Main text: Hebrew 12:1,2

It reads: Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud a 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, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

First Point: LET US LAY ASIDE EVERY WEIGHT

The definition of weight is: 1: A measure of the heaviness of an object. 2: The force which a body is attracted to Earth or another celestial body, equal to the product of the objects mass and the acceleration of gravity. Turn with me to Matthew 11:28-30 Amen when you get there please. It reads, Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of my ways for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

God cares that we lay it all down on Jesus because this is what Christ died for, so if we are walking around worrying and stressing and carrying all the weight on our own that’s like telling God that Jesus was not enough and we can do it on our own right? Turn with me to 1 Peter 5:7 Amen when you get there. It reads, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” See my brothers and sisters God cares for us we are His kingdom kids and we need to know that, we are and lay it all down at the cross where Christ did it all! Amen!

Point Two: LET US LAY ASIDE EVERY SIN

We are to lay aside every sin too. Turn with me to 1 John 2:1,2. It reads, “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.” We have an advocate with the father we go to him when we fall short he calls us his children, we are His kingdom kids. Turn with me also to 1 John 1:9,10. It says. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.” So basically when we don’t take our sins and weight and cast them on Him we are calling him a liar and the word is not in us. Look her I didn’t say it the father did. I don’t know about you guys but I am casting it ALL on Christ! Amen!!

Turn over to 1 Corinthians 9:27. “But I keep my body under, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a cast away.” I want to read this in the amplified too. “It says But like a boxer I buffet my body handle it roughly, discipline it by hardships and sub due it, for fear that after proclaiming to others the Gospel and things pertaining to it, I myself should become unfit not stand the test, be unapproved and rejected as a counterfeit.” Turn over to Galatians 5:24 real quick. “And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lust.”

You see my brothers and sisters all have fallen short turn to Romans 3:23-25. It reads: “For all have sinned, and fallen short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set fourth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remisson of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.” and need a way out that way always points to Christ. We are told by Christ and several who followed him ways in which to walk this race out. The other thing we see in this key verse is patience. That brings me to my third point.

Point three: LET US RUN WITH PATIENCE

Patience is very important. As we all know it is one of the fruits of the spirit right? Turn with me to Galatians 5:22 “But the fruit of the spirit is Love, Joy, Peace, Patience or Longsuffering, Kindness, Goodness, and Faithfullness or Faith.” It is obviously important since God desires for all of us to live our lives with these fruits showing. Jesus said in Matthew 7:20 “Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.” Turn over to Colossians 3:12 please. “Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering or patience.” Right here he calls us the elect of God, once again His kingdom kids. Where is it that we go to get these fruits? We go to our chief example, Jesus Christ. Which is point four in our text.

Point four: LOOKING UNTO JESUS THE AUTHOR AND FINISHER OF OUR FAITH.

Let me give you the definition of an author first to break this thing down for you.

The Mirriam Webster dictionary says. Author- a person who makes or originates something, creator, originator: ex author of liberty, a writer of a book etc. In this case Jesus the author, the creator the originator of our faith. There is just something about the word originator when I think about that word I think about how faith originated with Jesus. Just as grace originated with Him, and the same with the origin of faith it came when Christ did Amen! Turn to Galatians 3:25, “But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.” This is who we are told to look to THE ORIGINATOR AND FINISHER OF OUR FAITH AMEN! Faith has come the originator has come and done all he needed to do for us. Now it is us who are his hands and feet, it is us who is to take this gospel to this lost and dying world. If we don’t look to him we wont be able to lay aside every weight and sin, we cannot run with patience this race we are running either without looking to him and if we cant do it how can we expect to be able or qualified to show others how. We need to look to Christ Amen!

Conclusion:

In conclusion we see that there are things we need to lay aside in our race with God. There are things that we are to learn, we are to learn to lay aside the weight and sin in our lives. We are to continually remind the flesh of what the word says about our lives and sin remaining in it. There are fruits that are to be present in our lives, for the benefit of ourselves and more importantly for others. Then we see there is someone we are to look to in order to be able to run this race he has given us, and that is Jesus Christ the originator and finisher of our faith. I am certain that if we all keep our eyes stayed on the things of Christ and be about His kingdom business we will run a more successful race, and be more effective for Christ Amen!

Let us close with prayer. Heavenly father I have just simply spoke the word you had for the people, I praise you and thank you for the opportunity, I thank you for speaking through me and using me as your mouth piece. I thank you that your word has brought light into the lives of all of us present today, and I am careful to give you all the glory all the honor and all the praise in Christ Jesus name Amen.