1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:01,800 It's great to be with you this morning. 2 00:00:01,800 --> 00:00:03,920 It's great to be opening scripture this morning. 3 00:00:04,640 --> 00:00:06,280 I've met most of you, but my name is Josh. 4 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:10,600 I have the joy of serving as pastor here at the Garden Church 5 00:00:10,680 --> 00:00:14,040 and glad you're here. Thanks for thanks for being here 6 00:00:14,040 --> 00:00:16,280 this morning. I hope that it's a gift to you, 7 00:00:16,280 --> 00:00:19,920 a joy to you if you're in that process of exploring spiritual 8 00:00:19,920 --> 00:00:24,440 community. We're some pretty average, 9 00:00:24,440 --> 00:00:28,880 ordinary, normal humans just on this journey together of trying 10 00:00:28,880 --> 00:00:31,040 to become a little bit more like Jesus, trying to learn how to 11 00:00:31,040 --> 00:00:35,000 love like Jesus in the places that we live, work and play each 12 00:00:35,000 --> 00:00:37,560 day. And there's a spot for you here. 13 00:00:37,840 --> 00:00:41,000 Come, come grab me, grab anybody with a lanyard after the 14 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:43,800 gathering love to talk to you, to pray with you, to support you 15 00:00:44,600 --> 00:00:48,640 however we can on this journey. So this morning as I as as 16 00:00:48,640 --> 00:00:51,880 Rachel named we are we are in Hebrews chapter 12. 17 00:00:51,880 --> 00:00:56,040 We're actually wrapping up our series through the book of 18 00:00:56,120 --> 00:01:00,880 Hebrews that we've been in over these last several weeks, and it 19 00:01:00,880 --> 00:01:03,560 is this morning. Such a beautiful text of 20 00:01:03,560 --> 00:01:08,680 Scripture and an encouragement, a challenge to not lose heart, 21 00:01:08,680 --> 00:01:12,480 to not grow weary, but to persevere. 22 00:01:13,680 --> 00:01:18,880 Burnout is something that has become like almost ubiquitous in 23 00:01:18,880 --> 00:01:21,960 our culture, right? I think if you think back to 24 00:01:21,960 --> 00:01:26,160 these, the olden days before 2019, right, it seems like 25 00:01:26,440 --> 00:01:29,280 burnout was there was a time, maybe some of you will still 26 00:01:29,280 --> 00:01:31,480 remember this, when burnout was something that we talked about 27 00:01:31,480 --> 00:01:37,120 mostly in terms of like ER docs and social workers, like, you 28 00:01:37,120 --> 00:01:39,880 know, some high, high functioning executives, some 29 00:01:39,880 --> 00:01:43,360 people who had very intensive demanding jobs. 30 00:01:43,360 --> 00:01:48,080 It seems the conversation seems to be more narrow, but now I 31 00:01:48,080 --> 00:01:50,320 feel like it's, you know, everywhere. 32 00:01:51,040 --> 00:01:54,000 How many of you would say I'm one of the people raising my 33 00:01:54,000 --> 00:01:55,840 hands here? This is not a shame thing, but 34 00:01:55,840 --> 00:01:59,160 how many of you would say that I've experienced some level of 35 00:01:59,160 --> 00:02:01,320 burnout at some point in my life, something that I'm aware 36 00:02:01,320 --> 00:02:03,560 of. I relate to a factor, man. 37 00:02:03,560 --> 00:02:05,280 There's a lot of hands up in the room. 38 00:02:07,040 --> 00:02:12,320 And this morning as as we come to the end of this series, we 39 00:02:12,320 --> 00:02:16,600 find a community that is wrestling with some of the same 40 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:19,920 symptoms, some of the symptoms that we see in burnout, losing 41 00:02:19,920 --> 00:02:25,720 heart, growing weary and fearing we're coming to that place of, 42 00:02:25,800 --> 00:02:30,400 of withdrawal or even quitting. I had a probably my most 43 00:02:30,400 --> 00:02:34,080 significant brush with burnout happened just a few years ago. 44 00:02:34,080 --> 00:02:38,840 A bunch of you knew me at that time, so may or may or may not 45 00:02:38,840 --> 00:02:42,920 have named it in in that way. But because I'm up here talking 46 00:02:42,920 --> 00:02:45,320 a lot, a lot of you know my story our our story. 47 00:02:45,320 --> 00:02:47,400 Some of you have been a big part of that story. 48 00:02:48,600 --> 00:02:54,280 Back in 2019, my wife and I made what felt for us like a pretty 49 00:02:54,280 --> 00:02:58,360 bold, pretty courageous decision to step into church planting to 50 00:02:58,360 --> 00:03:03,960 starting a new congregation. And that felt risky for a lot of 51 00:03:03,960 --> 00:03:05,680 reasons. But we were also filled with a 52 00:03:05,680 --> 00:03:08,880 lot of vision, a lot of excitement, a lot of possibility 53 00:03:08,880 --> 00:03:10,360 and imagination for what could be. 54 00:03:10,920 --> 00:03:14,600 And as we kind of gathered this small group of, of people and, 55 00:03:14,880 --> 00:03:17,640 and prayed together and, and dreamt together, began sharing 56 00:03:17,720 --> 00:03:21,840 practices to try and emulate the life of Jesus, began serving in 57 00:03:21,840 --> 00:03:25,200 our neighborhood and, and trying to extend the love of Jesus to 58 00:03:25,200 --> 00:03:26,520 people that we were connected to. 59 00:03:26,960 --> 00:03:30,040 Like it was, it was a super beautiful season. 60 00:03:30,040 --> 00:03:32,840 It felt like something really precious was going. 61 00:03:32,840 --> 00:03:36,400 People were growing in community and new people were showing up. 62 00:03:36,400 --> 00:03:39,360 There was some energy and vitality to this beautiful thing 63 00:03:39,360 --> 00:03:42,840 that was happening. And then almost exactly a month 64 00:03:42,840 --> 00:03:46,840 later, the news broke that there was this crazy novel coronavirus 65 00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:50,600 spreading that would change the world for the next few years, 66 00:03:51,720 --> 00:03:57,000 really up until now, but particularly in 2020-2021. 67 00:03:57,000 --> 00:03:58,560 I mean, many of you were in that journey. 68 00:03:58,560 --> 00:04:01,520 You were either part of this spiritual community at that time 69 00:04:01,520 --> 00:04:04,720 or or perhaps another community. And, and you remember it like 70 00:04:04,720 --> 00:04:07,480 the world, at least in Boston, like just shut down. 71 00:04:07,480 --> 00:04:11,920 Everything froze, right? These intimate moments of 72 00:04:11,920 --> 00:04:14,880 community that we were sharing around dinner tables all of a 73 00:04:14,880 --> 00:04:19,320 sudden were on Zoom, which at first felt like kind of OK, and 74 00:04:19,320 --> 00:04:22,840 then like a year later did not feel OK at all anymore. 75 00:04:24,320 --> 00:04:27,160 There were all these these new people coming and attaching. 76 00:04:27,160 --> 00:04:30,000 And then all of a sudden we were in this moment where it's like, 77 00:04:30,720 --> 00:04:32,520 how does a new person get connected on Zoom? 78 00:04:32,520 --> 00:04:34,080 It just doesn't like I don't, I don't. 79 00:04:34,320 --> 00:04:36,200 No more barbecues were happening. 