greater than your family, your career, or even your wildest dreams and ambitions. If you want to know why you were placed on this planet, you must begin with [Jesus].
The Bible says, “Through his power all things were made—things in heaven and on earth, things seen and unseen, all powers, authorities, lords, and rulers. All things were made through Christ and for Christ” (Colossians 1:16 NCV). In other words, it’s all about Jesus! We look to Jesus because he is the pioneer of our faith. He set the course of faith, plotted its path, and now he waits for us at the finish line encouraging us along the way and helping us to reach the goal.
One Sunday morning, a moonstruck young man shared a church pew with a beautiful brown-eyed girl. Memorized by her beauty, his attention was clearly focused on her rather than the minister’s message. In the stillness of the sanctuary, he leafed through the hymnal until he found the song he was looking for. Finding himself cute and clever, he placed the songbook in the young ladies lap and pointed to the hymn title—I Need Thee Every Hour it read. She smiled a little and then started flipping pages until she could find an appropriate response. Settling on a page and returning the hymnal, she pointed to the song I’d Rather Have Jesus.
If only we could all be so focused. The would-be world conqueror, Napoleon Bonaparte, said it very well during a conversation with one of his generals while in exile on the island of St. Helena.
Everything in Christ astonishes me. His spirit awes me and his will confounds me. Between him and whoever else in the world, there is no possible comparison. He is truly a being by himself. One can absolutely find nowhere but in him alone the imitation or example of his life.
I search in vain in history to find anyone similar to Jesus Christ, or anything which can approach his gospel. Neither history, nor humanity, nor the ages, nor nature offer me anything which I am able to compare him or to explain it. Here [in Jesus] everything is extraordinary.
Nothing and no one even comes close to demanding or deserving our attention the way that Jesus does. In him, our faith finds both its commencement and culmination.
Furthermore, we look only to Jesus because he alone keeps us on course. When we lose our focus on Jesus, that’s when we start having trouble.
When I was about seven or eight years old my dad taught me a valuable lesson, even though he didn’t realize it at the time. It was a sweltering summer day in Louisiana. The humidity made you feel like you were trekking through the Amazon rainforest. The fact that our front lawn looked a bit like a jungle didn’t help matters. So, my father decided it was about time I learned to mow the lawn. I was hesitant at first. I had been burned by lawns mowers in the past—literally. But that’s another story. My dad primed the little 1.5 horsepower engine and gave the starter a strong pull, and then he turned the roaring red monster over to me. The vibrations ran straight through my eight-year-old hands, up my arms and right to my teeth, which chattered like a wind-up toy. My dad sat back and watched as I cut a zigzag-like pattern from one end of the lawn to the other. After giving up hopes that my aim would improve by itself, my dad finally stopped me and told me not to look right in front of the mower and definitely don’t look all around the yard; rather, pick a spot on the opposite side of the yard and fix my eyes on the spot. It took some time and practice, but by focusing on where I wanted to be rather than where I was at the time, I was finally able to mow a straight path through the yard.
I discovered that this same principle also held true when I was learning to drive. Fresh from the Department of Motor Vehicles with my little blue learners permit in my back pocket, I sat down behind the wheel of my sister’s silver 1989 Chevy Corsica. Going a whopping ten miles per hour down our quaint suburban street, I swerved back and forth, constantly over compensating until I remembered what my Dad had taught me about mowing the lawn. So I fixed my eyes on the horizon, looking as far down the street as I could see rather than at the end of the hood. Only then was I able to steer the car without swerving into the other lane and onto the curb.
Jesus does the same for us. He is the North Star of our faith. If you align your life with him, fixing your eyes on Jesus, then you can find the Way home—you can stay on the straight and narrow path. No one demonstrates this reality in a tangible way better than Peter.
Remember when Peter and his fishing buddies were out on Lake Galilee and Jesus came to them walking on the water? Peter was astounded by what Jesus was doing and he wanted so badly to be just like him that he called out, “Lord, if it is really you, then command me to come to you on the water” (Matthew 14:28 NCV). Peter’s faith was firmly rooted in the words of his Master. He genuinely believed that if Jesus commanded him to walk on water, then he could do it. Peter’s faith was more than a said-faith; it was a sure-faith. And although he may have been afraid, he was more than willing to get out of the boat and into the proverbial wheelbarrow.
Motioning for Peter to climb out of the boat, Jesus said simply, “Come.”
Then, the Bible says, “Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. ‘Save me, Lord!’ he shouted. Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him.” (vs. 29-31 NLT).
A million thoughts probably rushed through Peter’s mind as stepped onto the crashing waves, but they were all drowned out by a single all-consuming desire to be where Jesus was, to do what Jesus did. As long as Peter kept his focus on Jesus, and along as he was looking to the Lord, he did the impossible. One step at a time—closer and closer—Peter walked on the water toward Jesus. But when the tempest began to rage and billows started tossing high, he lost his focus. He took his eyes off Jesus and was terrified by the wind and the waves. Peter must have looked something like Wiley Coyote chasing the Road Runner off the side of a cliff—he was just fine until he looked down and realized there was no ground beneath his feet; only then did gravity get the better of him.
Peter’s experience teaches two things though. First, so long as we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus we can do the impossible. Second, if you want to walk on water, you’ve got to get out of the boat! Haven’t you ever wished you had the kind of faith it takes to climb out the boat you’re in? To step out of your comfort zone? To venture out onto the crashing waves where Jesus is?
You know, Peter and the hand flailing fellow from Niagara Falls have a lot in common. Both watched in amazement as Someone else defied gravity. Both were zealous and bold about their faith. The big difference is that Peter was willing to step out on faith. He not only believed, but he trusted in Jesus and was willing to act on his faith. What about you?
Like the crowd at Niagara, we all stand at the edge of a great chasm—a vast gulf called sin that separated us from a holy and loving God. We certainly don’t possess the balance or dexterity to cross that chasm on a tightrope, but Jesus does and he did. As the only truly perfect human being who ever lived, free from the sin that so easily entangles us, Jesus was able to cross that great divide. And, from the opposite, he has sent his Spirit to carry each one of us across—to bring us home. The question is—do you believe he can do it? Do you trust him enough to get out of the boat? To get into the wheelbarrow?
A life of faith begins with a single decision, a single step. Make that decision today. Don’t let another opportunity pass you by. Focus your faith on Jesus. Trust him. Put your life in his hands and let him carry you safely to other side.
