Look to Jesus (Heb. 12:1-3)
1
On a snowy Sunday, January 6 1850, a 15 year old boy found himself in Colchester, one of the oldest cities in England, and on his way to the local Congregational Chapel. But the snow and sleet intensified so that he turned down a side lane called
Artillery Street and came to the Primitive Methodist Church. The teenager Charles Spurgeon entered the church building.
There were thirteen people, including him, present in the Sanctuary. Even the pastor had failed to arrive because of the stormy weather. A thin-looking man climbed into the pulpit. He was Mr. John Egglen, a deacon of the church. He himself could barely come to the church, by walking a mile from his home making his way through the snow and sleet. As the pastor could not come to the church, the worship was about to be cancelled. But Mr. Egglen volunteered to preach although he had never preached before.
Mr. Egglen stood at the pulpit and announced his text as Isaiah 45:22. It was his favorite Bible verse. He read the verse: "Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God and there is none else."
He had not much to say. It compelled him to keep on repeating his text.
Mr. Egglen said:
"My dear friends, this is a very simple text indeed. It says, 'Look.'
Now, looking doesn't take a deal of pain. It is not lifting your foot or your finger; It is just 'Look!'
Well, a man needn't go to college to learn to look.
You may be the biggest fool, and yet you can look.
A child can look.
One who is almost an idiot can look. However weak, or however poor a man may be, he can look. And if he looks the promise is that he shall live."
The preacher ran out of anything fresh to say after ten minutes. He looked at his congregation and picked on Spurgeon. He was a stranger to this church.
"Young man, you look very miserable."
As a matter of fact, Spurgeon was so miserable and his heart was very troubled by not having found the way of salvation. He was visiting every church in town.
The preacher went on:
"You always will be miserable--miserable in life and miserable in death--if you don't obey my text; but if you obey now, this moment, you will be saved."
And then Mr. Egglen shouted at top of his voice,
"Young man, look to Jesus Christ.
Look! Look! Look! You have nothing to do but to look and live!"
And the young Spurgeon did look. When he looked to Jesus, he felt that he was saved at that very moment. Spurgeon saw immediately the way of salvation.
Like as when the brazen serpent was lifted up by Moses in the wilderness, the people only looked and were healed, so it was with Spurgeon.
Once Spurgeon was sure about his salvation, he became a preacher. Charles Spurgeon, indeed, became the most powerful and most influential preacher in the 19th century in England, by continuing to look to Jesus throughout his whole life.
Artillery Street and came to the Primitive Methodist Church. The teenager Charles Spurgeon entered the church building.
There were thirteen people, including him, present in the Sanctuary. Even the pastor had failed to arrive because of the stormy weather. A thin-looking man climbed into the pulpit. He was Mr. John Egglen, a deacon of the church. He himself could barely come to the church, by walking a mile from his home making his way through the snow and sleet. As the pastor could not come to the church, the worship was about to be cancelled. But Mr. Egglen volunteered to preach although he had never preached before.
Mr. Egglen stood at the pulpit and announced his text as Isaiah 45:22. It was his favorite Bible verse. He read the verse: "Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God and there is none else."
He had not much to say. It compelled him to keep on repeating his text.
Mr. Egglen said:
"My dear friends, this is a very simple text indeed. It says, 'Look.'
Now, looking doesn't take a deal of pain. It is not lifting your foot or your finger; It is just 'Look!'
Well, a man needn't go to college to learn to look.
You may be the biggest fool, and yet you can look.
A child can look.
One who is almost an idiot can look. However weak, or however poor a man may be, he can look. And if he looks the promise is that he shall live."
The preacher ran out of anything fresh to say after ten minutes. He looked at his congregation and picked on Spurgeon. He was a stranger to this church.
"Young man, you look very miserable."
As a matter of fact, Spurgeon was so miserable and his heart was very troubled by not having found the way of salvation. He was visiting every church in town.
