40) Carefully Run
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Today we come to the exhortation and encouragement in Hebrews 12. He has reminded them what faith is and shown how in their history their ancestors were approved by their faith.
Showing how they fixed their minds on the promises that were to come and that it was by faith that they lived. For without faith it is impossible to please God.
He brings then to the picture of a race. A runner that must run with endurance the whole while actively removing and abandoning the thins of this world and the sins that slow us down and stop us from continuing in the race.
This is accomplished by fixing our minds on the one and only source and object of our faith the one and only perfect son of God. The single perfect sacrifice that removed the sins of those who believe in him and their Lord and savior. The pioneer and perfecter of our faith.
1 Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every hindrance and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, 2 keeping our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy that lay before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 For consider him who endured such hostility from sinners against himself, so that you won’t grow weary and give up.
Look to Jesus, he is your encouragement in your time of suffering. He is your source of peace.
7 Endure suffering as discipline: God is dealing with you as sons. For what son is there that a father does not discipline?
He tells them to endure the suffering as discipline and as he turns them to Jesus he points them back to the word of God, the old testament scriptures and reminds them that it is the sons of God that are disciplined.
5 And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: My son, do not take the Lord’s discipline lightly or lose heart when you are reproved by him, 6 for the Lord disciplines the one he loves and punishes every son he receives.
Believe that God is at work. Training you and growing you in spiritual maturity. And that the outcome will have great value.
11 No discipline seems enjoyable at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
He recognizes the suffering that they are in. The trials that are experiencing but holds their lives up to the will of God and does not let them turn to self. turn to the pity of me. turn from God. He turns them to from the intellectual to the practical. Hebrews with of of its rich doctrine is a self proclaimed writing on exhortation and encouragement.
22 Brothers and sisters, I urge you to receive this message of exhortation, for I have written to you briefly.
This is where the transition begins.Turn with me to Chapter 12 Verse 12.
12 Therefore, strengthen your tired hands and weakened knees, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated but healed instead. 14 Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness—without it no one will see the Lord. 15 Make sure that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness springs up, causing trouble and defiling many. 16 And make sure that there isn’t any immoral or irreverent person like Esau, who sold his birthright in exchange for a single meal. 17 For you know that later, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, even though he sought it with tears, because he didn’t find any opportunity for repentance.
Be Strengthened
Be Strengthened
The race that is to be run is hard, long, and full of obstacles.
12 Therefore, strengthen your tired hands and weakened knees, 13 and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated but healed instead.
The flock that he is writing too is tired, and weary and like a coach in sports who sees his athletes struggle to finish, he gives them a pep talk. Therefore, even though the race is hard and difficult, you are in pain an trial, but remember that God is at work. That his promises are true and worthy to pursue. Be strengthened.
If you are a runner, which i am not, other than running to the fridge or running to the bathroom. But if you are a real runner as the miles slowly drift by, as the pain starts to kick in, as the fatigue grows what starts to go is the form of a runner. with precision at the beginning they control there pace, their form, their arms and hands. But as the race goes on, what happens, the arms start to droop the knees don’t have the strength that they had in the start.
He say to them lift up your hear, look to Jesus, bring the arms back up strengthen yourself.
“and make straight paths for your feet”. this may be a reference to staying in a racers lane. being diligent not to leave the path that has been set before you. The word here refers to the paths made by carts. Ruts in a road. have you ever ran a car in ruts that are not straight. They wreck havock on every think. They are damaging. There is this idea of staying on the straight and narrow.
But there is a subtle warning here as well. This is a reference back to Prov 4:25-27
25 Let your eyes look forward; fix your gaze straight ahead. 26 Carefully consider the path for your feet, and all your ways will be established. 27 Don’t turn to the right or to the left; keep your feet away from evil.
The context of this proverb is a fathers wisdom.
