HOW TO LIVE WITH ENDURANCE

(INTRO) SOMETHING TO HELP US KEEP GOING (Me/We)

[1]WELCOME: Good morning Cornerstone! If you’re new with us this morning on campus or joining us online, we’re glad you took the time to be part of what God is doing among us. We’re continuing our sermon series on the a letter in our bible called the letter to the Hebrews, that we’ve titled…

SERIES: That theme and metaphor seemed like a great way to summarize the message of the entire letter. This world is hard! There is no escaping the storms and the trials that will come. However, there is hope in the middle of it all. There is something solid that we can cling to when everything around us seems like it’s shaking and changing. The pastor who wrote this to Christians who were hurting and feeling like they couldn’t go on needed help! They were ready to give up on Jesus and give up living for Jesus. The writer of Hebrews is trying to help them deal with the pain and suffering they were experiencing. He starts out by talking about a grueling and long athletic competition.Now, I’m not an Olympic athlete, but as I was thinking about the analogy of physically pushing hard to attain a goal I was reminded of a period of 2 years where I did…[2]

· CROSSFIT: Let me be clear, I have done CrossFit, but I am not a Crossfit”er”. There are 3 types of CrossFit people. Those who love it and are committed to it. Those who hate it but appreciate how effective it is. Then there are those who don’t voluntarily choose torture and avoid it all together. When I was doing CrossFit, I hated it. But I loved how effective it was for getting me into shape. I regularly puked. I felt like I was gonna die on a weekly basis. But one time, in particular, I remember doing a workout, and only being halfway finished. I wanted to quit. I was laying on the floor sweating and gasping trying to do a burpee and struggling to get up. And I remember thinking, I don’t think I’m going to do this anymore. I was trying to think of a rational reason why I would continue doing this to myself, when I thought about my dad and my son. My dad died about 7 years ago, and part of the reason for it was that he had not cared for his body very well. Then the thought of my son having to lose his dad for the same reasons knowing I could do something about it, made me push through. Now, some of you will look at me and say, you don’t look like you still do crossfit. And to you I would say… don’t be mean, but you’re right! But here’s why I tell this story, when things are hard and we feel like we just don’t have any thing left in us and can’t go on, we need… [3]

o SOMETHING TO FOCUS ON TO HELP US ENDURE: We need a reason to keep going. Something big enough to inspire us to not give up and to have hope that it’s worth it. When we’re at a place in life where we feel beaten down, and hopeless, we need to know that God will make it worth it and can help us through it. So, if you’ll turn to [4][Heb. 12:1-11] we’re going to look at the example of Jesus in the same circumstances, and what God may be doing in us during our struggles. Let’s pray! [5]

(TEACH/APP) ENDURING TAKES A COACH AND A FATHER

BACKGROUND: Anytime that a section of scripture starts with “therefore” it is usually putting the finishing touches on summarizing the section of scripture before it. And that author of Hebrews in chapter 11 spent 40 verses giving us name after name of people who trusted God and obeyed, even when it didn’t make sense. The author is saying…[6]

· YOUR WHOLE LIFE IS LIKE AN ATHLETIC EVENT: [11:2] calls it a “race”. Did you know that the word translated “race” is the Greek word “agon” (ah-gone). It’s the word we get our word “agony”. That seems fitting doesn’t it! Running and agony! Makes sense now why we all hate running so much. Additionally, the most famous “race” would have been the Greek pentathlon. Which didn’t just include running, it had 5 different events, a race, a long jump, a discus throw, a javelin throw, and a wrestling match. The wrestling match isn’t like what we think of today. [7]It was a lot like what we see in Mixed martial arts where punching, kicking, and breaking bones could happen. The writer of the Hebrews would have known that when they said that life is like enduring a “race” that it would have been a powerful metaphor. You’re going to run hard, push hard, and probably get beat up pretty bad. Some of you this morning are feeling that way. Man, that sounds like my life right now! You’re feeling busted up, exhausted, and struggling to go on. The words we have from this pastor thousands of years ago is just as meaningful today as it was back then. In fact, they may even be more necessary for this generation in telling us that we need to be honest and…[8]

o ADJUST OUR EXPECTATIONS: Unlike any other generation before us, we have been able to shelter ourselves from many of the harsh realities that previous civilizations lived under. Even those living in poverty in America today have more ability to escape the normal pain that others cannot. We have inexpensive food, we have houses, we have medical care, we have transportation. The pursuit of happiness is actually listed as a God-given right in America. Which we take to mean, it's my right to be happy and not have to experience pain. However, for every other person up until the last 50-70 years, staying fed, sheltered, and healthy were never expected, just simply hoped for. And film, television, and social media have only served to give us a false picture of the perfect life that we’re all supposed to live. So when pain happens, we’re shocked. How could this happen? Please hear me, I’m not minimizing pain and suffering. I’m just saying that the bible is not naïve and doesn’t give us a false picture of reality. It very clearly states, this world is broken, and life is going to be hard, painful. It’s going to be like a marathon, or a MMA fight. To get through it will require…[9]

