OPEN: Back in the 1960s the Beetles were becoming international sensation. Paul McCartney (who became the lead singer for the group) soon learned the downside of fame, as many people would just “drop by” his home and want to visit with him. Not only was it annoying, but he soon realized that many of them had mental issues. Because of that he rarely let anyone in. But, in 1967, there was a bearded man who came to McCartney’s door and claimed… to be Jesus. Now, like I said, McCartney usually turned people away - but this time he said “well, you better come in then”, and he gave the man a cup of tea and invited him to a Beatles’ recording session. McCartney later said he knew it probably wasn’t Jesus, but he said: “But if he was, I’m not going to be the one who turns him away.” (Quora.com, meme; Alma Erceg, Oct 16, 2022 and https://www.tiktok.com/@b_the_greatest/video/7334270117456514346)
Now, here’s a question: If Jesus came to YOUR door… what would YOU do? Well, the Bible says Jesus already has showed up at our door! When you became a Christian, you came face to face with Jesus and you realized you NEEDED to let Him IN. And (at that point) you were willing to follow him the rest of your life
SO, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH JESUS… NOW?
Hebrews 12 says: “Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:1-2
WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH JESUS? Well, Hebrews 12 tells us the 1st thing we should be doing with Jesus is to lay aside every weight, every sin that clings to us, because these weights slow us down and can even hurt us.
ILLUS: There used to be a practice (amongst those who run track) where runners would wear weights on their legs while doing practice runs. The theory was - if you wore heavy weights while doing practice runs - then when you took off the weights, you’d feel lighter, and you’d run faster. But since then they’ve discovered that that’s REALLY not a good idea. Running with weights (even in practice) changes our GAIT (how we move) and increases the risk of injury (things like tendonitis or shin splints).
SO, HEBREWS TELLS US - TAKE OFF THE WEIGHTS!
And I got to wondering - what kind of weights would Hebrews be talking about? Well I noticed, the weights are things that CLING to you – they control you. So, what would control us?
Thing like money, possessions, power, or position can control us. Those things become "must haves" for many folks. Now there’s nothing necessarily wrong with those things until they become things that CONTROL your life. For example, the Bible says “The LOVE of money is the root of all evil.” The love money CONTROLS people… and leads to all kinds of evil.
Then, there’s the love of things like alcohol, drugs and pornography, etc. These are temptations control people’s behavior. Folks don’t really need these things, but they feel they HAVE TO HAVE them to be happy - and so these things can become a weight on their faith!
And I gave thought to a new term people use these days - INFLUENCERS. An “influencer” is someone who wants to control how you think about the world. A lot of young folks want to be “influencers. They don’t necessarily have any great knowledge about things, but they want to give you their opinions anyway. Podcasters are “influencers”; So are many in the media; Political figures; Comedians; Talk show hosts, and so on. There’s always someone who wants to shape your view of life. Now, these influencers aren’t necessarily evil, but they can be wrong. And we’ve got to be care when we listen to them because if we get to paying more attention to them than we to God and Word they can damage your faith. I’ve encountered people who pay more attention to their favorite influencers than they do to God and His word. It’s like these “influencers” know more about the world around us than God does.
Proverbs 3:5-8 warns us “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding (or the understanding of the "influencers" of this world). In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.”
So, here in Hebrews, we’re told to remove the weights, because all they do is slow us down. They can make life more complicated; Rob you of your peace and sleep; and they can actually hurt you.
As Romans 12:2 says “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what the will of God is, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
THE ONLY THING THAT SHOULD CONTROL US… IS Jesus.
Next, Hebrews 12 says we should run our race with ENDURANCE or PERSEVERANCE. And I got wondering - why should we need to be told to endure or to persevere? Well… because life can get hard, and there will be times when we want to give up. We’ll want to just pack it in and walk away and say “I don’t want to do this anymore!” Everybody - once in a while - gets to that point!
Norman Vincent Peale said it this way: “The only people who do not have problems are those in the cemeteries. And some of them REALLY have problems.”
JESUS knew that. That’s why He said: “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
Now, I find it interesting that Hebrews 12 says – “Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us run the race with endurance” We’re SURROUNDED by a great host of witnesses! What great host of witnesses were these? Well, that GREAT HOST were the people mentioned in Hebrews 11 - people like Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David… and on and on and on. These folks were the people we call the great men/women of faith. And each of those great men/women had had problems - butt we know who they were because of those problems.
For example: Who was Noah without the flood? Or Job without his suffering and loss? Who was Hannah without her tears? There was Daniel in the lion’s den, and Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery furnace.
And then there was David and the difficulties he encountered. Mark Lowry once noted that "If David had been on Prozac we’d have never had the Psalms."