80 00:04:38,280 --> 00:04:41,400 And, and you know, I could sense that like this, this thing that 81 00:04:41,400 --> 00:04:44,120 we've been working on that we, we had all of this momentum was 82 00:04:44,120 --> 00:04:48,000 really like it was fading. And my first, my first impulse 83 00:04:48,000 --> 00:04:52,520 in that moment was to double down, to like go faster, to go 84 00:04:52,520 --> 00:04:56,240 harder, to push more. And so I kept summoning more 85 00:04:56,240 --> 00:04:59,920 internal energy to try and try to overcome the hurdle, to 86 00:04:59,920 --> 00:05:03,200 overcome the challenges to, to show up in ways that were 87 00:05:03,200 --> 00:05:06,840 needed. And it, it felt like we're just 88 00:05:06,840 --> 00:05:10,200 running on ice, you know, that feeling like it's like the, the 89 00:05:10,240 --> 00:05:13,720 energetic input is not commensurate with the output 90 00:05:13,720 --> 00:05:17,040 that is happening. And internally, you know, 91 00:05:17,360 --> 00:05:19,840 different people, I'm sure experience that differently. 92 00:05:19,840 --> 00:05:23,080 But for me in that space, there was this, this, this feeling of, 93 00:05:23,600 --> 00:05:27,840 of growing discouragement internally, like, you know, this 94 00:05:27,840 --> 00:05:29,920 thing that we've been working so hard at, this thing that we've 95 00:05:29,920 --> 00:05:32,080 been dreaming of. Like, I'm not like, are we going 96 00:05:32,080 --> 00:05:35,600 to get to where we need to go? Like, is this going to happen? 97 00:05:35,600 --> 00:05:39,000 We were running on the kind of a shoestring budget of funded by 98 00:05:39,040 --> 00:05:42,680 people that Josh grew up with and grandma and, you know, small 99 00:05:42,680 --> 00:05:45,760 donations. And then my wife lost her job. 100 00:05:45,760 --> 00:05:49,280 We had a kid. The financial burden started to 101 00:05:49,280 --> 00:05:51,440 mount. And there was just this, this 102 00:05:51,520 --> 00:05:56,520 internal angst and wrestling this, this hope that had like 103 00:05:56,520 --> 00:05:59,120 been dashed in some ways. Not that not that everything was 104 00:05:59,120 --> 00:06:02,880 bad or things had fallen apart, but it was just like, this isn't 105 00:06:02,880 --> 00:06:05,920 going the way that I hoped, the way that I expected. 106 00:06:05,920 --> 00:06:09,040 This is so hard. Maybe it would be easier to just 107 00:06:09,320 --> 00:06:13,440 dial back the intensity to not try so hard to not pray so hard 108 00:06:13,440 --> 00:06:17,080 to not work so hard to, to, to maybe put some effort and energy 109 00:06:17,080 --> 00:06:20,640 over here and some things that are maybe less meaningful that 110 00:06:20,640 --> 00:06:24,320 I'm less called to, but also feel less risky and a little bit 111 00:06:24,560 --> 00:06:28,560 more safe. I share all of this this 112 00:06:28,560 --> 00:06:30,680 morning. Not so that you know, you'll 113 00:06:30,680 --> 00:06:33,680 feel bad for me or, or take care of me. 114 00:06:33,680 --> 00:06:36,200 I'm I'm really OK. God has beautifully redeemed 115 00:06:36,200 --> 00:06:40,000 parts of the story and by God's grace, you know, we have a 116 00:06:40,000 --> 00:06:41,400 beautiful community here this morning. 117 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:47,120 But, but I, I name it to kind of put a face on a dynamic that I 118 00:06:47,120 --> 00:06:50,080 think, even though I assume that most of you have not attempted 119 00:06:50,080 --> 00:06:54,600 to start the church during a middle of a pandemic that I bet 120 00:06:54,800 --> 00:06:57,960 most, if not all of us can relate to in one aspect or 121 00:06:57,960 --> 00:07:01,160 another. Because in one way or another, 122 00:07:01,560 --> 00:07:05,120 we've all been there, right? We've, we've been in this 123 00:07:05,120 --> 00:07:08,240 moment, this, this kind of Arc where we struck out in faith, we 124 00:07:08,240 --> 00:07:13,000 tried to do something in our spiritual lives, in community. 125 00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:17,720 We, we, we took a bold step of faith and then we hit 126 00:07:17,720 --> 00:07:20,560 resistance. Maybe it was external 127 00:07:20,560 --> 00:07:22,800 resistance, maybe it was internal resistance, but things 128 00:07:22,800 --> 00:07:26,400 just didn't, they didn't go how we hoped, they didn't go how we 129 00:07:26,400 --> 00:07:29,760 planned. There was an experience of, of 130 00:07:29,760 --> 00:07:34,720 discouragement, of growing, of growing weary and, and perhaps, 131 00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:40,680 perhaps even if like reduced expectations, like lowering the 132 00:07:40,680 --> 00:07:44,960 bar of, of faith, lowering the bar of effort, a bit of 133 00:07:45,040 --> 00:07:49,360 withdrawal. And maybe in that moment, you 134 00:07:49,360 --> 00:07:52,760 found yourself going through this arc of, of striking out, 135 00:07:52,760 --> 00:07:56,080 hitting resistance, growing weary, being discouraged of, of 136 00:07:56,080 --> 00:08:02,200 slowing or stopping altogether. Maybe you found yourself on the 137 00:08:02,200 --> 00:08:04,840 sidelines. Perhaps for you, this looked 138 00:08:04,840 --> 00:08:08,400 like a new spiritual practice, like you felt convicted by God 139 00:08:08,400 --> 00:08:11,960 to spend more time in Scripture or maybe to pray it at certain 140 00:08:11,960 --> 00:08:15,680 hours of the day. And, and you, you struck out 141 00:08:15,680 --> 00:08:19,640 with great enthusiasm. But over time, it was hard. 142 00:08:19,640 --> 00:08:21,360 There were interruptions, things faded. 143 00:08:22,240 --> 00:08:25,080 Maybe for you, you, it was some area of contribution. 144 00:08:25,080 --> 00:08:29,040 You, you began to, to lead a group or to, to serve on the 145 00:08:29,040 --> 00:08:31,800 worship team. So you began to, to, to gather 146 00:08:31,800 --> 00:08:36,360 some guys for Bible study. And it just didn't go quite how 147 00:08:36,360 --> 00:08:39,120 you hoped. You got some difficult feedback. 148 00:08:39,919 --> 00:08:44,440 Somebody stopped showing up. You hit a bump and you've 149 00:08:44,440 --> 00:08:46,800 noticed that you've pulled back. Maybe it had to do with like 150 00:08:46,800 --> 00:08:50,080 forgiveness or boundary setting something in a relationship you 151 00:08:50,080 --> 00:08:52,800 were, you were trying to build with somebody trying to to 152 00:08:52,800 --> 00:08:56,680 really model what it looked like to live in community. 153 00:08:56,680 --> 00:09:02,720 Well, man, it hasn't been easy. Maybe you tried to support 154 00:09:02,720 --> 00:09:04,880 somebody who reached out for need. 155 00:09:04,880 --> 00:09:07,800 You wanted to come alongside them or, or you wanted to launch 156 00:09:07,800 --> 00:09:11,480 a missional initiative to care for neighbors in some way. 157 00:09:12,480 --> 00:09:14,840 You really, you meant well. You, you struck out. 158 00:09:14,840 --> 00:09:19,840 You, you, you put yourself out there and woof was heavier than 159 00:09:19,840 --> 00:09:22,920 you thought. People didn't join you in the 160 00:09:22,920 --> 00:09:25,200 way that you thought they would. It was lonely. 161 00:09:25,200 --> 00:09:28,960 It was difficult. You hit resistance and so you 162 00:09:28,960 --> 00:09:32,320 pulled back, you slowed or perhaps even stopped all 163 00:09:32,320 --> 00:09:35,400 together. I think this is an experience 164 00:09:35,400 --> 00:09:38,400 that many of us can relate to. Certainly this was an experience 165 00:09:38,400 --> 00:09:41,560 that the first audience of this letter to the Hebrews knew very 166 00:09:41,560 --> 00:09:45,040 well. This had been their experience. 167 00:09:45,040 --> 00:09:49,280 They had had believed in Jesus. They had begun this journey with 168 00:09:49,280 --> 00:09:52,000 boldness, with confidence. And then there had been some 169 00:09:52,000 --> 00:09:54,240 resistance. There had been some pushback. 