Christ-Centered Endurance (Outline)

For 111 days. Charlie Engle, Ray Zahab, and Kevin Lin ran across the Sahara Desert. They touched the waters at Senegal and then made their way through Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Libya, and Egypt to touch the waters of the Red Sea. Along the way, the trio faced blazing afternoons of 100-plus degrees; jarring, freezing nights; sandstorms; tendonitis; violent sickness; aches, pains, and blisters. But the biggest challenge they faced was finding water. Finding it in its purest, cleanest form gets to be a bit of a chore while in the middle of nowhere. Running 4,000 miles across the Sahara Desert is an amazing accomplishment. ...—Anna Johnson, “3 Ultra-athletes Run across Sahara,” USA Today (February 20, 2007)

In much the same ways as a runner must endure:

Craig says:

The purpose of Hebrews is to strengthen, encourage, and exhort the tired and weary members of a house church to respond with courage and vitality to the prospect of renewed suffering in view of the gifts and resources God has lavished upon them. [Lane, W. L. (1991). Hebrews 1–8 (Vol. 47A, p. c). Word, Incorporated.]

Prior to AD 70

Unknown penman

Some of the earliest Christians identified Paul while others identified Barnabas, Apollos, Silas, Jude, Priscilla, or others.

To professing Christians (ethnic Jew)

(1) heavy use of the Old Testament scriptures with a special emphasis on (2) the Jewish sacrificial system.

Hebrews 12:1–2 KJV 1900

1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, 2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

“Endure” - (Hebrews 12:2) remain, stay, hold out (Hebrews 10:32); persevere, to stay in a place beyond an expected point of time.

Subject:

Christians are people who endure to the end. It is not just just the fact THAT they endure, but it is HOW they endure.

“Am I enduring as a Christ-centered Christian?”

Need:

There are two primary reasons why this kind of a book is so applicable today:

(1) The need to warn those who think they are in the race.

Josh Harris’ Deconstruction - “I Kissed Dating Goodbye”

[Hebrews 2:1, 4:11, 6:6 - Example Demas]

Much like the movie Sixth Sense, these individuals think that they are alive, but they eventually will realize that they were dead the entire time.

(2) The need to encourage with hope those who are tempted to quit.

[Christian parents, singles, young couples, teens, Sr. Saints, school teacher, business people…etc]

Hebrews will offer to you the mid-race refreshing water and electrolytes so that you can keep following Jesus faithfully.

(Hebrews 10:32-33, 12:25)

Consequently, I want you to know that...

Big Idea:

Professing Christians should take Christ-centered endurance more seriously because it warns the falsely assured and encourages the weary.

The letter of Hebrews will teach us that...

Preview:

Christ-Centered Endurance is characterized by a particular kind of:

Thinking (Hebrews 1:5-2:4)

Thought - What should I be thinking?

Experiencing (Hebrews 2:5-4:16)

Emotion - How should I be feeling?

Confiding (Hebrews 4:14-10:39)

Psyche - Where do I get my confidence?

Persevering (Hebrews 11:1-13:25)

Body - What does it look like to keep on keeping on?

Hebrews 1:1-4 Christ-Centered Endurance (series name)

Statement: The Son is the central message of endurance because He is God’s Speech in these last days.

Illustrate It:

Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations 5462 When Light Bulb Falls

5462 When Light Bulb Falls

The Rev. Earl Kelly, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Holly Springs, Mississippi, was preaching on the second coming of Christ.

He had just quoted Matthew 24:27, “For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be.”

At this point, a large light bulb fell from its socket in the ceiling and shattered on the floor in front of the pulpit.

As reported by Baptist Press, Kelly was equal to the occasion. He told the startled worshippers, “His coming will be just as sudden, and unexpected, and devastating to the dreams that are not Christ-centered.”

—Christianity Today

Would you say that your life, your hopes, your dreams, your plans are Christ-centered?

Prove It:

What the writer of Hebrews does is open up by making clear a few truths:

(1) God is the God who speaks. Hebrews 1:1.

God has spoken in the past, and these speeches of God were communicated through the prophets. These prophetic speeches are preserved in the scriptures.

