{Hebrews 12:1-13}
Therefore, 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.
Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons?
"My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
nor be weary when reproved by him.
For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and chastises every son whom he receives."
It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed.
[Rev. Dwight Yoo]
The christian life is like a race. This should be a familiar metaphor. But not only is it a race, it is a long race. It's a marathon. This is not a 100-meter dash. You will need endurance.
"the race that is set before us" God has tailor made this race. For each of us, the race course looks different.
This should be familiar, but I want us to look at this with a corporate lens. We are called to run this race as a corporate group. We are not cheering people on from the sidelines, but rather we are running with other people. It says in scripture that He gives us various gifts. These gifts are to be used to bless others. So we are to use these gifts to run together.
I think also that there is a sense that not only are the courses tailor made for individuals, but there is also a sense that churches have custom courses as well. As Revelations notes, God speaks about how each church is doing in it's context.
The book of Hebrews was written to those who were losing their will to run. There were probably two reasons. One was probably that they had stopped looking to Christ. The things of the world seem to be more precious than Him. The other is people who were tired. People who are having a hard time. Whether it is persecution or just tough times. They have been running for a long time and don't have the motivation to run any more.
So what's going to help us to keep running well?
We have to fight to be light. "lay aside every weight & sin..." For a runner, every ounce counts. When you consider how long a marathon will take, you need to carefully consider everything that we will carry and whether we should carry it at all. For the race of life, we need to carefully consider our lives. Look at the sins weighting on us. We need to unceasingly struggle to shed sins. There must be intense and ruthless fight against sin. Not only overt sin, but also subtle sins.
What does sin do?
It deadens our worship. We only pay lip service to God. Because we already have something to worship.
There is a loss of salt & light. The church will not have a good testimony to the world. We no longer reach out.
Lastly, we become complacent & stagnant. We no longer care.
How do we tell if a church is running well?
A spirit of repentance. The church turns from sin and turns to God. A church that breaks from seeing sin and instead of turning judgment, turns & pleads for God to work.
Our generation is one that seeks comfort & ease. But this race is not an easy one, it is an agonizing one. Consider the Snuggie & eReader. We don't want to move a blanket to change the remote, so a Snuggie. We don't want to carry books and turn pages... so a new gadget. But God is calling us to a painful & agonizing race.
God isn't giving us pain for no reason. He wants the best for our future. He wants to redeem us and restore us. Just like a parent to their child, He wants the best of us.
"Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed."
There are lots of bad TV shows. (Jersey Shore) They are a waste of airtime. But there are also good TV shows. Man vs Wild. Not only is it entertaining, but it is also educational. If you were ever caught in the Sahara, you have some useful knowledge. Think about what it would be like if Bear twisted his ankle. He finds a level straight path, but it's hot & uncomfortable. He sees a cave system running alongside. It's dark and littered with rocks. Which path would be better?
I've met alot of people. I meet people with glaring character flaws. They come to church, meet new people, join a ministry, but when tough times come, they don't get along with people or something happens, they leave. They go to another church. And it happens again. Each time they go to another church, their heart gets a little harder. The best thing for them to do? They should have stayed. Stayed through the tough times, through the difficulties. God would have met them and healed them.
Keeping our eyes fixed on Christ and the promise of glory. The cloud of witnesses with God are trying to share a bit of God's glory. It should keep us running.
Let's keep running, Renewal.
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