One of the major disappointments for me over the last year of COVID-19 restrictions has been
on two occasions, a half marathon that I was preparing for was cancelled, but I had done
all the preparation. I had did three months of gruelling preparation. I had run the 22.1
kilometre distance twice while training, and it was very hard, and it was particularly difficult
when those events were cancelled. It was particularly difficult doing the 22.1 kilometres by myself.
It was especially hard to keep pressing on when I hit that wall of physical and especially
mental exhaustion at about the 17 kilometre mark. As we open up the book of Hebrews at the end of this
vision series, the letter to Hebrews pitches the Christian walk, the walk of Christian discipleship,
the journey of Christian discipleship, as a running race. It's a running race, a long running race,
a journey that the first recipients of this letter were struggling with. Hebrews 11 and 12 are crucial
for us to understand the message of Hebrews. You see, Hebrews is written to a bunch of Christians
who are on this road of journeying with Jesus, seeking to follow him, but who had settled into the world
and started to drift through life without focus, without vigilance, and without energy. At the beginning
of the letter, chapter 2 verses 1 and chapter 3, the writer declares,
we must pay more closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift from it. And then he writes,
how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?
So the writer here is dealing with the disease of drifting, of neglect. It had crept into this church,
and these Christians are growing careless, spiritual lazy, and negligent. Chapters 11 and 12
are written to motivate his friends to keep the faith, to keep pushing forward, pressing on,
to keep running the race of discipleship. And they are written for us too. And so with these verses,
these three verses, we close out our vision series for this year and of our launch of our ministry
intent over the next five years. The key objective, as you've heard already and several times throughout
this whole series, is to see 65% of St Paul's identifying much growth in faith through this church by the
end of 2025. That is, we as a church want to run in such a way that the majority of us are growing as
disciples of the Lord Jesus. The majority of us are growing in confidence in God. So here's where I want
to head today. Three challenges, they're there in the St Paul's app. You want to grab that and open up.
Number one, run the race of faith. Number two, run it well. Number three, run to the finish and get the
prize. So first of all, run the race of faith. To get to Hebrews 12, you've got to go through 11. So
let me just launch into 11 a little bit. Hebrews 11 is known by some as the faith hall of fame.
What the writer does in chapter 11 is he overwhelms the readers with a list of those who have run the
race before them and got to the end, got to the finish line. And he sweeps through the whole Old
Testament, starts with creation. He mentions the faith of Abel and the faith of Enoch and Noah.
And when he reaches Abraham, he just slows down and takes a little bit of time to focus on the faith of
Abraham. He says that Abraham left everything behind that he had in order to go to a land that
he knew nothing about. He picked up everything and walked away to a new land. And he did that because
God called him to do it. He had faith and he had confidence in God. He lived out his days in a foreign
land without the support of family and friends and his tribe because he had faith in the God who had
promised him a better future. When he was very old, God promised that he would in fact have a son.
It was unthinkable he was that old. But Abraham had faith that what God said, that God had the power to
pull it off and a son was born. And after his son Isaac was born, God said the unthinkable to him
and told him to sacrifice this son to God. And Abraham was willing to do it because God was the
one who called him to do it. Even though it seemed like total insanity. He was willing to do it because
he had the faith in the God who had called it. He knew that God could even bring him back from the
dead if that's what was needed. The other significant figure here where he slows down and focuses on
demonstration of great faith is Moses. He's a man whose life was characterized by faith in God,
despite how hard it got. His faith meant giving up what would have been a wealthy and a comfortable
life in the palace in Egypt. His faith meant that he was often very alone in his leadership of God's
people. And the examples of faith from then on throughout the Old Testament, it just doesn't end.
The writer gets to the end where he goes, you know, like, you know, for time I've got to do
just a flying summary of all the highlights. Goes to verse 32. And what more shall I say? I do not
have time to talk about Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah and David and Samuel and the prophets
who through faith conquered kingdoms, admitted to justice, gained what was promised, who shut the
mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames and escaped the edge of the sword whose weakness was
turned to strength and it became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Women received back
their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released so they might
gain a better resurrection. In other words, there's no shortage of incredible examples of faith.
