Keep Running! (Hebrews 12:1–2)
The sermon outline can be found here in the ministry guide.
It’s known as the “toughest footrace on earth”. The Marathon of the Sands is a 251km-long ultramarathon that crosses the Sahara Desert in Morocco. Lasting six days, participants run/walk across the scorching hot dunes, where temperatures can reach as high as high as 50 degrees Celsius. And if that isn’t tough enough, they must also carry their own supplies in a backpack weighing 35kg. The 2021 edition of the race was especially gruelling, with nearly half of the competitors failing to cross the finish line.
Many are fascinated by such feats of endurance. Maybe it’s because they challenge us to re-think what is possible. They inspire us to push our limits and to run harder. Some of us may have the goal of completing a long-distance race. However long we may run, whether it’s a 2.4km physical fitness test or a 42km marathon, we know that running requires perseverance. Marathon runners are known to “hit the wall”, usually around the 30km-mark, when their bodies run of energy, their legs feel as a heavy as lead, and they just want to give up. It takes determination to push through.
The Christian life is like a long-distance race. The examples of men and women of faith in Hebrews 11 encourage us to keep running, to persevere in living by faith. To preserve our souls, we must have faith in God’s promises. These Old Testament examples show us what faith is and what it looks like to live by faith. But we’re not merely spectators; we are to run with them. Hebrews 12:1 says, “Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” When we believe in Jesus, this journey of faith — is set before us. Being a Christian is not a spectator sport. We are to keep running the race of faith until the end. It’s not a sprint, but a life-long marathon. It’s not a walk in the park. It will take spiritual endurance to make it to the finish line. It’s spiritual warfare. As Paul’s life drew to a close, he said: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:7).
The sobering reality is that while many seem to start the race, not everyone will actually complete it. This is why the letter to the Hebrews was written. These Christians were in spiritual danger. Despite beginning well, they had become indifferent, tired, and timid. Some were tempted to stop running. Discouraged by difficulties, it seemed easier to just give up and go back to the pleasures of the world or the comfort and safety of Judaism, with its familiar customs and rituals.
Keep running the race of the Christian life by looking to Jesus. Run with encouragement, without hindrance and with focus.
Beloved, how might we be tempted to stop running? Like the original recipients of Hebrews, we need cheering on. Perhaps our zeal for God and the gospel has grown cold. Maybe we’ve become so busy and preoccupied with the demands of life that we have little bandwidth to consider our spiritual health. How should we run the race with endurance? Here’s the big idea of our text: Keep running the race of the Christian life by looking to Jesus. What does it mean to run in this way? Hebrews 12:1-2 exhorts us to run with encouragement, without hindrance and with focus.
Run with encouragement
How many of us resolved to get more exercise this year? How many of us have kept our resolutions? Whether it’s training for a marathon or working out at the gym, we’re more likely to exercise consistently when others do it with us. It can be hard to remain motivated and disciplined on our own.
What will encourage us to keep running? Many faithful believers have gone before us. Hebrews 11 mentions many men and women of faith who kept trusting and obeying God, even when it didn’t make worldly sense. They are the “great cloud of witnesses” (Heb 12:1) that surrounds us, urging us onwards. They are fellow runners who have finished the race. So, run with encouragement for we do not run alone.
These witnesses are not merely spectators looking at us. More crucially, we are to look at them while we run. Seeing how those in Hebrews 11 have run the race and persevered to the end by faith motivates us to keep running. If we press on by faith and not give up, we too will reach the finish line. These men and women of faith bear witness to the faithfulness of God. Confident in God and his promises, they lived by faith, banking their lives on the trustworthiness of God. This led them to obey God in radical, self-sacrificial, and counter-cultural ways. They were looking forward to “a better country, a heavenly one” (Heb 11:16). In fact, the Greek word for “witness” is where we derive the English word “martyr”. They chose suffering over sin and were willing to give up their lives because they hoped in God. By faith, they looked forward to a Saviour for sinners, who would be the better sacrifice and high priest. This great cloud of witnesses testifies to us that Jesus is better. Listen to them, imitate their example.
So, run with encouragement by looking to past examples of faith. Read God’s word and study the lives of the men and women of faith in the Old Testament and New Testament. See how they believed God’s promises to save sinners through his Son, Jesus Christ. Let their example motivate us to live by faith, not by sight. Read up on church history. Learn from the many examples of faith through the centuries. For instance, be encouraged by how Athanasius defended the biblical truth of the Trinity from heresy in the fourth century. Be encouraged by how Martin Luther in the 16th century stood firmly for the gospel of justification by faith alone in Christ alone. Be encouraged by how Elizabeth Elliot in the 20th century continued to serve as a missionary among the Waorani people in Ecuador, although they had killed her husband Jim.