11 I am teaching you the way of wisdom; I am guiding you on straight paths. 12 When you walk, your steps will not be hindered; when you run, you will not stumble. 13 Hold on to instruction; don’t let go. Guard it, for it is your life. 14 Keep off the path of the wicked; don’t proceed on the way of evil ones. 15 Avoid it; don’t travel on it. Turn away from it, and pass it by. 16 For they can’t sleep unless they have done what is evil; they are robbed of sleep unless they make someone stumble. 17 They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence. 18 The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, shining brighter and brighter until midday. 19 But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom; they don’t know what makes them stumble. 20 My son, pay attention to my words; listen closely to my sayings. 21 Don’t lose sight of them; keep them within your heart. 22 For they are life to those who find them, and health to one’s whole body. 23 Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life. 24 Don’t let your mouth speak dishonestly, and don’t let your lips talk deviously. 25 Let your eyes look forward; fix your gaze straight ahead. 26 Carefully consider the path for your feet, and all your ways will be established. 27 Don’t turn to the right or to the left; keep your feet away from evil.
The path is a path of following instruction. Following wisdom. To follow the evil and paths of the wicked is a path of pain and trouble. But the path of the wise instruction is life and health.
Do you see the intent of the on running. They are to pay attention, listen closely, don't lose site of them, keep them in your heart.
They are life for those who find them. and health to the whole body.
Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life.
Let your eyes look forward, fix your gaze ahead.
Carefully consider the path of your feet.
Don’t turn to the right or the left,
Keep your feet from evil.
Does this describe the race that the contemporary christian runs today? This path is very narrow. There is a level of diligence here. Look at the words here, pay attention, listen closely, guard, look, fix, carefully consider, Keep.
I spoke at Camp Cocollala’s spring retreat this weekend. 60 teens were challenged with all of the things that we put in our minds that draw us away from God. The world around us is full of promises of better paths. And if we are not careful we will take the paths of the wicked, or we will never make to the straight path.
7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and discipline.
There is a loss of the fear of the Lord. If we do not trust him above all else in this world. If we continue to trust in our own understanding or the fools of this world we will find ourselves stumbling through life.
Those who run this race are to run with intent.
Pursue, So They See
Pursue, So They See
14 Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness—without it no one will see the Lord.
He exhorts them to Pursue, to strive for peace with everyone. Once again this is an active work look put energy into to chance after peace. This is not the idea of running from every conflict. The world is full of sinners, is it not? The church is full of sinners is it not? Those we are save we are not perfect. We say things and do things that cause conflict and strife among believers. Our God is a God of reconciliation. Reconciliation between man and God. Man who doesn’t want or need God in his own mind and the loving merciful and gracious God that pursues man so that they bay be reconciled back to him through Jesus’ sacrifice and blood on the cross.
This is our God that Paul calls us to imitate and to follow his example. Yes conflict will arise. That will happen but we are to work through that we are to pursue peace with every one. Though it may not be possible since both parties must be willing to repent and forgive if they have sinned against their brother and sister in Christ. We still have a command to follow.
18 If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
19 So then, let us pursue what promotes peace and what builds up one another.
The everyone here is peace among believers. The culture today will say that if you are not at peace with the world then you are not a loving church. You are not loving people. There is a difference between peace and loving. We are to love our enemy but if they are our enemy then we are not at peace.
The issue is that we cannot be at peace with those that are at war with God.
21 There is no peace for the wicked,” says my God.
We are told over and over again to not join the wicked in what they are doing.
1 How happy is the one who does not walk in the advice of the wicked or stand in the pathway with sinners or sit in the company of mockers! 2 Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night. 3 He is like a tree planted beside flowing streams that bears its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.
We are to love those that are at war with God the way Jesus loved them. He would interact with them. He would tell them the truth and would have compassion on them but he never joined them on the path that they walked. He stayed on the perfectly straight path. Never turning from the right of left. Never taking is gaze off of the prize.
We are to pursue peace with other believers which is how we love men and holiness by our love for God.
This is not positional holiness. Where by our faith we stand clean before God. This is the practical holiness of life. In the pursuit of holiness. God says be holy as I am holy. That is the practical holiness of a life that is removing the hindrances of life. Repenting and turning away from the sin that entangles and staying on the path.
We are called to live in holiness.
7 For God has not called us to impurity but to live in holiness.
We pursue peace and holiness for:
14 Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness—without it no one will see the Lord.
