Divine Appointment

This is a short story about a girl named Heather who I met in D.C. during the Reason Rally. It wouldn't be any different than a normal testimony of one-to-one evangelism except for her response afterwards.

Around one o'clock in the afternoon, Tony Mammen and I were handing out tracts. The tracts made for us had the Reason Rally banner on the front, but a gospel message on the back (see above picture). So we handed them to people by showing them the front and they took them thinking we were promoting the event. When I handed Heather one of these tracts, she asked where the event was because she was trying to get there. Without thinking, Tony and I were about to walk to the corner and point to where the Rally was, but my heart was broken with the idea of sending this eighteen or nineteen year old girl to the slaughter. So I quickly asked her, "Why are you going there, if you don't mind me asking?" 

"Oh, um, I guess I just wanted to see what it's all about." Heather responded.

"Do you believe in God?" I replied.

"Well, sort of. Not really. I guess I just wanted to see what they had to say."

I figured out that Heather was heading over there because she wanted a reason not to believe in God. I quickly jumped on it and started going through The Way Of The Master, but she instantly began justifying herself saying, "Well, I might be a liar, but doesn't the Bible also say you have to dress a certain way?" In order not to lose her, I said, "You're referring to some of the Old Testament laws? Because many of those were fulfilled in Christ." She then said, "But then your distinguishing between what's allowed and what's not allowed in the Bible." So I told her I would explain in a minute. However, I then asked if she had some sort of church background. She proceeded to tell me that she grew up in a legalistic Methodist church for most of her life, which explained the "You must where this or that" comment.

Without any hesitation, I went right back to The Way Of The Master. I had to use the courtroom analogy several times in order to show her that even if she used to be a bad person but she decided to be good and never sinned again for the rest of her life (not possible), the Judge must punish her crime because she is guilty whether she was caught immediately or twenty years later. I also explained that even if you don't believe that the Judge exists, the Laws exists, or the courtroom exists, if you try and leave the court room, you will simply be tackled by the bailiff because it really doesn't matter what you believe, it matters what's true; and the truth is that we have broken the law and the Judge must sentence us for our crimes because He is a just Judge.

Heather's mouth was instantly stopped. I pressed it a little farther with the law to fully show her that she is in fact a sinner in need of a savior, and then I shared the gospel of Jesus Christ with her. I could tell that she was about to start crying because she realized the truth. I then told her that this is why we were out there, which is to share the truth about Jesus Christ with people because we care about their eternal destination. Then we talked for another minute or two, and as she was getting ready to walk away, I asked her to think about what we talked about. She responded with, "I will later in life. Thanks." She seemed so convicted that she didn't know what to do with everything. So I quickly asked her, "Can I ask you one more thing before you go? What if you go to cross that road in order to go to the Reason Rally and you get struck by a car? What happens if there is no 'later in life'?" 

You can ask Tony, but her eyes instantly started welling with tears (I could tell that Tony was praying next to me without letting Heather know). At this point, Heather had no words, and I really didn't either. So we all shook hands and she headed off. However, what happened next is why I am telling this story.

Heather walked over to the stoplight and turned to cross the road to Reason Rally. Tony and I just stood there watching her as she had to wait for the light to turn green before she could cross the street. As she stood there, she looked down at the tract we gave her. She looked back up again, and then she looked back down again. This happened several times, since it was a long light, but before the light turned green, she looked to the right and crossed the street in the other direction. Instead of crossing straight in order to go to the Rally, she crossed to the right and headed in the other direction. Tony and I never saw her look back over at the Reason Rally. 

Right then and there, Tony and I started praying out loud that the Lord would not only convict her and convert her, but that she might not cross the street to go to the Reason Rally later on. And, if she did cross the road, that she would see the difference between the atheists condemning the Christians, Westboro condemning everyone, and "The 500" who shared the love of Jesus Christ with her.

Keep Heather in prayer. Pray that the Lord would draw her to Himself by giving her the faith to believe, so that one day Tony and I might meet her in heaven because she had escaped the fires of Hell through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that she so clearly heard. All praise, and glory, and honor unto Jesus Christ the King (1 Tim. 1:17).

