Let The Games Begin!

Hebrews  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  1:16:02
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Yesterday in Paris the Olympic Games began in Paris, France for the first time since 1924 when the likes of Americans Johnny Weissmuller (who would later play Tarzan) won three golds in swimming; and Jackson Scholz won gold in Men’s 200m, and silver in 100m track races; And of course there is the thrill of the ongoing rivalry between Great Britains’ Eric Liddell of Scotland and Harold Abrahams of England that was depicted in the 1981 Academy award winning film Chariots of Fire.
I personally, like many of you, am a fan of the Olympics. The Olympic Creed reads: "The most important thing is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well."
The opening sentence of our passage this morning gives us such an incredible picture given what we read last week in what has been dubbed the “Hall of Faith.” Last week we read of Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel etc. who all

“By faith…”

and our author shared many of their accomplishments, successes, and also some of the hardships they endured.
We then read another one of those great “Therefore’s” in the book of Hebrews. We read…
Hebrews 12:1 (ESV)
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,
The author of Hebrews gives us such a visual here. As we’re in the midst of the Olympic games with these amazing venues built to showcase athletes and their competitions, imagine being on that stage.
The marathon is perhaps one of the best illustrations of life. Life is not a sprint. It’s not a 10 second event, it’s an arduous journey filled with all sorts of ups and downs, twists and turns. We can’t just claim the prize as Rosie Ruiz attempted to do with the New York and Boston Marathons only to have it revealed she hadn’t run either race. Simply showing up at the finish in the New York Marathon, and only running the last half mile of the Boston Marathon.
If I may borrow from this Olympic events as an illustration: When the Olympic Marathon is run it typically runs throughout the host city and then enters the stadium for a lap or two for the finish. That is the scene that seems depicted by the author of Hebrews.
Imagine, you’re running your race and you enter the stadium and there in the stands are the faithful - There’s Abraham and Sarah, over there is Moses, there is Rahab, there’s David, there’s Ruth, over there is Peter and Matthew and John. Up ahead is Jesus’ mother, Mary and the Apostle Paul! They’re cheering, they’re shouting encouragement and not just to everyone; they’re calling out your name and cheering you on.
This is the cloud of Witnesses the author of Hebrews tells us that surround us. And what are we to do?
Hebrews 12:1 (ESV)
…let us lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
Two commands:
lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely.
run with endurance the race that is set before us.
Again returning to our Olympic motif in the ancient times the athletes competed naked, so the idea of laying aside literally every weight is a very visual one. Literally anything that might hold you back is to be laid aside.
Then, run with endurance the race that is set before us. For each of us that race is going to be a bit different. Some might become physical workers, others planners, executives, support personnel, but it’s all focused on one thing which is in vs. 2, looking to Jesus. We read run with endurance the race that is set before us,…
Hebrews 12:2 ESV
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 founder and perfecter of our faith. It is Jesus who is the beginning and finishing of our faith. It was he who set the example.
Throughout our passage there are two words that come up often:

Endurance & Discipline

We’ve already seen the imperative to run with endurance the race set before us. We’re to follow Jesus example and then the author tells us:
Hebrews 12:3–4 (ESV)
Consider him who ENDURED from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
Returning to our Olympic illustration - as you watch these athletes during this fortnight don’t imagine for a moment that this somehow just happened. As your favorite athlete or athletes take the track, the pool, the floor, in that moment think of all that came before.
I have the privilege of knowing a world class athlete. Caleb Wakefield. On land he’s been a world class inline-speed skater as well as on ice a long course world class speed skater. If there is one thing that stands out in Caleb’s life to me - it’s his self-discipline. When he was competing discipline and endurance were hallmarks of his life.
It wasn’t just his training on the track that was extremely disciplined, it was his workouts in the gym, on the cycle, running. It was his diet and how he ate. It was his fluid intake. His sleep.
His entire life was marked by discipline - imposed by coaches and self-imposed discipline as well.
One of the things I admire most about Caleb is just as much a part of his athletics, it’s his faith. His discipline was not just in the area of athletics - he prioritizes his time with God. Woven into his daily disciplines is time for Bible study, prayer, and worship.
When we think of discipline there are two ways of thinking of it. The discipline we have - striving, working, pushing ourselves. And the discipline we receive from parents, coaches, teacher, etc. The author of Hebrews equates the difficult challenges we face in our road of life as discipline from God our father. How do we endure? How do we hold fast to our faith? How do we run the race set before us?
He says this of discipline,
Hebrews 12:11 ESV
For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
Every athlete on the world stage has spent countless hours preparing for the moment when we finally see them in that race or competition. There has been pain, frustration, injuries, challenges, plateaus, set backs, and a host of other “obstacles” that have been overcome for that moment. This is why when things don’t go well it can seem so devastating to the athlete. They have endured so much to get there. They have subjected themselves to so much discipline in the hope that their efforts would put them above all others in that moment.
And yet, there’s that creed, the Olympic creed again: "The most important thing is not to win but to take part, just as the most important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well."
One of my favorite speeches that is often quoted is a speech delivered in Paris, by Teddy Roosevelt following his presidency. The speech is titled “Citizenship in a Republic”, and I’m sure many of you will recognize the quote.
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, and comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.
You and I are in the arena.
You and I have a race that is set before us.
You and I have experienced the weight and heaviness that has held us back. We have stumbled before, we have erred and come up short again and again falling short of our goal. “Life,” as M.Scott Peck so perfectly said it, “is difficult.”
And, we have experienced the peaceful fruit of discipline, experiencing the triumph of high achievement in those highs of our faith journey.
Some of us have experienced more of the former than the latter, but we keep on pressing on, as Paul wrote:
Philippians 3:12 NIV
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
In the closing verses of our passage this morning the author exhorts us to:
lift up your drooping hands
strengthen your weak knees
make straight paths for your feet
strive for peace with everyone and for holiness
see to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God.
see to it that no root of bitterness springs up
How do we do all this? I believe it’s in that opening paragraph of our passage this morning, in verse 2:
Hebrews 12:2 (ESV)
looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, …
Folks, if we’re to call ourselves Christians we ought to be drawing closer to Jesus. I have yet to meet a Christian that would say they want “less” of Jesus.
We want to be changed into the people we were created to be. How do we do that? You know how to do that, part of it is being here in regular worship, worshipping our Holy God together, encouraging one another in fellowship.
Then there’s taking time to be in God’s Word. I was so encouraged by how many of you took on the challenge to read through the Bible cover to cover. If you’re on that journey, don’t give up, keep on pressing in. For those of you who have finished, don’t let it stop. Take up and read. Study. Engage.
All of us - continue to pray.
That cloud of witnesses is cheering us on, right here, right now. It’s not just when we’ve finished our race it’s in the present.
James tells us: James 4:8
James 4:8 (ESV)
‌Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, … and purify your hearts, ...
The saints are cheering! Jesus awaits!
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