He is speaking directly to the church here. He does not say without it you will not see the Lord. It is most likely he is saying that the world around the church will see God, see his Glory as the believers look to God fix their eyes on Jesus, live differently, have hope and confidence. All of these will show God to an unbelieving world. This is part of the race that we run and by doing so other will see God.
Guard the Brethren
Guard the Brethren
15 Make sure that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness springs up, causing trouble and defiling many.
The word used here for make sure is from the same word we get elder and overseer. This is speaking of the care of the believers to be on the watch for people in the community of God that are in danger of falling short of the grace of God. The word here for falls short mean misses or fails to obtain.
There are two thoughts on this one is that there will always be people among the church that chose to be in the community and believe in the truth but do not have saving faith. The other idea is that these are believers that are falling behind in the race, have stepped off of the path and are in danger of missing God’s blessing of grace.
If we look at the root of bitterness, this is a reference back to the renewal of the Mosaic covenant with Isreal. After God gives the blessing of obeying and following the covenant and the curses that he promises will ensue if they abandon it he gives this warning.
16 “Indeed, you know how we lived in the land of Egypt and passed through the nations where you traveled. 17 You saw their abhorrent images and idols made of wood, stone, silver, and gold, which were among them. 18 Be sure there is no man, woman, clan, or tribe among you today whose heart turns away from the Lord our God to go and worship the gods of those nations. Be sure there is no root among you bearing poisonous and bitter fruit. 19 When someone hears the words of this oath, he may consider himself exempt, thinking, ‘I will have peace even though I follow my own stubborn heart.’ This will lead to the destruction of the well-watered land as well as the dry land. 20 The Lord will not be willing to forgive him. Instead, his anger and jealousy will burn against that person, and every curse written in this scroll will descend on him. The Lord will blot out his name under heaven, 21 and single him out for harm from all the tribes of Israel, according to all the curses of the covenant written in this book of the law.
This is a warning of those with a stubborn heart that have turned from the Lord God to worship the gods of other nations. To follow the god of the world and no the God of heaven. These people will plant themselves into the church and will produce poisonous and bitter fruit. The idea of being rooted is this corrupt thing that is heard to remove as it grows and defiles more and more.
The warning in Hebrews is to be on guard that this does not happen and he reminds them with this reference to Deuteronomy of the warning and the history of the OT as the example of what this looks like over and over again.
15 Make sure that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness springs up, causing trouble and defiling many.
There is a reoccurring plea in the new testament of watching out for those that may miss out.
20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to God.” 21 He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 1 Working together with him, we also appeal to you, “Don’t receive the grace of God in vain.” 2 For he says: At an acceptable time I listened to you, and in the day of salvation I helped you. See, now is the acceptable time; now is the day of salvation!
4 You who are trying to be justified by the law are alienated from Christ; you have fallen from grace.
12 Watch out, brothers and sisters, so that there won’t be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.
39 But we are not those who draw back and are destroyed, but those who have faith and are saved.
We are not only to pursue peace and holiness so that the lost will see God but also actively be on guard for those that may miss out on the grace of God and the salvation of their souls.
Example of Esau
Example of Esau
16 And make sure that there isn’t any immoral or irreverent person like Esau, who sold his birthright in exchange for a single meal.
Esau would become one of the negative examples in the bible of how not to live. In Jewish history he became one of the examples of what not to do.
Here there were to guard against immoral and irreverent people in the congregation. Your translation may have sexually immoral as instead of just immoral. There is a a debate among theologians about whether the author of Hebrews is speaking about spiritual immoral or sexual immorality. The direct translation of the Greek is sexually immoral.
I believe this is the correct view. In the context of the previous verses as they were pointed back to abandoning the covenant by following and worshiping other God’s an example of a violation of the 1st commandment.
Esau had brought in his own bitter roots and married them.
34 When Esau was forty years old, he took as his wives Judith daughter of Beeri the Hethite, and Basemath daughter of Elon the Hethite. 35 They made life bitter for Isaac and Rebekah.
This was a violation of the God’s will for the patriarchs and a revealing characteristic of those whose hearts are hard toward God. Sexual immorality is the violation of God’s will for covenant marriage and you will see in scripture that this is one of the most obvious sins that appear in a persons life and a community when they are turning from God.
Look out for people like Esau in the church and also watch out for irreverent people.
