Happy February, Church! I pray this new year has treated you well so far.

This past October I took over David West’s Sunday School class and we began in the Epistle of James. I have heard from many of you that it has been a wonderful study and I agree, there has been great discussion and much conviction all around! James does not pull any of his punches!!! Once we finish James (which should be sometime in March) my plan as of now is to begin going through Hebrews 11 and 12. Let me give you a preview of what I am thinking…

Hebrews 12:1-2 says this: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising its shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Now, any time there is a “therefore” in a verse you should always go back and see what the “therefore” is there for! Only by going back first, can you then properly go forward with your reading. In this case, it says “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witness…” Who are these witnesses? Well, that is the entirety of chapter 11, which is sometimes called the “Hall of Faith” chapter, which surveys the lives of the main saints of the Old Testament and how they lived and followed God “by faith.” So the author, after surveying all of these saints, says “therefore … let us lay also aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus…” The author draws four “let us” conclusions: Let us 1) lay aside every weight; 2) let us lay aside every sin; 3) let us run the race; and 4) let us look to Jesus as we run the race. These are good as stand alone nuggets, but they are not just generalized or random and without context. Notice he says in verse one, “Therefore… let us also lay aside…” What he is saying is this: just as the saints of old laid aside their weights and sins, and ran the race while looking to Jesus, let us do the same!

But how was it that Abel (Heb 11:4) laid aside every weight and sin? What were his weights and sins? How did he run the race and look to Jesus? How did Enoch (11:5-6) do this? What about Moses (11:23-28)? Rahab (11:31); David (11:32) and others? What weights slowed them down? What were their burdens in their lives and how did they, by faith, overcome their sins and sufferings in order to live for Christ in their lives? How did they suffer well? How did they conquer well? What can we learn from them and how can we emulate them (and in some ways not emulate them!) in our walks with Christ? That is what I would like to discover alongside you all in our upcoming class. If you are free on Sunday mornings from 9:00–10:00am please come join us!

Pastor Joshua