Step Onto Liquid: Hall of Fame
Pt. 5: The road goes ever on and on...
I have had a good week going through Hebrews 11 and reading the stories of many who lived by faith. Studying this chapter has given me much to think about as I head into a new year of school.
Today my thoughts have actually been turned to the first two verses of chapter twelve, which say, "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." The "cloud of witnesses" has certainly encouraged me this week, and I have seen some weights and sins that I need to lay aside. But as I have been finishing my thoughts on this section of Scripture, I have been thinking about the idea of running with endurance.
Many times the Christian life is compared to a walk or a race. This implies that it is a journey; this implies progression. We are supposed to run this race with endurance, but what exactly does that mean?
First, I believe it means we must consider the cost of racing in the Christian life. In Luke 14, Jesus said, "For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?...So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple." The Christian life comes with a cost, and we must consider it if we are to run with endurance.
Second, running with endurance implies that we are relying on more than our own strength. If we try to run this race on our own, we will soon find our strength's end. We will become legalistic and try to set up as list of acceptable rules, and when we eventually break them we will be quite discouraged. The only way we can run with the necessary endurance is if we depend on God. If we try and run on our own strength, we will find our path to be a harsh, miserable road; but if we depend of God, we will walk a beautiful path of joy as we walk it with the Lord.
Hebrews 11 tells the story of those who lived by faith, but as you look at the list in this chapter you will notice that even none of these people were perfect. Just look in verse 32: Gideon had trouble with doubting God, Barak also had trouble with courage, Samson stuggled with anger and lust, and David commited murder and adultery. Running the race of the Christian life will bring its struggles, and like these men we will fall; but if we run with endurance and depend on God's strength and his forgiveness, we will overcome.
The road of the race that we run goes ever on, indeed, and it will not stop until Christ returns or calls us home. So let's put aside weights and sins and run with endurance. Let's keep our eyes fixed on Jesus Christ as we depend on him and remember his words, "But take heart; I have overcome the world."
Pt. 5: The road goes ever on and on...
I have had a good week going through Hebrews 11 and reading the stories of many who lived by faith. Studying this chapter has given me much to think about as I head into a new year of school.
Today my thoughts have actually been turned to the first two verses of chapter twelve, which say, "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." The "cloud of witnesses" has certainly encouraged me this week, and I have seen some weights and sins that I need to lay aside. But as I have been finishing my thoughts on this section of Scripture, I have been thinking about the idea of running with endurance.
Many times the Christian life is compared to a walk or a race. This implies that it is a journey; this implies progression. We are supposed to run this race with endurance, but what exactly does that mean?
First, I believe it means we must consider the cost of racing in the Christian life. In Luke 14, Jesus said, "For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?...So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple." The Christian life comes with a cost, and we must consider it if we are to run with endurance.
Second, running with endurance implies that we are relying on more than our own strength. If we try to run this race on our own, we will soon find our strength's end. We will become legalistic and try to set up as list of acceptable rules, and when we eventually break them we will be quite discouraged. The only way we can run with the necessary endurance is if we depend on God. If we try and run on our own strength, we will find our path to be a harsh, miserable road; but if we depend of God, we will walk a beautiful path of joy as we walk it with the Lord.
Hebrews 11 tells the story of those who lived by faith, but as you look at the list in this chapter you will notice that even none of these people were perfect. Just look in verse 32: Gideon had trouble with doubting God, Barak also had trouble with courage, Samson stuggled with anger and lust, and David commited murder and adultery. Running the race of the Christian life will bring its struggles, and like these men we will fall; but if we run with endurance and depend on God's strength and his forgiveness, we will overcome.
The road of the race that we run goes ever on, indeed, and it will not stop until Christ returns or calls us home. So let's put aside weights and sins and run with endurance. Let's keep our eyes fixed on Jesus Christ as we depend on him and remember his words, "But take heart; I have overcome the world."
posted by Ben Blakey at 12:35 PM
1 Comments:
Yo Bro,
Wow! It is encouraging to come back from Survival Camp and see you blogged every day this week! Keep Stepping onto Liquid by faith and not by sight and keep up the posting!
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