The preacher went on:
"You always will be miserable--miserable in life and miserable in death--if you don't obey my text; but if you obey now, this moment, you will be saved."
And then Mr. Egglen shouted at top of his voice,
"Young man, look to Jesus Christ.
Look! Look! Look! You have nothing to do but to look and live!"
And the young Spurgeon did look. When he looked to Jesus, he felt that he was saved at that very moment. Spurgeon saw immediately the way of salvation.
Like as when the brazen serpent was lifted up by Moses in the wilderness, the people only looked and were healed, so it was with Spurgeon.
Once Spurgeon was sure about his salvation, he became a preacher. Charles Spurgeon, indeed, became the most powerful and most influential preacher in the 19th century in England, by continuing to look to Jesus throughout his whole life.
2
The author of the Hebrews wants to comfort the readers, the Jewish Christians in Rome, who have been struggling in their race of faith, by saying, "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."
Sometimes, you find yourselves struggling in your Christian race. But you should know that you are not the sole runners who are running the Christian race of faith. There are so many witnesses of faith who had completed their race--Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Jacob, Joseph, Moses and Joshua, Rahab, Gideon, and others listed in Chapter 11 and many others whose names are not recorded anywhere.
To run better, a runner makes his body as light as possible. He does not wear any heavy overcoat even in cold weather. He also takes off his jacket to have a good record.
In the same way, you need to throw off anything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles to run the good and fast race.
The author of the Hebrews exhorts us: "Let us look to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith."
Our faith is originated and will be perfected by Jesus.
Jesus is the beginning and the period of our faith.
The Greek word corresponding to "Look (to)," "ἀφοράω (aphorao)" means "fix one's eyes on somebody or something" with the hope or expectation toward the object. Those who look to the Lord live their lives holy and pleasing to God (Rom. 12:2).
Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, himself had lived the life of faith.
Jesus had been faithful to God unto death showing his "faith of obedience" and "faith of trust" to his Father.
Jesus endured the cross for the joy set before him, scorning its shame.
Jesus saw the heavenly joy in hope, and thus he let the people of faith who followed him see the heavenly joy with the "faith of hope." As Jesus endured the cross, so can we Christians endure the cross that we bear in our daily lives.
What was the result of the faithfulness of Jesus?
He could sit at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.
What will be the result of our faithfulness?
Paul already mentions it in Ephesians 2:5-6.
Because of our faith, God will make us alive with Christ and raise us up with Christ and seat us with Christ in the heavenly realms.
Thus, what shall we do?
We shall look to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who had run the race faithfully before us.
As Paul exhorts us in Philippians 3:13-14, we shall "press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called us heavenward in Christ Jesus, forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead."
Not looking to Jesus but looking to ourselves, who are so easily tired and exhausted, we cannot turn us back from our weaknesses and despair.
It is because we are not the source of power and faith but Jesus is the source of our power and faith.
So, we need to look to Jesus.
When Peter looked to Jesus, he could walk on the water and came toward Jesus. But, a little moment later, when he saw the wind, the surrounding situation, he was afraid and began to sink into the water.
Are you sinking into the troubled water of despair or anxiety?
You shall look to Jesus, again. Then, you can get yourselves out of it.
Satan always persuades us to look around the stormy environment and our weaknesses, and to tell ourselves, "I cannot do it."
And thus Satan makes us give up our race of faith.
Our Lord wants us to look to Jesus even when we do not know where to go.
He wants us to set aside our feeling of disappointment or dismay and our burden of sins and trespasses, and to run again
our race of faith, looking to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.
that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us."
Sometimes, you find yourselves struggling in your Christian race. But you should know that you are not the sole runners who are running the Christian race of faith. There are so many witnesses of faith who had completed their race--Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Jacob, Joseph, Moses and Joshua, Rahab, Gideon, and others listed in Chapter 11 and many others whose names are not recorded anywhere.
To run better, a runner makes his body as light as possible. He does not wear any heavy overcoat even in cold weather. He also takes off his jacket to have a good record.
