Running the Race Set Before Us

Hebrews 12: 1 – 2 (NIV): 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.

When a passage begins with the word, “therefore”, we need to look back to see what it’s there for. In this case, he is referring to the faith hall of fame we find in Chapter 11; the men and women of old who lived by faith and took God at his word. Now, those heroes of the faith are cheering us on as we live our own lives – as we run the race that God has placed before us.

    The great “cloud” of witnesses is a metaphor for Olympic grandstands full of cheering people, encouraging us to win the race we find ourselves in. God has given each of us our own unique race. We each have a life to live. So we must throw off anything that hinders us from running to win. This is anything that comes between us and God. And we must not let sin entangle our feet and trip us up. Sin causes us to be losers in our own race.

    It is interesting that the word for “race” in this passage is “agon” in the Greek. This is where we get our English word, “agony”. It’s not that our lives are sure to be full of pain and hardship, it’s just that we will face challenges we will need to overcome in order to win our race.  We will need to have self-discipline as we strain ahead toward victory.

    The key to winning our race, then, is to keep our eyes on Jesus. Becoming more and more like him is the goal of our faith. And he will give us the power we need to run and win the race. He gave us our faith and he will see us through. If we will keep our eyes on him and not be distracted by all that is happening around us, we can be winners. We can live victorious lives, full of joy and purpose.

Jesus - The Master of Distance

John 4: 56 – 51 (NIV): 46 Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death. 48 "Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders," Jesus told him, "you will never believe." 49 The royal official said, "Sir, come down before my child dies." 50 Jesus replied, "You may go. Your son will live." The man took Jesus at his word and departed. 51 While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living.

This royal official was a Roman who was in King Herod’s court. His country, Rome, had conquered Israel, yet he found himself at the feet of Jesus, begging for help because his son was about to die.

    Our success, wealth, and position in life goes out the window when we are desperate. He humbled himself before Jesus. When we humble ourselves, we are in position for God to bless us. He opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.

    The man assumed Jesus had to go to the house, 20 miles away, to heal his son, but Jesus showed that he is the master of distance – he simply willed that the son be better and he was. We can pray for our loved ones who are far away and know that God’s presence is wherever they are and he can answer our prayers. Not only this, but we can never be too far away from God to come back. His Spirit finds and reaches us wherever we are.
    And the father showed tremendous faith by taking Jesus at his word. He believed it when Jesus said his son would live, and headed home. When we believe, then we will see what God is doing. That’s what faith is. We live by faith, not by sight, Paul says. Humble yourself before God, believe what he says, and take him at his word.

Jesus - The Master of Quality

John 2: 5 – 10 (NIV): 5 His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." 6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water"; so they filled them to the brim. 8 Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet." They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now."

John tells us this was Jesus’ first sign to prove that he was indeed the Messiah.  Jesus’ mother had ask him to help the bride’s father out of a terribly embarrassing situation – they had run out of wine at a wedding and it was only half-way through the week-long event. This would have been a social disaster in that culture.

    This proves that Jesus is concerned with every aspect of our lives. By performing his first miracle at a wedding, Jesus put his stamp of approval on marriage and family.

    Mary told the servants to do what Jesus told them to do. This is the best advice ever given. They filled the large jars to the brim – which is important because God can only bless us as we much as our faith allows. If they had filled the jars half-full, they would have cheated themselves. We cheat ourselves when we don’t fully trust Christ.
    Jesus turned the water into wine. He is the creator of the universe. He simply willed the wine into existence.  That’s the power our God has. And it wasn’t ordinary wine, it was the best wine anyone had ever tasted. Jesus is the Master of Quality. He can give us better than we can afford on our own if we will just trust him and do what he says. In this first miracle, Jesus showed that the life he offers is better than anything else. He offers an abundant, full life, full of joy and purpose. We simply have to trust him.

Psalm 1 - The Progression of Sin

Psalm 1: 1 -3 (NIV): 1  Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. 
                                                              Whatever he does prospers.

Notice the progression of sin in this passage. At first you are walking in the counsel of the wicked – you are listening to those who appose God. Then you are standing with sinners – now you have joined them. Finally, you are sitting in the seat of mockers – you are there to stay. This is how sin works: it starts by tempting us, but soon it ensnares and enslaves us, and then it controls us.

   Sin takes us farther then we wanted to go, keeps us longer than we wanted to stay, and costs us more than we wanted to pay. Sin keeps us from prospering; it keeps us from becoming more and more like Christ, which is God’s design for us. And it keeps us from living the abundant life Jesus wants us to live. It always hurts us, and it hurts the ones we love.

    This is why God hates sin. He is not mocked. We will not get away with it. He does not let it slide or wink at it. We will reap what we sow. Yes, Christians are forgiven, but we will pay the consequences of our sins. Sin breaks our fellowship with God.

    But if we delight in God, we are like a tree planted by a stream. We have an unseen power source enabling us to live in a way that is pleasing to God. We can live a full, purposeful, meaningful, satisfying life. God gives us the power to say no to sin and with his help, we can do it. Delight in God and let him bless you