I love movies! I can be a visual learner, so movies have a way of sending a message home for me. A few years ago, I watched a film called “Overcomer.” And I watch it once or twice a year, now. It is about a high school cross-country runner with asthma, the basketball coach who reluctantly agrees to train her, their families and community. It’s a good story with a solid Christian message from the Kendrick Brothers. I highly recommend it. Anyway, when I read this chapter of Hebrews, that movie popped into my mind. Hebrews 12 starts off talking about running the race marked out for us with Perseverance. I was a sprinter in elementary school, and never a cross-country runner, but from what I know of the sport, endurance is key to finishing. The same is true in our Christian walk. This is not a sprint. It is a marathon. So, we would do well to Run the race with endurance and obey Him Who has spoken.
When we finish our time together, I want you to know Believers’ challenges are discipline, not
punishment, and we should persevere and be joyful for the future.
Holy Father, will
You equip us with the energy and enthusiasm to finish this part of our race
well. Reveal to us in chapter 12 of
Hebrews where we are lagging behind and how to keep pace with You. In Christ’s majestic name. Amen.
We have two divisions:
1.Endure hardship as discipline (Hebrews 12:1-11)
2.Let us be thankful (Hebrews 12:12-29)
Ready. Set. Go.
Read Hebrews
12:1-4.
So we are surrounded by a cloud of witnesses? Yes!
Those who have gone before us into the presence of Jesus are cheering us
on as we run this race! Doesn’t that
sound exciting? I must admit, I don’t
always realize I have a cheering section.
It’s kind of like cross-country running.
For much of the race, you are by yourself, with your pack or with your
competition. No cheering. There might even be some smack talk. Maybe there will be a water station or a
coach at a certain point to give you a little encouragement. But the race is often lonely. This first verse of this chapter tells us
that, when we clear the forest and can see the finish line, there will be
balloons and people jumping up and down, shouting encouragement, giving us that
little burst of energy we need to finish strong! Close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Imagine that scene at the finish line. Smile.
I am.
This Christian life requires perseverance. We have plenty of opposition. Plenty of discouragement. Lots of obstacles. Many shiny temptations to take your focus off
of Jesus! But we must fix our eye on the
Savior! Can you imagine what it was like
to approach the cross? Jesus was focused
on the joy of resurrection. He was
focused on the joy of reconciling all people to God the Father. He wasn’t focused on pain. He wasn’t focused on the humiliation. He was focused on obedience. He was focused on love.
I remember the advice I got from a friend back when I was
pregnant with my first child. She told
me that, when I was in labor and giving birth, to keep reminding myself that
“this time tomorrow, it will all be over.”
Great advice! Don’t dwell on your
suffering. Keep focused on the object of
your faith: Christ! Staying focused on
Him will give you staying power! Staying
focused on Him and the future He promised you will energize you and empower you
to finish well! We will all struggle
with sin this side of heave, but keep your focus on Jesus and you will be able
to resist whatever sin is trying to trip you up!
Read Hebrews
12:5-11.
Let’s talk about discipline. Not the kind of discipline that you need to
run a race, but rather the kind of discipline a child receives from his
parent. When human parents discipline
their children, they are usually after behavior modification. When God disciplines His children, He is
after character molding. His discipline
is actually discipling. He is making us
look like Jesus!
There are some great truths in these verses! God’s discipline is an encouragement because
it means He considers us to be His children!
God’s discipline is an indication of His love! If you aren’t being disciplined, you are not
a legitimate son or daughter of God! Our
heavenly Father is perfect, and His method is to make us more like His perfect
Son, Jesus. So we should joyfully submit
to His discipline. It’s for our good and
His glory! It will probably be painful. It may cause anxiety as our rebellious spirit
fights against it. But I learned
something incredible this week as I listened to a “Through the Word” podcast on
anxiety. Pray through Psalm 139 when you
are anxious. God has huge
shoulders. And He already knows we’re
stressed. Talking through what is making
us angry or frustrated or upset is what He wants. He wants us to be free of those things so He
can heal those broken places in us. Get
alone with God. Get honest with
Him. Let Him create a clean heart in
you. Let Him remind you to keep your
eyes focused on Jesus, not the circumstances.
Let Him help you walk victoriously through this battle to victory!
This leads to our first principle:
Discipline reveals
our legitimate sonship and produces a harvest of righteousness and peace.