170 00:09:54,440 --> 00:09:57,800 There had been some persecution. Things didn't go in the way that 171 00:09:57,800 --> 00:10:00,560 they hoped. And now they were burned out. 172 00:10:00,560 --> 00:10:02,680 They were they were counting the cost and they were they were 173 00:10:02,680 --> 00:10:07,360 flirting with quiet quitting, not some like bold walk away, 174 00:10:08,560 --> 00:10:13,000 put in your resignation, but just kind of a quiet like I'm 175 00:10:13,000 --> 00:10:14,120 going to play at a different level. 176 00:10:15,200 --> 00:10:17,000 I'm not sure that it's really worth it. 177 00:10:18,640 --> 00:10:22,600 So chapter 12, we find the writer addressing this situation 178 00:10:22,720 --> 00:10:25,280 directly. He's concerned that they are 179 00:10:25,280 --> 00:10:28,320 becoming, as we see here in the text, entangled in sin. 180 00:10:29,880 --> 00:10:35,280 He writes to them, warning them. He says don't lose heart, don't 181 00:10:35,280 --> 00:10:39,520 grow weary. And you may be familiar as I was 182 00:10:39,520 --> 00:10:44,920 preparing the verse occurred to me in Hebrews 10 verse 25, where 183 00:10:44,920 --> 00:10:47,880 the writer tells them just a couple of chapters earlier. 184 00:10:47,880 --> 00:10:53,280 He says to to let us not give up meeting together as the habit of 185 00:10:53,320 --> 00:10:55,320 some as some are in the habit of doing. 186 00:10:56,560 --> 00:10:59,960 I don't know about you, but I grew up in church hearing this 187 00:10:59,960 --> 00:11:02,960 verse taught as you better be there on Sunday. 188 00:11:02,960 --> 00:11:06,960 Don't you dare miss right? Show up every week. 189 00:11:07,400 --> 00:11:09,560 You're not allowed to take a vacation, right? 190 00:11:09,560 --> 00:11:12,480 You better be in the in the pews, in the in the seats on 191 00:11:12,480 --> 00:11:14,720 Sunday morning. I'm glad you're here. 192 00:11:15,080 --> 00:11:17,280 Thanks for being here. I think it's good for us to be 193 00:11:17,280 --> 00:11:19,160 together. I don't think that's what that 194 00:11:19,160 --> 00:11:23,680 verse is talking about. See, the problem the Hebrew 195 00:11:23,680 --> 00:11:26,560 Christians faced was not that they were not routinely 196 00:11:26,560 --> 00:11:30,160 attending enough. It, it was the, the danger of 197 00:11:30,160 --> 00:11:33,240 attrition, the danger of pulling back, which of course could be 198 00:11:33,240 --> 00:11:36,400 manifest by not attending, but could also be manifest in a lot 199 00:11:36,400 --> 00:11:39,600 of other ways. Because don't you know it isn't 200 00:11:39,600 --> 00:11:44,960 it true that you can show up to church every Sunday and still 201 00:11:44,960 --> 00:11:47,040 not have really deep spiritual community? 202 00:11:47,040 --> 00:11:51,680 You didn't even grow up, go go to group every week and still 203 00:11:52,000 --> 00:11:53,960 not have really deep spiritual community. 204 00:11:55,400 --> 00:11:59,200 It's so easy actually to like to withdraw, to pull back, to guard 205 00:11:59,200 --> 00:12:03,440 yourself, to be a little bit distant, a little bit cautious, 206 00:12:03,480 --> 00:12:07,440 right? It's it's the the person who has 207 00:12:07,960 --> 00:12:11,800 like a relational issue roiling in the background, but chooses 208 00:12:11,800 --> 00:12:16,240 only to name the prayer request of Grandma's hip because it's 209 00:12:16,240 --> 00:12:20,240 safe, right? It's we come into church and we, 210 00:12:20,400 --> 00:12:24,160 we put a brave face forward, We smile, we look good, we dress 211 00:12:24,160 --> 00:12:27,600 up. But but do we let other people 212 00:12:27,600 --> 00:12:29,320 into what's actually true for us? 213 00:12:30,280 --> 00:12:32,200 Do we share what's real? The places where we're 214 00:12:32,360 --> 00:12:35,160 struggling, the prices where we're exhausted, the prices 215 00:12:35,320 --> 00:12:37,280 where we're hurt? Just the other week, somebody 216 00:12:37,280 --> 00:12:40,160 came to me and, and their, their life was a mess and they, they 217 00:12:40,160 --> 00:12:43,320 were naming, they were saying, hey, like, I don't, I don't know 218 00:12:43,320 --> 00:12:46,920 if this is like, I don't know if other people like it's, I'm not 219 00:12:46,920 --> 00:12:50,920 sure it's good for me to be around other people in this way. 220 00:12:52,120 --> 00:12:55,840 This happens to me all the time. I'm like, I think you are a gift 221 00:12:55,840 --> 00:13:00,200 right now because you're allowing yourself to be seen. 222 00:13:01,160 --> 00:13:05,840 And so many other people here are in the same spot or a 223 00:13:05,840 --> 00:13:09,120 similar spot right beneath the surface. 224 00:13:09,120 --> 00:13:10,800 There are things going on. There are tensions, there are 225 00:13:10,800 --> 00:13:13,320 losses, there are griefs, there are challenges, there is 226 00:13:13,320 --> 00:13:17,080 suffering. Are we allowing ourself to be 227 00:13:17,080 --> 00:13:19,520 seen? There's a lot of ways to quiet 228 00:13:19,520 --> 00:13:23,440 quit even if you show up on Sunday. 229 00:13:24,360 --> 00:13:28,480 The problem that the the Hebrews faced was not the danger of just 230 00:13:28,800 --> 00:13:32,680 not attending often enough. It was the danger of withdrawal 231 00:13:33,280 --> 00:13:36,760 and attrition. Mark Twain once said that most 232 00:13:36,760 --> 00:13:41,120 men die at 27. We just bury them at 72. 233 00:13:45,000 --> 00:13:47,360 He was naming A dynamic that's real, right? 234 00:13:48,280 --> 00:13:52,880 Because very often we in our lives, we hit obstacles, we hit 235 00:13:52,880 --> 00:13:58,000 pain points, we hit losses. And at some point there's an 236 00:13:58,000 --> 00:14:02,360 internal conversation we may not even be fully aware of that we 237 00:14:02,360 --> 00:14:05,960 say, like, I just maybe it's just safer over here. 238 00:14:07,240 --> 00:14:11,360 Like if I don't just really, if, if I don't try to forgive that 239 00:14:11,360 --> 00:14:14,320 person, if I don't try to reconcile that relationship, if 240 00:14:14,360 --> 00:14:17,920 I don't like, if I make my life small enough, if I make my life 241 00:14:17,920 --> 00:14:22,680 safe enough, if I like make my life guarded enough, I can just 242 00:14:22,680 --> 00:14:27,800 avoid all of that. We get in these conversations so 243 00:14:27,800 --> 00:14:31,520 easily and so often that aren't about running the race. 244 00:14:31,520 --> 00:14:36,160 They're about self protection. And it is into that context that 245 00:14:37,080 --> 00:14:39,840 that the writer of Hebrews speaks. 246 00:14:40,400 --> 00:14:43,680 And he offers here for us this morning three powerful, three 247 00:14:43,680 --> 00:14:48,120 beautiful resources for runners who are at risk of stopping 248 00:14:48,120 --> 00:14:51,920 short of the finish line. Three race day resources, if you 249 00:14:51,920 --> 00:14:56,280 will, so that we can, as he says here in in verse 1 of chapter 250 00:14:56,280 --> 00:15:02,920 12, run with perseverance, the race marked out for us so that 251 00:15:02,920 --> 00:15:05,520 we can run with perseverance, the race marked out for us. 252 00:15:05,520 --> 00:15:09,280 And the first resource we see here in verse one, we're going 253 00:15:09,280 --> 00:15:11,760 to call, we're going to fall call the cheer squad. 254 00:15:13,360 --> 00:15:14,840 All right, so many of you are familiar. 