life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its
deceitful desires, to be made new in the attitude of your
minds, and put on the new self, created to be like God in
true righteousness and holiness.”
And let us run with perseverance the race marked out
for us…
I have always thought of a running race when I read these
verses. So I was surprised when I looked up the Greek
meaning of “race.” It is a “place of contest.” Sounds a little
more like a battle than a running race! Sure enough, the
same word is translated in a few other places with more
potency:
Fight the good fight of faith
(1 Timothy 6:12)
How great a struggle I have on your behalf
(Colossians 2:1)
We spoke the Gospel of God amid much opposition
(1 Thessalonians 2:2)
Why do we expect this life to be a jog in the park?! Jesus
forewarned that we would have opposition in this world
but then promised that He has overcome the world (John
16:33). We are admonished to run with perseverance and
endurance. We are to fight the fight of faith. We are to
strenuously contend with all the energy He so powerfully
works within us (Colossians 1:29).
Now it gets even more personal. Do you realize, that as a
Jesus follower, you have a race marked out for you? You
have a purpose in God’s Kingdom plan. For you are God’s
handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works,
which God prepared in advance for you to do (Ephesians
2:10). That truth should embolden! There is work for each
of us to do! He’s waiting to include us in His Kingdom mis-
sion on this earth. We simply need to look to our Creator…
Oh, Lord, teach us to number our days that we may gain a
heart of wisdom (Psalm 90:12).
walking by me. In the same way, the Lord wants our full
attention! In all our ways we are to acknowledge Him and
He will make our paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6).
Jesus is our Pioneer, the One who takes the lead in our
lives. Some translations use “Author.” He is the One writing
our story! And Jesus is the Perfecter or Finisher of our
faith. You can be confident that He who began a good
work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of
Christ Jesus (Philippians 1:6).
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.
Why do we do this? Our model is Jesus. The race set
before Him included the Cross. He knew His purpose. He
had his eyes on the prize! Jesus came to die in order that
we might have life eternal. The Kingdom of God came
near in order to make a way that we could never make our-
selves. The God of the Universe stepped into the created
world in order to know us. His battle was a source of joy
because He loved each of us that much!
Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who
blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It
means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start run-
ning—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no para-
sitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and
finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because
he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhil-
arating finish in and with God—he could put up with
anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And
now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God.
When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over
that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility
he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your
souls! (Hebrews 12:1-2, Message)
Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of
faith…
We are to turn our eyes from worldly things and place
them firmly on Jesus. When I am deeply focused in con-
versation with another person, I don’t even see the people
By Susan Sorensen
Pastoral Staff, Women’s Ministry
Susan has been married to Scott for 30 years and they hav