The point is this: Their SUFFERING shaped who they were. their TRIALS gave them a testimony; and their names are etched into our memories because of how they dealt with the difficulties of life. They endured… they persevered… and they overcame their trials by their faith.
That’s why the Bible repeatedly says things like: “Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:58
And Galatians 6:9 tells us “Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”
Don’t give up; Endure and Persevere. If you do that (when you least expect it) you’ll break through that barrier you’re facing. In running they have a phrase for that – It’s called “Getting Your 2nd Wind” A Second wind is a phenomenon in certain sports, such as marathons where an athlete “hits the wall” – they’re out of breath – they’re too tired to continue… and then, suddenly, they experience a sudden surge of energy that gives them the strength to cross the finish line. That’s what God promises us. Endure! Persevere! And when you “hit the wall” I’ll give you the strength to overcome.
That’s why God listed the great men and women in Hebrews 11. God showed us folks that God used to tell His stories in the Bible. They were people just like us, and God told us their stories so that we’d know about them and that God had plans for them. And because He had plans for them… He has plans our us too! HE HELPED THEM… HE’LL HELP YOU!
ILLUS: Endure! Perserver! Don't grow weary in serving Jesus. We just had a funeral service yesterday. It was unique because the man we were holding the service for (his name is John)... was still alive. It's called "a living funeral" (also called "pre-funerals'") because the person is there at the ceremony with those who have come to celebrate his life. John has throat cancer, and the doctors have given mere weeks to live and so he decided to have this "living funeral" where he could be here with us and say goodbye to friends and family. He is in great discomfort and can hardly swallow, but his determination was not just to have this funeral, but to use the funeral for one last opportunity to talk to people about Jesus. In fact, he even gave me what he wanted me to preach and he said "You preach this!" and I said "OK, I'll preach that." And when the service was over, we went out to the fellowship area and had a meal together. I sat there with him as people came up to share memories or to give him encouragement. And as the people came up he'd say "You know, you need to change your life." Or "where you going to church. If you're not going to church, you're not pleasing Jesus and you might not go to heaven." And he went on and on like this, and at one point he turns to me and he says "Does that make you uncomfortable" and I'd answer "Yeah" because it made those folks uncomfortable. But John said "this is maybe my last shot at this, and people are going to be confronted by the truth that their lives need to be given over to Jesus." And I admire him for that.
SO WHEN JESUS COMES TO YOUR DOOR… THIS IS WHAT YOU DO - 1st you don’t let ANYTHING except Jesus control of your life. And 2nd you determine to endure/ persevere – don’t grow weary in serving Him so you can please Him with everything you do.
And lastly, you keep your eyes on Jesus. Hebrews 12:2-3 “looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.”
One Bible version says “FIX your eyes on Jesus”; another says “KEEP your eyes on Jesus”. LOOK AT Jesus because the idea is to stay focused on what’s important. Jesus is the finish line… nothing else matters if you miss Jesus. FOCUS ON JESUS. If you and I don’t keep our eyes on Jesus we’ll get distracted by something else.
ILLUS: It's kind of like the man who's driving down the road and he something off to his right catches his attention. And as turns his head to look... the car slowly begins to drift off in that direction. The driver got distracted and he forgot to "watch the road ahead of him."
There’s an interesting story of Jesus walking on the water, and He comes to His disciples in their boat. Peter sees Jesus and says "Lord, if it’s you, tell me to come to you on the water." And Jesus said “COME”. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came towards Jesus.
But when (Peter) SAW the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!" Immediately, Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?" Matthew 14:30-31
Now, how could Peter walk on water? He WAS LOOKING AT JESUS! He looked to Jesus, and he believed that – if Jesus said he could walk on water - he could walk on water. But WHY DID PETER START TO SINK? Because he took his eyes off Jesus. He looked at the wind and the wind scared him.
That’s why Hebrews 12 tells us to LOOK at Jesus. FIX our eyes on Jesus; STAY FOCUSED on Jesus. And staying focused on Jesus will make you capable of wondrous faith. In fact, someone once said: “Faith is not blind. Faith is having your eyes set on Jesus.”
If Jesus were at YOUR door what would YOU do? Hopefully, you’d decide turn control of your life over to Him; Then you’d decide to live for Him – to always endure – never give up; and you’d decide to always turn your eyes upon Jesus.
Sing this song with me: “O soul, are you weary and troubled? No light in the darkness you see? There’s light for a look at the Savior, and life more abundant and free! Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim, In the light of His glory and grace. His Word shall not fail you—He promised; believe Him, and all will be well. Then go to a world that is dying, His perfect salvation to tell!”
