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They turn in your Bibles to Hebrews 
chapter 12. Don't normally do this, but we're going to cover 
the same material that we did on Wednesday night at our Bible 
study. Two reasons for this. The first 
is we're starting a new section, a new flow of thought in the 
book of Galatians. I won't be here next Lord's Day. 
Pastor Cam will be preaching. So instead of jumping into that 
and then having a break next week, I thought it'd be best 
just to return to that in two weeks time. And then secondly, 
I don't know about all that were there on Wednesday night, but 
this passage sure was an encouragement to me. I think it is an encouraging 
section of scripture, one that I would hope would benefit you, 
even if you did hear it on Wednesday night and you're going to hear 
it again tonight. But for the for those who were not there 
on Wednesday, hopefully this will be a help to you as well. We're going to focus just primarily 
on Hebrews chapter 12. verse 1. That's the only verse 
that we looked at on Wednesday, but I do want to read it in context, 
so I'll pick up reading in verse 1 and we'll read to verse 11. Therefore, we also, since we 
are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside 
every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let 
us run with endurance the race that is set before us. Looking 
on to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy 
that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, 
and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For 
consider him who endured such hostility from sinners against 
himself. lest you become weary and discouraged 
in your souls. You have not yet resisted to 
bloodshed, striving against sin, and you have forgotten the exhortation 
which speaks to you as to sons. My son, do not despise the chastening 
of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by him. 
For whom the Lord loves, he chastens and scourges every son whom he 
receives. If you endure chastening, God 
deals with you as with sons. For what son is there whom a 
father does not chasten? But if you are without chastening, 
of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and 
not sons. Furthermore, we have had human 
fathers who corrected us and we paid them respect. Shall we 
not much more readily be in subjection to the father of spirits and 
live? For they indeed for a few days chastened us as seemed best 
to them, but he for our prophet, that we may be partakers of his 
holiness. Now, no chastening seems to be 
joyful for the present, but painful. Nevertheless, afterward, it yields 
the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained 
by it. Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, 
we come now and we pray that You would guide us in our study 
of this passage. And we thank You for the encouragement 
that we have received in our study of Hebrews chapter 11. 
And we thank You, Lord God, for the unity of the Scripture and 
for the fact that those brethren in the Old Testament serve as 
encouragements to us now. We just pray, God Most High, 
that You would help us to understand this section of Scripture and 
help us to apply it in our daily lives. We ask these things in 
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Well, Chapter 12 is a specific 
charge to the believers. If you look back for just a moment 
in Hebrews chapter 10, you will see that the apostle calls the 
church to endure, to persevere. He does this in Hebrews 10. at 
verse 32. It says, Recall the former days 
in which, after you were illuminated, you endured a great struggle 
with sufferings, partly while you were made a spectacle, both 
by reproaches and tribulations, and partly while you became companions 
of those who were so treated. For you had compassion on me 
and my chains and joyfully accepted the plundering of your goods. 
knowing that you have a better and an enduring possession for 
yourselves in heaven. Therefore, do not cast away your 
confidence, which has great reward for you have need of endurance 
so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive 
the promise. So he exhorts them. He encourages 
them. He commands them. to endure, 
to persevere. That's one of the most difficult 
things in the Christian life, is to realize that we're not 
in a hundred-yard dash, but we're in a marathon. We're called to 
run for the long haul. He then, in chapter 11, sets 
forth these various examples. He highlights the fact that by 
faith, all of these men and women in the Old Covenant did mighty 
exploits, or they were called to suffer, and they engaged in 
these things according to God's will. They were faithful. And 
so, having set forth all of those examples in chapter 11, He returns 
to His exhortation to us. He gives a command in verse 12, 
Therefore, we also, since we are surrounded by so great a 
cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin 
which so easily ensnares us. Here's the command. And let us 
run with endurance the race that is set before us. So he likens 
the Christian life to a running race. He appeals to athletics. He appeals to those things we 
are conscious of. He appeals to those things that 
we know and observe. And so we're going to consider 
tonight the believers race, first of all, in verse one, and then 
the believers incentives. Why he ought to run the race. 
And there are three. But we'll focus on the first 
one tonight. It is the cloud of witnesses 
in verse one. The other two are the experience 
of Jesus and the purpose of the father, God willing, in our Coming 
up Wednesday, studies will take up those sections. But tonight, 
the believers race and then the believers incentive, the first 
one being the great cloud of witnesses that is given to us 
to encourage us to be faithful runners on to heaven. But notice, 
first of all, the believers' race. The duty stated, let us 
run the race that is set before us. Again, this is something 
that has been emphasized throughout the book of Hebrews. Please turn 
to these passages so that you can understand what the author's 
intention is in terms of writing to his audience. Hebrews chapter 
2 and verse 1. Hebrews 2 and verse 1. Therefore, 
we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, 
lest we drift away. We need to not only give heed, 
we need to give earnest heed. And if we fail to give earnest 
heed, the problem is, is that we'll drift away. We are either 
running this race or we're drifting away. We're either pursuing Christ 
or we're drifting away. There's no sort of neutral position. 
It's not as if you're not running, but you're not going backward. 
To not run is to go backward. To not run with endurance is 
to drift away. We need to understand that. Jesus 
speaks in very sharp language. He says, He who is not with me 
is against me. Now, by virtue of God's grace, 
when we believe the gospel and we come into that saving union, 
we don't have an option anymore. We are called to run. We are 
called to persevere. We are called to endure. We're 
not called to sit around and whine. We're not called to grumble. 
