RR “Endurance for the Race” Part 2 by Jerry Miller
Shavuah Tov,
Hebrews 12:1-2a Therefore, since we have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also get rid of every weight and entangling sin. Let us run with endurance the race set before us, focusing on Yeshua, the initiator and perfector of faith.
Earlier this month I shared some thoughts related to these verses from Hebrews 12, with emphasis on the conditioning needed for running this “race” of life in Yeshua. “Conditioning” for spiritual life and vitality is rooted in our ongoing relationship with God, looking to, or “focusing on” Him as the strength of our lives. Anything that interferes with our ongoing walk with God becomes like a “weight” that holds us back.
As we assess our lives, and particularly, our walk with the Lord, we can wrongly think that sin alone is what has the power to hold us back. But the author of Hebrews rightly mentions “weights” in addition to the sins that can be so detrimental to our spiritual vitality. I think we could say that the weights refer to unnecessary extra baggage. These are things that may not be inherently wrong, but for us, they hold us back and have a draining effect on our endurance. Consider that a runner who is participating in an athletic race typically has the benefit of training and pre-race preparation. However, for us in our daily lives, we do not have the benefit of pre-race preparation. The race is already on, and we are in it. Our conditioning and preparation must be taking place while we are already experiencing the rigors of the race—the stresses and challenges of life.
Now, let me point out something that I suspect you are already aware of. The race we are in is not getting easier. The days in which we live are getting more intense all the time. Thus, our endurance becomes more crucial than ever before. If ever there was a time for us to radically deal with “weight(s) and entangling sin”—that time is now. Again, I’m referring to attitudes or practices that may not be inherently sinful, but simply “excess baggage” that weighs us down spiritually. If we truly desire to be living victoriously in these times, rather than being a casualty of the times, dealing with the weights and sin is among the most important things we can do. Dealing with everything that serves as a barrier to knowing Yeshua as the love, strength and power of our lives, must be a priority to us. We must embrace the mandate to leave behind everything that hinders us from “focusing on Yeshua.”
What I am talking about here is not a works emphasis in which we determine to set some “rules” for ourselves. While there can be many areas in which we do set standards of behavior, I believe the most important key for our enduring in difficult times, will be our love relationship with Yeshua. We must be guarding our hearts so that our passion for Him is not crowded out by other interests and priorities. It is our passion for God that alone can be the fuel for a vibrant walk with Him. With such passion filling our hearts, we will live for His purposes and not merely our own desires. Our passion for Him will lead us to a lifestyle in which we will avoid the kind of reckless living that characterizes the world around us. The result can be a life filled with “righteousness and shalom and joy in the Ruach ha-Kodesh” (Romans 14:17), rather than the condemnation and frustration that can come from walking outside of God’s pathways.
This does not mean we will never fall short or never face difficult challenges, but simply that our focus will be on Yeshua and His goodness, and thus, we can live with the sense of faith and confidence to run to Him when we do fall short. We look to Him in those times when the challenges of life seem too hard. He must be our source of life, power, joy and fulfillment. In each of our lives, as we walk with Him, may the Lord graciously be “fanning the flame” of our first-love, that our passion for Him would grow with each passing day. May the Lord strengthen you and build you up for the victorious race for which you have been created!
Daily Bread, reading plan by Lars Enarson (https://www.thewatchman.org/)
Sun17-Aug 202523rd of Av, 5785
De 11:26-12:10Ez 461 Ch 242 Ti 2 (Jn 11:28-57)
Hebrews 12:1-2a Therefore, since we have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also get rid of every weight and entangling sin. Let us run with endurance the race set before us, focusing on Yeshua, the initiator and perfector of faith.
Earlier this month I shared some thoughts related to these verses from Hebrews 12, with emphasis on the conditioning needed for running this “race” of life in Yeshua. “Conditioning” for spiritual life and vitality is rooted in our ongoing relationship with God, looking to, or “focusing on” Him as the strength of our lives. Anything that interferes with our ongoing walk with God becomes like a “weight” that holds us back.
As we assess our lives, and particularly, our walk with the Lord, we can wrongly think that sin alone is what has the power to hold us back. But the author of Hebrews rightly mentions “weights” in addition to the sins that can be so detrimental to our spiritual vitality. I think we could say that the weights refer to unnecessary extra baggage. These are things that may not be inherently wrong, but for us, they hold us back and have a draining effect on our endurance. Consider that a runner who is participating in an athletic race typically has the benefit of training and pre-race preparation. However, for us in our daily lives, we do not have the benefit of pre-race preparation. The race is already on, and we are in it. Our conditioning and preparation must be taking place while we are already experiencing the rigors of the race—the stresses and challenges of life.
Now, let me point out something that I suspect you are already aware of. The race we are in is not getting easier. The days in which we live are getting more intense all the time. Thus, our endurance becomes more crucial than ever before. If ever there was a time for us to radically deal with “weight(s) and entangling sin”—that time is now. Again, I’m referring to attitudes or practices that may not be inherently sinful, but simply “excess baggage” that weighs us down spiritually. If we truly desire to be living victoriously in these times, rather than being a casualty of the times, dealing with the weights and sin is among the most important things we can do. Dealing with everything that serves as a barrier to knowing Yeshua as the love, strength and power of our lives, must be a priority to us. We must embrace the mandate to leave behind everything that hinders us from “focusing on Yeshua.”
What I am talking about here is not a works emphasis in which we determine to set some “rules” for ourselves. While there can be many areas in which we do set standards of behavior, I believe the most important key for our enduring in difficult times, will be our love relationship with Yeshua. We must be guarding our hearts so that our passion for Him is not crowded out by other interests and priorities. It is our passion for God that alone can be the fuel for a vibrant walk with Him. With such passion filling our hearts, we will live for His purposes and not merely our own desires. Our passion for Him will lead us to a lifestyle in which we will avoid the kind of reckless living that characterizes the world around us. The result can be a life filled with “righteousness and shalom and joy in the Ruach ha-Kodesh” (Romans 14:17), rather than the condemnation and frustration that can come from walking outside of God’s pathways.
This does not mean we will never fall short or never face difficult challenges, but simply that our focus will be on Yeshua and His goodness, and thus, we can live with the sense of faith and confidence to run to Him when we do fall short. We look to Him in those times when the challenges of life seem too hard. He must be our source of life, power, joy and fulfillment. In each of our lives, as we walk with Him, may the Lord graciously be “fanning the flame” of our first-love, that our passion for Him would grow with each passing day. May the Lord strengthen you and build you up for the victorious race for which you have been created!
Daily Bread, reading plan by Lars Enarson (https://www.thewatchman.org/)
Sun17-Aug 202523rd of Av, 5785
De 11:26-12:10Ez 461 Ch 242 Ti 2 (Jn 11:28-57)
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