255 00:15:14,840 --> 00:15:18,000 I know some of you have been in a conversation in the South end 256 00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:21,040 group for months now about Hebrews Chapter 11. 257 00:15:21,800 --> 00:15:25,680 Hebrews 11 is probably the most famous section of this letter. 258 00:15:25,680 --> 00:15:27,760 You probably know it or are familiar with it. 259 00:15:27,760 --> 00:15:31,840 It's it's often known as like the Hall of Faith because it's a 260 00:15:31,840 --> 00:15:35,000 it's this description of all of these, all of these people who 261 00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:37,640 are heroes of faith. They're people who have struck 262 00:15:37,640 --> 00:15:42,120 out in confidence and boldness, who lived well, who persevered 263 00:15:42,120 --> 00:15:45,360 in faith. It tells their stories how they 264 00:15:45,360 --> 00:15:48,880 face down difficulty and and push back and persecution and 265 00:15:48,880 --> 00:15:52,320 yet continued. And at the very outset of 266 00:15:52,440 --> 00:15:57,280 Hebrews chapter 12, it's this group the writer refers back to 267 00:15:57,280 --> 00:16:01,240 here in verse one when he describes them as a great cloud 268 00:16:01,320 --> 00:16:04,920 of witnesses. A great cloud of witnesses. 269 00:16:05,720 --> 00:16:08,240 And under a month, the best runners in the world will 270 00:16:08,240 --> 00:16:12,960 converge awfully close to here for the signature event and 271 00:16:12,960 --> 00:16:14,400 distance running the Boston Marathon. 272 00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:20,000 Many of you will go out and cheer and celebrate the racers. 273 00:16:20,000 --> 00:16:23,760 I think some of us are going to be running not me, other people 274 00:16:25,280 --> 00:16:29,760 And marathons are of course long, right? 275 00:16:30,840 --> 00:16:35,320 Famously the the the the guy who was kind of the the name came 276 00:16:35,320 --> 00:16:37,880 from who first did it died immediately upon completing the 277 00:16:37,880 --> 00:16:42,440 race. 26 two .2 miles is a it's a feet of endurance. 278 00:16:42,440 --> 00:16:45,640 It's a it's a long ways. Thank you, Aaron. 279 00:16:45,640 --> 00:16:48,800 Let me try to fix this. Beards are not compatible with 280 00:16:48,800 --> 00:16:53,320 sound systems. And while it's definitely 281 00:16:53,320 --> 00:16:59,080 survivable to run 26.2 miles, it's not easy right? 282 00:16:59,080 --> 00:17:01,720 It, it, it takes some things, especially at mile 20 when you 283 00:17:01,720 --> 00:17:05,359 hit heartbreak hill and you're trying to power up this steep 284 00:17:05,359 --> 00:17:09,800 incline after already taking such a grueling race. 285 00:17:10,880 --> 00:17:14,079 I am not a serious runner. I run very casually and very 286 00:17:14,079 --> 00:17:16,599 part time about one day a week, very slow. 287 00:17:18,040 --> 00:17:22,079 But one thing even I have learned is like, I like, it is 288 00:17:22,079 --> 00:17:26,520 so hard for me to run by myself. Like I, I just, I don't do it. 289 00:17:27,119 --> 00:17:31,000 But, but if, if you're out there in the, in the couple of times 290 00:17:31,000 --> 00:17:35,640 that I've actually run in a race, right with other people, 291 00:17:35,880 --> 00:17:39,000 it's a whole different experience than solo running. 292 00:17:39,720 --> 00:17:42,280 If, if you run in a race, you know this, like there, there are 293 00:17:42,280 --> 00:17:45,800 people along the way they're cheering you on there there. 294 00:17:45,800 --> 00:17:48,360 I've been much more in the cheer zone than in the actual race in 295 00:17:48,360 --> 00:17:50,480 my life. But there's all of these these 296 00:17:50,480 --> 00:17:52,880 fans who are, who are celebrating, who are high 297 00:17:52,880 --> 00:17:56,040 fiving, who are encouraging you, who are blowing whistles and 298 00:17:56,040 --> 00:18:00,480 making noise and holding up silly signs to help you keep 299 00:18:00,480 --> 00:18:03,200 going. Social scientists have actually 300 00:18:03,360 --> 00:18:06,160 like quantified this. They, they have have studied 301 00:18:06,160 --> 00:18:10,000 race day performance and and documented that that these cheer 302 00:18:10,000 --> 00:18:15,240 zones actually increase that the hormones that help you to feel 303 00:18:15,240 --> 00:18:17,840 encouraged. They, they pick you up and push 304 00:18:17,840 --> 00:18:21,440 you forward faster and more enthusiastically. 305 00:18:23,280 --> 00:18:24,960 You're not imagining that it feels easier. 306 00:18:24,960 --> 00:18:28,040 It's actually easier when there's somebody rooting for 307 00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:31,360 you. And the writer of Hebrews wants 308 00:18:31,360 --> 00:18:34,120 us to know at the very outset of this letter that we are not 309 00:18:34,120 --> 00:18:38,440 running this race by ourselves, that we are witnessed. 310 00:18:39,400 --> 00:18:40,600 Have you ever thought about this? 311 00:18:41,520 --> 00:18:45,040 Like, I think like we think of the spiritual life as a as a 312 00:18:45,040 --> 00:18:49,360 solo journey a lot of times. But in this image that we have 313 00:18:49,360 --> 00:18:53,040 here in the book of Hebrews, he says, hey, there is a whole 314 00:18:53,040 --> 00:18:56,200 cloud of witnesses surrounding you. 315 00:18:56,840 --> 00:18:59,720 This is not an individual trek or expedition. 316 00:19:00,000 --> 00:19:04,000 You are part of a glorious community that crosses time and 317 00:19:04,000 --> 00:19:06,640 space. Right now, Moses is in the 318 00:19:06,640 --> 00:19:10,480 grandstands along with Archbishop Tutu, right? 319 00:19:10,480 --> 00:19:13,680 Paul and CS Lewis, Martin Luther King and King David. 320 00:19:13,840 --> 00:19:16,400 They're up there. They're observing, they're 321 00:19:16,400 --> 00:19:18,840 watching. They're cheering you on. 322 00:19:18,840 --> 00:19:22,600 They're celebrating in Luke chapter 15. 323 00:19:22,600 --> 00:19:26,240 Jesus claims that there is rejoicing in heaven over 1 324 00:19:26,240 --> 00:19:30,520 Sinner who repents. I'm not sure exactly how this 325 00:19:30,520 --> 00:19:32,240 works. I'm not sure who can see what 326 00:19:32,240 --> 00:19:36,480 and when and how it all happens. But there is a very real 327 00:19:36,640 --> 00:19:40,600 encouragement that the writer of Hebrews intends to communicate 328 00:19:40,600 --> 00:19:43,880 by virtue of the fact that we are not alone, but rather a 329 00:19:43,880 --> 00:19:49,520 cloud full, surrounded by, enveloped by a community of 330 00:19:49,520 --> 00:19:53,160 people who have faithfully run the race and are cheering us on. 331 00:19:54,520 --> 00:19:58,720 Every time we reach for our Bibles instead of our phones and 332 00:19:58,720 --> 00:20:03,400 apps in the morning, every time we make that hard decision to to 333 00:20:03,440 --> 00:20:06,760 to press into a relationship where something is off to to 334 00:20:06,760 --> 00:20:11,200 confess or to repent, to ask for forgiveness instead of just go 335 00:20:11,200 --> 00:20:14,240 sing or avoiding, a cheer goes up. 336 00:20:15,520 --> 00:20:19,520 There's a celebration every time we choose to be generous rather 337 00:20:19,520 --> 00:20:23,640 than self protective and greedy. Every time we step into a space 338 00:20:23,640 --> 00:20:26,560 of faith. There's a whole community 339 00:20:27,160 --> 00:20:31,480 watching, witnessing, celebrating, pushing us forward. 