o ENDURANCE: We’re told run with endurance [12:1]. Jesus endured the cross [12:2]. Consider how Jesus endured the hostility of sinners towards him [12:3]. We are to endure discipline [12:7]. That word endurance in the Greek is “hypomone” (eepomohnay) hypo means hyper of super, mone means stand, or remain. Super stand, or super remain. [10]A better way to say it is, someone who doesn’t budge from their ground or doesn’t budge from their direction. Like a boat fixed on a port, and the waves and the wind batter it, the captain holds the rudder firm and doesn’t budge. The writer of Hebrews is acting like a coach, saying, take heart! You can do this! There have been generations who have come before you and run this race. You can too! DON’T BUDGE! KEEP THE RUDDER STRAIGHT. The writer refers to a “cloud of witnesses”. I don’t know exactly what those who have gone before us in death are doing right now, but this passage isn’t saying they’re in the stands of heaven cheering us on. A scholar named F.F. Bruce says it this way. [11]“It’s is not so much they who look at us, as we look at them for encouragement.” We look at the examples of those who have run the race and finished well and take heart and courage that it can be done. The writer of Hebrews is saying, I know you are exhausted, and your legs and arms feel like jelly, and your soul is fatigued. You’re beat up and bloody, but you can do this! You can do it just like those who have gone before you have done it. Endure! I’m going to come back to how do we endure. But before I do I want to talk about why some don’t. Some people don’t endure because they…[12]

· DOUBT THE LOVE OF THE FATHER: As a preacher, I wish the author of Hebrews would have just stuck with one image, the image of a race. Then I could simply write a sermon about running the good race. However, in verses [11:5-11], the metaphor switches between a runner of a race, to the relationship between a father and his son. [13]The best explanation that I came across is that WHEN WE’RE HURTING, WE DON’T WANT A COACH, WE WANT A PARENT. The last thing we want when we’re hurting is someone yelling from the sidelines, you can do it, get up, keep going. We want a parent who looks at us with love and compassion and wants more than anything to help us become who we were made to be. To see the love in their eyes and to be motivated to keep going. So, the author of Hebrews says, when you face hardships in this life, don’t wonder if God loves you or has abandoned you. In fact, it’s the opposite. [14]

· OUR HEAVENLY FATHER USES PAIN TO PRODUCE FRUIT: The author quotes [Proverbs 3:11-12] that says “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. 6 For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” He says, when you go through pain, it’s not that God doesn’t love or care. It means that God is going to use it in your life like a father uses pain to discipline their child. Now, this isn’t immediately apparent or easy to understand. First, this language can throw up a lot of barriers and objections. We’ve talked about how the failures of earthly fathers and caregivers can cause us to have a distorted picture of God as father. Some of you have experienced abuse at the hands of people, so you can’t picture how discipline could possibly be for our good. The writer of Hebrews hints at this when they say that earthly parents “disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.” [12:10] They’re saying even good parents disciplined the best they could but didn’t always get it right. But God’s discipline isn’t like ours. He never abuses. He never has mixed motivations. It’s always for our good. So, what is discipline? I think this is the best definition I came across. [15]DISCIPLINE: is loving, non-destructive, purposeful opposition given to train, and amend actions and attitudes. It is loving. It wants the best for us. It is non-destructive. It may be painful, but it will not ultimately destructive. It is purposeful-opposition. It stands in the way of letting us head down a path that leads to death. Ultimately, it’s purpose is to train us to love what is good and hate what is evil. It is meant to help us change our actions and our attitudes. A natural question to this scripture is…[16]

o DID GOD CAUSE MY PAIN? The truth is, it’s not that simple. For example, if I am self-employed and take cash for years without paying taxes, and then suddenly the IRS comes after me for 25 years of back taxes. Is that God causing me pain? Probably not, in fact, Jesus warned us to “render unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar” [Mt. 22:21]. Paul warned us to follow the laws of the land and to pay taxes. [Rm. 13:1,6] The truth is God is not causing you pain, but he warned you that there are consequences for not following the laws. Sometimes our pain is because God allows us to reap the consequences of not listening. Nic, don’t jump out of trees. Okay mom. Jumps out of tree and then ends up in a cast. How dare you mom! You let this happen to me! No! I warned you, but I gave you freedom. What did we learn from this! [17]Sometimes our pain doesn’t come from our own brokenness, it is because we live in a broken world full of other broken people. Cancer, Covid, Dementia, and Death are a result of this world being broken by sin. It is not God’s punishment. Poverty, Divorce, Abuse, War is not God’s punishment, it’s the result of broken people making sinful choices that hurt themselves and others. In fact, the people of the church this was written to were being mistreated for being Christians. The writer hints that it may get bad enough that their blood may be shed like Jesus’ was. [Heb 12:4] Was that God punishing them, or giving their persecutors freedom to choose to deny him and hurt them? The author of Hebrews isn’t saying God is causing you pain. What he is saying is that…[18]