We cannot run the race alone. We need to gather regularly with other Christians for mutual encouragement.
Surround ourselves with witnesses by becoming a member of a local church. We cannot run the race alone. We need to gather regularly with other Christians for mutual encouragement. So, join a gospel community where we can encourage others and be encouraged by others to press on in Christ. Fellow members of GBC, we’ve covenanted together to be one another’s cloud of witnesses. By joining the church, we’ve committed to not neglect to gather regularly for corporate worship, or to pray for one another. We’ve committed to rejoicing and weeping with one another, to bear one another’s burdens with tenderness and compassion. We’ve committed to love and watch over one another, with patience, humility, and gentleness.
Therefore, do spiritual good by helping one another run the race with encouragement. Speak God’s truth in love to one another. Spur one another on by testifying of God’s goodness and pointing one another to Jesus. Build diverse relationships across the church, with older and younger members, for instance. The coming together of different generations provides many opportunities for mutual encouragement. Follow the godly examples of those who are further along in the Christian life. Get to know an older member who has been running faithfully. Similarly, get to know a younger person. Be a godly example to those who come after us.
Run without hindrance
We are to run with encouragement; we are also to run without hindrance: “Let us also lay aside every weight...” (Heb 12:1). In the ancient Greek games, athletes would train to make their bodies lean so that they wouldn’t have to carry extra weight when they run. Then, before the race, they would take off their long garments so they could run more freely. Likewise, we wouldn’t wear a business suit or carry heavy dumbbells while we run. Such things will only hinder us.
What are the weights slowing us down, that we must lay aside? These things may not necessarily be wrong in themselves, but they can hinder us from following Jesus.
The same principle applies when we run the race of the Christian life. What are the weights slowing us down, that we must lay aside? These things may not necessarily be wrong in themselves, but they can hinder us from following Jesus. Maybe it’s our desire for success at school and work. We spend so much time and energy studying and working that we have little left over for spiritual priorities. Maybe we’re too busy or preoccupied with worldly cares and concerns. It may be our anxiety over our retirement or health is distracting us from Jesus.
Relationships can also hinder us from running the race. It may be our struggle with loneliness as a single person, or that we’re drawn away by a dating relationship. Maybe we’re too focused on wedding planning. Or, we may be so concerned with keeping our spouse happy that we lose sight of our calling to please God. Or, perhaps we prioritise our children over God. For example, we focus so much on their academic performance that we neglect to disciple them.
Habits, hobbies, sports, and entertainment can hinder us from following Jesus. What changes can we make to our daily routines to afford us more time in God’s word? Do our interests and activities take us away from knowing and serving God’s people? Perhaps we’re late for church or absent because we stay up late on Saturday nights playing computer games, checking social media, or watching movies and TV.
The specific hindrances may vary for each one of us, but we should all be looking at the things in our lives and asking, “Does this help or hinder me in running the race with endurance?” Be intentional lay aside every weight.
We must also “lay aside…sin which clings so closely” (Heb 12:1). Sin easily entangles and ensnares us, like a trap that catches its prey. Sin causes us to stumble and fall. Trying to run the race without dealing with our sin is like running with our legs tied up. Sin is serious; it doesn’t take much for it to hinder us. This hymn says it well:
Prone to wander, Lord I feel it
Prone to leave the God I love.
When King David let the sin of lust ensnare his heart, it wreaked havoc in his life and family. A lingering, lustful look led David to adultery and murder. Don’t take sin lightly. Even “just a little sin” is never ok. A malignant tumour, even if it’s just a tiny one, must be removed, otherwise the cancer will spread. Sin is a deadly cancer that spreads if left unchecked. Don’t make excuses for sin. Proactively put it to death. Hardening our hearts and being unrepentant about sin is a sure way to disqualify ourselves from the race and ruin our spiritual life. Sin ultimately leads to death. The Puritan John Owen said, “Be killing sin, or sin will be killing you.”
What specific sins beset us? Ask God to search our hearts and lives. Are we harbouring anger, bitterness, and resentment? Are we secretly indulging the lust of our eyes and flesh? Are we proud and self-righteous? Do we covet what we don’t have? Are we greedy for more? Are we harsh and unloving with others when they don’t do what we want? Do we complain more than we give thanks? Are we easily impatient and frustrated? Do we stubbornly cling on to a grudge and refuse to forgive? Are we spiritually lazy and indifferent? Do we treasure idols that dilute our devotion to God?
Beloved, let’s lay aside our sin by regularly repenting and turning back to God through Jesus Christ. “He was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” (Isa. 53:5) Jesus died on the cross to make an end of sin. He bore God’s judgement, so that sinners like us can be forgiven and made holy if we repent and believe in Him. Jesus rose from the dead, defeating sin.Sin no longer rules over us.