We're not called to complain. We're not called to cry about 
how difficult our particular circumstances are. I mean, when 
you do visit Hebrews 12 and see what it says concerning Jesus, 
he received such hostility or endured such hostility against 
sinners or by sinners against himself. Now, as bad as you may 
think you have it, you have it nothing like the Lord Jesus did, 
leaving the throne room above, coming into the world cursed 
with sin and being a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, being 
mocked and despised, being spit upon, being abused and ultimately 
being crucified. I mean, as bad as we may think 
we have it, we haven't even begun to enter in to the sufferings 
that marked our blessed Lord. Notice in Hebrews 3.14, The emphasis 
on endurance, the emphasis on perseverance, the emphasis on 
going forward in the fear of God. Notice in chapter three, 
verse twelve, but beware, beware, brethren, lest there be in any 
of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living 
God. but exhort one another daily while it is called today, lest 
any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For 
we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our 
confidence steadfast to the end. It's not just about how you start. 
It's about how you persevere and finish. It's not just about 
a decision for Jesus or signing a card or coming forward. It's 
about believing the gospel and continuing with Jesus all the 
way until the very end. Till that time when, as we sang, 
the bride eyes not her garment, but her dear bridegroom's face. 
I will not gaze at glory, but on my King of Grace, not at the 
crown He gifted, but on His pierced hand." Until that time, brethren, 
we are to be faithful runners. We are to be persevering. We 
are to endure. He gives a caution in chapter 
4, verse 1. Therefore, since a promise remains 
of entering his rest, let us fear, lest any of you seem to 
have come short of it. And then in chapter 4, verse 
14, he says, seeing that we have a great high priest who has passed 
through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast 
our confession Seeing that we have this great high priest, 
now just sit there and marvel at what a glorious thing this 
is. It is a glorious thing. We ought to marvel. But the specific 
command is hold fast your confession. Don't let go of it. Don't drift 
away. Don't renege. Don't recant. Don't 
depart from the living God. Faithfulness and perseverance 
and running to the very end mark God's people. If you stop running, 
if you stop enduring, if you stop persevering, it means you 
never started to begin with. This is an evidence that God 
has saved a soul when that soul runs to the very end. So don't 
tell me you're a Christian or you're a runner when you pay 
no attention to the scripture. You give no place to prayer. 
Public worship is a bother to you. You're not a runner for 
whatever else you may be. You're deceiving yourself. Genuine 
runners do what God has called them to do. Notice in chapter 
10 verse 23. Chapter 10, verse 23, after highlighting 
the fact that Jesus is our High Priest, and that we have boldness 
to enter the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living 
way. He then says in verse 23, let 
us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for 
He who promised is faithful. Isn't that beautiful? God not 
only wants you to hold fast, He wants you to do so without 
wavering. He doesn't want you to be limp-wristed. 
He doesn't want you to be a milquetoast. He doesn't want you to be one 
of these kinds of people that's blown to and fro by every wind 
and doctrine. You need to hold fast that confession, 
and you need to do it without wavering. You need to be faithful. The God who purchased you, body 
and soul, has called you to run in this particular way. We already 
saw chapter 10, verses 35 and 36. Therefore, do not cast away 
your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of 
endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you 
may receive the promise." Now, this imagery is also other places 
in the Scripture. The Apostle Paul uses this image 
in 1 Corinthians 9. You may turn there. 1 Corinthians 
chapter 9. Repetition, hopefully, is causing 
you to think, wow, we've already seen this. I'm remembering it. 
Good. 1 Corinthians 9, 24. Do you not 
know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the 
prize? Run in such a way that you may 
obtain it. Don't run in such a way that 
you may forfeit it. Don't run in such a way that 
you may lose. Who of you enters into a race 
to lose? I know today they say it doesn't 
matter whether you win or lose. Here's a prize or a trophy for 
everyone. Well, you know what? It does 
matter, at least in this race. Because if you lose, it's hell. There's one option in this running 
race, and it's victory. Not over everybody else. That's 
not the image. The idea is you win the prize, 
you obtain by God's grace what He's already purchased for you. 
And remember, I am not teaching that you need to run in order 
to be saved. I am saying that those who are 
saved by grace through faith will now run in this particular 
way. So that if you don't run this 
particular way, it is an evidence that you were never saved by 
grace through faith. You are not saved by the way 
you run. You are not saved in the manner 
in which you run. You are not saved because you 
were victorious over all these other people. You're saved solely 
by the grace of God, solely grounded upon the doing and the dying 
of our Lord Jesus. The only acceptance we have with 
God is through the blood. It is through Jesus Christ that 
is our acceptance with God. But the thrust, the emphasis, 
the accent of these passages say that those who have entered 
in by the blood will be these kinds of runners. He goes on 
to say in verse 25, and everyone who competes for the prize is 
temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable 
crown, but we for an imperishable crown. As I mentioned on Wednesday 
night, if you won the athletic events in Paul's time, and this 
is the precursor to the Olympics here, these were organized games, 
organized athletic events, running races, probably discus throwing, 
javelin, various feats of strength and other things, a speed. If 
you won, you got a perishable wreath. They'd put a garland 
of flowers over your head or a laurel wreath. They'd put that 
on your head. They'd give you front row tickets 
to the theater. That's what you got. Look at 
Paul's argument. They do it for a perishable crown. He's arguing from the lesser 
to the greater. The idea is, is if they're doing 
it for something that perishes, how much more should God's people, 
who've believed on God's Son, do these things for an imperishable 
ground. If the pagan running his race 
is temperate in all things, then the Christian who is running 
the race ought to be temperate in all things. He shifts the 
metaphor a little bit from running now to boxing in verse 26. Therefore, 
I run thus not with uncertainty. Here he goes. Thus I fight, not 
as one who beats the air, But I discipline my body and I bring 
it into subjection, lest when I have preached to others, I 
myself should become disqualified. He uses this image in Philippians 
chapter three, Philippians chapter three, verse twelve. There he 
says, not that I have already attained or am already perfected. 
