“Since we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith” (Hebrews.12:1-2)
The 100 metre world champion Usain Bolt regularly starts slowly. His first 20m is often comparable if not sometimes worse than that of his peers (if there are any). If the only split times you were shown were his first 20m or his second 20m you might describe him as just another sprinter. Just another sprinter? Usain Bolt? But then he becomes the Kingston Express. He kicks in about 5 gears higher. And becomes Usain Bolt. His acceleration is quite remarkable. Split times suggest he does his last 20m over 5% faster than his second. In 100m sprints, that’s a lifetime. There’s an analogy buried in here somewhere.
It’s not how you start but how you finish that matters.
The passage above likens the Christian life to a race. Our race, unlike Bolt’s however, is not a short sprint. It’s a long distance race that requires commitment, stamina and perseverance. The greatest challenge is not allowing slow or false starts to disqualify you from the prize that lies ahead. This scripture gives us three ways to do that:
1. Strip off every weight that slows us down
-don’t get stuck. Be ruthless in not allowing your heart and mind to get entangled with sinful or even good things that aren’t what God has called you to.
2. Run with endurance the race set out for you
-don’t compare. God has a unique race for you to run, and comparison will get you to run against other people’s strengths and not with the strength of Christ.
3. Keep your eyes on Jesus
-don’t get distracted. He is our prize. We don’t run to become better versions of ourselves. We run to get Jesus as our reward.
Gabe Phillips