Wherever The Wind Blows

One of the interesting facts about retail is that you never know who is going to breeze into the store unexpectedly. When you work in retail where the population is mostly senior citizens, several things are true that might not be otherwise. For example, most of the seniors in my town live in retirement homes. They only leave their complex for one of two reasons. They are either going out to get food from the store, or they are going to play bingo with their crew.

The fact is that when you work retail in this kind of environment, most of your customers do not always have friends, family, or, frankly, anyone to talk to at all. Technically this can be true in any society anywhere, but it is even more true in a town full of senior citizens.

I am going to tell you a story that was only made possible because of some current events that have been encouraging, and the sovereignty of God that made everything possible.

God's Sovereignty In Meeting

Last night I met a man named Bob. I had seen him before in the store, but it had been quite some time. He bought a few ordinary things such as milk and bread, but what happened after he finished paying for everything at my register is the reason for this post.

I told Bob to have a good day (as I do with all of my customers) and I turned around to finish putting some product behind the register away. As I turned around, Bob said before leaving, "Can I ask you a question?" Before I could answer, he followed with this: "Jared, are you a praying man?"

Rewind the clock slightly and follow my thought process: Before heading to work that afternoon, I had just read this article, where two evangelists asked a man if they could pray for him. It had the effect of humbling the man and opening up an opportunity to share the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Fast-forward: This was the exact same situation I was now in, only reverse. Bob had asked me if I was a praying man. As I turned around to answer Bob's question, I noticed that the store was almost entirely empty when it very rarely is. Here is some of the dialog that took place after his question:

Without hesitation, I answered Bob with a question: "How can I pray for you?"

"I'm hurting inside and I need help," said Bob.

"Would you like to talk about it?" I said.

Bob replied, "I don't have many people to talk to, and a family member just died and I'm the only one left."

"I am real sorry for your loss." I replied.

Then Bob looked at me and said this, "I am the only one left and I don't know what to do. I know this disease runs in my family (I can't remember what disease he said), and I know I could get it and die soon."

God's Sovereignty In Conversation

I don't really know why I said what I said next, but it might have had a little to do with the store being so empty: "Bob, let me ask you, do you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?"

He said, "Well, I think so. I trust in God, and I've repented of my sins. I know I'm not perfect, and that burdens me." While he was talking, he was making gestures with his hands to show the conflict in his heart; as if he could not put it to words, but knew there was a longing in his heart for something.

Not wanting to increase his guilt too much more than necessary, while realizing that he had just admitted his sinfulness and need for a savior, I directed him to Jesus Christ. I told him briefly about Jesus Christ and how He could forgive him for his sinfulness and his failure to be perfect; I told him how he could be made right with God because of Jesus Christ, and I told him how he could have a peace in his heart by having a hope for the future. I told him that I, too, was brought out of the pit of my guilt and my sin, and because of what Jesus Christ did for me on the cross at Calvary, I am now a new man with a peace in my heart and a joy to serve the Lord.

I asked him again, "Are you sure you know Jesus Christ?" I said to him that Jesus had asked His disciples this same question. I handed him a gospel tract to tell him more about Jesus Christ, I shook his hand, and told him I would be praying for him. He did ask if I was a Jehovah's Witness. I said no and then I thought about how I failed to make that clear as I told him about Christ.

Bob asked what church I went to, and after I told him, he told me that it was too far since he could not drive. I referred him to a local Bible church where I have been good friends with the youth pastor for several years. I gave him this man's name and directions to the church. I then shook his hand and said that I would pray for him and if he ever needed a friend to talk to, I am usually working. He thanked me and headed on his way.

God's Sovereignty In Salvation

As of today, I ran into Bob at the local grocery store. He was in a big hurry because someone had driven him there, but I asked him if he was able to read the gospel tract yet. He said he read a little bit of it, but had not had time to read the whole thing yet. I asked him if he wanted to talk (since I was not working then), but he was desperately looking for his ride home. He calmed down when I asked him again if I could pray for him. He explained that he has been "searching" for something to fill the "longing in his heart."

