Go for the Gold

Hebrews 12:1 “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…”

    I read a great story on this subject from Pastor David Allen that gives perspective to the Christian journey of life;

“It’s a grueling 543.7-mile endurance race from Sydney to Melbourne, Australia – the world’s longest and toughest ultra-marathon. In 1983, 150 world-class runners converged on Sydney for the event. On the day of the race, a toothless 61-year-old potato farmer and sheepherder named Cliff Young approached the registration table wearing overalls and galoshes over his work boots. At first, people thought he was there to watch the race, but to their surprise, Cliff Young declared his intention to run and requested a number.

    Cliff Young had grown up on a farm without the benefit of luxuries like horses and four wheel drives. When the storms rolled in, Cliff headed out to round up 2000 sheep over a 2000-acre farm. Sometimes he had to run them two or three days to complete the round up.

    The incredulous staff issued Cliff #64. As he mingled with the other runners at the starting line, spectators couldn’t believe their eyes. “This must be a joke!” some mused. When the gun went off, bystanders snickered at Cliff, left behind in his galoshes and overalls as the other runners with their sculpted bodies and running gear briskly began the race. Snickers gave way to laughter when Cliff began to run, not like the other runners, but with what could only be described as a leisurely, odd, shuffle.

    All of Australia was riveted to the live telecast as they watched the scene unfold. “Someone should stop that crazy old man before he kills himself!” Five days, 15 hours, and 4 minutes later, Cliff Young came shuffling across the finish line in Melbourne, winning the ultra-marathon! He didn’t win by a few seconds, or even a few minutes. The nearest runner was 9 hours and 56 minutes behind. Australians were stunned at this remarkable yet seemingly impossible victory. How did it happen?

    Everyone knew that to run the ultra-marathon, runners would run for 18 hours, then stop and sleep for six hours. This routine was repeated for five punishing days. But no one told Cliff Young. He just shuffled along, day and night, night and day, without stopping to sleep. Cliff broke the previous race record by nine hours and became overnight a national hero.

    Interestingly, professional runners began to study and experiment with the odd shuffle that Cliff used in his running. Many long-distance runners have since adopted what has come to be called the “Young shuffle” due to its aerodynamic and energy efficiency.

    Victory in the Christian life comes through endurance. The Christian life is not a 100-yard dash. It is a marathon. In the short distance race, speed is important. In the long-distance race, endurance is what leads to success. In the race of the Christian life, some things are standard for all believers. As Hebrews 12:1 says, the race is “set before us.” But each of us must run the race in our own special way with the gifts and talents God has endowed us. Against all odds, we run the race; our race.

    Hebrews 12:1says: “Therefore, since we have so great a crowd of witness surrounding us…” It is speaking of all the people who have run the race of faith before us. In the previous chapter. Hebrews 11, the writer tells of the faith of Abel, and Enoch, and Noah, and Abraham, and Moses, and others, and how they endured sufferings, and overcome obstacles, and ran the race of faith which was before them. We each have many obstacles in our personal lives, and in our churches. But you and I are not the first to run the Christian race; others have “gone before us.”

    “let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.”

Would you take a moment right now and ask yourself: what is “weighing you down” and keeping you from being the follower of Jesus that God wants you to be? — It may be a sinful habit that is like a cancer that is draining your spiritual strength. Maybe it is bitterness over how you have been treated, or your unwillingness to forgive someone. Unforgiveness is a heavy weight; you can’t successfully run the Christian race with that weight on your back! Perhaps it is some friends who are dragging your down spiritually. There may be a person, or some people in your life, with whom you will never be able to run a strong Christian life. You need to sever those ties so that you can run the race unhindered. It may be a love for the things of this world that is keeping you from really being totally committed to follow Christ with all your heart. You can’t run the Christian race and run to the things of the world at the same time. You need to put those goals aside; they are slowing you down, so that you can run after the Lord.

    Or it could even be something “good” that you are giving too much attention to, and it is taking your attention away from the race that God wants you to run. It could be a hobby, or watching too much television, or spending too much time on the internet; any number of things that are just slowing you down spiritually.