And this list here in Hebrews 11 is amazingly diverse collection of people and demonstrations of
faith. And what marks each of them out is that they had faith in God. They had total confidence in God.
It was faith in God despite what he was calling them to do. See verse 36? Some faced jeers and
flogging while others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned. They were sawn in two. They were put
to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated.
The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains and in caves and holes in
the ground. What's also remarkable about this chapter is that it doesn't just give us examples
of people of faith. It also gives us insight into what their faith actually is, what faith is.
And there's three things. The first is that faith is not something that exists independently.
It's not something that you achieve independently. It's not something you can buy from a supermarket
shelf or something like that. Faith is always faith in. Faith is a word that gets used even today in our
secular age. It's not uncommon for someone who perhaps doesn't believe in God to say, well, you just have to
have faith. When they've got no other answers, no other solutions, unsure of what the future is,
you've just got to have faith. And when the word faith is used like that, what they really mean is,
I'm crossing my fingers and I'm just hoping the best. Wishful thinking. And so in our secular age,
faith is regarded as the opposite of facts. In public debate, faith is seen as the opposite of reason,
logic, science, and facts. It's the opposite. So when you want to reject the research,
you just have faith is what you have. But biblical faith is not what you have when you don't have
rationality and facts. That is not the Bible's view of faith. And it's not the kind of faith that we
see demonstrated consistently in the scriptures. When the Bible refers to faith, it always refers to
faith in something. It is trusting in the facts. It is stepping out with logic and reason. It is
agreeing with the God who has revealed himself and the way things actually are.
The faith that these Old Testament people had was faith in God.
This is faith in the God who made the world. This is the faith in the God who has consistently
proven himself to be good and right and true.
It's faith in the God who is powerful and able to achieve his purposes and proven again and again
and again to do so. This is faith in the God who is able to save.
This is faith in the God who does what he promises.
How do we know? How do we know that at the end of the Christian life, there is a resurrection
hope and there is life forever? Because historically in this world, Jesus rose from the dead.
Historical fact.
That's how we know. The one who was dead has come back alive and promises the same for those
who run the race of discipleship. It's faith in that historical fact.
Biblical faith is faith in God. The second thing that we notice here is that real faith
shows itself in actions despite the consequences.
All the people mentioned here in Acts 11 had a faith that caused them to act.
Noah had faith in what God said about flooding the earth and dealing with sin and he built,
therefore, he built a really big boat.
Abraham believed God and he picked up his family and he moved to a foreign land, a promised land.
Moses trusted God, so he gave up the life in the palace with Pharaoh and he led God's people out of Egypt miraculously.
He confronted Pharaoh.
With each one of these people, their faith in God was a faith in the God who spoke,
who shaped what, and this God shaped what they did and how they lived and that is what genuine faith does.
That is, faith is not some inner feeling.
Faith is confidence in the God who's revealed himself, of who God is, what he says, and what he does.
Faith is based on that knowledge and experience of God's faithfulness that results in God's confidence.
Faith is based on that knowledge and experience of God's faithfulness.
The final thing we see here is that faith always looks forward to the future with hope.
That's the definition, in fact, of what we're given, what faith is, in chapter 11, verse 1.
Now, faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
This is what the ancients were commended for.
That is, faith is not, I just hope it works out, I really hope it works out.
How can you be sure and certain?
Because you have confidence in the God and what he's promised.
Because he's got a track record of coming through.
Let me just say it one more time.
That is why communing with God in his word four or more a week is so, so crucial for us growing in faith.
You don't build God confidence.
You don't grow in faith unless you are being reminded again and again and again and again and again and again and again.
How great and awesome and trustworthy he is and how he consistently fulfills his promises throughout history.
