Spiritual Olympics Week Two: Running the Race

Spiritual Olympics Week two: Running the Race Rev. Kevin Anderson

Our Scripture Reading this morning comes to us from

Hebrews Chapter 12:1-3

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,

let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,

² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.

For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame,

and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

³ Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners,

so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

This is the Word of God for the People of God:  Thanks be to God

Bryan Clay competing this year for the Gold.

He is an third time Olympian athlete competing in the Decathlon one of the earliest Greek Olympic events then called the Pentathlon starting around 708 BC. 

It is a fierce competition which today consist of 10 track and field events.  Some of these include, long jump,

high jump, the shot-put, the javelin toss, discus throw, jumping hurdles, pole vaulting, and all sorts of running competitions.

In the Decathlon Bryan Clay has already won the gold medal

when he competed in the in the 2008 Beijing Olympic games

and he has won the silver medal in the decathlon during the 2004 Olympics in Athens. He also has won a gold medal in the world championships

and 2 gold medals in the world indoor championships. 

but while he holds many world records and has received many medals,

his real driving force, is not the Gold, or the silver,

but rather his faith and his family  a great cloud of witnesses.

 Clay and his wife have three small children.  he told one interviewer, 

“I wake up at 6 a.m. to train, but I’m home by 3:30pm

so I can play in the pool or ride bikes with my kids,”. (Us Magazine)

In that interview he also mentions how much he enjoys listening to

worship music, and how faith is a big part of his life. 

One of his most prized possessions he travels with is a scrapbook

made by his wife with notes from her, the kids,

and inspirational Bible Verses.

SPIRITUAL RUNNING:

When I think about our reading from Hebrews 12, I cannot help but think about those who participate in track and field.  Those running the race, how they have to have perseverance, they have to train hard, and focus on the end goal.

Hebrews 12 tells us that our goal, is Christian perfection, the perfect love of God, our neighbors and ourselves, growing in our faith, through a lifetime of training as we travel on a track that lasts

A lifetime.

 Yet there is not an extra reward for those that make it earlier,

and we are not in competition with others in doing so. 

If there is any competition to be had it rests in competing with ourselves

in challenging ourselves to keep on going to keep up the race.

 Hebrews 12 Paul explains that we are to, “let us throw off everything

that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.

And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,

² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”

The race is not easy and once we enter the Christian faith

we are not done either.  We are called to continue on. 

When we enter the Christian faith we should not feel

that there is nothing left to do,

that is the opposite of what we are called to as Christians.

 The hard part are those things that hinder us, that shackle our feet,

that hold us back, the sin that we wrestle with in this life,

which grabs at our heels.

ACHILLES HEEL:

In Greek Mythology we hear of the great warrior Achilles,  he was one of the strongest, most athletic, and roughest warriors in mythology.  And the legend surrounding him was that as a child it was fore-told that he would die in a great battle, so to prevent his death and the prophecy his mother took him and dipped his body into the river Styx. 

The belief was that that water held the power of invincibility, the trouble was that since his mother held him by his heel, Achilles had one weak spot, open for injury.”  As his story goes

during the Trojan war he is struck by a poisonous arrow in the heel, he stumbles and falls, the Prophecy Was Fulfilled.

 We each have our own Achilles heel,  those things that hold us back,

weigh us down, our greatest weaknesses those that make us stumble

and fall into sin along the path of God. 

 Paul even acknowledges  his own Achilles heel in, Romans 7:14-25 that,

^"14 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual,

sold as a slave to sin. ¹⁵ I do not understand what I do.

For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.

¹⁶ And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.

¹⁷ As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.

¹⁸ For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is,

in my sinful nature.^[c] For I have the desire to do what is good,

but I cannot carry it out. ¹⁹ For I do not do the good I want to do,

but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. ²⁰ Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

²¹ So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. ²² For in my inner being I delight in God’s law;²³ but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. ²⁴ What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body

that is subject to death? ²⁵ Thanks be to God,

who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

Once Saved Always Saved?

Methodists do not believe in a notion of once saved always saved,

because once we commit ourselves to Jesus, we still have free-will,

which is a gift from God with God’s grace to us. 

We still have the ability to be a slave to sin like Paul tells us,

AND THIS is why we are called to

“Run the race with us perseverance the race marked out for us,

² fixing our eyes on Jesus”

I am reminded of a  song by the Christian rock band D.C. Talk, called

“What if I stumble?” The song is about someone who is struggling

with fear and conflict in their life, struggling with Keeping their eyes fixed

on Christ,… while sin remains.

 As the Chorus of the song goes,

“What if I stumble, what if I fall?

What if I lose my step and I make fools of us all
Will the love continue when my walk becomes a crawl?

What if I stumble, and what if I fall?”

 And in the end, this person hears the voice of God,

hears the great cloud of witnesses calling him on,

“I hear You whispering my name [You say]

"My love for You will never change" [never change]”

This is the great hope. 

While at times we might stumble along the path of righteousness,

the Godly path marked out before us,

God is still present his love for us never changes,

God is constant. 

and Jesus has already set the path out for us,

 “For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame,

and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³ Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary

and lose heart.”

 Jesus has run this race, he laid the path out before us, he waits for us across the finish line, And while we are continuing on,

we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses.

Watching the summer Olympics’ you can see the crowds of people

in the stands, along the paths cheering the athletes on as they race down the track.  Waving flags of their countries,

giving encouragement in those moments that are the hardest. 

A sense of excitement, shouts of joy rise to the fore-front,

the air filled with anticipation.

 

THE CHRISTIAN TRACK:

It is not much different for Christians along the track as we run down the road which God has marked out for us.  for us, for Christians in our own relay for life,

we also are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses.

 Paul gives us this good news,

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses,

let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.

And let us run with perseverance”

 Think of all those in your life, both alive and departed that have helped you along the way,  they are all cheering us on and continue to cheer us on even when there their earthly lives have ended. 

This is the good news of the Gospel, along our race, along our path in life, we are never alone, and when we stumble, and when we feel that the weight of our sins are too much to bare, we have the ultimate witness in Christ who has already gone through the hardships and our sins and holds the greatest of victories, shouting our name over the roaring crowds, to keep on going, to keep on the path

which final awards are full of great joy and everlasting life.

It is in the name of Jesus we fix our souls,

and it is in his name we journey on. 

Let us pray,

Heavenly father,

You have set a path before us, you have marked with love, and care,

through the cross Jesus gave us that path, and we are called to keep on

going along it until we reach your heavenly gates, 

we ask for your comfort and strength during the times that we struggle,

we ask for your help when we attempt to break the shackles

that hold our feet back from your path and we ask for your grace

as we strive to achieve perfect love for you, for our neighbors

and for ourselves,  help us to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus

in all we do in this life.  It is in your name we pray,

AMEN