But I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ 
Jesus has also laid hold of me." There it is, the grace of God. 
Jesus laid hold of Paul. Paul is running because Jesus 
saved him. Paul is running because Jesus 
laid hold of him. Paul is simply running after 
that for which Jesus already laid hold of him. He says in 
verse 13, "'Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended, 
but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind 
and reaching forward to those things which are ahead. I press 
toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in 
Christ Jesus. Isn't that a beautiful picture? 
He's stretching forward. He doesn't have time to think 
about all that stuff that happened in his past. He believes the 
blood of Jesus has washed him. He doesn't keep looking back 
to issues and problems and things that God has already taken care 
of. He's reaching forward. He sees the prize. He's running 
with determination. He's running with intensity. 
He outdoes all those men who sweat and who stretch and who 
labor. He is on the road to heaven itself, 
and that dictates a certain manner of running. Brethren, that's 
the imagery that he's trying to put forth to us. A.W. Pink describes this running that 
we are to do according to Hebrews 12.1. He says, the principle 
thoughts suggested by the figure of this race are rigorous self-denial 
and discipline, vigorous exertion, persevering endurance. The Christian 
life is not a thing of passive luxury, but of active fighting 
the good fight of faith. The Christian is not called to 
lie down on flowery beds of ease, but to run a race. And athletics 
are strenuous, demanding self-sacrifice, hard training, the putting forth 
of every ounce of energy possessed. Does this mark our running? Is this the way we live the Christian 
life? Is this the way you run with 
endurance the race that is set before you? You hear A.W. Pink and you say, man, that's 
a Christianity I don't want anything about. That's the kind of attitude 
that we have towards this imagery. It sounds hard. It sounds painful. It sounds difficult. You know, 
today we don't labor. We don't walk. We don't persevere 
like Christian did in Pilgrim's Progress. I mean, that's a long, 
strenuous, arduous walk. Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote The 
Celestial Railroad. The whole point of it was simply 
to display this, that in Christian's day, pilgrims used to walk their 
way onto heaven, battling giants and battling foes, going up hills 
and having seasons of depression, but nevertheless fighting manfully 
onward. Nathaniel Hawthorne highlights 
that in his day, people wanted The Celestial Railroad. Oh, we're 
not going to walk to heaven. We'll just get on the train. 
We don't want to walk because our little feetsies can't take 
that. Check us into the train. We have 
long passed the train phase. We want to get onto a jet or 
a rocket and we want to just soar there right now. We don't 
want any difficulty. We don't want any trial. We don't 
want anything to happen that might affect us in the least 
bit that would be a discomfort or an uncomfortable thing. We 
far surpassed the celestial railroad. We want the celestial missile. 
I don't want any problems. I want to fly first class. I 
don't want any difficulties. I'm not going to open my mouth 
because I don't want any rebuff. I don't want any issues. I don't 
want any problems. I'm not going to get up early. 
I'm not going to stay up late. I'm not going to read my Bible. 
I'm not going to pray. I'm just going to strap myself into first 
class. I want people to fan me. I want them to put grapes into 
my mouth. I want them to rub my feet so that I can sail myself 
right into the celestial city. That's where we're at. That's 
why Hebrews 12, 1 is so counter-Christian cultural. Let us run with endurance. Notice, secondly, with reference 
to the believer's race, there's a duty stated. Let us run the 
race that is set before us. Secondly, there's obstacles to 
lay aside. Look at what he says in verse 
12. Verse 1 of Chapter 12. I'm sorry. Let us lay aside every 
weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us. Some interpret this 
verse or this section this way. Let us lay aside every weight. 
That is the sin which so easily ensnares us. I don't think that's 
correct. I think the New King James highlights it accurately. 
There's two things involved here. Let us lay aside every weight 
and the sin which so easily ensnares us. The first is the weight. 
There are things that may not necessarily be sinful in and 
of themselves, but they may not be profitable to a runner. Take 
the physical runner. Perhaps he's put about 50 extra 
pounds on and he realized that when he's embarked on that marathon 
at about mile 13, that extra 50 pounds is going to feel like 
an extra 500. So maybe in his current weight 
and current position, that extra 50 pounds isn't necessarily sinful, 
but it is a weight that will hinder him in the perseverance 
necessary to run that 26 miles. You see, there are certain things 
in the Christian life that may not necessarily be evil. They 
may not necessarily be sinful, but it may be a weight that we 
have taken on ourselves that will not enable us to run effectively 
in terms of perseverance. There are things, brethren. There 
are issues, there are entertainments, there are persons, there are 
things that we heap up that will not necessarily help us to persevere 
under heaven. Jesus describes it this way in 
Matthew 13, 22. Now, he who received seed among 
the thorns is he who hears the word and the cares of this world 
and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word and he becomes 
unfruitful. All of us have chairs in this 
world. What do we do with them? Do we deal with them biblically 
and effectively, or do we wear them like a weight? Like some 
of those vests. Some guys like to go out and 
run with a lot of weight on them, so they buy a vest that weighs 
50 pounds. They're not looking to rip themselves 
of 50 pounds. They're looking to put on 50 pounds so that they 
have a better workout when they're running. Well, some things are 
like that. Some things are like that, the cares of this world. 
We all have them. But are we being choked out by 
them? Are we being diverted from the cause of Christ over them? 
See, the Bible never minimizes or says you won't have cares. 
In fact, Jesus says just the opposite. He said in this world, 
you will have tribulations. But are you paralyzed by them? 