Unless you've got your face in the Bible and seeing that consistently, you don't grow in faith.
Secondly, the second thing here is to run the race of faith well.
Following a clear demonstration of lived-out confidence of God from those in the past,
the writer then here calls these Christians with a challenge in chapter 12, verse 1.
The word therefore at the beginning of chapter 12 connects the history lesson with the application.
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.
Now, I'm of the view that Hebrews chapter 12, verses 1 to 3,
is the application for the whole letter of Hebrews.
That is, that therefore, at the beginning of chapter 12,
is not just about chapter 11, it's about the whole first 11 chapters.
And I think that the main take-home action point of the whole book of Hebrews
is that three-letter command in verse 1,
run, run.
Everything else supports it, explains it, gives motivation for it.
Run the race of faith which has been set before you.
Run it.
Endure, persevere, run, fight, be alert, be strengthened,
don't drift, don't neglect, don't be sluggish, don't stroll, don't meander,
don't wander aimlessly, don't take your eternal security for granted.
Run, as in a race with a finish line,
with everything for eternity hanging on you crossing that finish line.
Run.
Run the race of faith.
Follow Jesus in everything on the basis of Jesus' spectacular death and resurrection and ascension.
Show your confidence in God in the way the saints of Hebrews did
and just lived it out.
And to do that well,
we have to heed the two instructions which are in verse 1.
It says,
Let us throw off everything that hinders
and the sin that so easily entangles.
Take the last one first.
The easiest definition of sin
is attitudes and actions
where we choose to live life our way
without reference to God.
And contrary to modern thinking,
the life of sin does not result in freedom
it actually results in enslavement.
You are not set free.
You are not liberated.
Sin entangles.
It coils around you like a python
and it constantly requires you to sacrifice for it.
Constantly.
It trips you up.
It enslaves you.
It sends you crashing to the pavement
in the same way that if you decided to go on a run
with your shoelaces tied.
You could, you know,
crawl along for a bit.
As soon as you try to put some pace up,
bang, you are face planted onto the pavement.
So don't ever think that it won't happen to you.
Don't ever think that you've got your sin under control.
As 1 Corinthians 10, 12 says,
if you think you are standing firm,
be careful that you don't fall.
But city is not just high profile failures.
It is insidious and it's subtle.
A secret habit.
It's a character trait that you have just got comfortable with.
Anger.
Grumbling.
Greed.
Gossip.
Judgmentalism.
Selfishness.
The Puritan Thomas Watson urged followers of Jesus
to develop what he called a holy hatred of sin.
We must develop this if we're going to run the race
of perseverance well.
But we're also instructed here to lay aside
not only the sin which entangles us,
but also it says everything that hinders.
That is, every weight, every obstacle.
Things that in themselves may not be sinful.
But they do slow us down.
So last year when I was training for a half marathon,
I didn't wear what I'm wearing this morning.
In fact, when I went for a 5K run yesterday morning,
I didn't wear what I'm currently wearing this morning.
And this passage calls us,
if we're going to run the race of faith well,
we have to strip off.
We've got to take the layers off.
It says here,
get rid of everything that is going to slow you down.
Everything that hinders.
Quite literally what that means is every single weight.
One translation puts it like this.
Let us strip off everything that hinders us.
And the imagery in the first century Palestine is striking.
And the imagery that the writer the Hebrews picks up here
is very striking.
Because it is used,
this language is used in the first century
for athletes running in Olympic Games.
And what runners in the Olympic Games in the first century did
was that they ran literally naked.
And...
Oh no, sorry.
I do want to preach again.
They got rid of anything that held them back.
Anything that hindered them.
Every single weight.
Everything that weighed them down was stripped off.
And Christians are called to do the same metaphorically.
Do exactly the same.
Now, let me be clear.
This command here is absolutely revolutionary.
Absolutely revolutionary.
This is very helpful for the religious person.
