Let me ask you a very personal question. Do you need
to lose some weight?
I am not referring to dropping a few pounds from our
bodies that may slow us down physically. I am
talking about shedding some things that tend to slow
us down spiritually.
The Christian life is compared to a race. Hebrews
12:1 says, “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed
about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay
aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily
beset us, and let us run with patience the race that
is set before us.”
What would you think if you saw an Olympic runner
rounding the track wearing a heavy wool coat and
carrying a big, bulky backpack? One thing is sure:
this runner would not win the race and may not even
be able to finish it.
While running the race of the Christian life, we are
instructed in to “lay aside every weight.” A weight
in our lives is not necessarily a sinful action or
attitude, it is simply anything that slows us down
from running the race.
Examine your life today. What is it that is slowing
you down? What are the “weights” that slow many
people down?
1. Associations –Are your friends helping you or
hindering you in the Christian race? Proverbs 13:20
says, “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise:
but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.” The
question is asked in Galatians 5:7, “Ye did run
well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the
truth?” When someone drops out of church, we usually
focus on a “what” that entered their life. We point
to a “what” like alcohol, drugs, immoral
relationships, wrong music, and the like. The truth
is that behind each of these “whats” there is
usually a “who” that influenced the teen to travel
down the wrong path.
2. Activities –Are you spending too much time on the
computer, texting, playing video games, or talking
on the phone? It is easy to get caught up doing
things that are not sinful in and of themselves.
Often we sacrifice the best on the altar of the
good. Do you excuse your lack of Bible reading and
prayer by saying, “I don’t have enough time,” yet
you find time to do other activities that are less
important? Ephesians 5:16 says, “Redeeming the time,
because the days are evil.”
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3. Attitudes –Be careful to avoid a defeatist mentality. You can do
all things through Christ. Hebrews 12:3 says, “For consider him that
endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be
wearied and faint in your minds.” We need to remember that Jesus
endured far more than we will ever face in life and yet stayed in
the race. Thankfully, the finish line for Him was not the cross on
Calvary, but an empty tomb. As believers, we can tap into that same
Resurrection power and also finish our race.
You can run a good race. You can cross the finish line. You can hear
God say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.”
Some closing thoughts on finishing your race:
· Make sure that you have entered the race. This is only possible
through trusting Christ as your personal Savior.
· Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. He will set the pace we need to run
and guide us to the finish line.
· Be willing to lay aside anything that is slowing you down.
I ask you again, “Do you need to lose some weight?”
Tony Bazen
Pastor, Park Meadows Baptist Church |
