[Some of the thoughts in this sermon are taken from Max Lucado’s book Just Like Jesus.]
Let’s learn about endurance today. We want to finish strong, not just starting well.
I don’t always finish what I start. Chances are I am not alone.
• We have unfinished tasks lying around - like a book half-read, a project half-done, a meal half-eaten, or a letter half-written.
• We all know it is one thing to start something; it is quite another to complete it.
To start is easy, to end is not. To start can be simple, but to end takes sacrifices.
• Every marathoner can testify to that. It is not the start that counts but the end, and it takes lot of hard work.
• To start feels good, but to end requires every drop of sweat and strength from you. It requires something from us - not just time, but perseverance, patience, endurance, and discipline.
• To finish strong, you need to be prepared to pay a price.
Some people swing to the other side - “Don’t start what you cannot finish.”
• That’s not right too. You need to start, if it is something good and right. Why not?
• But there are times we need to stop what we have started - if it’s not working, if you have taken a wrong route, then stop. Re-calibrate and start anew.
To be honest, I don’t believe you should finish everything you start.
• Let me qualify that - except your homework, school project, or your work in the office. You better finish them.
• Otherwise, we need to evaluate and maybe try something new. Why keep riding on a dead horse?
So the purpose of the sermon today is not to convince you to finish everything.
• But to challenge you to finish the RIGHT thing, that is, to finish the tasks God has set for us. Don’t quit. Don’t give up. No matter how difficult the ministry has been.
• We are called to finish the race (Heb 12:1-3) God has set for us:
12:1 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.
The Christian’s life or race, as the author paints for us, is not a jog but rather a demanding and sometimes agonizing race.
• It’s a picture of a marathon. It will take a lot of effort to finish strong. The author calls us to persevere and to endure.
Reminds me of what Jesus says to a man who said, “I will follow you wherever you go.” (Luke 9:57)
• Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
• In other words, if you follow me, realize that there will be difficulties. There will be times when you will not know where you will sleep, or what your next meal will be.
• And then He said, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62)
• Never put Jesus in the HR department in charge of recruitment. He will scare the candidates away.
But that is what we are called to, and that is what we need to prepare our hearts for.
• At the start of any race, the mood is usually good, the people are happy, the crowd cheering away; it’s a party at the start-point.
• Everyone starts the race with ease, but not many will end it. Weariness set in. The crowd thins out. The sounds of cheering die down. The front runners have gone out of sight. You’re alone on a stretch, catching every breath. A handful of bystanders watching by the side. Few show any interest. And you are far from the end.
That’s a marathon. That’s our race. It is difficult to finish strong, as Jesus warns us, but we must.
• I’m obviously not a marathon runner. But marathon runners tell us that there are 2 critical times in the race. The first one is at the beginning. When you begin to run you feel so good, and the temptation is to run too fast too soon. So you expend all your energy and don’t have enough left for the end of the race.
• The second critical time in a marathon is at the halfway point. You suddenly realize that you still have as far to go as you’ve already run and you’re already very tired. Runners call it “hitting the wall.” You’ve come to the end of your endurance and you’re not sure you can put one foot in front of the other anymore.
Lesson 1: BE PREPARED FOR THE STRUGGLES that will come
Many today have already stopped running. I am referring to Christians who have lost their energy and enthusiasm for ministry.
• They may come to church. They may put a dollar into the offering bag and warm the pew, but their hearts are not in the race. There are tired. They just want to sit on the sideline. They retire before their time.
• Unless something changes, their best work will have been their first work. That’s all they have. They can actually do more, but they are mentally not prepared for it.
• Wang Ming Dao, a great Chinese evangelist, imprisoned in China for 22 years said, “Many have good beginnings, few have good endings.”
Many today are not prepared. We are not prepared for hard knocks like these.
• Many have quitted on God because they didn’t expect life to be tough, after becoming a Christian.
• Many have quitted the ministry because they were wrongly accused or unjustly criticised, or falsely blamed. They felt ignored and unappreciated, and everyone seemed to have overlooked all the good they have done.
Does this sound familiar? Yes, it is a description of Jesus’ life. That’s what Jesus was put through.