This is very helpful for the legalist amongst us
who wants to live by boundaries and rules and stuff like that.
Because what it does is it shows us
that the fight of faith,
the race of the Christian life,
is not fought well
by asking what's wrong with it.
What's wrong with this?
What's wrong with that?
But...
by asking another question as well.
Is it in the way?
Is it slowing me down?
Is it in the way of greater faith,
greater love,
greater purity,
greater courage,
greater humility,
greater patience,
greater self-control?
Is it a sin
is one question to ask,
but it's not the only question they ask?
We must also be asking the question
of everything in our life and our lifestyles.
Does it help me run?
Is it in the way?
Is it weighing me down?
I've been mightily helped
by having my very categories in life changed
in this way,
in the way I live.
And I commit it to you.
Do not ask.
Do not ask of your music,
your movies,
your parties,
your habits,
your friends,
your hobbies,
your career,
your retirement,
your relationships,
your investments,
your everything.
What's wrong with it?
But ask the question,
does it help me run the race?
Does it help me run for Jesus?
Hebrews 12 verse 1
is a command
to look at your life,
to think hard about
what you are doing,
to get ruthless
with what stays
and what goes.
We are reminded here
that of a simple lifestyle
to strip back our lives
and to be uncluttered
as disciples of Jesus
and travel light.
And so here's what I'm suggesting.
Pick a day,
half a day,
a few hours,
whatever it takes.
Get away by yourself.
Get away from the house.
Get away from the phone.
Get away from the TV,
the radio,
the chores.
Get away from other people.
Get away from work.
Take a Bible,
a pen,
and a piece of paper
and plan your run with Jesus
for the next year
and between now and 2025.
And on that piece of paper,
put two columns.
One at the top
called entangling sins.
These are the idols of your heart.
These are the treasures
that are pushing Jesus out
from being the treasure
of your life.
Things like approval of others,
materialism,
my work,
my family allegiance,
being an idolized parent,
being in control,
having power,
comfort,
achievement,
religion,
individualism,
image,
suffering,
helping others.
Whatever it is,
it's an idol of your heart.
And note on the other column
the weights,
the encumbrances,
the seemingly innocent things
that are not condemned explicitly
but you know
are holding you back
in the race of faith
of love and strength
and holiness
and courage and freedom.
Note the ways
that you make subtle provision
for these hindrances.
The computer games,
the hidden alcohol,
the chocolate,
the television,
the movies,
the work,
the hobbies,
the mobile phones,
the novels,
the people who weaken you.
What you'll notice
is that one or two
of those columns combined
you'll discover
they are the things
that are stopping you
from doing four or more.
They're the things
getting in the way
of you pursuing Jesus more.
Note the times
that are wasted.
Note the time
that's thrown away.
When you've made
all those notes
pray your way
through them
and formulate
a plan
of dismantling
those hindrances
and resisting
those sins
and breaking
the old,
old habits
that you've become
really comfortable with.
Then share it
with your community group.
Some of what you've resolved
and get them
to pray for you.
Find someone
who you can trust
and ask them
to check in on you
and support you
as you deal
with those things.
Let me just...
Today...
In other words,
you can walk
out of this building
and you can easily
just drift.
Right from now
you can drift.
Don't drift.
Even today
don't drift.
Don't drift
from this moment
right now
what's being preached
in God's word
into Sunday afternoon
and forget it.
Don't drift.
Don't even drift today.
Don't meander.
Don't wander.
Run today.
Don't drift away.
Before this day
is over
choose
that moment
where you're going
to run your plan.
Plan your run
with Jesus.
Thirdly,
run to the finish
and get the prize.
As we run
the race of faith
we are surrounded
by this great cloud
of witnesses
cheering us on.
Literally
a great host
of people
a multitude
who have run
the race
and have crossed
the finish line
and received
the prize.
And these people
are not just spectators
they are overcomers.
Each bear witness
to the hardship
and the triumphs
and to the final prize.
But there is one.