I can tell you that as I watched Bob say this, I could tell that God has pricked this man's heart and he is searching for a peace that passes all understanding (Phil. 4:7). Please be in prayer for Bob: That he would have heard the message of Jesus Christ accurately; that he would read the gospel tract thoroughly; that he would become a part of a good local church, and that the Lord would open his eyes to the gospel and show him the way to salvation. Pray that if the Lord wills it, the Wind would blow in Bob's direction (John 3:8), so that he might come to true repentance and faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation.

Handling The Critics

I realize that I haven't posted in a while, which is mostly due to a busy schedule, illness, and discouragement. I am hoping to get back to my blogging schedule soon, but for now I want to talk about the third item in that list for a moment: discouragement.

It seems quite clear to me that almost anytime you desire to do anything for the Lord, you will either battle the flesh or Satan; sometimes both. The encouragement that prompted this post came after a long week of opposition. This blog post by Justin Edwards brought me to tears as he used my testimony in an attempt to reach those who think they know Christ, but in reality they are self deceived. This was a follow-up post that came after I discovered and commented on this really good blog post by Justin as it had been reposted over at the Stand-Up-For-Truth blog.

Over the past few weeks I have been discouraged due to many criticisms (not just one). They usually amounted to accusations of being unloving or condemning in some way or another, or perhaps a disagreement on a theological perspective. Nonetheless, the reason I am writing this post is to give all of you readers some encouragement on how to handle critics. All subsequent points will ultimately drawn from Scripture, but they are points taken from a sermon which you can listen to here if you are interested.

The Context

In the book of Nehemiah, we see several different ways that Satan tried to stop Nehemiah from doing the will of Yahweh as he went to Jerusalem (in Judah), to the city of his father's tomb, in order to rebuild it (Neh. 2:5).

Here is a little bit of historical background: Between 605 and 586 B.C. the Lord used the Babylonians to utterly destroy Jerusalem. There were three returns to Jerusalem thereafter. The book of Nehemiah chronicles the third return. The first two returns are in the book of Ezra. The temple had already been rebuilt by Joshua and Zerubbabel in the first return (Ezra 1-6). The second return was an attempt by Haman to wipe out the Jews (Ezra 7-10). The third return is seen here in the book of Nehemiah, which dates at 445 B.C. This was the prophecy that came from Daniel around 539 B.C. where Daniel was told by Gabriel that when the decree from the King to rebuild Jerusalem came, that in 483 years, the Messiah would enter into the city of Jerusalem (Dan. 9:25). This prophecy is one of the greatest in all of Scripture because it works out to the exact day from 445 B.C. to 32 A.D. (don't try and do the math, it is a little complicated since you have to translate to the Jewish calendar) when Jesus Christ, the Messiah, enters the city of Jerusalem. If that doesn't give you the chilly-willies, I don't know what will!

To continue, Nehemiah had been issued the decree to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the entire city (Neh. 2:6). However, Nehemiah was merely following the will of the Lord and he was bound to meet some opposition. Two men continually nagged Nehemiah on his way to Jerusalem, and even once he began rebuilding the city, they didn't cease to intimidate him. Satan used these men to try to convince Nehemiah to stop doing the Lord's will, and there are at least four ways Satan tried to stop Nehemiah (there are more than four, but this short list will do. For the full list, listen to the sermon mentioned above). We need to know these four ways because this is how Satan tries to keep us from doing the Lord's will. He doesn't have any new tricks up his sleeve. It's a never ending cycle. This is what we need to expect from him.

1) Ridicule

One of Satan's best strategies is using people to ridicule us. Look at verses 18-19 in chapter two with me:

...And they (Nehemiah and the men with him) said, "Let us rise up and build." So they strengthened their hands for the good work. But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they jeered at us and despised us and said, "What is this thing that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?" (Neh. 2:18-19).

