JC Blog

"We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, in order to make your hope sure. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised" ( Hebrews 6:11-12 ).

Perseverance is a necessary characteristic for believers. Judging by the world around us it would be easy to become discouraged by the events continually surrounding us if we did not know the hope we have in Jesus and cling to it until the very end.

We are encouraged to show the same diligence as those who went before us in realizing and inheriting the promise. Paul noted in Corinthians, “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize” ( I Corinthians 9:24 ). Forget what surrounds you, run to win. Looking forward to future with tunnel vision because we know that this world will distract us from accomplishing the mission the Lord has for us. Which is why we need to be diligent and steadfast until the end to make this hope a reality.

We can look to the scriptures for examples of those that went before us and draw encouragement from them. Many of them only saw the promise of Jesus in the future, never realizing it while they were still alive. “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth” ( Hebrews 11:13 ). But they continued steadfastly because they knew faith would eventually get them there. “These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect” ( Hebrews 11:39-40 ).

Our hope in Jesus has been realized which is why we follow in the patriarchs example of perseverance through faith. We have already inherited what was promised and as we continue to grow in the grace of God we naturally will move into maturity just as the writer of Hebrews has been instructing at the closing of chapter 5 and beginning chapter 6. “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope” ( Romans 15:4 ).

It is easy to wrap temptation and suffering together into a nice little package because we experience both in this world, but they are very different. Temptation is the enticement to sin and suffering is a painful or distressing experience. Just as it is important to understand that God does not tempt us, God does not cause our suffering either. God is a good God; He loves us and sent Jesus to save us. So it is incompatible with His nature to imply that God allows or causes our suffering. But it still exists and as believers many times we suffer solely because we are Christians.

Believers are subjected to persecution and hatred because we bear the name of Christ. This should come as no surprise. Jesus told His disciples, "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you" ( John 15:18-19 ). We are different, set apart and not of this world. So it is no surprise that Jesus told us that we would have trouble in this lifetime.

The good news in all of this is that good things can result trouble and persecution. Peter told us to rejoice in these circumstances ( I Peter 1:6-7 ) and James told us to consider them pure joy ( James 1:2-4 ). This is because they knew that God was able to bring these things around for our benefit. This is not to say that He causes them to happen in our lives, but when trouble and persecution comes our way, we can cling to the promise he made to Paul in such a circumstance, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness" ( II Corinthians 12:9 ). We can trust in the goodness and grace of God to get us through these incidents just as we can rely on Him to bring good out of them.

"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed" ( I Peter 1:6-7 ). The trials of this life work as a refining fire to burn away dross. Not only will we come out on the other side unscathed but we will come out with a genuine and proven faith. This is worth very much in the sight of God and results in His praise, glory and honor.

James tells us that God is able to perfect us through suffering. "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything" ( James 1:2-4 ). The King James Bible says that we will be 'perfect and entire'. I cannot stress enough that God does not cause our suffering, but He is able to bring good from it. Our faith is developed, the character of perseverance is perfected and we are mature and not easily taken off course by the struggles and hardships of this life.

Through both temptation and testing in life we learn to learn to trust and rely on Jesus "Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted" ( Hebrews 2:18 ). He had the full human experience so He can sympathize with us in every circumstance. What a marvelous attribute in the High Priest who lives to make intercession for us. "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" ( Hebrews 4:14-16 ).

Tomorrow we look at Hebrews 3:1: Fixing Our Eyes on Jesus

I love being around optimistic people, perhaps because I am a ‘glass half full' kind of girl. I love when people can see the silver lining in the midst of situations despite circumstances or obstacles. But the more I know people, the more I realize that this characteristic is a precious commodity.

However, Paul reminds us, as Christians we can rejoice in the midst of any circumstance because of where our hope is placed. Hope is the highway that gets our faith from point A to point B. Hope is what keeps us moving and rejoicing through whatever circumstances life throws our way. So how do we have hope to see our faith realized?

We have hope when our faith is resting firmly in Jesus. Then it doesn't matter when suffering or persecution comes our way, because hope lets us rejoice in the midst of it. James chapter one says something similar, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance." ( James 1:2-3 ). Both Paul and James knew that a byproduct of suffering at the hand of this world was perseverance.

The King James Bible interprets preservation as patience in both passages. Patience is a fruit of the Spirit and necessary for Christians. Unlike the world's definition of patience, it is not a passive word, but rather a strong active word. The heart of patience denotes endurance, consistency and perseverance no matter what happens.