There is one
amongst all
that cloud
of witnesses
that we must
transfix our gaze on.
Verse 2
The term
to fix our eyes
on Jesus
is a term
that literally means
to look away
from everything else.
to be transfixed
to look away
from everything else.
This is a firmly
fixed gaze on Jesus
as if success
is totally
dependent upon him.
And Jesus
in amongst
this great cloud
of witness
is the perfect example.
He is our forerunner.
First of all
in the Garden of Gethsemane
he had complete
confidence in God
and he says to God
not my will be done
but yours.
Secondly
his faith translated
into actions.
He was willing
to endure the cross.
Thirdly
his faith
was based
on what lay ahead
the future hope.
It says
for the joy
set before him
he endured
the cross.
But he is more
than just
an example
of faith.
He is the author
and the perfecter
of our faith.
That is
he's not only
the one who
is amongst
the cloud of witnesses
he wrote the book
on what genuine
faith is
and
he's completed
it for us.
He's the one
who brings
our faith
into being
and he finishes
it for us.
Jesus'
entire life
was the embodiment
of trust
in his father.
Where we fail
every day
he didn't.
he perfectly
obeyed.
He lived
the perfect
life
that we
never can live
and he trusted
God all the way
to the cross.
He died the death
that we should have
died.
His obedience
took him to the cross
of shame
the shame
that we should have
received
the rejection
that we should have
received
for our
imperfection
for our
meandering
and dawdling
and wandering
or taking
different paths
in life.
And he did that
so that we could
receive the accolades
and the praises
if we have run
the race
in perfect
obedience.
Friends,
it is so
essential
for your
discipleship
that you
always have
the gospel
in front of you.
You know,
this 525
is not about
you pulling
your socks up
and trying
a bit harder.
It's about
growing
in faith
in Jesus
Christ.
God
confidence.
Our tendency
is to look
at the list
of names
in Hebrews
chapter 11
and we
pass them
on the board
of heroes
of the faith.
And they
are.
And yet
even Abraham
and Sarah
failed God
often.
Rahab
was a
prostitute.
Jacob
was a
schemer
and a
deceiver.
Samson
was constantly
falling
to sexual
temptation.
He did
not think
with his
brain at
all.
All men
and women
of faith
but every
single one
of them
deeply
floored
with clay
feet.
They all
wavered
and they
did it
often.
Hebrews
11
is a
catalogue
of
imperfect
saints
who made
many
serious
mistakes
grace
but they
all
finished
the
race
with
faith.
Even
Samson
in the
end
finished
the
race
in
faith.
They
received
God's
free
gift
of
forgiveness
and
grace
and
they
finished
the
race.
They
might
have
suffered
consequences
for their
failures
but by
God's
grace
they
finished
the
race.
These
imperfect
saints
like
the
rest
of
us
were
in
fact
the
joy
that
was
set
before
Jesus.
That
is
his
future
joy
the
joy
that
was
set
before
him
the
joy
that
meant
he
scorned
the
shame
of
the
cross.
What
was
that
joy?
Let
me
quote
biblical
scholar
Leon
Morris.
He
looked
right
through
the
cross
to
the
coming
joy
the
joy
of
bringing
salvation
to
those
he
loved.
That
was
his
joy.
You
and
I
are
his
joy.
His
victory
is
the
guarantee
of
our
victory.
His
joy
is
our
joy.
All
of
us
who
are
disciples
are
part
of
his
reward.
He
has
given
us
the
gifts
to
ensure
that
we
finish
the
race
too.
We
have
his
word.
As
we've
been
reminded
through
this
series,
we
have
his
word,
his
presence
every
step
of
the
way
in
his
spirit.
We
have
fellow
runners
to
spare
us
on
when
we
hit
that
emotional
wall,
that
spiritual
wall,
but
more
importantly,
we
have
the
cross.
His
cross,
where
he
crossed
the
finish
line,
and
he
guarantees
our
prize.