340 00:20:32,600 --> 00:20:35,120 What a beautiful image. We are not alone. 341 00:20:35,120 --> 00:20:38,360 The first resource that the writer of Hebrews gives us for 342 00:20:38,360 --> 00:20:41,600 race day is that we're part of a community. 343 00:20:41,600 --> 00:20:45,200 We can keep going because we've got the most epic cheer zone in 344 00:20:45,200 --> 00:20:50,160 history, which is right there encouraging us, calling us 345 00:20:50,240 --> 00:20:54,720 forward. And it's not just the analogy 346 00:20:54,720 --> 00:20:57,800 doesn't work perfectly, but you know, it's not just people who 347 00:20:57,800 --> 00:21:00,920 are on the sidelines either, right? 348 00:21:00,920 --> 00:21:05,240 It's our fellow racers too. I won't belabor this point 349 00:21:05,240 --> 00:21:08,840 because we talked about it recently, but community is so 350 00:21:08,840 --> 00:21:11,520 important in the spiritual life, right? 351 00:21:11,520 --> 00:21:13,840 That's why back in Hebrews chapter 10, the verse that we 352 00:21:13,840 --> 00:21:18,280 already referenced, the the writer of the book talks about 353 00:21:18,280 --> 00:21:21,920 how we need to encourage each other and spur each other on to 354 00:21:21,920 --> 00:21:23,800 good deeds. He says don't pull back from 355 00:21:23,800 --> 00:21:28,080 that community of faith. Don't quit because you need each 356 00:21:28,080 --> 00:21:29,560 other. You need to be in each other's 357 00:21:29,560 --> 00:21:32,200 corners, supporting each other, encouraging each other, 358 00:21:32,200 --> 00:21:36,160 providing accountability and and support so that you can keep 359 00:21:36,160 --> 00:21:39,920 going. The race of faith is not 360 00:21:39,920 --> 00:21:44,800 intended to be a solo 1. We're in it together because of 361 00:21:44,800 --> 00:21:49,160 our baptism. But there's a second resource 362 00:21:49,880 --> 00:21:51,960 that the writer of Hebrews points us towards and we might 363 00:21:51,960 --> 00:21:55,080 call it our, our kit, if you will, our kit. 364 00:21:56,320 --> 00:22:01,640 He says here in Hebrews chapter 12 and verse one, let us throw 365 00:22:01,640 --> 00:22:07,000 off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles 366 00:22:07,000 --> 00:22:10,240 us. The group word here that hinders 367 00:22:10,240 --> 00:22:13,960 is, is cost. It just means like a weight, a 368 00:22:13,960 --> 00:22:18,200 burden and impediment, something that is in the way, something 369 00:22:18,200 --> 00:22:21,640 that is impeding forward movement. 370 00:22:22,760 --> 00:22:26,160 We have a, a bunch of runners in our community, at least our 371 00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:28,880 Strava group tells me so. We also have a bunch of hikers 372 00:22:28,880 --> 00:22:32,160 in our community. And both of these are beautiful, 373 00:22:32,160 --> 00:22:34,960 worthwhile endeavors, but they are not the same. 374 00:22:35,440 --> 00:22:38,400 Some of you do both and you are very aware of this, right? 375 00:22:38,600 --> 00:22:42,640 You would not bring the same kit to a month long hike of the 376 00:22:42,640 --> 00:22:46,960 Appalachian Trail as you would to race day at the Boston 377 00:22:46,960 --> 00:22:49,280 Marathon. Like, can you, can you actually 378 00:22:49,320 --> 00:22:52,560 picture this silly image for just a minute, right? 379 00:22:52,560 --> 00:22:55,560 Can you imagine showing up with the full hiking gear at the 380 00:22:55,560 --> 00:22:57,360 starting line of the Boston Marathon? 381 00:22:57,760 --> 00:23:00,440 Everybody's there and they're like short shorts and tiny, tiny 382 00:23:00,440 --> 00:23:02,840 shoes and they've got just their their watches on and that's 383 00:23:02,840 --> 00:23:04,040 pretty much it. They're they're bibs. 384 00:23:04,040 --> 00:23:06,720 They're ready to go. And here you are and you've got 385 00:23:06,720 --> 00:23:12,800 like a tent and a filtration system, 3 changes of clothes. 386 00:23:12,800 --> 00:23:15,840 You've got your rain gear, you've got your snacks, right? 387 00:23:16,240 --> 00:23:18,840 You've got your trekking poles are ready to go. 388 00:23:18,840 --> 00:23:21,080 There's some bear repellent and some bug spray. 389 00:23:21,320 --> 00:23:24,280 You've got a little gas stove and, and, and a titanium 390 00:23:24,280 --> 00:23:25,840 skillet. Like, I mean, you are ready for 391 00:23:25,840 --> 00:23:29,560 every eventuality. By mile 8 you are going to be 392 00:23:29,560 --> 00:23:33,240 dead maybe before then, right? This is not, you are not 393 00:23:33,240 --> 00:23:36,640 appropriately kitted up for the event at hand. 394 00:23:37,440 --> 00:23:39,520 You'd be carrying some obstacles. 395 00:23:40,400 --> 00:23:43,200 And I, I share this analogy because I think it's so helpful 396 00:23:43,200 --> 00:23:48,200 for us to consider to imagine like what is the right kit for 397 00:23:48,200 --> 00:23:52,080 the journey we are on? What is the right kit for the 398 00:23:52,080 --> 00:23:56,360 journey we are on? This is such a helpful vision 399 00:23:56,360 --> 00:24:00,000 for us because I think many of us, honestly, people who have 400 00:24:00,160 --> 00:24:02,800 grown up in the church or, or come to faith, we've been 401 00:24:02,800 --> 00:24:08,120 trained in an imagination that that focuses on what is allowed 402 00:24:08,120 --> 00:24:12,560 and what is not allowed, right? We've got an imagination for sin 403 00:24:12,560 --> 00:24:16,160 in our minds and we know that like these categories are, are 404 00:24:16,160 --> 00:24:17,880 out of bounds. I'm not supposed to do these 405 00:24:17,880 --> 00:24:19,880 things. If I do these things, God will 406 00:24:19,880 --> 00:24:21,960 be mad at me and maybe I will be punished. 407 00:24:22,920 --> 00:24:26,520 And so, so long as I'm not doing those things, then I'm cool, 408 00:24:27,880 --> 00:24:29,560 right? As long as I don't cross the 409 00:24:29,560 --> 00:24:34,400 line over here, then I'm fine. And look, there are things that 410 00:24:34,400 --> 00:24:36,760 are harmful, things that are dangerous, things that you 411 00:24:36,760 --> 00:24:38,200 should not do. For sure. 412 00:24:38,560 --> 00:24:41,840 Sin is a real thing. I don't mean to minimize that in 413 00:24:41,840 --> 00:24:46,360 any way. But also I wonder if we if we 414 00:24:46,360 --> 00:24:50,440 sometimes end up relating to to sin, relating to, to boundaries 415 00:24:50,440 --> 00:24:53,440 in the Christian life. Almost like my dog growing up 416 00:24:53,440 --> 00:24:56,760 did. Like my dog was named Ribbon. 417 00:24:57,120 --> 00:25:02,120 She was a goofy dog. And one day she experienced a 418 00:25:02,120 --> 00:25:04,520 new boundary because she went into the kitchen and ate my 419 00:25:04,520 --> 00:25:08,440 brother's birthday cake off of the kitchen table and my dad had 420 00:25:08,440 --> 00:25:09,840 it out. You know, there was lots of 421 00:25:09,840 --> 00:25:12,880 screaming and swinging and, and after that, the dog was very 422 00:25:12,880 --> 00:25:15,920 clear that she was not allowed to enter the kitchen, right? 423 00:25:16,120 --> 00:25:19,240 There was a clear boundary. Anytime she, you know, crossed 424 00:25:19,240 --> 00:25:21,000 into the kitchen, it was a big thing. 