• We are unprepared for hard knocks because our chief concern is not, “Let God’s will be done!”
• Rather, we are concerned about ourselves. We are hurt, we are tired, we are ignored, we are neglected, our needs go unmet, and we are all alone in this.
• And we want out. We do not want to carry it on anymore.
By contrast, Jesus’ best work was His final work, and His best stretch was the last stretch. His last step was the strongest and most impactful step.
• No wonder the author of Hebrews tell us to look to Jesus. He is the classic example of one who endured to the end and succeeded.
• 2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus... 3Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Are you tired and discouraged? Have you quitted running? Are you standing by the way-side watching others run?
• What’s wrong? Here is the reason – we have lost sight of Jesus!
• The logical remedy will be - fix our eyes on Jesus, again!
Lesson 2: FOCUS YOUR ATTENTION ON JESUS
You see, it is not about the bumps on the road, the long distance, the difficult terrain, or even the “opposition from sinful men”, in Jesus’ case.
• He did not quit. He endured to the end. That’s the reason why He succeeded.
• Not because the task was easy (it wasn’t!) but the reason he succeeded was because He did not quit, He was prepared to endure and persevere (lesson number 1).
Have you ever thought about the ‘opposition from sinful men’, the evil things done to Jesus?
• He was accused, criticised, misunderstood, persecuted, betrayed and mocked, all without good reasons. They hated Him and wanted to kill him!
• Verse 2 says Jesus endured the cross, scorning its shame. Most versions say ‘despising its shame’. NLT: disregarding its shame.
• In order words, He ignored it. He did not want to be bothered by it. He was already determined to pay the price so that God’s will is done!
How can He endure all these? The Bible gave us a hint.
• Verse 2 says Jesus was looking towards “the joy set before Him.”
• His eyes were focused somewhere else – the joy God put before him, the prize of heaven. He was longing to be home, to be with the Father and tells Him, “It is finished!” There is this JOY waiting for Him.
• It’s like Stephen before he was stoned to death in Acts 7:55, he “looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.” That was enough to give him the courage, the strength and the comfort he needs.
We need to keep heaven in our sight, or more precisely, we need to keep Jesus in sight if we want to survive in the ministry, in the long haul.
• We must have this longing to hear from the Lord, “Well done, good and faithful servant! Come and share my happiness!” (cf. Matt 25:21)
• It is all about a longing to see Him, to share in the joy of finishing His will.
No wonder Jesus had to ask Peter, “Do you love me?” before saying, “Feed my sheep.”
• He needs to be sure that Peter loves Him, before He tells him to work for Him.
• Ministry flows out of a love relationship with Jesus. In fact, we can last in ministry because we are in love with Him.
Today, we turn that around. Many are working for him, but no longer loving Him.
• They have already drifted from Him but they are working very hard in ministry.
• And soon we see the symptoms of burnout, frustration, discouragement and calling it quit.
• We need to get back to loving Him.
Our relationship with Him is greater than our work for Him.
• We are called to a love relationship with Jesus first, before we are called to serve Him. Take care of that first – your relationship with the Lord.
• Our fundamental focus is not in working for God, but in being with Him.
If you focus on working for God, you’ll run out of energy very soon. You become tired of the ministry because the expected sense of accomplishments or strokes of compliments are not forthcoming.
• No one pats you on the back and you are sad, because you are focusing on what you are doing FOR God.
• Spend time with Him and enjoy Him. Fall in love with Him again. The ministry is an outflow of this love life with Jesus.
CONCLUSION
The Lord wants to ask you today, “Do you truly love me more than these?” (cf. John 21:15)
• Have you lost your first love? How is your relationship with the Lord today?
• A pastor once played with his 4-year-old daughter about the function of the human body. What is the nose for? What are the ears for? What about the stomach? When it comes to the heart, the pastor asked, “What’s your heart for?” Without hesitation, the girl said it in a loud voice: “My heart is for loving God!”
• Our heart is for loving God. Where is your heart today?
Keep running. Don’t lose heart. Don’t become discouraged. Don’t quit.
• There is nothing more worthwhile than to do God’s will and finish it.
• The Lord will say, “Well done, good and faithful servant! Come and share my happiness!” (cf. Matt 25:21)