This was merely the beginning of the mockery. These men jeered at them and despised them. Nehemiah responded with a short rebuke to these men in verse 19: "The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build, but you have no portion or right or claim in Jerusalem." This was minimal intimidation which Nehemiah responded to easily, but it didn't end there. Satan will always use people to intimidate us in order to discourage and provoke us. His goal is to intimidate us so much that we will ultimately quit, especially if what we are doing is for the Lord.

The ridicule didn't end there, however. Sanballat and Tobiah continued to criticize and attempt to provoke Nehemiah to quit in chapter 4:2-4. Nehemiah's response was simply to ignore his critics and pray to the Lord. Check out Nehemiah's response in verse 4 and 5:

Hear, O our God, for we are despised. Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives. Do not cover their guilt, and let not their sin be blotted out from your sight, for they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders (Neh. 4:4-5).

And so, they built the wall (Neh. 4:6).

Satan will use people quite often in order to intimidate by ridiculing and mocking us. We need to be on guard against this. And when a simple response doesn't end the ridicule, we need to pray to the Lord, ignore the criticisms, and move on. Not always an easy task, but this is quite necessary.

2) Violence

Another way that Satan will try and thwart the plans of God is through violence. Sandballat and Tobiah did stop at mocking Nehemiah, they actually became very angry with Nehemiah (Neh. 4:7) and conspired to attack him and his men (Neh. 4:8). When Satan was theatening Nehemiah with violence, he did the same thing he always did. Verse 9: "And we prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night."

These guys were literally going to attack them from all sides (Neh. 4:12), and what did they do? They prayed. Then they set up a guard as a protection. Although the text doesn't say this, it reminds me of how our flesh will attack us. We need to be on guard against the flesh and against Satan with an active mind, ready to put to death the deeds of the body (Rom. 8:13). Nehemiah prayed and then stationed men all around the wall to guard against these men who were going to attack them (Neh. 4:13).

When our enemies heard that it was known to us and that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work (Neh. 4:15).

3) Discouragement


A third way that Satan will try to hinder us is by discouragement, which is seen throughout the whole of chapter 5. The people were being charged usury taxes, which was illegal. They were becoming poor and starving. Because of this the people were becoming discouraged and it threatened to discourage Nehemiah. But Nehemiah realized the situation (Neh. 5:6-8), and he pleaded with the King's men to give back the money they had taken (Neh. 5:8-11). These men promised, but Nehemiah showed great wisdom in verse 13:

I also shook out the fold of my garment and said, "So may God shake out every man from his house and from his labor who does not keep this promise. So may he be shaken out and emptied." And all the assembly said "Amen" and praised the LORD. And the people did as they had promised. 

When Satan tries to hinder us through discouragement, we need to recognize the situation, and with wisdom continue doing the Lord's will.

4) Compromise

The final way that Satan will try to hinder us, although more points could be added, is compromise. Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem conspired one final time to stop Nehemiah from building the wall (Neh. 6:1). They came up with a plan to have Nehemiah dialog with them. They wanted to compromise with him; they wanted to find a middle ground of agreement.

Then Sanballat and Geshem sent a message to me, saying, “Come, let us meet together at Chephirim in the plain of Ono.” But they were planning to harm me (Neh. 6:2 NASB)

They said they wanted to meet with Nehemiah and dialog, but in reality they wanted to harm him. Here is his response:

And I sent messengers to them, saying, "I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and come down to you?" And they sent to me four times in this way, and I answered them in the same manner (Neh. 6:3-4).

Nehemiah refused (1) because he knew they were planning to harm him in some way, and (2) because the Lord had commissioned him to do His will and Nehemiah didn't want to leave the work in order to converse. Satan will always send people our way in order to get us to compromise. Maybe to only do half of the Lord's work, or maybe none at all. If the Lord has given us a job to do, we cannot compromise, we cannot stop and dialog even if people find what we are doing offensive. Now, don't take me out of context here. All that the Lord has commissioned us to do as Christians is in the Word of God. If the job we claim God has given us doesn't line up with Scripture, then it is not a task from the Lord.

