Run the Race
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the
life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the
sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race
that God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on
whom our faith depends from start to finish. He was willing to die a shameful
death on the cross because of the joy he knew would be his afterward. Now he is
seated in the place of highest honor beside God's throne in heaven. 3 Think
about all he endured when sinful people did such terrible things to him, so that
you don't become weary and give up." (Hebrews 12:1-3 NLT) [1]
Imagine that you are in middle school in a city where the high school has had a
number of champion cross country runners. You love sports and read the sports
pages all the time so you know all about what they have done in the past. You
graduate to high school and there in the trophy cabinets you see all the photos
of these people and their awards which they have won through the years. One day
in physical education class the cross country coach comes to you and says he
wants you to be on his team. You never dreamed of running cross country but the
coach keeps urging you to run. You see the testimony of those who ran before you
so you decide to run.
This is what I think the great crowd of witnesses is that Hebrews mentions. We
can turn almost anywhere in the bible and find someone who showed great faith.
The eleventh chapter of Hebrews has a long list of people of faith. All of them
were not perfect but kept on after they fell. Other members of the great cloud
are the many Christians we can read about in biographies. Some are past members
of the church we go to or maybe some of our relatives. Some of you may be a
witness to faith to others.
If you belong to Jesus Christ you are in a race. I consider the race to be more
of a cross country race than one on a track. Life is full of ups and downs and
curves. WE who are in this race are here because of Jesus Christ. AS we are
running this race we can see in our minds many types of footsteps ahead of us.
These are the footsteps of the Christians who went before us. More important is
one set of footsteps, that of Jesus himself. He ran this race. He was fully
human and fully divine. He experienced everything that we experience. He even
experienced death. He knows everything you are going through.
If you look beside you, you will also see Jesus there. He is right there with
you no matter where you are in the race. If you have fallen or gotten off track
he is there to help you get back into the race.
We can also see Jesus at the finish line. He is standing there with his arms
open wide to welcome us when we get to heaven. Jesus suffered all that he did
because he knew that he would end up at the right hand of god. WE can endure and
persevere because we know that Jesus is with us and is also waiting for us.
Back in Greece the runners used to practice running while carrying weights on
their back. They had to take these off before the race or they would be slowed
down. There are things that can weigh us down in our race also. These can be
things like doubt and fear. They can also be good things that keep us from a
relationship with Jesus like family, work, hobbies, etc. We may need to get rid
of some of those weights to continue on the race.
The early runners did not wear any clothes. You could imagine trying to run in
one of those long robes like they wore. The writer of Hebrews relates this to
sin that besets us. So many Christians have a pet sin that keeps tripping them
up. We have to take these sins off by the power of the Holy spirit to continue
in the race.
In a race you need to keep looking straight ahead. If you look to the side, you
are going to run in that direction. If you are running in a cross country race
and start looking at a squirrel in a tree you may even run into something and
knock yourself down. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Don't be looking at other things
that might tempt you to get off course.
"Therefore strengthen your tired hands and weakened knees, and make straight
paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but healed
instead." (Hebrews 12:12-13 HCSB)
In our race some bad things may happen. God may discipline us for the wrong
things we have done but not everything bad that happens is of god's doing.
Whatever happens, we need to learn from it. We are not to let these things keep
us down. Get back in the race.
When you see someone else in the race who has fallen, do not kick them when they
are down. Go to them and help them up. Give them whatever they need so they can
get back in the race. We who belong to Jesus Christ are in this race together.
All who reach the finish line are winners.
You may be near the starting line, in the middle of the race or near the end but
wherever you are, continue to run the race.
By Dean W. Masters
dwmasters@earthlink.net Owner
of the Masters List:
http://shaned.net/mailman/listinfo/masterslist_shaned.net
Unedited redistribution approved
-
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[1] Holy Bible : New Living Translation. 1997. Tyndale House: Wheaton, Ill.