Based on Key verse for 2011
‘Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throneof God’ (Hebrews 12:2)
Keep the Focus
Hebrews 11:32-12:13
Sermon outline
Introduction: A New Year has begun and I wonder whether you have looked back over the past year, or perhaps even years? If you have, what were your emotions? Have you thought about what the coming year will hold? E.g. chemo for Colin. I know that I have. In both cases I found myself being drawn back to the verse, which I believe God wants us to keep a the forefront of our minds in the coming year.
‘Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the thrown of God’ (Hebrews 12:2). God thrust this verse into my mind, whilst I was in hospital last year, together with the beginning of the message for this evening’s united service.
The Greek word translated ‘fix our eyes on’ is an unusual word and includes in it the idea of looking away from everything else, as well as looking towards. For me, the best picture I have for this is how Linford Christie, or Colin Jackson (more current examples might be Jessica Ennis, or Usein Bolt) used to describe their preparation for and execution of their race. In the last moments before being called to their marks, they would just look straight down their lane, transfixed on a point 10m beyond the finishing line. When running Jackson had to note the hurdles, but Linford Christie used to focus on that point. It meant he was running the race without worrying about the other athletes. That is how we should focus on Jesus. The problems come when we allow our minds to focus on other things.
Let’s look first at…
The object of our focus: Note the writer of this letter to the Hebrews, probably Paul, refers to Jesus, not the Christ, the Son of God, or even God. There must be a reason why he wanted to emphasise the humanity, not the divinity, of Jesus. Over the Christmas period, just passed, we were concentrating on the birth of God’s Son, who became fully human in the form of Jesus Christ…conceived in Mary’s womb. In His humanity, Jesus experienced all the emotions we do – anger at the way people in the temple courts were making money by ripping off the pilgrims, who came to make sacrifices to God; grief at the anguish felt by Mary and Martha over the death of their brother Lazarus; joy and surprise at the Roman Centurion’s faith; fear and desperation in the Garden of Gethsemane, the night before His crucifixion. The devil tempted Jesus, with wealth and authority, to put His miraculous powers to use. Although Jesus was fully human, the remarkable thing about the object of our focus was that He never sinned. No other human being other than Jesus could, can, or will achieve such total obedience to the will of God the Father in heaven. He was able to pray, “Your kingdom come, your will be done” and mean it. We, in looking back at His life, know that He not only meant it, but lived it out completely. But there is more…not only was Jesus a human example for us to follow, but He is also fully God and as such someone we should worship. As Matthew recorded, Jesus is the fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecy, “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call Him Immanuel – which means God with us”.
Having looked at the object of our focus, let’s move on to…
The reason for our focus: Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith.
- An example – Eugene Peterson paraphrases our key verse, in the Message, as…”Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how He did it. Because He never lost sight of where He was headed – that exhilarating finish in and with God – He could put up with anything along the way: cross, shame, whatever. And now He’s there, i the place of honour, right alongside God”. Jesus knew that the purpose of his life was to do the will of His Father in heaven and bring signs of the kingdom of God into the world in which He lived. Jesus was prepared to give up everything – all the riches of heaven, to perform the task for which His Father had chosen Him. Mary and Joseph went to Jerusalem for the Feast of Passover and took Jesus with them. After the feast, Mary and Joseph set out for home with the other families from Nazareth, but 12 year old Jesus was not with them. Three days later they found him in the Temple courts discussing Scripture with the teachers of the Law. Mary and Joseph tried to take Jesus to task, but he replied, “Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49). Then in the Garden of Gethsemane, ‘He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will but yours be done.” An angel from heaven appeared to Him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground ‘ (Luke 22:41-44). The cup Jesus was talking about was the agonising death that faced Him on the cross. God strengthened Him supernaturally, but even so His battle with what faced Him continued to the point of shedding blood (Hebrews 12:4). The writer of the Hebrews tells us that Jesus was prepared to do this for the joy set before Him. This joy was the certainty of being reunited with His Father in heaven. Throughout Luke’s gospel one of the emphases is Jesus’ prayer life. Before big decisions, or when he was exhausted through his teaching/healing ministry, Jesus withdrew to a quiet place and prayed – seeking His Father’s will and strengthening. Jesus was angry about His Father’s business, but never towards the people who persecuted Him. Even on the cross, Jesus said, “Father forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing.” Jesus was able to put up with the agonising, shameful death on the cross, because it was part of His Father’s plan for the salvation of all who acknowledge Him as both Lord and Saviour. The joy that lay before Him, enabled the human Jesus to look beyond the cross to the resurrection and ascension. When things are beyond us in human terms all we can do is follow Jesus’ example and focus on God…a God who will work all things for the good of those who love Him (Romans 8:28).
- A focus – Faith is a gift from God. It is not something we can work up in ourselves, or others. But amongst people of faith we can fan the flame in each other, by sharing what Jesus is doing and has done in our lives. We can encourage each other to take a stand/to keep our focus on Christ. Listen to these words about Moses from Hebrews 11:24-26 – By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharoah’s daughter. He chose to be ill-treated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ to be of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking forward to his reward. The writer of the Hebrews leaves us in no doubt that those mentioned in Hebrews 11 were waiting for the fulfilment of God’s promise in the person of the Messiah…Jesus Christ.
This Christmas has been one of the best for me. Each day I prayed for God’s peace to be in and through me and as a result I was better able to cope with the pressures of church and family life. As a result I think it was easier for others. There are times when preparing messages, I can get nowhere – as a result I can feel rotten and dis-spirited. What is the difference? It is usually the fact that I lose focus on Jesus and worry about myself, or what has to be done. During my illness I have learnt to keep the focus on a faithful, amazing God, who really does provide for all my needs.
My faith begins in Jesus, as God has called me to believe and that faith will be perfected by Jesus in His time…it will happen when I am freed from the constraints and temptations of this world, to be with Jesus in the presence of the Father in the new heaven and the new earth. That’s the joy that is set before me and all those who acknowledge Jesus as Lord and Saviour and until then I/we must do all I/we can and even more ask God by His indwelling Spirit to enable me/us to keep Jesus as the object of my/our focus because that is God’s good and perfect will for us.
Two facts from the Tsunami that hit Sri Lanka and the surrounding area in 2006:-
- No animal bodies were found and this was attributed to the fact that they have a higher awareness of danger than human beings. Have we become too dependent on technology.
- When the wave struck Sri Lanka at about 9am many Christians were in church worshipping. Many died as churches were washed away. Why did God allow it…I don’t know…but I do know that those Christians received their reward and have moved from one place of worship to another…a better one.
Conclusion: By keeping our focus on Jesus, our lives will be more effective for the kingdom and even in the face of world disasters we will do what we can and not worry about what we can’t. We will thank God for all we have and neither take it for granted, nor even resent it. Keeping our focus on Jesus will protect us from unhelpful comparison with others. We are who we are, because God has made us and if we maintain our focus on Jesus and with His strength and guidance, following His example of obedient living then we will be changed into the people/church Jesus wants us to be at any particular moment in time. We need to be serious in our commitment to spend time with God seeking His will and purpose. We need to thank God for everything, good and bad, and ask Him to show us the lessons He wants us to learn from the experiences.
Questions for further thought:
Whom would you put in your ‘cloud if witnesses‘? Which people, living or dead, have inspired you to keep running the race?
Which biblical figures listed in the reading do you find most inspiring?
Are there any characters in the reading you know nothing about? If so, look them up in the bible and find out their stories. Is there anything from these stories to learn for the race?
What kind of things make you want to stop running? What discourages you?
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