Application Questions:
What is hindering you from walking with God well? What distracts you from fixing your eyes on
Jesus? How will you re-focus? What future joy are you focused on that helps
you persevere in challenges? How will
you remember that hardship is discipline, not punishment? What frustrations do you need to discuss with
God and let Him handle?
Now let’s look at our second division.
Read Hebrews
12:12-17.
To persevere, we need to be strong. To run a race, you need to train. If you wake up one day and say, “I’m going to
run a marathon!” You don’t find a race
that is happening on that day and show up to run it! You train for it in the gym. You train for it in the kitchen. You train for it on the track. You train for it mentally and
emotionally. How are you training for
the race in your daily walk with Jesus?
How are you strengthening your feeble arms and your weak knees? Lifting your hands in praise? On your knees in prayer?
Are you following closely after Jesus? That’s a sure-fire way to walk a straight
path! It’s when we stray that we find
hazards. And those hazards are avoidable
if we follow closely after Him!
Are you making every effort to live at peace with
everyone? Blessed are the peacemakers… And about being holy: are you prayerfully
studying the Bible and asking God to help you to obediently live it out? Are you asking Him to develop Christ-like
character in you? Are you pointing
others to Christ? Are you working
tirelessly to weed bitterness out of your heart? Are you encouraging others to not be bitter? Or are you feeding their complaints that are
helping that bitterness grow?
Are you keeping your physical appetites in check? Whether it’s sex or food or lack of regard
for God or your responsibilities, are you controlling those urges or letting them
control you? Have you ever fallen to one
of those appetites and later regretted the temporary satisfaction, like
Esau? How can you prevent falling for the
temporary satisfaction again? What
safeguards can you put in place to keep you from making ungodly choices? We could spend so much more time talking
about this, so I challenge you to spend with God talking about these
verses. Let’s keep moving.
Read Hebrews
12:18-21.
These verses take us back to Exodus 19. Prior to this, Moses has led the Israelites
out of Egypt and through the Red Sea on dry ground. Israel praised God for His deliverance. When water couldn’t be found in the
wilderness, God provided. When the
people were hungry and grumbling and regretting leaving Egypt, God provided
manna, then meat. They were victorious
over the Amalekites. Now we arrive at
chapter 19 where, three months into the journey after escaping Egypt, Moses
climbs Mount Sinai to meet with God and receive promises and instructions. When the Lord descended upon the mountain,
the people were not allowed to touch the mountain or its border. Any person or animal that broke this command
was to be stoned. This is the Old
Testament way where the people were kept away from God’s presence.
But, once again, the author of this letter reiterates
that this is not what these believing Hebrews were following anymore. Read on.
Read Hebrews
12:22-24.
Followers of Christ are redeemed. Eternal life begins NOW. There is joy rather than fear! There is fellowship with God rather than
separation from Him! It is all about
Jesus and His sacrifice and His resurrection and the new covenant of grace and
mercy paid for by Jesus’ perfect, righteous blood!
Read Hebrews
12:25-29.
How can we not obey?
How can we ignore this awesome God?
Are we putting our trust in things that can be shaken? Or are we trusting in and clinging to the
Creator and Sustainer of all things? Are
we spending time with Him in the Scriptures so He can speak to us? Are we thankful for Him? For the salvation He has gifted to us? The talents He has bestowed on us so we can
worship Him and make Him known to others?
The Scriptures that are His love letter to us? The opportunity to enter His presence and
pray? The trials that bring us to our
knees and into His presence? Are we
being wowed by the consuming fire that is our God and Father?
And here is our final principle:
The opportunity to
walk with Christ and be made like Him, to avoid God’s wrath and anticipate
heaven makes the believer thankful.
Application Questions:
How might you encourage yourself to obey God’s directives from Scripture
today? How are you spending your time
with God each day? Is your time in
studying the Bible each day more encouraging, challenging, informative,
something else? How might you
systematically study God’s word for better balance?
How are you running the race God has marked out for
you? What are you focused on? How are you training your body, mind and
spirit to run well? When things seem
difficult, how are you reminding yourself that this is a blessing from God that
proves you belong to Him? Are you
encouraging others to see their difficult circumstances as discipline and not
punishment? If you are a son or daughter
of God, are you taking every opportunity possible to pray and praise Him and
express your thanks for all He does and Who He is? Let’s pray.
Holy Father, You are
good and gracious and merciful and wonderful.
I pray that we would be excited to enter Your presence and celebrate
this life You’ve given us on earth to live to Your glory. Mold us and shape us into Christ’s
likeness. In the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.
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