Are you a servant to them? Have you become choked out by 
the riches that you possess? Paul does not command, Paul does 
not tell Timothy to command rich people to get rid of all their 
riches in 1 Timothy 6. He gives them very specific directions, 
but getting rid of all that money is not Paul's encouragement or 
Paul's command. So we may have riches which are 
not necessarily evil, but if we are choked out by them, If 
we wrongly prioritize, that thing which is not necessarily a sin 
has become a weight on us that does not help us in this running 
with endurance, the race that is set before us. Again, back 
to the racing metaphor. The man may need to shed an extra 
50 pounds. The man may need to get up earlier. It's not sin to sleep until 7 
o'clock. But if you want to win a marathon, 
It's a weight that you may want to lay aside and shoot for 6 
o'clock or 5 o'clock so you can get up, so you can discipline 
yourself, so you can go out before work and run 13 miles and get 
yourself ready for undertaking that. He may need to forego some 
social activity. It may not be wrong to go out 
with his friends on a Friday night. But if he wants to win 
a marathon, he may forego that so that he's in bed by eight 
or nine and he can get up bright eyed and bushy tailed at five 
o'clock the next morning. You see, there are certain things 
that we may take on as Christians that don't help us. What's the 
apostles encouragement? Lay it aside. I like it. Lay it aside. It's not going 
to help you. The Christian engaged in this race may need to lay 
aside friends and acquaintance with whom he wants sin. He may 
need to lay aside entertainment that provides a temptation to 
sin. He may need to lay aside patterns or habits which tend 
towards sin. He may need to lay aside a mindset 
which is calculated to bring defeat rather than victory. Lay 
it aside. But then, of course, we need 
to lay aside sin. That doesn't help you on your 
race at all. Notice that it's sin that so 
easily ensnares us. That's what he says in verse 
one. And the sin which so easily ensnares 
us. Isn't that somewhat embarrassing 
just to read it? I mean, let's be honest. As great as we may think we are, 
as holy and wonderful as we may think we are, sin so easily ensnares 
us. I'm thinking that if fish had 
rational capacity, when they were being reeled up on that 
hook, they would reflect on how idiotic they were to bite that 
worm. Why did I bite that worm? Now I'm being towed to death. 
I'm going to be in someone's pan tonight. You're a fish. You're so easily ensnared. That's 
what he says of us. Name your sin. You are so easily 
ensnared. We need to remember this. We 
are not strong. We are not mighty. We are not 
eight foot tall and bulletproof. The best of us are still easily 
susceptible to being ensnared by sin. We need to get that. We need to identify that. We 
need to reckon with that, and we need to deal with it. That's 
why Paul says in Romans 8.13, if by the Spirit you do mortify 
the deeds of the body, you will live. You need the Spirit in 
this sin-killing exercise. Philip Hughes says, one of the 
chief problems with the Hebrew Christians to who this letter 
is addressed is that they have set out on the race, but after 
a good start are now slackening in the will to persevere. So 
the whole point here is we've had cause to reflect several 
times on Wednesday night. The author's audience, Paul's 
audience are Jewish Christians living in Jerusalem before the 
destruction of the temple in A.D. 70. They have come to Christ. They have come to the church, 
but they are being ostracized from their community. They are 
being shut out. They are perhaps being put out 
of families, being, you know, hindered in the workplace. Their 
economic trade is being affected because they have no longer or 
they are no longer engaged in those mosaic rituals. So the 
pressure is on. Their friends are saying, come 
back. Come back to Moses. Come back to the temple. Come 
back to where we have a high priest. Come back to where we 
have sacrifice and we have atonement. Come back to your roots, man. So the pressure is laid heavily 
upon them. And some of them, unfortunately, 
went back. Some of them, unfortunately, 
gave evidence that they were never Christ to begin with. When 
the going got tough, they knuckled under. They gave way. They gave 
in. He goes on to say, their effort 
is decreasing. Sin is holding them back. They 
need to recover their intensity of purpose to shake off the sluggish 
mood into which they have fallen, to regain their confidence and 
their competitive spirit. That's what he's saying. I think 
it was here the other night I said, look, this is an evidence that 
God loved them. Please keep this in mind. I suspect 
that I'm not alone when I read in verse 1 that I'm convicted. I don't think I'm the only guy 
in here that's saying, man, I've taken on weights or I haven't 
dealt with sin that I should be dealing with. I don't think 
I'm alone. Maybe you all have arrived. Maybe 
you all are laying aside the weight. Maybe you're all dealing 
with your sin. Maybe it is just a bit of soliloquy up here for 
me. Indulge me for a moment. Notice that Hebrews 12.1 is exhorting 
them. It's not cutting them off. It's 
not saying you're finished. It's not saying your sluggishness 
and your slacking off and your unwillingness to run with endurance 
gives evidence that you should be thrown into the pit. No, Hebrews 
12.1 is an evidence that God loves them. God hasn't given 
up on them. God is coming to them through 
the apostle, calling them back. This is the God that we serve. Turn to Revelation 3 for a moment 
again. I know you heard this the other 
night. You need to hear it again. The worst of the seven churches 
in Asia Minor was Laodicea. The worst of the bunch was Laodicea. Notice in chapter 3, verse 14, 
And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, These 
things says the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning 
of the creation of God, I know your works, that you are neither 
cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or 
hot. Hopefully someone that was here on Wednesday night could 
explain what he means there. He's not saying I want you to 
be a white, hot, burning, godly Christian man or to be a cold, 
utter atheist. Either way is good. He's not 
saying that. The cold here isn't atheist. 