425 00:25:21,000 --> 00:25:23,160 So she, she had learned that she's a smart dog. 426 00:25:24,120 --> 00:25:27,360 She knew she wasn't supposed to go in the kitchen, so she would 427 00:25:27,360 --> 00:25:30,920 not go into the kitchen. I mean technically she would not 428 00:25:30,920 --> 00:25:34,680 go into the kitchen, right? Because her entire body would 429 00:25:34,680 --> 00:25:37,840 absolutely be in the kitchen. But she would, she would have 430 00:25:37,840 --> 00:25:41,240 like 1 paw all the way back, right? 431 00:25:41,240 --> 00:25:43,400 As distant as possible. There was like there was 1 432 00:25:43,400 --> 00:25:47,560 toenail that barely touched the threshold of the kitchen door 433 00:25:48,480 --> 00:25:52,000 right in her imagination. Like following the rules was 434 00:25:52,000 --> 00:25:56,360 just like getting as close as possible without breaking the 435 00:25:56,360 --> 00:25:59,480 rule. And friends, I think sometimes 436 00:25:59,800 --> 00:26:05,480 this is how we I know sometimes this is how I relate to relate 437 00:26:05,480 --> 00:26:08,600 to sin, right, relate to boundaries. 438 00:26:09,320 --> 00:26:12,240 It's like how close can I get without getting in trouble, 439 00:26:13,560 --> 00:26:17,120 right? Like can I, you know, am I 440 00:26:17,120 --> 00:26:21,040 allowed to go right to here? Like we didn't technically have 441 00:26:21,040 --> 00:26:23,120 sex because there, you know, there were some clothes that 442 00:26:23,120 --> 00:26:25,160 stayed on. You know, we there was we I 443 00:26:25,200 --> 00:26:29,120 didn't technically I didn't there, there's this like we're 444 00:26:29,120 --> 00:26:33,720 right here at the boundary, right, attempting to cross some 445 00:26:33,720 --> 00:26:38,800 like invisible line where we think in some way that will 446 00:26:38,800 --> 00:26:43,080 incur punishment. And I just got to say like, I 447 00:26:43,080 --> 00:26:45,000 get it. And also, like, what an 448 00:26:45,000 --> 00:26:51,520 unhelpful way to relate to this. What what a better image the 449 00:26:51,520 --> 00:26:54,200 writer of Hebrews gives us here in terms of entanglements. 450 00:26:54,800 --> 00:26:58,160 Because again, there are things that you just should not do as a 451 00:26:58,160 --> 00:26:59,680 Christian, as part of the Christian life. 452 00:27:00,400 --> 00:27:04,800 But honestly, the vast majority of stuff that needs to be purged 453 00:27:04,800 --> 00:27:11,000 from our lives isn't immoral. It's not like wrong technically, 454 00:27:11,960 --> 00:27:15,840 it's just bad kit, right? It's it's just not actually 455 00:27:15,840 --> 00:27:19,720 helpful for the race ahead. Like you can have a drink, cool, 456 00:27:20,800 --> 00:27:25,880 but like, is it serving you? You can, you can afford that, 457 00:27:25,880 --> 00:27:29,080 yes, like, but does that actually get you that the 458 00:27:29,080 --> 00:27:32,200 happiness that you want? Right. 459 00:27:32,200 --> 00:27:35,200 You you can make that choice. You're like you're allowed to 460 00:27:35,200 --> 00:27:37,000 set up your relationships in that way. 461 00:27:38,240 --> 00:27:39,960 You're allowed to set up your finances in that way. 462 00:27:39,960 --> 00:27:43,400 You're allowed to, to set up your priorities in that way. 463 00:27:44,800 --> 00:27:47,160 But what race are we running friends? 464 00:27:47,880 --> 00:27:50,520 Like what is our goal? What is our, our tell us, what 465 00:27:50,520 --> 00:27:52,480 is the finish line that we are chasing? 466 00:27:53,360 --> 00:27:57,320 I, I fear that that sometimes we're setting things up in a 467 00:27:57,320 --> 00:28:01,680 certain way where we're like, how much like I, I want to get 468 00:28:01,680 --> 00:28:05,160 to heaven when I die. And so like, I'm determined to 469 00:28:05,160 --> 00:28:09,320 get over there, but while getting there, how much like 470 00:28:09,320 --> 00:28:14,760 pleasure and comfort and security, right, and everything 471 00:28:14,760 --> 00:28:18,800 else that I, I like, how much of how much of all of these things 472 00:28:19,040 --> 00:28:24,160 can I possibly get and just just creep over the finish line by a 473 00:28:24,160 --> 00:28:28,000 hair? Friends, the writer of Hebrews 474 00:28:28,000 --> 00:28:31,600 points us towards a future, points us towards a vision where 475 00:28:31,720 --> 00:28:35,440 where we are, we are shedding everything that doesn't work for 476 00:28:35,440 --> 00:28:38,600 the purpose of love. Like he says that that that tell 477 00:28:38,600 --> 00:28:41,880 us here is love, God, love your neighbor with all your heart, 478 00:28:42,000 --> 00:28:45,360 soul, mind and strength. If we are going for that as hard 479 00:28:45,360 --> 00:28:49,520 and as fast as we can, like, what would we put down? 480 00:28:51,120 --> 00:28:53,280 Like, what are those things in our life that maybe are OK? 481 00:28:53,280 --> 00:28:54,960 Maybe it's our phone, maybe it's those gummies. 482 00:28:54,960 --> 00:28:58,320 Maybe it's that relationship that you know, just really isn't 483 00:28:58,320 --> 00:29:01,160 serving you. What is it in your life that 484 00:29:01,160 --> 00:29:05,480 you're holding on to right now? And like, OK, like you're, 485 00:29:05,720 --> 00:29:10,640 you're free, you're allowed. But the question is, is it 486 00:29:10,640 --> 00:29:14,040 serving you? The writer of Hebrew says, hey, 487 00:29:14,040 --> 00:29:16,120 guys, I want you to persevere on this race. 488 00:29:16,120 --> 00:29:18,600 I want you to run as fast and as far as you can. 489 00:29:18,600 --> 00:29:21,400 I want you to cross the finish line in record time. 490 00:29:21,400 --> 00:29:26,000 I want you to set APR. He says, what's what's the kit 491 00:29:26,000 --> 00:29:27,960 going to be? What needs to get stripped away, 492 00:29:28,040 --> 00:29:33,120 What needs to get laid down so that you can run the race with 493 00:29:33,120 --> 00:29:36,680 endurance? The first thing is the crowd. 494 00:29:36,680 --> 00:29:43,360 The second is the kit. But then lastly, finally, he 495 00:29:43,360 --> 00:29:46,960 also points us to the most important pacer of all time, 496 00:29:48,200 --> 00:29:51,960 Jesus. We read here in verse 2 of 497 00:29:51,960 --> 00:29:57,120 chapter 12, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfector 498 00:29:57,120 --> 00:30:00,480 of our faith. For the joy set before him, He 499 00:30:00,480 --> 00:30:04,880 endured the cross, scorning it's shame, and sat down at the right 500 00:30:04,880 --> 00:30:08,680 hand of the throne of God. Consider him, He says, who 501 00:30:08,680 --> 00:30:12,760 endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not 502 00:30:13,320 --> 00:30:18,640 grow weary and lose heart. This is the vision that we are 503 00:30:18,640 --> 00:30:22,360 to, to fix our attention on, to fix our eyes on to, to 504 00:30:22,360 --> 00:30:26,240 continually put before us so that we can run with 505 00:30:26,240 --> 00:30:30,880 perseverance. It's training our attention on 506 00:30:30,880 --> 00:30:32,600 Jesus. This is what this argument has 507 00:30:32,600 --> 00:30:34,440 been all about through this whole book. 508 00:30:34,920 --> 00:30:37,480 This is why the author has gone to these paints to say, hey, 509 00:30:37,840 --> 00:30:40,120 you're paying attention to the angels, you're paying attention 510 00:30:40,120 --> 00:30:42,520 to Moses, you're paying attention to the law, to the 511 00:30:42,520 --> 00:30:45,640 sacrifices. Jesus is greater than all of 512 00:30:45,640 --> 00:30:48,840 that. Keep your attention