Patience allows our faith to mature and produce hope. Hope gets us through to the end goal, which is the glory of God. As Christians we should always be optimistic looking forward to Jesus' return for us. Jesus said, "in this world, you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world." ( John 16:33 ) He knew the hope to which he was calling us, and this blessed hope is what we await patiently for enduring and conquering in his name until his return. Praise God that this kind of hope does not disappoint!

Last summer I ran the Bix7 in Davenport Iowa. It is a huge race, people come from all over the world to run this seven mile course. It is a difficult course to run because the route is so hilly. The first half mile of the race is straight uphill. Only to be accompanied by a series of ups and down throughout the entire way. Multiplied by the amount of people you are running next to and that the race is run in the heat of July, this course is an accomplishment to finish for every short distance runner.

I started my training a little late for the race and as I started off that morning I was nervous that my preparation hadn't been enough. I ran the first five miles with no difficultly, but as I venture on the sixth mile I hit an incredible upward slope that slowed my pace to a steady walk. I was tired, hot, thirsty and I didn't want to run anymore. I thought about how easy it would have been if I had just ran the two mile race and waited at the finish line for my husband. I knew that I had two miles left to go, but those miles seemed like twenty. It was hard to think of the finish line when all I could see was this gigantic hill in my path and people racing by. Step by step I climbed the hill knowing that I had to get to the top if I was to finish the race.

I rounded the crest of the hill and started the downward descent towards the finish line. The last stretch was lined with people, families and bands, clapping, cheering and playing for the runners. As I passed all of these people my pace increased and my strength returned and I found the power to finish the race. It was the energy of the people cheering for me that encouraged me to lay aside the pain and tiredness that I felt and finish the race I had started. They kept saying "You are almost there, keep running!", "the end is in sight, keep going!" and because of it, I focused and ran the last few paces encouraged by their presence.

As I ran this last stretch, I kept thinking about what the writer of Hebrews said in the twelfth chapter, "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" ( Hebrews 12:1 ). This comes on the very heels of what is known as the Faith Hall of Fame. Great men and women of faith were listed in chapter 11 to encourage and remind us to live by faith. Then the writer goes on to say that now we are surrounded by these great faith pioneers and everyone who has gone before us. They have enveloped us and a are cheering us on to run the race we started. They can see the finish line and they are shouting, "You are almost there, keep running!", "the end is in sight, keep going!".

To run and finish our race sometimes this means we have to strip off the things that hold us back. Sometimes we have to deny what we feel in order to continue moving forward in life. We were called to run a race for Christ and the course is not always easy, but keeping the eternal perspective in view will help you overcome every mountain that stands your way. The writer of Hebrews went onto say, "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 throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart" ( Hebrews 12:2-3 ). He gives us the secret to running without hindrances. Look to Jesus who is the author and finisher of our faith. We have to look away from everything that will distract us and keep us running in circles and we have to focus on the finish line, which is Jesus.

Jesus is our joy and our longing, but he is also our example. Imagine what would have happened if he had quite along the way. But the scriptures say that he endured dreadful hostility and harsh opposition and looked forward with joy to the redemptive work he was going to do. We have to keep this in perspective so that we will not lose heart and grown weary along the way. The Amplified Bible puts it this way, "Just think of Him Who endured from sinners such grievous opposition and bitter hostility against Himself [reckon up and consider it all in comparison with your trials], so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and relaxing and fainting in your minds ( Hebrews 12:3 Amp ). We have to use Jesus as our example of what we can endure so that we will run with perseverance. Let us look forward to the end with joy.

Your race is different than my race. Paul said in I Corinthians, "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever" ( I Corinthians 9:24-25 ). There is a crown at your finish line. Paul is encouraging us to run like the winner of the race. He went onto say, "Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize" ( I Corinthians 9:26-27 ). Paul knew his mission and focus in life and because of it he trained and ran with that end in mind. He disciplined himself to win the race with perseverance. He is encouraging us to do the same, to train, to equip ourselves to run and win our race. And now he is with that great cloud of witnesses surrounding us saying, "You are almost there, keep running!", "the end is in sight, keep going!".

Today we are celebrating the beginning of 2010. It is our New Years, a time for reflection on the past years events and resolutions for the New Year. My theme for 2010 is to run with perseverance. To leave behind everything that holds me back and to look forward with Joy to Jesus. He is my author and finisher and I am his runner with the gold medal in mind. Today, I pray that you understand the race in which you were also called and that you will run with perseverance this race, surrounded on every side with cheering fans! The end is near... keep going, you are almost there!