We Don t Run Alone Hebrews 11:29-12:2

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1 We Don t Run Alone Hebrews 11:29-12:2 Rev. Michael D. Halley August 14, 2016 Suffolk Christian Church Suffolk, Virginia Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Over the years many of us have wanted, from time to time, to begin a running program 1. Jogging, we were told, is good exercise. So, consider this scenario: Our typical starting date is January 1, probably because we have made a New Year s resolution to get fit. Our new resolution holds fast for the first week, with an early rising and a regimen of walking and jogging more and more steps each day. The first problems usually pop up during the second week when the alarm at six a.m. seems louder and more irritating than before. And it occurs to you that you can certainly jog just as easily at seven a.m. So, you go back to sleep for that extra hour. Before long, in this new training plan, there is less jogging and more walking... well, really strolling, to tell the truth... and before long the wellconceived training plan is abandoned altogether. Sound familiar? It is a bit like that with our various attempts to deepen our spiritual lives. We vow, for example, to read the Bible all the way through. But by the time we get to Leviticus, we are so bogged down that this well-intentioned spiritual exercise goes away. We mean well and we start well, but we don t keep at it. Maybe we don t quit altogether, but we don t really push ourselves. It s too easy for us to become content with our present level of spirituality, our current depth of Bible knowledge, our on-again-off-again prayer life, and our rather feeble commitment to serve our Lord in mission outreach. I am not trying to beat you up with this! We all need help and

2 Page -2- encouragement! This reading from Hebrews calls us to seek a deeper level for our faith, to push ourselves, and to test our limits. Using the language and imagery of running a race, this passage calls us to perseverance and reminds us that none of us is in this alone. We are being encouraged to not give up and to give it all we can. Hebrews tells us that in this spiritual race we need to lay aside every weight. Sometimes that is our problem. We humans tend to carry baggage with us, don t we? Some of us can look at our past and see lots of times of hurt and disappointments and rejections. The stress of daily life weighs us down. The craziness of the world weighs us down. We look out at the world and it seems as though things are not becoming any better. That can affect our faith. Arguments and disagreements and conflict in the church can weigh us down. At some point in everyone s time in church life, something or someone will hurt our feelings. It is hard to build our faith with all of these things weighing us down. We have trouble running with perseverance. We need a faith that sustains us. We need a faith that doesn t fade away in the middle of the race. Hebrews assures us that we do not run this race only on our own power. We have help. We are not alone. Throughout chapter 11, the author recounts the stories of the heroes of the Old Testament. He includes the most obvious examples, like Abraham and Moses. For these two prominent figures, the author gives brief descriptions of their journey of faith. At the point where our passage starts today, in the 29 th verse, the author picks up speed. In rapid-fire pace he tells of some of the lesser-known characters in the Bible. Each story receives only one verse. He condenses the entire exodus from Egypt into one verse about the people crossing the sea. The walls of Jericho fall; Rahab was obedient; then comes Gideon, Barak

3 Page -3- (BAY-rack), Samson, Jephthah, David, and Samuel. After the names come the deeds: administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions. He goes so fast, we do not even know if the lion story refers to Samson or Daniel. He does not even bother with names after that. He simply recounts these wonderful faith stories. By the time he is finished, we are overwhelmed with what faith has done in the lives of these heroes. We don t have time to think about one deed before the next one flies at us. Just look at what faith can accomplish! Faith can quench fire, endure torture, hold up under mocking, and survive poverty. By the time he finishes in verse 38, we realize that faith can do anything! These heroes of the faith are our inspiration. They hammer home the message that nothing the world can throw at us can get us down. Whatever we go through, these heroes have been through worse. Their faith held up; they persevered. We can persevere, too! And we don t have to do it alone! These heroes are more than just distant figures providing inspiration for the author of Hebrews. They are with us now. The author presents a wonderful image beginning in chapter 12. We are in the stadium, about to begin our race, the long, grueling race that will require a persevering faith. We are at the starting line; the gun is about to go off. These heroes of the faith are there in the stadium with us! The author calls them a great cloud of witnesses. Where are these heroes of the faith? They are not dead and gone. They are in the stands, cheering for us! We don t run this race alone. Abraham, Moses, David, Samuel, and even Rahab the redeemed prostitute, are rooting for us to keep going. It s a bit like the Relay for Life, when all the cancer survivors take the first lap around the track, surrounded by those who are cheering them on. So, if our faith is faltering, let s look up in the stands and see who is cheering for us.

