Keep on running
The letter to Hebrews was written to encourage Christians who were in danger of forsaking the faith and turning their back on the gospel of Christ.
In his letter, the writer to Hebrews emphasised the uniqueness of Jesus Christ and explained that salvation was to be found only through Jesus and His perfect sacrifice.
He urged the Hebrew Christians to persevere in their faith ... to keep on running!
In Hebrews chapter 12 the Christian life is pictured as a race and Christians as the athletes.
Ready, steady ...
Just as athletes prepare for the race by removing their track suits and limbering up ...
So we should ... "throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles ..." 12 v 1
We need to discard anything in our lives that hinders our spiritual progress. Any association, any activity that encourages sin, or diverts us from the race should be rejected.
To run the race we need an attitude like Paul, who said in Philippians 3 v 8,
"What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him ..."
Go ...
Having shed those things which hinder us in our Christian life, we are to ...
"run with perseverance the race marked out for us." Hebrews 12 v 1
We are to run with purpose - with our eyes fixed on Jesus.
We fix our eyes on Jesus because, "He is the author and perfecter of our faith."
- Jesus is the source of our faith
- Jesus is the object of our faith
- Jesus is the goal of our faith
- And Jesus is our supreme example - particularly an example of endurance through suffering, as Hebrews 12 v 2 shows:
"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."
Jesus looked beyond His suffering on the cross to the joy that would follow. The joy of -
- His finished work of redemption
- His triumph
- His exaltation
- 'Discover' Bible Notes (Good Book Company)
- "How often do you reflect on the 'joy set before you' - eternal life - as a deliberate response to weariness and discouragement."
So, how do we stand our ground when facing opposition? How do we persevere in difficult circumstances, or when we are feeling downcast or weary?
Hebrews 12 v 1 - 2 gives us the answer. It is by fixing our eyes on Jesus and by carefully considering His example.
- Tyndale NT Commentaries
- The only antidote to discouragement - whatever the reason, is to cultivate an "ever deepening attention to the glorious object of our Christian faith, Jesus himself."