Jesus
saves
us,
and
he
gets
us
started
on
this
journey.
That's
what
we
saw
right
at the
very
beginning.
We
began
this
series
with
Jesus,
the
one
who
rescues
us,
brings
us
from
the
paths
of
life
that
we
have
followed,
the
broad
ways
that
lead
to
destruction.
He's
brought
us
back
onto,
by his
grace,
onto
this
pathway
of
Christian
discipleship.
We
discover
he's
just
not
the
beginning
of it.
He's
the
enabler
for
the
whole
journey.
He's
the
one
who
is
there
with
us.
He's
at
the
end.
He's
the
goal.
He's
the
prize
of
the
life
of
Christian
discipleship.
The
race
of
the
Christian
life,
the
journey
of
discipleship
does,
however,
require
perseverance
from us.
That's
what this
Bible
passage
is
calling
us
to,
to run
with
perseverance.
We
must
persevere
if we
are to
finish
and
receive
the
prize.
For
you
young
people
in
the
room,
put
down
your
phones
and
listen
to
this.
especially
young
people,
everyone,
because we're
all marinating
in the
same
culture,
but for
young
people
especially,
you
exist
in a
culture,
in an
era,
in a
time and
space,
where you
value the
quick fixes.
Maximum
results with
minimum
effort.
We
exist in
a culture
where we
are
flippant.
We
flip from
one thing
to the
next
thing,
one
promising
solution
to the
next
promising
solution.
We
shift
from
church
to
church.
Our
culture
encourages
what
American
writer
Gore
Vidal
once
described
as a
passion
for the
immediate
and the
casual.
We
are easily
bored,
we are
easily
distracted,
and we
cannot
grow in
faith and
persevere in
Christian
discipleship
if that
culture
that we
marinate in
dominates
our
outlook
on life.
The best
description
that I
can have
of the
Christian
life
comes from
atheistic
philosopher
Friedrich
Nietzsche.
He
saw
Christian
discipleship
with
absolute
clarity
even
though
himself
was no
friend of
Christianity.
He wrote
it is the
necessity
of long
obedience
in the
same
direction.
Nietzsche,
what insight.
Unfortunately,
you didn't
live it.
it
powerfully
describes
the
pathway
of
Christian
discipleship.
This is
the life
of meaning
and purpose.
This is
the life
as God
intended.
Do not
chase
pale
imitations.
Do not
be
distracted
by
shadows.
Persevere.
We may
reach the
finish line
limping
or leaping.
We may
even
collapse
over the
line,
but all
true
disciples
will make
it.
such is
the grace
of the
Lord
Jesus
Christ.
But we
will cross
the finish
line
because of
the means
that he
has given
us.
And we
will cross
the finish
line
more strongly,
more purposely,
with greater
joy, with
greater anticipation
as we fix
our gaze
more and
more on
the Lord
Jesus
Christ.
The key
objective for
Follow 25
is to see
65% of
St.
Paul's
identifying
much growth
in faith
through the
ministry of
this church.
That is the
majority of
us growing
more and
more in
confidence in
God in
the next
five years.
Oh, my
goodness, how
I would
navigate the
complexity of
life if I
was far more
confident in
God.
Young
people,
you've got a
whole life ahead
of you.
You will
navigate the
complexity of
life in this
world fundamentally
more easily
as you grow
in confidence
in God.
Our vision
is about
what we are
seeking to
do as a
church over
the next
five years,
but fundamentally
it's about
you.
You, the
individual.
Don't sit
back and go,
well, you know,
we've been to see
what happens in
the next five
years, see
where the
leadership goes
and how we,
this, this is
about you,
this is about
your journey,
your life,
your faith in
the Lord Jesus.
This is about
you growing in
confidence in
God.
This plan is
about your
journey with
Jesus.
So don't
meander from
this moment.
Don't drift.
Don't wander.
This plan is
about your
next step
in faith.
So what is
it?
That's it.