" 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, 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." Hebrews 12:1-2


I am not a runner. But I love the imagery of a runner that God uses in this passage. Running is an individual sport, and at the same time, a community sport. Have you ever been there for the start of a marathon? There is a sense of energy and excitement as the runners prepare.

I think that’s why this passage starts where it does, “since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses.” This is the energy at the beginning of a race. I am stretching out, warming up and here beside me is Abraham, he ran the race just like me. If you look back at Hebrews 11, you will read what is nicknamed the “Hall of Faith,” remembrances of people who took God’s call and ran with it. Many of them are named, but not all. But the heroes of our faith aren’t the only ones I’m running with.

I am also running with you. Maybe you started the race at a different time than me, but the race is the same – “let us run together.” I can’t begin to tell you all the advantages of running together, but here are a few: we can encourage each other to go father, to keep going, not to give up. We can pick up an injured comrade, we can sing and share stories and laughter. We can follow the path better when we see the people in front of us.

Once when I was six, my family went off Volksmarching. I will never forget the day I decided that my parents were going too slowly. I had places to be and energy to burn, so I powered on ahead. I followed the signs to the best of my ability, but I missed one. There was no one around to tell me which way to go, so I gave it my best guess. After wandering for a few minutes, I saw another sign. I must have gone the right way! An hour later, I was still on the trail. What I didn’t know is that I was almost to the finish line when I lost my place, only to find part of the trail very near the beginning. I was going in a 4K circle. But there were no guides, no people to ask. I had run the race twice that day because I needed to do it myself.

Next we come to what we are supposed to do – “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.” This is a necessary first step to running a good race. Practiced runners don’t bring any unnecessary things with them. They don’t pack a boom box and snacks for lunch. They don’t bring extra clothes, or their laptop, so they can stay connected during the race. They understand that extra stuff is going to hold them back. They also know that they have to focus – a distracted mind leads to a distracted body. So how do we break away from that sin that reaches out to get us?

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus.” I can’t say from experience (because I’ve never actually tried) but I have heard that a hurdler who focuses on the hurdles will never get over them. You have to place your gaze beyond the hurdle if you ever want to soar over. Now we see our end goal – the finish line is Jesus and when we run straight for him, we can cross the hurdles, we can disentangle from the sin, we can be free of the hindrances that bind us down.

Now hear how Jesus is described, “the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before him, endured the cross, scorning its shame and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” Jesus is not only the one who dreamed up the race, he ran it and is helping us run it too. He will keep working with us, like a dedicated coach, until we reach our goal. In Jesus’ race he mounted the biggest hurdle, the cross, because of the joy he was focused on. Do you know what that joy is? That’s his relationship with you. Because he saw the joy that would come from our relationship, he endured the pain of the cross, accepted the shame of humanity. For the joy of you. Now if that doesn’t inspire you to run, I don’t know what will.

Maybe this. Jesus is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God. That’s where the race ends and the joy continues forever. I don’t know where you are in your race: Are you distracted? Hindered? Knocked down by an unexpected hurdle? Let us together refocus on Jesus and run the race with perseverance, just as we are called to do. Endure what we must, shed what is unnecessary for the joy of relationship with God.

The one thing our joys, frustrations and disappointments have in common is that we were never meant to go through them alone. Do you have “together people”? Those friends who will run alongside you no matter the weather. If the answer is yes – keep running with them. If the answer is no – maybe it’s time to find some. To pick each other up, to spur each other on, to keep us from running in circles.