It isn't just be a complete apostate, be a complete defector. The idea 
is simple. Hot things and cold things are 
pleasant in terms of drinking. It's the lukewarm, it's the tepid, 
it's the stuff that's not hot, not cold, that we want to spew 
forth. As I mentioned the other night, 
there's a bit of geography, perhaps, in view here. Laodicea did not 
have its own water supply. The water had to be piped in. 
Nearby Colossae had healing springs of hot water. Nearby Hierapolis 
had refreshing cold water. Because Laodicea had neither, 
it had to be piped in. So by the time it got to Laodicea, 
it was lukewarm. It was nasty. Well, the church 
in Laodicea was like their water source. They were not hot, medicinal, 
healing the city in which they lived. They weren't cold and 
refreshing, preaching gospel truth to the city around them. 
They were worthless. They were nothing. They were 
useless. And this is what Jesus is conveying to them. Notice 
verse 16, So then, because you are lukewarm and neither cold 
nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth. Just like the land 
of Israel in the Old Covenant. If they would sin in Israel, 
if they would sin in the land, God said the land will vomit 
you out of its mouth. Leviticus. Old Covenant, the 
land vomits. New Covenant, Jesus vomits. He 
spews you forth if you are not hot or cold. What's their problem? What's their issue? You might 
say, Jesus, what are they doing? They're horrible, aren't they? 
Well, look at what it says in verse 17. Because you say, I 
am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing. Isn't 
that amazing? They're independent. That independent 
spirit. I am rich, have become wealthy, 
and have need of nothing. Is this precisely what Solomon 
or the writer in Proverbs 30 asked not to have? Give me neither 
poverty nor riches. Why? Because if I'm poor, I'll 
be tempted to go out and steal and bring shame on the name of 
the Lord. But if I'm given riches, what's the temptation or tendency? 
I may forget the Lord. Isn't that what's happened here 
in Laodicea? I'm rich, have become wealthy, 
and have need of nothing. And do not know that you are 
wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy 
from me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich in white 
garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness 
may not be revealed. And anoint your eyes with eye 
salve that you may see." He hits on all of the city's industries 
in this particular statement. Laodicea had a rich textile industry. It had a banking center. It had 
a place that developed eye salve. All the things in the city. The 
church, no doubt, was an affluent church. They were well off. In 
fact, Laodicea was a city that was pretty much decimated by 
an earthquake, but in the space of just a few short years was 
able to rebuild itself without federal aid. They didn't have 
to go to the Roman Empire. They didn't have to go to Nero. 
They didn't have to ask for handouts. They didn't need FEMA. They were 
so rich, they were able to rebuild. That's the makeup of this city. 
And in this, they defected. The church had defected or apostatized 
or had left Jesus. But notice verse 19. This is 
an amazing statement. He says, As many as I love, I 
rebuke and chasten. Therefore, be zealous and repent. This hard-hitting letter, this 
threat to spew them forth, is because Jesus loved them. He had not given up on them. So my brothers and sisters, if 
you are here tonight, conscious of the fact that you have not 
laid aside every weight, that you have not laid aside the sin 
that so easily ensnares us, that you are not running with endurance 
the race that is set before us, repent. Repent. This is God's Word to us tonight. to stop seeking first class passage 
into heaven and to take our place with Christian in Pilgrim's Progress 
and press on. That's what he's saying here 
in Hebrews 12. So there is a duty, there's obstacles, 
there is a manner specified. It is to be with endurance. It 
is to be with endurance the race. A steady heading. Steady. Steadiness. Slow and steady wins 
the race, doesn't it? What happens when you get all 
fired up? You burn out. You see this sometimes. People 
go to a conference, and after the conference, man, they're 
on fire for the Lord for a week. Sometimes in Christian schools, 
they go on a missions trip. They come back and they're praying 
by the flagpole for three days. You know what's more impressive? 300 days, 600 days, 30 years, 
40 years, 50 years, 60 years of steady running with endurance. That's the vision the Bible presents 
to us. Not fits and starts. Not I'm 
going to run like the dickens and then keel over. I'm just 
going to run and die. No. Pace yourself. You may be 
here another 40 years. You may not. I often think these 
older brothers, man, you're closer. Whenever we hear, oh, somebody 
had a birthday, oh, you're getting older. Praise God. I, for one, 
do not care about getting older. I think it's closer. That's how 
I translate it. You may be here for a while and 
with endurance. The race that is set before us. 
Slow and steady wins the race. Phaesop taught us anything. He 
taught us that. Slow and steady wins the race. 
Persevere. Endure. Endurance marked the 
various examples in chapter 11. How did Enoch live for so many 
days, so many years? What was it? 365 years? And he 
walked with God. It says he had sons and daughters. 
You know what having sons and daughters means? Childs. Difficulties. Issues. He had to work. He had to put food on the table. 
He had to live as a man for all those years. And yet, the defining 
mark of his life is he walked with God. You take that man Noah 
that is indicated in Hebrews 11. You know, sometimes we say, 
nobody knows how bad I've got it. I live in such a wicked place. 
I live in the inner city, or I live here, or I live there. 
There's wickedness all around me. Oh really? You want to talk 
to Noah? Up there pounding nails into 
his ark when the entire earth around him is exceedingly corrupt 
and filled with violence? Be careful about complaining 
about how bad you have it. What about Abel? Some of us want 
to say, oh, you don't know how bad I have it at home. My wife 
or my husband or my kids or my this. I certainly wouldn't want 
to be able, rather tame, kill them. Kill them dead. You pick any of these men in 
Hebrews chapter 11 and you find, besides faith, the word that 
marked them, it's endurance. It's running with endurance. 