4 But maybe it is hard for you to imagine these heroes of the Old Testament. Maybe they are not enough for you. Consider these examples 2 : Page -4- The Greek philosopher Plato (424/ /347 BC) wrote the first sentence of his famous Republic nine different ways before he was satisfied. The Roman politician Cicero ( BC) practiced speaking before friends every day for thirty years to perfect his oratory skills. Noah Webster ( ) labored 36 years writing his dictionary, and crossed the Atlantic Ocean twice to gather material. The English poet John Milton ( ) rose at 4:00 am every day in order to have enough hours to work on his famous work, Paradise Lost. It is said that Thomas Edison ( ) performed thousands and thousands of experiments before he succeeded in producing a storage battery. It would be easy to assume that he would have had some serious doubts along the way. But, when asked if he ever became discouraged working so long without results, Edison replied, Results? Why, now I know thousands of things that won t work. One more... you may remember Walter Payton ( ), Hall of Fame running back for the Chicago Bears... in his 13-year pro football career he gained 16,726 yards. That s nine and a half miles! But, as one sports commentator 3 put it, Walter Payton gained those yards while someone was knocking him down every four and a half yards! Perseverance! And we are not alone! Well, if even these are not enough for us, Hebrews gives us one more example: that of Jesus. The writer of Hebrews calls Jesus the pioneer of our faith. Hebrews makes it clear that Jesus has gone through all the temptations

5 Page -5- and trials that we face. Jesus has run the race of perseverance. As the pioneer, Jesus is the one who goes first, who cuts the trail, who hacks through the wilderness to make a path where there is no path. Jesus is the pioneer of our faith. If we go to a place we think no one has been before, we can know that Jesus has been there first. We don t run the race alone! Maybe there are some things that are holding you back. Some of us, I am sure, have intellectual doubts about the Christian faith. To you, I say hang in there and have faith even without all of the answers. Some of us are experiencing the aging process and our bodies have begun to turn on us, causing pain and weakness. To you, I say, persevere in faith, knowing that our spirits can transcend our bodies. Maybe you are disappointed in yourself, not seeing the spiritual growth that you would like to see. Don t despair, God is still at work in you. Maybe you are weary of the hassles of everyday life, getting your feelings hurt, tired of all the arguments and bickering. Don t give up! God is still working in your life in spite of all of its problems. Let s persevere together. Let s keep going together. You don t run this race alone! So, look around you. We are running our race of faith with a great cloud of witnesses cheering us on. We run with the inspiration of others who have faced the same problems we have. As we are running, we may find that our energy is low, and we want to drop out. If our feet are weary, our sides are aching, and we are gasping for breath, let us look up. Just ahead of us on the track is one who has run this race before. He is the pioneer of our faith. He is leading the way. If we look to him, we can keep on running this race of life. Let us pray: Our Father, O how we thank you for Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. How we thank you that Jesus did not give up, did not run from his responsibilities, and was faithful and obedient to you, our heavenly Father. May we, too, run with perseverance the race that is set before us, following Jesus and being encouraged along the way by our sisters and brothers in the

6 Page -6- faith. We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen. +==+==+==+==+==+==+ I want to thank the Rev. Charles L. Aaron, Jr., for his inspiring insights shared in Running with Perseverance, from his book, Sermons for Sundays after Pentecost (Middle Third): Faith, Hope, and Love: From Paul and After Paul. Rev. Aaron is pastor of First United Methodist Church, Terrell, Texas. +==+==+==+==+==+==+ All Scripture references are from New International Version, NIV, copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc., unless otherwise indicated. +==+==+==+==+==+==+ Sunday Sermons from Suffolk Christian Church are intended for the private devotional use of members and friends of the church. Please do not print or publish. Thank you. Suggestions for sermon topics are always welcome! 1. This is my adaptation of the story told by United Methodist Bishop Robert C. Schnase (himself a runner!), in his book, Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations (Nashville: Abingdon, 2007), pp Compiled in Today in the Word, August, Quoted in Book of Lists, by Jeff Quandt and Irving Wallace, 1980.