The Person of God is unique and exclusive in a way that everyone else who has spoken in the past is not. Deuteronomy 6:4

Deuteronomy 6:4 KJV 1900

4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:

God’s speech important. We learn as much by just considering how a Jew understood the speech of God. A few examples are found in Genesis 1:3, Psalm 33:6.

(2) God is the God who speaks Cristo-centrically. Hebrews 1:2.

If you want to know God, you must hear and see what He has said.

God has said, “the Son”.

Matthew 16:16, Psalm 2:7, 12.

The 2nd Person of the Godhead is the climactic speech of God.

God the Son as Prophet, Priest, & King fulfillment (Hebrews 1:2-3)

“Jesus, as God’s Son, fulfills the offices of prophet (speaking God’s word), priest (making purification for sins), and king (creating, and ruling at the right hand of the Majesty on high).” - Graeme Goldsworthy (Short Studies in Biblical Theology: The Son of God and the New Creation (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015), p. 53))

Apply It:

Is Jesus the central figure of every aspect of your life?

A warning to the drifting - if you are uncontrollably addicted more to the words of social media comments than you are to the words of Christ, you may need to examine your faith.

A word to the suffering - if you feel like quitting, remember that God’s Christ is not an abstract idea. God’s Speech entered into time and history. He is just as real as the emotional, mental, or physical suffering you may be enduring.

Christ-centered endurance is the message of Hebrews, but what does this mean?

Hebrews 1:5-2:4 (a) Thinking: What should I be thinking?

Christ-centered endurance is characterized by a particular kind of thinking. What should I be thinking?

Statement: Christ-centered endurance means living life with while thinking about what matters most.

In Hebrews (note in the introduction), the writer tells us Who Jesus Christ is, and then he supports his claims with scripture. The writer is drawing the reader’s attention to the Person of Jesus.

See Hebrews 3:1 The writer is telling the readers to apprehend certain facts about Jesus and to calculate and sum these facts up.

The reality of who Jesus is SCRIPTURALLY, directs our thoughts about what matters most in life and beyond this life.

Illustrate It:

1500 Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Choices

Choices

A child stood gazing at a freshly opened box of chocolate candies—lips pressed together, concentrating fully upon the decision at hand. The rule was “Only one, no more than one, but any one you want.” Should it be the biggest one, or would the small round one be the favorite peppermint cream? Then again, the long one might last longer. Which to choose? And how to decide?

Perhaps a child’s decisions seem trivial to us as adults. Oh, we recognize that they are important to the child, but we have a broader perspective. That is the question in making choices, isn’t it? To have an eternal perspective on life and its decisions is to know how to choose.123

Prove it:

Hebrews 2:3 Scripture, Person of Christ, our thoughts...

Apply It:

A warning to the drifting - you are so distracted by the immediate pleasures of your flesh that you are neglecting the eternal punishment of your person.

A word to the suffering - you are able to endure as you learn to let the word of God continually redirect your thoughts to Jesus

(Key in a marathon)

Hebrews 2:5-4:16 (b) Experiencing: What should I be feeling?

Christ-centered endurance is characterized by a kind of experiencing. What should I be feeling?

Statement: Christ-centered endurance is characterized by regularly experiencing true rest as we await final rest.

Illustrate It:

Advanced Naturopathic Wellness, IV Therapy - Hydration Station

It is nourishment for those who need immediate delivery of vitamins to the blood stream (bi-passing digestive system)

Prove it:

There is a future and complete rest awaiting those who are truly God’s people. Hebrews 4:9.

True rest can be experienced NOW by those with true faith who work out their own salvation. Hebrews 4:11.

Apply It:

A warning to the drifting - If your ultimate coping methods are intentionally, increasingly, unswervingly and consistently sin, you should not think that you will have eternal rest. [despising spiritual authority, disobedience, rebellion, sexual sin, adultery…etc]

A word to the suffering - If you find consistent patterns of repentance of sin and ongoing faith in Jesus and periods of emotional rest, take hope! There is a day of eternal rest coming, of which you are presently experiencing glimpses. The frustration is not forever.

Hebrews 4:14-10:39 (c) Confiding: Where do I get my confidence?

Statement: Christ-centered endurance means living boldly without fear.