Not perfection. Allah, Jephthah, Samson, Rahab, 
not sinlessly, but by faith they endured. And that endurance comes 
up in our context in Hebrews 12. Notice the connection. Verse 2, Who for the joy that 
was set before Him, Jesus, endured the cross. So He's not calling 
us to do anything He hasn't done already. Not calling us to do 
anything that he himself hasn't accomplished. Drop down to verse 
three. For consider him who what? Who 
endured such hostilities from hostility from sinners against 
himself. You need to run with endurance 
because all these brethren in the Old Covenant ran with endurance. You need to run with endurance 
because your Lord and Savior endured. Who do you think you 
are? that you can just get into a 
first class jet and fly your way into heaven. When the Son 
of Man had to taste death, had to taste the agonies of the cross 
before He got the crown. This has always been the way. 
The cross, then the crown. There's not going to be an inversion 
for you and I. There's not going to be a change. 
God's not going to say, wow, I've been doing this all wrong. 
Let me just give you the crown right now and waft you up into 
heaven and let you sail without any issues whatsoever. You may not like that. It may 
bother you at some certain gut level. You may have to deal with 
your sinful tendency against such a proposition. But that's 
Bible. Your whining about it isn't going 
to change it. Your agony over it isn't going 
to change it. Best to embrace it. By faith, 
run with endurance. The race that is set before us. Now, notice the believers incentives. 
Let's look at this first one, the cloud of witnesses, verse 
verse one of Chapter 12. Therefore, we also, since we 
are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, a beautiful statement. Who are these cloud of witnesses? 
Everybody mentioned in Chapter 11. Starting off with April. Going through the period of the 
judges and the monarchy under David. to the time of Daniel, 
all the way up until the Apostle Paul. All these witnesses are 
surrounding us. The idea here, or the imagery 
is one of an amphitheater. All who have gone before us surround 
us. It's a beautiful picture. You're 
not alone. The Proctors, who I hope are 
listening tonight, Gave me a beanie once. That's what we call it 
in California. I didn't know what a toque was 
until I moved to Canada. What's a toque? It's a beanie. They gave me a beanie from Liverpool, 
England. The motto here for Liverpool 
is you'll never walk alone. And that's what's on this beanie. 
Now, we may feel like it at times, we may think we are, but we're 
never alone. Not only is there Jesus to whom 
we are looking, but there's this great cloud of witnesses sort 
of surrounding us. Now, as I mentioned on Wednesday 
night, I used to have the view that this great cloud of witnesses 
just watch us, cheer us on, go, man, run with endurance, persevere. But I don't think that's the 
point of the image. When you call a witness into the courtroom, 
it's not simply so they can be spectators of what's going on. 
You call a witness to the courtroom so that they may testify. That's 
the purpose. A specific truth. That witness 
is called upon to testify. The image is simply this. We 
have this great cloud of witnesses with this one consistent testimony 
that your God is faithful. So that while we're running with 
endurance this race, while we're looking unto Jesus in our peripheral 
vision, we're seeing Abel, we're seeing David, we're seeing Samson, 
we're seeing Jephthah, we're seeing Paul. And the consistent 
testimony of these brethren is to keep running because God is 
faithful. He will not let you go. He will 
not let you die. He will not send you to hell. 
Run! That's what the cloud of witnesses 
testifies to us. Now, some of the examples beyond 
Hebrews chapter 11. We rehearsed a few of these the 
other night, and I think it bears rehearsal again. Deuteronomy 
chapter one. Deuteronomy chapter one. We'll 
just kind of move through these pretty quickly. But as you're 
running with endurance, the race that is set before you, yes, 
look at these men indicated in Hebrews 11, but think beyond 
those brothers as well and listen to that faithful, consistent 
testimony of all the men of God who have gone before us. Here's 
what Moses says to Israel, Deuteronomy 1 verse 29. Then I said to you, 
do not be terrified or afraid of them. The Lord your God who 
goes before you, He will fight for you according to all that 
He did for you in Egypt before your eyes. Now notice in verse 
31, and in the wilderness where you saw how the Lord your God 
carried you as a man carries his son in all the way that you 
went until you came to this place. Beautiful. Last night, Lindsay 
was sick, so she took some NyQuil and fell asleep in front of the 
fire. Tried to wake her up to tell her to get to bed. Because 
you don't want to fall asleep on the floor. Your back ends 
up hurting. So I tell Rebecca, why don't you go pick her up 
and carry her upstairs? Yeah, right. It's been a bit 
of a shift now in terms of who's going to carry who. There was 
a time when she was a little girl. We could pick her up and 
walk her upstairs and put her in her bed. Get to do that now 
with the grandchildren. Pick them up and carry them. 
Your kid comes in and he's hurt. He skins his knee. He hits his 
head. Something happens. What do you do? You pick him 
up. You carry him. That's the image that He gives. 
So when you're running with endurance this race that is set before 
you, think of God picking you up and carrying you. That's the 
point of our passage. We are surrounded by a great 
cloud of witnesses. Feet off of them. Use them, understand 
them, hear them. Look at David in 2 Samuel chapter 
4. 2 Samuel chapter 4 on the eve 
of an execution. David is going to have two men 
executed because these two men went by night to kill Ish-bosheth. He was sort of a puppet king 
propped up by Abner. These two men thought they were 
going to do a great job and cut off his head, bring it to David. 
And David would say, good job. Welcome. You can be my guides. 
No, David doesn't roll that way. You don't cut a man's head off 
while he's asleep. David was upset the way Saul 
was disposed of. Notice, though, in 2 Samuel 4, 
verse 9, David answered Rechab and Baanah, his brother, the 
sons of Rimeh, the Barathite, and said to them, listen to this. 