    Jesus mentions this very thing in The Parable of the Soils in Matthew 13. He said that when the Gospel is “sown” into the world like seed, that some of it hits the road, and the birds devour it. But some of it finds thin soil, and it seems to sprout up quickly, but it withers quickly away. Jesus said that seed is like the person who hears the word and seems to receive it with joy, but just as quickly falls away when persecution or difficulty comes. That’s just another way of saying that the Christian life is not a “sprint”; it is a marathon. It is not how fast you go, but that you keep on going.

More about the race next week. Thanks for following.

Like the Bristlecone Pine
    So, we have drawn a line in the sand so to speak, over which we will not cross. But, the very next verses remind us that “our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, the authorities, against the powers of this dark world…AND, against the forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” It’s two against one!  We are fighting a natural battle and a spiritual battle at the same time. Is it any wonder Paul says we need the “whole armor of God” in order to stand our ground after we have “taken a stand?”  Listen, it is always easier to take a stand than it is to stand our ground; it is always easier to make a decision than it is to stick to that decision. That’s why Paul says we are to “stand in the Lord and His mighty power!”

    Standing our ground means that we are never “wishy-washy” in our faith. We don’t waver in our convictions. We don’t waffle and compromise our principles. There may come a day when this will really hit home; in fact it already has. What choices do we make when our own government tells us to go in one direction, and God’s Word tells us to go another?  How long will it be before God is taken out of everything! 

    In Acts chapter 4, Peter and John are brought before the Sanhedrin - now the Sanhedrin was the “religious ruling party” you could say of their day; and, they were commanded “not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.” Peter and John replied; “Judge for yourself whether it is right IN GOD”S SIGHT to obey Him or you?” They took a stand and they stood their ground! A second time they were brought before the Sanhedrin, and the High Priest said; “You were given strict orders not to teach in this name, yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching!” Again, Peter and John stood and said; “We must obey God rather than men.” Perhaps they remembered the words of Jesus when He said “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but rather be afraid of the one who can destroy both body and soul.” Shadrack, Meshack, and Abednigo said “Throw us in the furnace…we believe God is able to save us! And even if He doesn’t, we have taken a stand!” What a perfect example of what Jesus was saying.

    Being able to stand in our faith requires that we grow in our faith “so we will not be tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching.” (Ephesians 4:14)

   I can’t help but think of the Bristlecone Pine tree that grows high up in the mountains of the southwest. It is constantly buffeted by the wind and rain and storms, as well as the constant heat of the hot sun. Most of the Bristlecone Pines have stood so much for so long that their bark is literally gone. ..yet, it still stands. Well, at least the ones that have their roots imbedded in the rock still stand. Many of the others whose roots were in the soft, rich, loamy soil, have long since fallen…There seems to be some spiritual significance there…

    Our faith is most often the very thing that brings us into conflict with the powers and problems of this world. Jesus said in Matthew 10:22 “All men will hate you because of me”…And in John 15:18 - “If the world hates  you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. This is why the world hates you. They will treat you this way because of my name.” I believe that the world just tolerates the church, as long as it is a worldly church. This is exactly what Jesus was talking about “if you belonged to the world, it would love you” Why? Because nobody cares about a church that will fall for anything, a church that tolerates the world and never takes a stand! 

    As Christians, we define faith as “Being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see”…Yet, the world sees a church that doesn’t really know what it believes, and a church that doesn’t really like to make waves, and a church that can’t really define who, or what, or why they meet on Sundays, other than it’s the right thing to do; it makes you look good; it‘s a tradition; it makes you feel good; all of which may be true. If you think I am becoming a little radical, I am!

    There are times when we cry out to God, and He responds and delivers and blesses; but, there are also times when we have done everything we can do in our power, and in seeking God as well, but nothing seems to change. There seems to be no answer from God…only silence. No divine intervention, no miracles, and we wonder what in the world is happening.  It is at those times when our faith; rather than being the power to move mountains; is to become the platform upon which we stand! 

    A Jew, held captive in a dark basement by Germans, scratched these words on the wall of his cramped quarters; “I believe in the sun, even when I cannot see it; I believe in love, even when I cannot feel it; and I believe in God, even when He is silent.” That’s a true faith.

    That’s what we are doing now; we are turning our face to the wind of the world, and with the mighty power of God in whom we believe, as backup; and our roots being firmly planted in the Rock of Jesus Christ our Lord, we are going to prepare for battle; because, there will be a battle!