People who take lightly or dismiss God and God’s will for them.
Esau sold his birthright for a single meal.
29 Once when Jacob was cooking a stew, Esau came in from the field exhausted. 30 He said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stuff, because I’m exhausted.” That is why he was also named Edom. 31 Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” 32 “Look,” said Esau, “I’m about to die, so what good is a birthright to me?” 33 Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore to Jacob and sold his birthright to him. 34 Then Jacob gave bread and lentil stew to Esau; he ate, drank, got up, and went away. So Esau despised his birthright.
The author is emphatic with the word single. Esau was the first born of Isaac and therefore was the one that God’s covenant to Abraham would be passed down through.
Esau did not value what God had promised through his father. The covenant blessing and promise was through the birthright had no worth to him. A bowl of stew was more valuable to him at that moment.
Later when he wanted what he had given up it says he wept for it from his father.
17 For you know that later, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, even though he sought it with tears, because he didn’t find any opportunity for repentance.
We see this play out in Gen 27
34 When Esau heard his father’s words, he cried out with a loud and bitter cry and said to his father, “Bless me too, my father!” 35 But he replied, “Your brother came deceitfully and took your blessing.” 36 So he said, “Isn’t he rightly named Jacob? For he has cheated me twice now. He took my birthright, and look, now he has taken my blessing.” Then he asked, “Haven’t you saved a blessing for me?” 37 But Isaac answered Esau, “Look, I have made him a master over you, have given him all of his relatives as his servants, and have sustained him with grain and new wine. What then can I do for you, my son?” 38 Esau said to his father, “Do you have only one blessing, my father? Bless me too, my father!” And Esau wept loudly.
Esau wanted what was lost. He wept for the blessing. But he did not repent. This was not about reverence to God it was about the value of the blessing in the world. Esau did not repent, did not feel sorrow for his actions.
Unlike David who when his sin was exposed, he fell before the Lord and repented. He recognized what he had done and that he had sinned. But this was not the case for Esau.
Esau was being used as an example of a person who missed the grace of God. He never turned to him, never thought of God more then the God of my father and brother. There was not repentance or believe. and therefore he missed the grace of God. He was not a man of faith.
Irreverence is another sin that we are to guard against. It is another pollutant to the community of God to the church.
20 Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding irreverent and empty speech and contradictions from what is falsely called knowledge.
16 Avoid irreverent and empty speech, since those who engage in it will produce even more godlessness, 17 and their teaching will spread like gangrene. Hymenaeus and Philetus are among them.
Irreverent and empty speech will lead to irreverent and empty actions. We are to live in righteousness and reverence for the Lord.
Conclusion
Conclusion
We should be carefully walking and running our race. Looking for the stumbling blocks, reading God’s warnings. Hearing from the wisdom of other believers in the church.
We are to be encouraged that the race set before is God’s plan for us. We are to have strength even in the struggles and sufferings in life.
We are to pursue peace and holiness with each other and God so that those that do not know God see him. We are to be a light to the darkness.
Each and every brother and sister in the church is to be on guard that no one falls short and that no root of bitterness, sexual immorality and irreverence for the Lord grows in the church.
I have a rose bush. Man I cannot kill it. We have tried and tried. It gets no water. I pile wood on top of it. cut it and rake it. I drench it in weed killer and this thing does not die. It is like this when the church allows thing that are not godly to root themselves in the church. It spreads and causes more to be defiled. It causes more hurt and more pain later on.
We are to strive to be imitators of Jesus and to revere and trust him above all else.
1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins 2 in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient. 3 We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, 5 made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace! 6 He also raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might display the immeasurable riches of his grace through his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—9 not from works, so that no one can boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time for us to do.
Let us pray.
Let us pray.
Prayer
Communion
Warning
Children, Lost, Sin
19 And he took bread, gave thanks, broke it, gave it to them, and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” 20 In the same way he also took the cup after supper and said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
27 Then he took a cup, and after giving thanks, he gave it to them and said, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 For this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Prayer
Song
Closing
Blessing/Benediction
20 Now may the God of peace, who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus—the great Shepherd of the sheep—through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 21 equip you with everything good to do his will, working in us what is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.