This is amazing. As you're running with endurance, 
listen to David here, David, as the Lord lives, who has redeemed 
my life from all adversity. You don't understand what David 
means. Go back to 1 Samuel 18-30 and learn something of his adversity. Haunted like a dog living in 
caves. The heir to the throne of Israel 
having to run for his life. Finding harbor and safe haven 
with his enemies. And yet he's able to say at this 
vantage point in his life, having looked back, he says, the Lord 
who has redeemed my life from all adversity. David's in that 
amphitheater and he's saying, your God is faithful. Keep running 
with endurance the race that is set before you. We mentioned 
those three friends of Daniel. Remember, you all know their 
slave names. You know their Babylonian names, 
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Their real names are Hananiah, 
Mishael, and Azariah. But an interesting thing before 
they went into the oven, if you look at Daniel chapter 3 for 
just a moment, we often focus in verses 19 and following when 
they're cast into the oven. And these men look in and they 
see a fourth man, one like the Son of God, the second person 
of the triune God, saving, sparing, keeping his beloved children. 
But back in chapter 3, verse 16, look at what these runners 
tell us, or what these witnesses tell us runners. Shadrach, Meshach, 
and Abednego answered and said to the king, O nebuchadnezzar, 
we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the 
case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning, 
fiery furnace, and he will deliver us from your hand, O king. I 
love this. But if not, let it be known to 
you, O King, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship 
the gold image which you have set up." They didn't know deliverance 
was a sure thing. They hadn't read chapter 3, verses 
19 and following. They weren't completely in the 
know that when they entered into that furnace, they were going 
to come out of it. Either way, King, we're going to serve God. Oh, knuckle under. God may not 
deliver you out of the mouths of lions, but He will. see you 
until the very end. Micah the prophet in chapter 
7. Micah the prophet in chapter 7. Dark times in Israel. Difficult 
times for the prophet. Chapter 7, verse 1. Woe is me, 
for I am like those who gather summer fruits. Like those who 
glean vintage grapes, there is no cluster to eat of the first 
ripe fruit which my soul desires. The faithful man has perished 
from the earth, and there is no one upright among men. They 
all lie in wait for blood. Every man hunts his brother with 
a net." It's horrible, isn't it? He had no fellowship. He had no friend. He had nobody 
he could hang out with. He couldn't call someone. He 
couldn't email. He didn't text message. And if 
he could do that, there was nobody on the other side who would give 
him an encouraging word. Look at this statement. The faithful 
man is perished from the earth. There is no one upright among 
men. No one for Micah to hang with. 
No companionship, no friendship. What happens, brethren, when 
you're running with endurance the race that is set before you? 
Cast your peripheral vision on Micah when you're alone, when 
you're lonely. Ask Micah, what am I supposed 
to do as I'm running with endurance this race that is set before 
me? And there's nobody for me to hang out with. Let's keep 
reading. Verse three, that they may successfully do evil with 
both hands. The prince is asked for gifts. 
The judge seeks a bride and the great man utters his evil desire. 
So they scheme together. The best of them is like a briar. 
The most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge. The day of your 
watchmen and your punishment comes. Now shall be their perplexity. Society is thoroughly corrupt. We're talking about the Hivites 
or the Hittites or the Jebusites. We're talking about the covenant 
community. We're talking about Israel. And 
he says from the top to the bottom, everything is evil. Thoroughly. Notice verse five. Do not trust 
in a friend. Do not put your confidence in 
a companion. Guard the doors of your mouth 
from her who lies in your bosom. For son dishonors father. Daughter 
rises against her mother. Daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 
A man's enemies are the men of his own household. Marriage and 
family are disintegrated. These are difficult days for 
the prophet, aren't they? What does he do? What happens to you when you're 
running with endurance the race that is set before you and you 
find no companionship? You find problems in your home. 
You find corruption in the civil magistrate. What is a runner 
to do, Micah? Verse 7, Therefore, I will look 
to the Lord. I will wait for the God of my 
salvation. My God will hear me. That's what 
he tells us as runners. Look at Habakkuk, the prophet. 
Habakkuk 3, verse 17. Though the fig tree may not blossom, 
nor fruit beyond the vines, though the labor of the olive may fail, 
and the fields yield no food, though the flock may be cut off 
from the fold, and there be no herd in the stalls. Translate. Though the super Walmart dry 
up, though Costco never get built in Chilliwack, though the shelves 
remain empty, Though the animals all go away, though there's no 
food for us, though there's no sustenance for us, though there's 
no, you know, dial whatever and get a pizza delivered. Though 
all those things are the case, what does he say? Yes! I will 
rejoice in the Lord. I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength. He will make my feet like deer's 
feet and He will make me walk on my high hills. Do you see 
why, as runners, enduring and going forward, you need to be 
in the Scriptures? You need to listen to these men? 
You need to hear the Apostle Paul in Acts chapter 20, when 
he says, But none of these things move me, nor do I count my life 
dear to myself. And the specific thing in question 
is that the Holy Spirit has promised that in every city, chains and 
tribulations await Him. That's the context. And he says, 
none of these things move me, nor do I count my life dear to 
myself so that I may finish my race with joy. That shines the 
light on our passage. When we're to run with endurance, 
it's not like Stoics. I'm going to endure. It's not 
the Spartan endurance. It's joyful endurance. It's Christian 
endurance. It's running with endurance to 
race with your head up. with a smile on your face, with 
a spring in your step, with delight in the God who saved you from 
your sins. There may be trials, there may 
be times, there may be some slugfest where you're not always looking 
like Eric Liddell with the head thrown back at you. But you know 
what? That should be characteristic 
of this run. That's what Paul says. So that 
I may finish my race with joy and the ministry which I received 
from the Lord Jesus to testify to the gospel of the grace of 
God. You see, this great cloud of 
witnesses is filled with men and women who have persevered, 
men and women who endured. One final one, a martyr from 
church history from 155 A.D. I know I read this Wednesday, 
but it bears reading again. A man by the name of Polycarp. 