trained on 513 00:30:48,840 --> 00:30:54,040 him because Jesus, he says, is the pioneer and the perfector of 514 00:30:54,240 --> 00:30:57,520 the race. He did it first, He did it best. 515 00:30:57,840 --> 00:31:01,480 He's the guy. You've got to follow what we see 516 00:31:01,480 --> 00:31:04,480 here when we when we train our attention, when we look at 517 00:31:04,480 --> 00:31:10,040 Jesus, we see first of all, that that love, that joy is, is is 518 00:31:10,040 --> 00:31:12,920 better than just avoiding the pain and suffering of the race. 519 00:31:14,160 --> 00:31:18,640 And I, I honestly love this because I think some of us want 520 00:31:18,640 --> 00:31:22,040 to believe we, we get in a story where we imagine that like the 521 00:31:22,040 --> 00:31:24,400 Christian journey is supposed to be pain free. 522 00:31:25,280 --> 00:31:26,680 It's supposed to be suffering free. 523 00:31:26,680 --> 00:31:28,520 If you're doing it right, it shouldn't hurt. 524 00:31:28,520 --> 00:31:31,480 It shouldn't be uncomfortable. Maybe that's not your story, but 525 00:31:31,480 --> 00:31:35,480 I know it is some people's and, and there's nothing in this text 526 00:31:35,480 --> 00:31:39,040 about this, right? There's the assumption is the 527 00:31:39,200 --> 00:31:41,080 the opposite. It's that there is going to be 528 00:31:41,080 --> 00:31:43,800 difficulty, there is going to be challenge, there is going to be 529 00:31:43,800 --> 00:31:47,560 pain and push back. Jesus experienced that. 530 00:31:47,560 --> 00:31:50,600 He experienced scorn, he experienced shame, he 531 00:31:50,600 --> 00:31:54,080 experienced rejection. It doesn't say that those things 532 00:31:54,080 --> 00:31:55,400 were like not a big deal for Jesus. 533 00:31:55,400 --> 00:31:59,960 And so he did a great job. It says it was there, it was 534 00:31:59,960 --> 00:32:03,080 present. And yet for the joy that was set 535 00:32:03,080 --> 00:32:05,200 before him, he endured the cross. 536 00:32:06,840 --> 00:32:11,960 See, Jesus himself too had his eyes fixed attentionally on what 537 00:32:11,960 --> 00:32:17,280 was important, the will of the Father, the reconciliation of 538 00:32:17,280 --> 00:32:20,160 all humanity and creation that was possible through his 539 00:32:20,160 --> 00:32:22,960 sacrifice. Jesus had the joy, the 540 00:32:22,960 --> 00:32:26,920 imagination, the image of that that reconciled world and 541 00:32:26,920 --> 00:32:29,720 humanity of things set right and put back together in front of 542 00:32:29,720 --> 00:32:31,480 him. And he said that joy is great 543 00:32:31,480 --> 00:32:35,200 enough that like, I can literally be crucified and I can 544 00:32:35,200 --> 00:32:40,640 keep going. Friends, for us, Jesus is the 545 00:32:40,640 --> 00:32:41,920 pioneer. He's the perfector. 546 00:32:41,920 --> 00:32:44,960 He is the one that shows us that that like suffering is going to 547 00:32:44,960 --> 00:32:48,320 happen. But it doesn't have to be the 548 00:32:48,320 --> 00:32:52,440 defining thing. If you're running, I can tell 549 00:32:52,440 --> 00:32:56,800 you sure you know this. If you've run at all, it kind of 550 00:32:56,800 --> 00:32:58,800 stinks. It's not actually very pleasant 551 00:32:58,800 --> 00:33:01,760 to run. Like it's, it's, it's fairly 552 00:33:01,760 --> 00:33:04,360 uncomfortable. Like as you're running, you're 553 00:33:04,600 --> 00:33:06,240 my body. I'll just speak for myself. 554 00:33:06,240 --> 00:33:11,080 This your experience may vary, although probably not like as 555 00:33:11,080 --> 00:33:14,160 I'm running every step, especially you get up a mile, a 556 00:33:14,160 --> 00:33:19,000 couple miles, a few miles and my body is just screaming at me. 557 00:33:19,000 --> 00:33:21,560 It's like, stop, please stop, please stop. 558 00:33:21,560 --> 00:33:22,960 Please. This is uncomfortable. 559 00:33:22,960 --> 00:33:24,480 This is painful. We don't need to do this 560 00:33:24,480 --> 00:33:27,080 anymore, right? Internally it wants to to 561 00:33:27,080 --> 00:33:33,200 negotiate out of the discomfort and and if I begin to focus on 562 00:33:33,960 --> 00:33:38,160 like my experience of running, I will absolutely stop running. 563 00:33:39,120 --> 00:33:41,000 I'm don't even need to make it back to the car. 564 00:33:41,000 --> 00:33:44,520 We're just going to call an Uber from here, right because because 565 00:33:44,520 --> 00:33:46,880 my body is uncomfortable, my lips are burning. 566 00:33:46,880 --> 00:33:49,800 I got a cramp in my side. My knees hurt because I'm old. 567 00:33:49,800 --> 00:33:54,280 Like it's just not very fun to run again, my experience. 568 00:33:56,480 --> 00:34:00,360 But the the goal is not to focus on the running itself. 569 00:34:01,200 --> 00:34:03,760 Like if you were focusing on the pain and the discomfort that 570 00:34:03,760 --> 00:34:05,600 that's going to shape your experience. 571 00:34:06,600 --> 00:34:09,840 But in a race, one of the things that will often happen, in fact, 572 00:34:09,840 --> 00:34:13,840 the fastest times to ever be achieved, right? 573 00:34:14,080 --> 00:34:17,760 People are running with Pacers. And this is what happens if you 574 00:34:17,760 --> 00:34:19,920 get a little run crew together, right? 575 00:34:19,920 --> 00:34:23,960 You get some other people. You, you stop, you stop focusing 576 00:34:23,960 --> 00:34:25,520 on yourself. You stop even, it's not even 577 00:34:25,520 --> 00:34:27,600 about like visualizing the finish line. 578 00:34:28,320 --> 00:34:30,840 You're just like focusing on the shoulder of that person who's 579 00:34:30,840 --> 00:34:34,199 right in front of you or right beside you, right? 580 00:34:34,199 --> 00:34:36,199 You're just trying to keep up with that, Like you're just 581 00:34:36,199 --> 00:34:38,520 trying to steady, keep going at that rate. 582 00:34:39,800 --> 00:34:42,440 And when the the locus of attention and focus moves 583 00:34:42,520 --> 00:34:46,120 outside of yourself and you begin to focus on somebody else 584 00:34:46,120 --> 00:34:49,480 who is running the race, well, what happens? 585 00:34:50,120 --> 00:34:52,760 There's more endurance, there's more energy, there's more 586 00:34:52,960 --> 00:34:55,639 capacity to keep running faithfully. 587 00:34:56,960 --> 00:35:00,000 And and the writer of Hebrews here says Jesus is a great pacer 588 00:35:00,000 --> 00:35:02,600 man. Like I get you are running right 589 00:35:02,600 --> 00:35:04,280 now. This is an unfamiliar course. 590 00:35:04,280 --> 00:35:07,000 You've never completed it Right now it seems like this thing 591 00:35:07,000 --> 00:35:09,760 just never ends. It is it just all hills? 592 00:35:09,760 --> 00:35:14,680 What is going on? But he says, hey, this guy like 593 00:35:14,680 --> 00:35:16,880 it's actually doable. This guy crossed the finish 594 00:35:16,880 --> 00:35:17,760 line. He got there. 595 00:35:18,720 --> 00:35:21,120 Just don't worry about when you're going to get to. 596 00:35:21,120 --> 00:35:23,480 Don't worry about what your GPS says. 597 00:35:24,240 --> 00:35:26,760 Don't worry about how long or when you're going to get there. 598 00:35:26,760 --> 00:35:30,040 Like fix your eyes on this guy and keep going. 599 00:35:31,160 --> 00:35:33,160 Keep running. Keep that attentional focus 600 00:35:33,240 --> 00:35:36,640 locked in in front of you and keep running. 601 00:35:37,320 --> 00:35:40,360 Jesus is the pioneer and perfector of our faith. 