A true Christian isn’t perfectly sinless, but he or she is continually repentant.
Jesus makes our repentance possible. A true Christian isn’t perfectly sinless, but he or she is continually repentant. Remember we have a better high priest, Jesus, who has opened up the way for us to approach God for mercy and grace. So, confess our sins to God, who is faithful and just to forgive us.
Notice how the author of Hebrews includes himself in the exhortation. He says, “Let us”. Fellow leaders of GBC: elders, deacons, CG leaders, we are to be examples of repentance and faith. Keep a close watch on our lives. How are we fighting sin and pursuing holiness? Follow Paul’s example as he writes in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27: “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.”
Don’t be careless about our spiritual lives. Help one another lay aside sin that so easily entangles. Invite others into our lives to share our struggles against sin. Ask a trusted brother or sister to hold us accountable to repent and to grow in holiness. As Hebrews 3:13 writes, “Exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”
Run with focus
If we are to run with endurance, we must focus on Jesus.
We run with encouragement. We run without hindrance. We also run with focus: “Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of the 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 (Heb 12:2).” To persevere in the faith, we must keep looking (present tense) to Jesus. We get distracted so easily. We focus on our circumstances and get discouraged when things are going badly, or we become complacent when things are going well. We focus on our sins and failures and become disheartened. We focus on other people and compares ourselves with them. We fear man and become proud or envious. But if we are to run with endurance, we must focus on Jesus.
We look to Jesus because He is “the founder of the faith”. The word “founder” means “forerunner” or “pioneer”. It describes how Jesus has blazed the trail of faith for the rest of us to follow in his footsteps. Jesus is our supreme example of faith and endurance. All the examples of faith listed in Hebrews 11 culminate in Christ. He is the greatest among the great cloud of witnesses. Jesus ran the race of faith to its triumphant finish. He shows us what it means to keep trusting God and not give up.
Faith is “the assurance of things hoped for” (Heb 11:1). Convinced that God would keep his promise to save and raise him from the dead, Jesus lived by faith. He obeyed the Father even to the point of death on the cross. Jesus looked forward by faith to future glory—to his own resurrection and exaltation at God’s right hand. Jesus believed God’s word: “You will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your holy one see corruption. You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (Ps. 16:10-11)
Faith brings future hope into the present. In view of the joy that was set before Him, Jesus“despised the shame of the cross”. By faith, Jesus looked beyond the cross to the crown that awaited Him. He counted his suffering as “light, momentary affliction”. He knew the humiliation of the cross cannot be compared with the joy of resurrection glory.
So, take heart, whatever we may be going through. Jesus knows our struggles because he walked the same path. We have a high priest who is able to sympathise with our weaknesses, one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin (Heb 4:15). Jesus models faith in God’s promises and endurance through suffering. To run the race means to share in Jesus’ suffering. He calls us to suffer with Him, that we may be glorified with Him. We are to share in Jesus’ faith, which helps us see that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the future glory that is to be revealed to us. So, press on. Live today in view of future joy.
The word “founder” also means that Jesus is the source of the faith. He is not merely an example, but also the one in whom we trust to save us from sin. All of us have turned away from God, who made us for his glory. We deserve God’s righteous judgment against us. But God, who is rich in mercy and grace, sent his Son for us and for our salvation. Jesus died on the cross as the better sacrifice. He bore God’s wrath in our place, that we might be forgiven and made holy if we repent and believe in Jesus. “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” (Isa. 53:6) Jesus rose from the dead to give us new life. So, look to Jesus. He has opened up the way for us to come back to God.
We look to Jesus also because He is the “perfecter of the faith”. The Son, who learned obedience through what He suffered, has been made perfect forever. His saving work is done, he is now seated in glory. In Christ alone, we too are made perfect—cleansed, forgiven, and set apart to belong to God as his holy people. Jesus, the suffering Servant, is now the risen and exalted King. He is the better high priest. Because Jesus will never die but continues forever by the power of an indestructible life, he is able to save us to the uttermost if we draw near to God through Him.
Therefore, Jesus guarantees our hope. He has received the reward. Now, seated at God’s right hand, Jesus exercises His power and authority to complete the work He began in us. He leads our way and has gone ahead to prepare an eternal home for us. So, live by faith with a sure hope of glory. Keep running and don’t give up. Be confident that Jesus will bring us across the finish line.“They who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength… they shall run and not be weary” (Isa. 40:31). Keep looking to Jesus, our reward. We will not be running forever; this race will soon be over. Then, we shall forever share in the glory, joy, and rest of our Lord and Saviour.