o GOD USES THE BROKENNESS AROUND US TO WORK ON THE BROKENNESS INSIDE US! God doesn’t cause the pain, but he can use it. He can take the experiences we are having and use them to deal with the things inside of us that are wrong. For example, if when we’re suffering our hearts say, how dare you! Chances are we have seen God’s sole job is to keep us happy and healthy and give us our hearts desires. We have a sense of pride that is being revealed in our pain. I’m God, and God you have let me down. If when we suffer because we feel like people are avoiding us or abandoning us, maybe we have turned people into idols. We depend on them to feel valuable and significant. And God can use the people who have hurt us to reveal our people pleasing and worshipping problem and draw us back to him. And many people don’t endure because they get angry or bitter with God. A preacher named Charles Spurgeon once said, “The same sun that melts the wax, hardens the clay.” The heat of suffering can either melt our hearts to turn towards God or they can harden us against him. And the writer of Hebrews says, God is your Father, and will use the brokenness around you to work on the brokenness inside you. Take heart, you are his children. [19]In his power he can even use pain to produce fruit. “11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.” [Heb. 12:11] Peaceful fruit. Our lives begin to be characterized by peace. I may be hurting, but I don’t hurt others. I may be hurting, but I know this world is not all there is. I may be hurting, but Jesus understands. Yes, this life is a marathon and an MMA match. We will get worn out and bloodied. We will suffer and we need to not be surprised. But our God can use it like a loving Father to grow us and mature us. So how do we endure? Let me end with 3 practical applications. The first is…[20]

(JC) HONEST, HUMBLE, ENCOURAGED (JC)

· BE HONEST: When we’re in the middle of hurting, it’s tempting to either be angry or confused with God and not feel like you can talk to him. It’s easy to want to spiritualize it and say, God’s holy and powerful and wise, who am I to question him. Or we say, he already knows so I don’t need to pray. But prayer is at its best when it’s honest. Pray like David or the other writers of the Psalms. God where are you? God why? Why are you letting this happen? Why do you feel so far away? God I’m angry at you! God I’m disappointed in you. He can handle it. He already knows you’re feeling it. You’re not being holy by hiding it. He’s your Father, and he loves you. Kick and scream if you need to. He won’t run away. Being honest with God in prayer allows us to release our hearts to him as well and not hold on to things and try to deal with it on our own. Next we need to…[21]

· BE HUMBLE: [12:1] talks about throwing off every weight and sin that keeps us from running well. Maybe the pain you are experiencing has been a consequence of not honoring God. Maybe the pain your experiencing isn’t your fault, but it’s revealing areas of your heart that are sinful. I didn’t cause Covid! But it definitely revealed areas where I was in danger of sinning because of a desire for control, or reacting out of anger. We need to be willing to say “God what are you doing in me through this?” Search me! Reveal any place that I haven’t given to you. Reveal where I keep getting tripped up. Lastly…[22]

· BE ENCOURAGED: God allowed his own son to experience suffering. Jesus knew it was part of the plan and he and the Father agreed that it was what needed to be done and entered into the suffering willingly. There’s a song we’re going to sing on Good Friday that says “Oh blood and tears, how can it be, that there’s a God who weeps, there’s a God who bleeds.” We know our God understands our pain because he himself suffered. [23]We’re told to look “to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” [Heb. 12:2] It says that Jesus was able to endure the cross because there was joy on the other side! What exactly was it that Jesus was looking forward to that gave him so much joy, he willingly dealt with the cross! So many things! The joy of knowing he was about to defeat sin and death, the greatest enemies of his beloved creation. The joy of seeing his Father face to face. The joy of hearing well done because he did everything the Father asked of him. And finally the joy of opening the door to God’s presence wide open for us! Making it possible for him to stand beside each one of us and present us to the Father! Here Dad! Here's another son! I made it possible for him to become yours. Here Dad! Here’s another daughter. She belongs to you because of what I did on the cross. The joy of handing us back to the father is the joy that allowed Jesus to deal with suffering. And it says that Jesus was able to despise he shame. To despise means to “think little of”. Not even worth my time worrying about. In the grand scheme, the joy so vastly outweighed the pain, that the way he was treated by others didn’t keep him from moving forward. HE IS THE PERFECT PICTURE OF ENDURANCE. BUT IT IS HIS PROMISE TO BRING US BEFORE THE FATHER WHEN WE ENDURE! Our champion has run the race, and he will help us finish. And the at the end of the marathon and the MMA match, there is joy that will make it all seem small! Let’s pray!