Read Hebrews 12:1-3
Introduction:
Some years ago, a well-known poet suddenly disappeared, and there seems to be no doubt that he committed suicide. He was the son of a minister, and he not only rejected his father’s faith, but set himself with intense violence on overthrowing Christianity. This is how The Times (London) closed its review of his last work:
“He had well nigh all that goes to make a great poet, except the upward-seeing vision that is fixed on the Eternal.”1
He had all…“except the upward-seeing vision that is fixed on the Eternal.” A man may have a solid pedigree, advanced education, exceptional gifts and even rare opportunity, but if he lacks the “upward-seeing vision” in the battle of faith, he will suffer defeat and fall short of the finish in the good fight—faithfulness to Christ.
In this classic passage on faith, we are given the secret of enduring battle weariness. How is the Christian believer to face life with all of its uncertainties and hardships and still be faithful to Jesus? A practical guide for how to do this is set before us in the first three verses of Hebrews 12.
The Audience:
Two groups are addressed in this book. These are important to keep in mind.
- The first group contained the curious but unconverted. These are readers who were religious and even possibly members of a local assembly, but they were not saved. Nicodemus was a religious man and even a teacher, yet he was ignorant of the need of a new nature and was unsaved (John 3:1-10). Before his conversion, the Apostle Paul was a Pharisee, yet he was lost (Acts 23:6; Phil. 3:5-7). Religious experience is no assurance of salvation. You can be enlightened but not awakened. You can taste the gift, but despise grace. You can know God’s powerful operation, but not His gracious habitation. Just as sleeping in a garage doesn’t make you a car, being a member of a church or knowledgeable of Scripture doesn’t make you a Christian.
- The second group contained the converted but immature. These readers are saved but not serious about their walk. Their problem was not a lack of solid teaching; the writer felt that because of the time that had passed since they had been exposed to Gospel truth, they “ought to be teachers” (5:12).This does not mean that all believers are to have that special gift of teaching (Eph. 4:11), but it does mean that God expects those who hear the good news to be able to witness of it. However, they were still babes. Their problem was not their diet, but their digestion. They remained in spiritual kindergarten because they refused to practice what they had been taught in the real world trials of life. Unfortunately, many of God’s people suffer from arrested spiritual development. They are physical adults but spiritual babes. Three warning signs marked this second group:
- The presence of thorns and thistles (6:8)
- The lack of things that accompany salvation (6:9)
- A failure to show diligence and a tendency to become slothful (6:10-12)
Hebrews 12:1-2 contains five points that will aid us to endure battle weariness:
- We all have a race to run. The Christian life is compared to many things: a war (2 Cor. 10:3-5), a household (Eph. 2:19-20; 1 Cor. 12:26-27), and a walk (Eph. 5:2; 1 John 2:6). In this twelfth chapter of Hebrews, it is compared to a race. Every believer has been given a course, a race. No one is exempt. The distances or speed may be different, but the course is the same and it is personal. You cannot run someone else’s course, and he cannot run yours. Paul said, “I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course…” (Acts 20:24). It is not carried out in heaven, but here on earth. The metaphor of a race is meant to convey to us that we need a sustained determination, exertion against opposition, a concentration of purpose and will: not self will, but a will submitted to and strengthened by the Holy Spirit (Phil. 2:13).
- Many have gone before us. These are the “cloud of witnesses” that went before us: Abraham, who represents the life of faith; Isaac, the life of submission; Jacob, the life of conflict. Yet, they all made it through. What witness do they give to us? They testify that faith witnesses (11:5-6), faith works (11:7), faith walks (11:8), faith waits (11:9-10), faith wills (11:11-12), faith waits, and faith is welcomed by God (11:13-16). The heroes in the hall of faith teach us the value of faith, the power of faith, and the secret of faith: God is its source and Christ is its author and perfecter! Someone has said that the believer, like David of old, has five pebbles available for use: God is, God has, God does, God can, and God will. All of these are seen in this marvelous book.
- We must lay aside every weight. There is a difference between “every encumbrance” we are to lay aside and “the sin which so easily entangles us.” A weight or an encumbrance is not necessarily evil; these things often involve choice, not obligation. Like removing extra clothing that slows a runner down, if we are to run our best race, we must constantly be freeing ourselves of or laying aside anything and everything that obstructs us from running. Not just running to run, but running to win (1 Cor. 9:24-27).
- We must run with patience. A.W. Tozer spoke of patience as “the power to wait.” Isaiah the prophet said, “…those who wait for the LORD will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles,” which means you will get ability that you did not have before. What will be the purpose? “They will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary” (40:31). In other words, you will find power for the need of the moment and in the normal everyday walk of life. This patience is needed when running or walking, but thank God, it is available to you now through the Holy Spirit of God (Gal. 5:22-23).
- We must be continually looking to Jesus. “Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith.” The Greek verb “looking,” (aphorao), means “to turn eyes away from other things, and fix them on something”—in this case, a Person, the Lord Jesus Christ. It is in the present tense, which means we are to do this constantly. We are not necessarily to look to Him for temporary deliverance, but rather, we are to “consider Him,” to compare, to weigh Him in the balance if you will (v. 3). We are to call things to mind concerning who He is, what He suffered and endured, and how He overcame! The result: “you will not grow weary and lose heart.” To lose heart is to cave in or give in and suffer a moral collapse. We glance at our heroes, but we gaze upon Jesus for the victory!
Dr. A.J. Gordon of Boston once said, “It is the look that saves, but it is the gaze that sanctifies. It is only as we see God, keep our gaze fixed on the Eternal, that our life and service will bring glory to God, blessing to others, and restful satisfaction to our souls.”2 Do you have the upward seeing vision that is fixed on the eternal Lord? If not, look to Him by faith…right now.
1 W.H. Griffith Thomas, Ministerial Life and Work
2 W.H. Griffith Thomas, Ministerial Life and Work