Then I sent to [Sanballat], saying, "No such things as you say have been done, for you are inventing them out of your own mind." For they all wanted to frighten us, thinking, "Their hands will drop from the work, and it will not be done." But now, O God, strengthen my hands (Neh. 6:8-9).

What we need to see as we conclude is that Nehemiah never gave in to the ridicule; he never allowed the violence to be done; he never became discouraged; and he never compromised. Every time opposition came, Nehemiah prayed to God to give him the strength to complete the task. No matter how hard Satan tried to thwart the plan of God, God's plans could not be thwarted.

We need to be like Nehemiah when the post-modernists want us to dialog, and compromise. When they ridicule us and claim we are being unloving when we are dogmatic about the Truth of the Word of God, we need not become discouraged, but we need to pray to God for strength and continue preaching the Truth of the Word of God, even if it means correcting error. And we must ignore the critics that Satan will inevitably use against us to thwart the plans of God.

Two practical ways to handle critics that we learn from Nehemiah are: When opposition comes (1) ignore it, and (2) pray. The best option is to see the attacks of Satan and ignore them, and then pray for strength to persevere through the opposition. We need to be like Nehemiah and his men as they sat on the wall with their trowel in one hand as they built the wall, and their sword in the other hand as they defended the wall.

"Those who carried burdens were loaded in such a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other (Neh. 4:17)."

Running With Endurance: Defining Endurance

This is part three in a series on Running With Endurance. Here is part one and part two for your reading.

"...And let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith" (Hebrews 12:1c-2a). 

We have looked at Hebrews 12:1-4 as a whole, but I thought that before getting into the practical, we should first look at the theological.

The word endurance is an interesting word. Hypomonē (hü-po-mo-nā') does mean endurance, but it also means patience, steadfastness, longsuffering, sustaining, and perseverance. Many have said that Hypomonē just means to remain under a weight. Just stand there holding that car above your head, and grin and bear it. Yet this word means much more than that. It means to be patient and endure while pressing on. Hypomonē does not mean sit underneath and hold everything, it means you ride on top of it all and press on. That is the difference between waiting and enduring through something. You persevere through that trial, not sit patiently under it.

Here is what the Thayers lexicon says, and I love this, "In the N.T. [hypomonē is] the characteristic of a man who is unswerved from his deliberate purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety by even the greatest trials and sufferings." He endures; he perseveres, even to the point of going through the trial, rather than remaining under it. What an awesome word. Let's keep that word in mind as we continue.

Based on that definition, endurance does not mean, "let go and let God," as many people purport. It means to press on through that trial, as Paul said, "I press on toward the goal for the prize." (Phil 3:13-14).

Jesus is the founder of our faith. He has begun a good work in us and will complete it to the end (Phil 1:6). He is the author of our faith. The faith is not our own, but it was given to us in order that we might believe in Him. Yes, I could go into a long theological discussion on this topic, but for the sake of time, I will restrain myself. Jesus is the founder of our faith, and if that faith came from him it is a supernatural faith that none of us apart from Christ could ever manufacture. If it is a supernatural faith, it must be an enduring faith, right? Otherwise, what hope do we have?

See, why would we put faith in Jesus Christ if we cannot have assurance of our salvation? Our faith comes from God and it is an enduring faith that He will perfect; and without understanding that faith in Christ will save not only us, but also it will be kept and perfected until the end, what assurance do we have?

I want you to see this. The Bible is filled with commands for us to endure, persevere, be obedient, be holy, and live the way you know honors Jesus Christ. We must persevere and live a holy life. (2 Tim 4:5; 1 Tim 4:16; John 3:36; 1 Peter 4:17; Lev 11:45; 1 Peter 1:15-16; 1 Cor 10:31; 1 Cor 6:20)

On the other hand, we cannot live this life without walking by the Holy Spirit (Gal 5:16-17). Without putting this faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone while keeping our eyes fixed on Him, we cannot be filled with the Spirit; we cannot endure; we cannot persevere; we cannot be obedient, and we certainly cannot be holy (Rom 3:10-12; Jer 13:23)

So who lives the Christian life: You, or the Holy Spirit? See, only the Holy Spirit can enable you to live the Christian life, but you are also to be obedient in living that life out. This paradox gets at the heart of the matter that has led to the doctrine I want us to look at in our text.