About the year 155, the aged Christian pastor Polycarp was 
also martyred. He had been a disciple of the 
Apostle John and had become the leading Christian in the church 
at Smyrna, one of the seven churches of Asia, named in chapters one 
and two of the Book of Revelation. In the middle of the second century, 
the church was visited with fierce persecutions. Polycarp found 
refuge for a short time outside the city limits, but he was betrayed 
by an unfaithful servant and fell into the hands of his enemies. 
Calm and dignified, he surrendered himself with the words, God's 
will be done. Then after giving food to his 
hungry persecutors, he poured out his heart before the Lord, 
praying for himself, his friends, the Church of Smyrna, and also 
for his enemies. The usual test applied to Christians 
was that they must call Caesar, the emperor, Lord, as if he were 
a divine person. When you read in the New Testament, 
every time it says, Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, understand 
that that was something of a revolutionary statement in the Roman Empire. 
Caesar was Lord. Caesar was Savior. Curios soter. And for the church to celebrate 
the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was to say, in effect, we will 
not let this king rule over us because we have Jesus. And so 
that was the test given. And he goes on and says, refusal 
to do so meant the death sentence taken before the Roman consul 
Polycarp was required to say on oath that he venerated Caesar 
in this way. But he was firm in his refusal. 
I have wild beasts, said the consul. If you refuse, I will 
throw you to them. Send for them, replied Polycarp. 
If you despise the wild beasts, I will send you to the fire, 
said the consul. Swear, and I will release you. 
Curse the Christ. Eighty and six years have I served 
Christ, replied Polycarp, and he has done me no wrong. How 
then can I blaspheme my king who has saved me? You threaten 
a fire that burns for an hour and then is quenched. But you 
know not of the fire of the judgment to come, and the fire of the 
eternal punishment. Bring what you will. The consul 
was astonished and sent a herald to announce to the people that 
Polycarp had confessed himself to be a Christian. When the torch 
was applied to the wood and smoke and flames encircled him again, 
he prayed, Lord God, Father of our blessed Savior, I thank Thee 
that I have been deemed worthy to receive the crown of martyrdom, 
and that I may die for Thee and for Thy cause. It is recorded 
that all the multitude marveled at the great difference between 
the unbelievers and the elect. They saw what Christian obedience 
meant, for Jesus had said, Be thou faithful unto death, and 
I will give thee a crown of life. He's in the cloud of witnesses, 
testifying that one simple truth, God is faithful. So run with 
endurance the race that is set before us. You know, just by 
way of conclusion, I didn't mention this on Wednesday night, but 
you know the best way to run with endurance? I know this is 
going to sound revolutionary. Run. It's the best way to run with 
endurance. It's by doing it. Any of you 
ever thought, hey, I want to get into some physical exercise, 
and you first start off. Maybe it's push-ups. Man, I want 
to do 50 push-ups. You do five and you're dying. So what do you do? Well, I'm 
just going to give up. No, you try and you endure and you persevere. Next time you get seven. Next 
time you get ten. Next time you get twelve. What 
happens? You're being conditioned. You're 
being exercised. You're disciplining yourself. 
Same with running. You may have it in your head. 
I want to run around my block. First morning you go out and 
you run to your mailbox and you about die. Get up the next morning. What 
do you do? You run back to that mailbox. You don't die this time. What happens the next morning? 
You run past the mailbox. So much of the Christian life 
is like that. It's not super mysterious. It's 
not super ethereal. It's not super spiritual. Just 
get on it and run. Not to sound like the Nike commercial, 
but they're actually right. Just do it. Get up. Run. You say you believe the 
gospel, read the Bible, pray and run, run with endurance. 
Look at that cloud of witnesses. Be faithful. Secondly, we ought 
to desire to join that cloud of witnesses. Don't you love 
being around older saints? Don't you love being around older 
men and women who can testify of the faithfulness of God? People 
that have been in the way for 40 or 50 years and they say, 
like Polycarp, for 86 years I have served Him and He has done me 
no wrong. Don't you want to be like that 
to younger brethren? Or what about tried brethren? 
Brethren who have gone through the fires. Brethren who have 
gone through very big difficulties. And yet they come out on the 
other side and they testify, God is faithful. We ought to 
labor to be like that, to join this crowd of witnesses so we 
can testify to the young runners that God is faithful. The only 
way to jump into this race is to believe on the Lord Jesus 
Christ. You don't run the Christian race 
without having first come to Calvary, without first having 
believed the Gospel, without having first been saved by grace 
through faith. Once that occurs, then run. Run with endurance. Don't stop. Don't look back. Reach forward. 
Press on toward the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Well, let us pray. Father, how 
we thank You for Your Word and how we thank You for these examples, 
these witnesses, this great cloud of witnesses that continually 
testify to us that God is faithful. I pray that You would help each 
one of us here to run with endurance. Help us, Lord God, to persevere. 
Help us not to slack off. Help us not to take the easy 
way. But God, help us to take up what 
You have given to us and to press onward. Father, we know the reward 
is great. We sang of it in 599. We read 
of it in our Bibles. We see Paul the Apostle highlight 
this reality in 2 Timothy 4. And I pray that we would see 
how great you are, how gracious you are, and that you would just 
continue to fill us with your Spirit so that we may run with 
endurance. Go with us now, Lord God, we 
pray in Jesus' name. Amen.