Christ-centered endurance is characterized by a particular kind of confidence. Where do I get my confidence?

Illustrate it:

The fear caused by seeing a runner injured, hurting....

Prove it:

See Hebrews 4:16, 10:19-22. The blood of Jesus Christ gives us confidence before God, assures our consciences, and leads us to live boldly towards each other.

Apply It:

A warning to the drifting - your casual approach to Christian living, including church attendance, is showing the devaluation for the blood of Jesus. God will not take this lightly.

A word to the suffering - it is easy to listen and believe the contempt for what our world calls “organized religion”, but remember that it is not our sinlessness or the sinless lives of other Christians that is the source of our confidence. Our confidence is in the blood of Christ - before God and before men.

Hebrews 11:1-13:25 (d) Persevering: What does it look like to keep on keeping on?

Statement: Christ-centered endurance means persevering in life like there are no respawns.

Christ-centered endurance is characterized by a particular kind of perseverance. What does it mean to keep on keeping on?

Illustrate It: Stephen in Acts 6:3, 8, 7:51, 54-60. Stephen’s life lived was one that was consistent with the confession he held. He held this confession to the end, and lived out his days while looking unto Jesus.

Prove It:

Hebrews 11:27. Moses endured as seeing him who is invisible. This means that Moses made life-altering decisions. Hebrews 11:35-38. The Christian lives of these people were not abstract but physical and practical. Their perseverance was real. See Hebrews 13:1-5.

Apply It:

A warning to the drifting - if your Christianity does not materially change the way you see sexuality and spending of money and pursuit of peace, you may actually be an apostate.

A word to the suffering - you’re not crazy! You are following Jesus, and this will bring reproach. Hebrews 13:12-13.

Bridge to Conclusion:

Existential question:

“Am I enduring as a Christ-centered Christian?”

Summary of points:

Christ-Centered Endurance is characterized by a particular kind of:

Thinking (Hebrews 1:5-2:4)

Thought - What should I be thinking?

Experiencing (Hebrews 2:5-4:16)

Emotion - How should I be feeling?

Confiding (Hebrews 4:14-10:39)

Psyche - Where do I get my confidence?

Persevering (Hebrews 11:1-13:25)

Body - What does it look like to keep on keeping on?

Transition to conclusion:

Conclusion:

Professing Christians should take Christ-centered endurance more seriously because it warns the falsely assured and encourages the weary.

Illustrate It:

1001 Illustrations that Connect Illustration 778: Running Blind

RUNNING BLIND

Topics: Achievement; Hope; Perseverance; Persistence; Success; Winning and Losing

References: Acts 20:24; 2 Corinthians 4:18; Colossians 3:1–4; 2 Timothy 4:7; Hebrews 12:1–3

U.S. runner Marla Runyon, legally blind for twenty-two years, competed in the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia. She qualified for the finals in the 1,500-meter race, then finished eighth, just seconds behind the medal winners.

Runyon can’t see in color; all she sees is a fuzzy blob. So when she races, she just follows the blob of figures in front of her. The real difficulty is rounding the final turn and racing toward a finish line she can’t see. “I just know where it is,” she said.

—Today Show, September 22, 2000

In many ways, the Old Testament saints were running like Marla Runyon. The chief difference for us is that God has spoken in these last days and the message is clear. Jesus Christ is the Son, and He is the One who has saved us, empowered us, and has gone before us. We are following Jesus. Look unto Him!

300 Quotations for Preachers from the Modern Church The Road to Heaven Is Rough

He that has long been on the road to Heaven finds that there was good reason why it was promised that his shoes should be iron and brass, for the road is rough.

CHARLES SPURGEON*

You cannot be Christ-centered and comfort-centered at the same time. Christ-centered endurance means that:

You will choose to drink deeply of the Christ-centered Word. (caring for doctrine, Bible studies…etc)

You [Christian parents], will challenge your heart to find rest in the supremacy of Christ rather than believing what good parenthood looks like according the world.

You [Christian singles], will believe that purity of thought and chastity (though, normalized in the world) are worth fighting for.

You [Christian Sr. Saints], will finish life remembering that the material things of this life are not what matters most.

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