    The problem as I see it is that the Church’s salt is losing its savoriness, and her light is being hidden. It’s because there are too many Christians with “preferences” rather than  “convictions!”  I want you to know that neither America, nor the Devil will take notice until we are ready to draw the line and stand on our convictions, and reach out; speak out; and live out the love of Christ! We need God back in this nation!   I usually don’t give political speeches, and I am not trying to sway votes, I’m simply saying that we need to stop sitting back on our “laurels” and start standing up for Biblical morals! (end of rant)

Take a Stand!

    “Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power”! … These are great, strong, powerful, and encouraging words from the Apostle Paul. Words that give us a picture of the courageous Christian, standing his ground for the things he truly believes. Standing firm! Taking a stand! We need those words to characterize the way we should live…believing, standing, uncompromising, immovable, faith. The truth is that the Christian community has, in many ways, staggered and wavered under social pressures and wimpy political pressures and even Pharisitical legalistic interpretations that are the ruthless attempt of Satan to get us to fight lifes battles in our own power and dim the light of the church.

    I for one am tired of a handful of atheistic, anti-everything, unbelieving, ignorant people holding our nation in bondage in their attempts to take God out of everything! It’s time that we take a stand! 

    Given the nature of the many battles we face in life, if we are to be strong it must be in His mighty power, not ours. We are engaged in a constant spiritual battle over values, morals, ethics, and beliefs; and this is on top of all the physical battles, trials, and temptations we face every day.

    The Book of Ephesians begins with all the spiritual blessings that are ours in Christ, and it ends with this passage about the spiritual battle-field we find ourselves in also because we are in Christ. The message we must understand is that God’s grace is adequate in both times of battle and times of blessing! In fact, it’s the time of blessing that prepares us for the time of battle. It is the times of God’s blessing that He works in us to change our thinking, our hearts - the way we feel about life - and to change our character, which equips us to “stand” as it says in our scripture, during times of spiritual and physical attack, because we will know what it means to “put on the whole armor of God.”

    In this scripture the word “stand” is used four times. Sometimes in a crisis situation we shout; “Don’t just stand there, do something!” But, in this particular scripture, Paul is saying that if we know and have the whole armor of God, we don’t have to fight; we need to “stand” in God’s mighty power!

   The message is “Be strong in the Lord”, “take a stand, stand your ground, stand firm, and after you have done everything, stand!” One of Satan’s schemes is to make a wrong seem right. For our generation, one of those would be “situational ethics”; There are no absolutes, and values are determined by the situation. Our society has somehow come to believe that our time is different from any other time, therefore the rules must be different and somehow changed to fit today’s world. And, that includes that somehow God’s expectations are also different for us than they were way back when. Listen, have you ever heard the words “I am the Lord Thy God, who changeth not”?  Paul encourages us in Romans 12:9 to “hate what is evil and cling to that which is good.” More now than ever, we need to take a stand, and establish convictions based on God’s Word and not the world!  It may be trite but it’s true, “If you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything.”  What do you stand for today?    

    In Matthew 6:24 Jesus said; “No one can serve two masters” - Take a stand! When Moses brought down the Ten Commandments only to find the Israelites worshipping an idol; he called for those who were for the Lord to come to his side and take a stand! Again, Joshua said to the Israelites, “You yourselves have seen everything the Lord your God has done. But, if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose this day whom you will serve” - Take a stand!  And finally, the words of Elijah as he spoke to the people before challenging the prophets of Baal on Mt Carmel; “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, then follow Him!” - Take a stand!

    If I may, let me paraphrase of the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:24 - where Jesus speaks of the wise and foolish builders; “Therefore, if anyone hears my words, and puts them into practice in his or her life, that man takes a stand upon a rock! And when Satan tries to dissuade him by all sorts of cunning schemes and trials and temptations and doubt, HE WILL BE ABLE TO STAND and be strong in God’s mighty power.  However, anyone who hears these words and does not put them into practice, is like the foolish man who takes a stand upon the sand; and when these same things come upon him, he will slip and slide and stagger and fall.” I think it’s time. It’s time to “Believe God.” He has said “If I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto myself.” And perhaps, as in the days of the prophet Joel, “a fountain will flow out of God’s house and will water the valley of our world.

    Again, thanks for reading my blog. Why not click the follow button and send me your email address? You will receive a notification each time I post, and you will receive a free “The Promised Gift” E-book as my gift to you.