ZEAL – Part 9 – Zeal for the Longhaul
Passage:
“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, 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.” (Hebrews 12:1-2)
- Run with Endurance (1b)
- Lay aside Weights (1a)
- Look to Jesus (2)
Run with endurance:
“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.”
In this passage – the author of hebrews – compares this life that we live to a footrace.
- picturing life as a footrace is very common in the New Testament – Paul uses it all the time as an analogy for how we live the Christian life
- in 1 Corinthians he says – 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. (1 Cor. 9:24)
- I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith (2 Tim. 4:7)
- in this passage – he looks at the end of his life – and reflects that he ran the race well –
In both of these passages – Paul looks at the Christian life that as this race – that has been laid out by Christ for us to run
- And that’s exactly what the writer of Hebrews does here – he says let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”
And the writer gives us lots of examples of what this endurance looks like – in the people who have gone on before us – in the very beginning he says “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses…let us run with endurance.
Lay Aside Weights:
“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 the writer here – uses this analogy to talk about how there’s a lot of things that we carry in the Christian life that slow us down – that make it harder to maintain our zeal – that we need to release.
specifically he says here – let us lay aside every weight – and every sin that sticks so closely – or entangles you easily – lay them aside so that you may run the race –
- If there is anything that will trip up your Christian life – or that will sabotage your zeal – it is sin.
the writer here – says to cast it off – repent of it – turn away from it.
But it’s not just sin we are supposed to release – he also calls us to release weights – things that aren’t sin – but things that are tripping you up – and making it so you can’t run the race.
- He says cast these off. put them in their proper place – so that you may run unhindered.
So the author tells us – to make the mental decision to learn endurance – he tells us to cast off weight and sin so that we may run unhindered
- the last thing that he tells us to do to have zeal for the longhaul is where to put our eyes – where we focus as we run –
Look to Jesus:
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.”