Running the Race Before Us

Our first full day in Israel we visited Caesarea Maritima, the ruins of a city built by Herod the Great along the Mediterranean Sea. It became the Roman capital of Palestine and was where Pontius Pilate lived during the time of Jesus. It’s also where the Church Father Origen lived, and Eusebius, the first church historian lived there too.

One of the places in the city that has been uncovered and partially reconstructed is the hippodrome. A hippodrome is a large arena, with seats all around, used for chariot races and athletic competitions. This particular hippodrome is on the sea front, so some of the fans could see the water as well as the competition taking place in the arena. We sat in some of the seats for awhile and Pastor Bill Vanden Bosch described to us some of the pageantry that was part of a race, who might sit where, how a winner might be recognized and celebrated. We read aloud parts of Hebrews 11 – the stories of heroes of the faith – and these words from chapter 12:1-3 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, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he 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 sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Pastor Bill invited us to think about some of our heroes of the faith, and to imagine them in the stands cheering us on, and then to walk or run a lap around the arena as a sign of our desire to press on, to persevere for Jesus’ sake. I found myself thinking about Corrie ten Boom, who with her family sheltered Jews during WWII and survived a concentration camp and then traveled the world preaching and teaching forgiveness, I thought about my grandparents and their love, I thought about some of the folks from Boston Square who have died since Jay and I became your pastors, and I thought of Jesus, smiling and cheering as I ran.

It's not easy to be faithful in the midst of uncertainty and grief: to pray, to be patient and loving with ourselves and others, to practice compassion and generosity.

I don’t know about you, but I’m more likely to keep running if someone is watching. There’s some pressure that comes from having someone watching you, and there’s great encouragement if the folks watching are cheering for you.

As you persevere this week, remember the cloud of witnesses who surround us. Spend some time remembering your own heroes of faith, and the people who have loved you and gone before.

And remember that Jesus is smiling and cheering for you as you seek to live faithfully in these uncertain times.

All Authority

Here’s a preacher’s secret: it’s actually pretty difficult to preach through the life of Jesus. If you take out his teachings—the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel of Matthew, the parables in the Gospel of Luke, for example—and focus on his actions, it’s mostly a series of healings and miracles, each one slightly more impressive than the one before. In the Gospel of Mark in particular, first Jesus casts out an impure spirit. Then Jesus heals the sick. Then Jesus heals someone with leprosy, then someone who was paralyzed, then the man with the shriveled hand. Then Jesus calms the storm, then frees the man with the legion of demons. Then Jesus raises the girl from the dead.

            Each of these is a marvelous story of Jesus’ power over the forces in this world that threaten to undo us. Preaching any one of them is a testament to Jesus’ power over the forces that bring fear into our lives and that can lead to a tremendous sermon. Preaching them in order, however, is exceedingly challenging—by the third or fourth week, the message becomes pretty repetitive. Yes, we know, Jesus has power over the forces of evil in this world—yes, even the forces a little bit greater, a little bit stronger than the forces we talked about last week…tell us something we don’t know, preacher... For this reason, I try to avoid preaching more than one or two sermons in a row on the healing miracles of Jesus.

            But when Elizabeth and I were in Israel, we went to the top of Mt Arbel. Mt Arbel is a sharp cliff face rising up over the shores of the Sea of Galilee. From there, you can see where almost 80% of Jesus’ recorded earthly ministry took place. You can see where Jesus cast out the impure spirit and the general area where Jesus healed the sick. You can see where the village was where Jesus healed the paralyzed man. You can see where Jesus calmed the storm since you can see pretty much all of the Sea of Galilee. You can even see where Jesus freed the man possessed by demons. And where Jesus raised the girl from the dead.

            In the Gospel of Matthew, after Jesus is raised from the dead, he tells Mary to tell his disciples to go to Galilee and he will meet them there. And the place where Jesus meets them is on a mountaintop. It may well have been Mt Arbel—and if not, it was someplace very similar. A place where you could look down and see the place where Jesus had healed the sick, the place where Jesus had calmed the storm, the place where Jesus had cast out the demons, the place where Jesus had raised the dead. And it is here, on this mountaintop, overlooking the places where Jesus progressively showed his power over each and every evil that threatens to undo us, that Jesus says, “All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me…”

            Authority over sickness. Authority over the storms of life. Authority over demons. Authority even over death. It might not be easy to preach from week to week to week, but it’s a critically important lesson to remember. Especially in these uncertain times: Jesus has authority over all things.

We are changing whether we want to or not...let us change intentionally.

These are strange times. Everything is changing moment by moment. Everyone one of us has been impacted in ways even just a week ago we never would have imagined. Some of us are working from home and desperately trying to set up a home office. Others suddenly find their children home all day long with playdates forbidden. Others are trying to teach courses online for the first time and keep running into roadblocks. Some are suddenly without work and desperate for income. Some of us are feeling overwhelmed, others are bored beyond measure. All of us are hunkering down, social distancing, and wondering what tomorrow will bring. I’ve seen a number of memes on Facebook that have said something along these lines, “Honestly, I hadn’t planned on giving up this much for Lent.” And the truth is that our lives have changed. In some ways, I hope, temporarily. In others, I suspect, permanently. And anytime our lives encounter seismic change, it’s a good time to step back, try to take a bird-eye view, and see the big picture. If we’re changing anyway—how can we change intentionally and purposefully? What was part of our lives before the coronavirus that we valued? That we don’t want to give up, no matter what it takes to maintain it? How can we nurture these things even in the midst of these new realities? What had creeped into our lives that we didn’t like? What habits or vices had taken hold that we might want to eliminate? How can we use this unique time of our lives being shaken up to cut these weaknesses out of our lives or reshape them in positive ways? What was missing from our lives that we wish were a part of them? How might we use this unique time to nurture these things? To develop new patterns or habits? To reshape the foundation of our lives? And, of course, as we undergo these changes, as our lives reshape themselves day by day in this unprecedented time of uncertainty, how do we guard against bad habits or patterns taking hold? What do we see starting to creep into lives that wasn’t there before and that we don’t want to be there in the future? Paul, in Colossians 3, writes to those believers in Colossus and reminds them of the seismic shift that took place in their lives when they accepted Jesus as their savior. He describes it as taking off the clothes of their former lives and clothing themselves instead with Christ. Put to death the old self, he says—all the anger, rage, malice, and lies. Also the greed and lust and impurity. And instead put on the new self—clothing it with compassion kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. And here’s the deal: this isn’t just a one-time and done sort of thing. Paul says this new self—this new creation made possible through the power of God at work in our lives—is being renewed day by day. In the image of its Creator.

I have a friend on Facebook who wrote, “Heaven help me if I see one more reflection on the coronavirus that declares that this is the perfect time to learn the guitar, to study a new language, to read all those books that have been piling up on my ‘to read’ list. It’s all I can do to keep my head above water!” This reflection isn’t meant to say that we need to be do more or be more or accomplish more. But our lives are changing—whether we like it or not. This is a reflection to say, Let’s do it intentionally. My prayer is that through this all, whatever happens in the next days, or weeks or months, we might all emerge transformed. Renewed. A bit more in the image of our Creator.

And along the way, may the “peace of Christ rule in our hearts.” (Colossians 3:15)