We are told here to endure, "let us run with endurance the race that is set before us." We must persevere. However, Jesus is the one who authored our faith and will perfect it. And, therefore, we see a doctrine here that has been very controversial throughout history: the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints.

Many have called this doctrine eternal security, but I will show you why I think perseverance of the saints has more of a right idea than eternal security. I also showed you a paradox in the Christian life. I did that because I believe that is what we find here. Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith and therefore our salvation is eternal (eternal security: Jude 1:24; John 17:11-12, 15; John 6:39-40, 44; John 10:27-29; 1 Cor 1:8-9; 1 Pet 1:3-5), but that does not mean we can just sit around idly and not live the Christian life as we are commanded to. It does not mean, like the common mantra, "Once saved always saved." There is some truth in that, but not to the exclusion of living the Christian life as commanded.

On the contrary, we are told to endure; to persevere, and to live the way the Bible says we should (perseverance of the saints: John 15:10; Hebrews 12:1; 1 John 1:6-7; 1 John 2:3-4; John 8:31-32; Eph 2:10; John 3:10; Matt 10:22). However, this brings up another thought, "If I could lose my salvation, I would lose it." See, if it was all about us persevering to the end, we fail. If it is all about God keeping us, why live the Christian life? I believe that eternal security and perseverance of the saints work hand in hand, as with the Christian life. Eternal security is God's perspective; perseverance of the saints is the perspective we need to have. That is why I think perseverance of the saints is the best title for this doctrine.

Looking at our text, we then find a perfect analogy: we are to run and endure in the race, but Jesus, who is the one who gives us the faith and perfects that faith, enables us, therefore, to run the race with faith and continue on in faith even when we fail. See the analogy the writer of Hebrews uses? We are commanded to live the Christian life, but it is clear that we cannot do so without the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

It brings us great joy knowing that our faith comes from Christ and it is an everlasting faith. Yet, the Christian cannot sit around and not run the race as he is called to run (as the Arminians so often accuse the Calvinists), otherwise that is not obeying the command of throwing off the weight and the sin that entangles (Heb 12:1). Therefore, it would be sin to be idle in the race. God enables us to run, and enables us to persevere to the end without falling completely from faith (if we are truly in Christ), and we are commanded, because of the faith given, to run in the race with all endurance. What an awesome truth that is! Therefore, we cannot continue on in sin; instead run with endurance as Jesus Christ ran. Stop sitting down on the track, get up, throw off the sweatsuit, and start running towards the finish line while keeping your eyes fixed on Christ.

Who lives the Christian life then? We live as we are commanded, and the Holy Spirit enables us to do so. Who maintains our salvation? We run with hypomonē in the race, persevering until the end, and yet Jesus Christ will never allow us to fall so as to lose our salvation because He is the founder and perfecter of our faith. If you are still a little confused, this should help clarify everything for you.

So, how do we apply all of this? We will look at the practical in the next few posts. Stay tuned and keep running with endurance!

Running With Endurance: Hebrews 12

"Let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely..." (Hebrews 12:1b).

Over the next few days we will be looking at the hindrances, how to root them out, and how to then run the race. But first, we are going to look closer at Hebrews 12:1-4, which will also be the text for the rest of this series.

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses" (vv. 1a).

This is the beginning of verse one. This is one of our motivations for running the race. Many commentaries would say that it is like being in a stadium with all the great saints of the past filling the stands. Well, I think it is much more than that. Sure that is a motivation to run, but that is a self-centered analogy with some fallacies along with it. The saints are all up in heaven giving all praise and glory and honor to the living God, not peering out of heaven watching us trot along a dirt road. 