602 00:35:40,360 --> 00:35:43,440 When we look at Him, we are sustained. 603 00:35:43,440 --> 00:35:46,880 We, we, we see that the, the, the vision, the joy, the the 604 00:35:46,880 --> 00:35:49,520 love, the intimacy, the reconciliation is better than 605 00:35:49,520 --> 00:35:51,200 the pain that we're suffering. It's worth it. 606 00:35:52,040 --> 00:35:55,120 And we see that the the race is winnable and we see that the the 607 00:35:55,120 --> 00:36:00,080 finish line is glorious. Says here he sat down at the 608 00:36:00,080 --> 00:36:04,640 right hand of the Father. There really is an end, a place 609 00:36:04,640 --> 00:36:09,320 of rest that we can enter into. As we talked about this a few 610 00:36:09,320 --> 00:36:14,920 weeks ago, friends, I don't know where you're at this morning. 611 00:36:14,920 --> 00:36:17,640 Everybody here in this room is probably in a different place, 612 00:36:19,440 --> 00:36:22,760 but I've conversations with a lot of you. 613 00:36:23,920 --> 00:36:25,920 I know there are people in the room carrying really heavy 614 00:36:25,920 --> 00:36:33,600 things, losses, addictions, disappointments, diagnosis, 615 00:36:34,520 --> 00:36:41,520 pain, and and I don't know what your particular circumstance is 616 00:36:41,520 --> 00:36:45,440 this morning. But I do know that if you will 617 00:36:45,440 --> 00:36:50,200 fix your eyes on Jesus, if you will move the the attentional 618 00:36:50,200 --> 00:36:54,840 locus of your life from what's not working for you to Jesus, 619 00:36:55,200 --> 00:36:59,840 and if you will keep going, that you will be inspired and able to 620 00:36:59,840 --> 00:37:02,680 persevere. You're in suffering this 621 00:37:02,680 --> 00:37:06,040 morning. Look to Jesus, friend, you're 622 00:37:06,040 --> 00:37:07,800 you're navigating depression this morning. 623 00:37:07,800 --> 00:37:12,160 Look to Jesus, you were doing really great and then that that 624 00:37:12,160 --> 00:37:14,920 addiction put its hooks back in you and pulled you back in. 625 00:37:15,200 --> 00:37:21,480 Look to Jesus, friends. If we look to Jesus, if we fix 626 00:37:21,520 --> 00:37:25,240 our gaze on him, that's why we each week that we come together, 627 00:37:25,240 --> 00:37:29,680 why we worship and sing, it's why we celebrate communion. 628 00:37:29,680 --> 00:37:32,280 It's an invitation because we need week after week. 629 00:37:32,280 --> 00:37:37,200 And honestly, you need it day after day, maybe hour by hour to 630 00:37:37,200 --> 00:37:42,760 return your gaze, to fix it on Jesus so that we can keep 631 00:37:42,760 --> 00:37:46,200 running. What does all of this look like 632 00:37:46,200 --> 00:37:50,760 for you this morning? Where's the rub for you in these 633 00:37:51,480 --> 00:37:57,800 three resources for race day? Are you tired this morning? 634 00:37:58,840 --> 00:38:03,640 Worn out, burnt out, exhausted, depleted, hurt? 635 00:38:05,760 --> 00:38:07,320 What would it look like for this morning? 636 00:38:07,320 --> 00:38:13,360 For you to to to, to root into that community of witnesses, 637 00:38:14,400 --> 00:38:17,680 both to to recognize that you are being witnessed and to allow 638 00:38:17,680 --> 00:38:22,200 yourself to be seen to move beyond Grandma's hip. 639 00:38:23,320 --> 00:38:27,000 We can pray for that too, but also to bring what is real for 640 00:38:27,000 --> 00:38:30,920 you into community in a space where it can be tended to, 641 00:38:31,520 --> 00:38:36,600 supported, and even healed. What's that that community of 642 00:38:36,600 --> 00:38:39,640 runners, that cloud of witnesses look like for you? 643 00:38:40,840 --> 00:38:44,680 You're going to need those relationships if you're going to 644 00:38:44,680 --> 00:38:49,480 run with endurance. What is the cloud look like for 645 00:38:49,480 --> 00:38:51,000 you? What's the kit look like for you 646 00:38:52,720 --> 00:38:56,360 as you inventory your life? If somebody were to do a a, a, a 647 00:38:57,240 --> 00:39:01,440 budget analysis, a time analysis, a practice analysis, 648 00:39:01,440 --> 00:39:06,920 what would they conclude? The tell us was the thing that 649 00:39:06,920 --> 00:39:09,120 you are running for, chasing, pursuing? 650 00:39:10,680 --> 00:39:14,600 Are you going for a maximal pleasure, maximal security, 651 00:39:15,480 --> 00:39:20,920 maximal accomplishment? Or are you running the right 652 00:39:21,040 --> 00:39:27,120 race, the race of love, in a way where anything that gets in the 653 00:39:27,120 --> 00:39:29,440 way is stripped aside? Not because. 654 00:39:29,680 --> 00:39:31,480 Not because you're not allowed to carry it. 655 00:39:32,360 --> 00:39:35,560 Because it's not serving you and you are committed to 656 00:39:35,560 --> 00:39:39,080 relentlessly running as fast and as far on this journey of faith 657 00:39:39,080 --> 00:39:42,880 as you can. Lent is a classic time where we 658 00:39:42,880 --> 00:39:46,560 inventory our lives and set things down, friends. 659 00:39:46,560 --> 00:39:48,640 Not because you should. Not because you have to. 660 00:39:48,640 --> 00:39:50,080 Not because you're going to get punished. 661 00:39:51,680 --> 00:39:53,680 Is there something that's in your way this morning that's 662 00:39:53,680 --> 00:39:57,000 holding you back, that you can release, that you can put down, 663 00:39:57,000 --> 00:40:01,200 that you can repent of to help you be a little lighter, a 664 00:40:01,200 --> 00:40:04,840 little faster, a little more persevering on the race? 665 00:40:07,360 --> 00:40:09,000 Or maybe you just need to look to Jesus. 666 00:40:10,600 --> 00:40:11,720 Actually, I don't know about the first two. 667 00:40:11,720 --> 00:40:15,720 You definitely need to look to Jesus always, over and over 668 00:40:15,720 --> 00:40:20,960 again to build practices, to build habits, to build a life. 669 00:40:21,640 --> 00:40:25,200 That constantly puts Him, His glory, His beauty, His 670 00:40:25,200 --> 00:40:27,200 faithfulness in front of your face. 671 00:40:28,040 --> 00:40:33,040 It's the only way to keep going. Friends, as we move into a time 672 00:40:33,040 --> 00:40:36,360 of reflection and response to this Word, today, I want to 673 00:40:36,360 --> 00:40:38,920 invite you to do business with God, whatever that looks like 674 00:40:38,920 --> 00:40:40,440 for you. It could be right in your seat. 675 00:40:41,200 --> 00:40:43,800 It could be up here at the front on these carpets. 676 00:40:44,400 --> 00:40:46,480 If you want to come and pray with somebody, I'll be at the 677 00:40:46,480 --> 00:40:49,440 front. I'm happy to just hold space and 678 00:40:49,440 --> 00:40:52,680 pray for you. Friends, I invite you this 679 00:40:52,680 --> 00:40:56,000 morning to not leave here without getting clear for 680 00:40:56,000 --> 00:41:02,240 yourself what the race you are on is all about and how you can 681 00:41:02,240 --> 00:41:04,600 run a little bit more faithfully, a little more 682 00:41:04,600 --> 00:41:09,440 perseveringly this week. Jesus, we ask that you would 683 00:41:09,440 --> 00:41:14,520 meet us here, that you would help us to fix our eyes on You, 684 00:41:14,520 --> 00:41:19,520 and that no one would come up short of the finish line, that 685 00:41:19,520 --> 00:41:23,040 we would run well. And here at the end of the day, 686 00:41:24,960 --> 00:41:27,640 well done, my good and faithful servant. 687 00:41:28,520 --> 00:41:29,760 You've run your race well.