In the same way, you need to throw off anything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles to run the good and fast race.
The author of the Hebrews exhorts us: "Let us look to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith."
Our faith is originated and will be perfected by Jesus.
Jesus is the beginning and the period of our faith.
The Greek word corresponding to "Look (to)," "ἀφοράω (aphorao)" means "fix one's eyes on somebody or something" with the hope or expectation toward the object. Those who look to the Lord live their lives holy and pleasing to God (Rom. 12:2).
Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, himself had lived the life of faith.
Jesus had been faithful to God unto death showing his "faith of obedience" and "faith of trust" to his Father.
Jesus endured the cross for the joy set before him, scorning its shame.
Jesus saw the heavenly joy in hope, and thus he let the people of faith who followed him see the heavenly joy with the "faith of hope." As Jesus endured the cross, so can we Christians endure the cross that we bear in our daily lives.
What was the result of the faithfulness of Jesus?
He could sit at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.
What will be the result of our faithfulness?
Paul already mentions it in Ephesians 2:5-6.
Because of our faith, God will make us alive with Christ and raise us up with Christ and seat us with Christ in the heavenly realms.
Thus, what shall we do?
We shall look to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who had run the race faithfully before us.
As Paul exhorts us in Philippians 3:13-14, we shall "press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called us heavenward in Christ Jesus, forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead."
Not looking to Jesus but looking to ourselves, who are so easily tired and exhausted, we cannot turn us back from our weaknesses and despair.
It is because we are not the source of power and faith but Jesus is the source of our power and faith.
So, we need to look to Jesus.
When Peter looked to Jesus, he could walk on the water and came toward Jesus. But, a little moment later, when he saw the wind, the surrounding situation, he was afraid and began to sink into the water.
Are you sinking into the troubled water of despair or anxiety?
You shall look to Jesus, again. Then, you can get yourselves out of it.
Satan always persuades us to look around the stormy environment and our weaknesses, and to tell ourselves, "I cannot do it."
And thus Satan makes us give up our race of faith.
Our Lord wants us to look to Jesus even when we do not know where to go.
He wants us to set aside our feeling of disappointment or dismay and our burden of sins and trespasses, and to run again
our race of faith, looking to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.
3
Are you continuing to run your Christian race or stopping your race for a while?
Are you very tired or exhausted because you feel that your race is so burdensome? Consider those who had completed their race of faith.
What prizes are prepared for us when we finish our race?
Paul in 2 Timothy 4:7-8 tells us, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in
store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing."
Are you looking to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith?
To look to Jesus, you don't need to be well educated, smart, or a grown-up, or stand on tiptoe.
You only need to fix your eyes on Jesus who died on the cross to bear your sins and trespasses and to save you from death.
Look to Jesus, then you will be saved.
Look to Jesus, then the Lord will be with you throughout your whole lives.
Look to Jesus, then you will win your Christian race, and the Lord, our righteous Judge will give you the crown of life, the crown of righteousness, and the crown of glory.
Look to Jesus, then the Lord will bless you abundantly with his peace, joy, and grace. A-men!
Are you very tired or exhausted because you feel that your race is so burdensome? Consider those who had completed their race of faith.
What prizes are prepared for us when we finish our race?
Paul in 2 Timothy 4:7-8 tells us, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in
store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day--and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing."
Are you looking to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith?
To look to Jesus, you don't need to be well educated, smart, or a grown-up, or stand on tiptoe.
You only need to fix your eyes on Jesus who died on the cross to bear your sins and trespasses and to save you from death.
Look to Jesus, then you will be saved.
Look to Jesus, then the Lord will be with you throughout your whole lives.
Look to Jesus, then you will win your Christian race, and the Lord, our righteous Judge will give you the crown of life, the crown of righteousness, and the crown of glory.
Look to Jesus, then the Lord will bless you abundantly with his peace, joy, and grace. A-men!
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