What this is referring to is that, since all the saints ran the race and endured with great patience and faith, as in the previous chapter, we too need to run with such faith and endurance (Heb 10:38). Even Jesus Christ who endured such hostility from sinners (Heb 12:3). Because they ran, so can we!

"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" (vv. 1b).

The weight and sin are two things we need to put off, but are clearly two different objects. The weight most likely referred to legalism, or the old ceremonial and judicial laws to the Jews. The writer of Hebrews has been making a case throughout the whole book to lay aside all those things because they were merely shadows. Now that we are in Christ, all they amount to is legalism. So in a sense he is saying, "Understand your liberty in Christ, lay aside the rules that were merely a shadow, and run the race as a free man in Christ."

The second aspect is to lay aside the sin. Stop sinning! Sin resembles the guy who showed up to the race and never took off his sweatsuit. Or the guy who is on the side lines drinking soda. Or the person eating a giant burger before the race. We need to lay aside everything that might hinder us from running freely so as to win and glorify God. Therefore, stop lusting, stop bickering and gossiping, stop complaining and lying, stop being angry and lazy. Instead, get up and run with endurance, laying aside all of those things.

The question then arises: why should we run this race? Can't we just believe in Jesus and that's it? Why do we have to be obedient and stop sinning? The simple answer: Because Jesus did.

Look at verse two: 

"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" (vv. 2).

There are two things we gain from this passage. The first is that Jesus ran the race, so should we. He saw His life as a mission, a goal that had been given to Him from the Father and He needed to fulfill it (John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38; 12:49). He was determined to finish the race. He knew that it meant enduring being crucified on a cross; He knew it would mean despising the sinful, shameful things of the world, and He knew the glory that would be His in the end. He ran for joy and for reward. So should we.

The other thing we see in this verse is practical: Don't run while looking at your feet; don't run while looking at the crowd; don't run while glancing at the soda on the sides, but run with your eyes fixed on Jesus Christ. Why? because He ran far better than any of us ever could run. Run to be more like Christ!

"Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted" (vv. 3).

Verse three tells us not to grow weary in the fight; don't grow fainthearted in the race, but endure with patience and joy, looking to Christ and the reward! Jesus endured so much on our behalf. He lived the life that we should have lived. He died on the cross where we should have died. We are a sinful and immoral people and we ultimately deserve judgement. And yet it was Jesus' joy to die on that cross. One, because He loved us that much. And two, because it was the will of the Father to do so. In the end, the reason for everything was to bring God the glory in everything.

Shouldn't we run in such a way that everything we do would glorify God? We run against anything and everything that might stifle our running, we do it while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, and we run with endurance in order to bring Him glory.

We are going to continue in this thought by looking at ways to root out whatever may hinder us from running the race, so that we can run so as to glorify God in everything.

"In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood" (Hebrews 12:4).

Running With Endurance: Introduction

"Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1c).

Living the Christian life in a perverse and immoral culture, such as ours, is not an easy task. In fact, being holy and set apart is extremely difficult. Granted, it is never really easy, but it is even harder when everything is against you.

Think of it like this. On the one hand there is someone running a race, and along the side lines there are stands with water all the way from start to finish. The track is clear, and the road is straight. Their are no hills and no bends; just a straight track to victory. This is the man running the race in a not-so-immoral society.

On the other hand, you are running a race, and along the side lines there are stands with soda and juice from start to finish. There might be an occasional water stand every few miles. The track is extremely long, and there are many bends, turns, hills, and hurdles (the hurdles are the other runners who sat down because they decided not to run). This is the man running in the immoral society.

To further complicate this example, the man running also has his own issues to deal with, right? He has to eat healthy, he has to lose as much weight as needed, he has to wear a tight suit and good running shoes, and he has to train long and hard so that his endurance is strong.

Now that we have set all this up, you have to remove the first runner from your thinking. There is never going to be a race that perfect in this life. All our races will be like the second guy in the perverse and immoral culture. We will always have to persevere. We will always have a long and twisted road. The race will never be as easy as we would like it to be.

The Scriptures tell us to run with endurance the race marked out for us. Our race will always be tough. But what if you could do everything you could do to make that race easier? Would you do what it takes? Paul did:

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. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified (1 Corinthians 9:24-27).

We are all runners in a race and, therefore, we must run with endurance and self-control as if we were actually trying to win.

Why self-control? Because we also have to deal with our part in the race. We must eat right, sleep right, train right, and never cease until we are all that we can be in that race. Our race just happens to be this life. So as Christians, our race is a continual battle against the conditions and against ourselves.

And yet, for some of us, we have been slacking. In fact, many Christians have quit. They got in the race because they liked the prize, but then they sat down on the track. They stopped eating healthy, they started drinking the soda on the side, they kept their sweatsuit on, they didn't bring running shoes, they didn't bring a desire to win, and instead they sat down on track and became the hurdles for many others. What a sad sight that is, right? And yet that is a wonderful analogy for many of the so-called Christians in evangelicalism.

So, over the next few days we will look closer at Hebrews 12:1-4, what things might hinder our running, how to root out the things that do hinder us, and some practical ways to run with endurance the race that is set before us. Stick around!

A New Beginning

Before I get back to my blogging schedule, today was the actual day of my baptism. And, so, for all you bloggers, friends, and family, here is the video so you can watch the whole thing. Enjoy!

Cultivating A Reverence For The Lord

Recently, I have been studying the Old Testament usage of the phrase "fear of the Lord." I have been hard pressed to find a verse that explains exactly what it means, so I took a quick look at the Hebrew and realized that there is so much more to it than merely being afraid of God.

The Hebrew word Yare' (pronounced Yä-rā) literally means reverence or honor. It can be used for the word afraid, as in Genesis 3:10, but it is used more often for the word fear. This means that the phrase "fear of the Lord" denotes a reverence for the Lord; an honor for the Lord; a respect for who the Lord is in all His glory and majesty. It is more than just being afraid, although we should be afraid of the Lord in a sense because we know that He sovereignly reigns over everything, but fearing the Lord means that we should live with a holy honor for the Lord; that we should honor what He honors, respect what He respects, and revere what He reveres.

Some of that may seem redundant, but if we as Christians are to live all to the glory of God (cf. 1 Cor 10:31) we need to understand what it means to fear the Lord.

Although fearing the Lord means to have a reverence and honor toward Him, fearing the Lord is usually used in conjunction with obedience (Deut 5:29; Deut 6:2; Deut 8:6; 1 Sa 12:14; Psa 86:11). If we are going to learn to fear the Lord, we must be obedient to His commands; we must honor what He honors, and love what He loves. The Lord loves a people that revere and honor Him, and obey His commands. The Lord has commanded us to be holy because He is holy (1 Pet 1:15-16), to do everything in His name (Col 3:17), and to do everything for His glory (1 Cor 6:20; 1 Cor 10:31). Being Holy, doing everything for His name and for His glory is the first step towards fearing the Lord. Psalm 111:10 says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments; His praise endures forever." (NASB).

All of that is just introductory.

My week began with this study because of some current events due to the release of a new book. It came to mind that we do not always fear the Lord as we should. If we did, we would not do anything that might bring a reproach on His name. Too often we do things before we think about them. We do not stop to say, "will this glorify God?" We treat others in a way that does not glorify God, we gossip about others in a way that does not glorify God, we watch things, say things, and do things that do not glorify God, and sometimes we even write books that do not glorify God. The truth we need to remember is that the Lord is the avenger of all things (1 Thess 4:6). One day we will be judged for the things we have done to bring a reproach on God's Holy name, and on those who have defrauded their brothers in Christ.

Because of this, we need to keep each other accountable. If one of us falls into the sin of bringing a reproach on Christ, we need to love our brother enough to point out their sin and beg them to repent because God is the avenger. We still have to bear the repercussions of our actions, but we must not continue to bring a reproach on Christ.

In order to avoid all of this, we desperately need to cultivate a fear or reverence for the Lord. This begins with being obedient to His commands, which are being set apart from the world and all immorality, and doing everything in the name of and for the Glory of God.