God’s call to Persevere in the Faith

Sermon preached at St. Mark’s, Honey Brook, PA

by The Rev. Thomas C. Pumphrey, Deacon-in-Residence (Pastor), August 15, 2004

Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost (year C): Hebrews 12:1-14 (Jeremiah 23:23-29; Luke 12:49-56)

Hebrews 12:1-14 (NRSV) Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as children-- "My child, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, or lose heart when you are punished by him; for the Lord disciplines those whom he loves, and chastises every child whom he accepts." Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as children; for what child is there whom a parent does not discipline? If you do not have that discipline in which all children share, then you are illegitimate and not his children. Moreover, we had human parents to discipline us, and we respected them. Should we not be even more willing to be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share his holiness. Now, discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed. Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.

Today’s New Testament reading from Hebrews speaks about perseverance and endurance. One of the modern day symbols of perseverance is the cyclist Lance Armstrong. Lance Armstrong has been, for many years, a world-class bicycle racer, cycling in major competitions, including the most significant race in the sport, the Tour de France. The Tour de France is a twenty day bike race through over 2000 miles of French countryside, including a grueling trek through the mountains. Cyclists must train hard for months and months, monitoring their performance and their weight, choosing high-tech bikes that shave off every ounce of weight that could affect their speed. They discipline their bodies, pushing ahead toward their goal, keeping their focus away from the physical and psychological challenges of the race. Lance Armstrong is the picture of endurance and determination, a pioneer, blazing ahead of the pack to reach the finish, surrounded by what the ancient Greeks called the “cloud of witnesses,” cheering him on as he takes the finish line. Competing in the Tour De France is a great accomplishment. Winning the Tour De France is a joyous victory, for Armstrong, and for those inspired by him.

But there’s more to Armstrong’s story. In 1996, in the midst of a successful career, Armstrong was diagnosed with cancer that had spread to his lungs and his brain. After aggressive chemotherapy, he survived his cancer and went on to compete in cycling again. Lance Armstrong did not simply stage a comeback, but it was after his battle with cancer that he won the Tour De France. Not only did he win it once, but he has won the last six consecutive Tour De France races.

In the face of the hardship of cancer, in a grueling and competitive sport and a daunting race, Lance Armstrong has shown perseverance and determination that is inspiring and energizing to the rest of us. This kind of example, this kind of perseverance in the midst of hardship parallels the images used by the writer of Hebrews in this morning’s lesson. In the trials of our life and the challenges of living the Christian faith, God calls us to a Lance Armstrong level of perseverance.

This call to persevere in the faith comes from what scholars consider to be a first century sermon that we know as the book Hebrews. The preacher of Hebrews is addressing a persecuted and beleaguered congregation. They are becoming discouraged and weary. Many of their number have been cast out from Pagan society because of their beliefs and practices and suffered the hatred of Greek and Roman oppression. They know how Rome can sometimes bring death to those who believe and follow Jesus. They have become distracted by their culture, entangled by their own lack of devotion, and weighed down by the depth of their own hardship. They are losing hope and perhaps focusing on their own grief and loss and pain.

To such a congregation, the preacher of Hebrews responds with a call to persevere in their faith and devotion, keeping their eyes on Jesus, the one who has borne suffering for our sake, and who has gone ahead of us in victory. Earlier in his sermon, some of which we heard in last Sunday’s lesson, the preacher recalls those who have gone before us in walking with God. By faith, Noah took his family into the ark. By faith, Abraham followed God’s vision for his life. By faith, Sarah received her child. The preacher of Hebrews recalls a long list of patriarchs and prophets, even those apostles and martyrs known to the preacher’s congregation, all who labored in their devotion to God, running the race with perseverance in the hope of salvation.

Then comes the climax of the sermon, the point to which he is leading throughout all of chapter eleven: “Therefore,” says the preacher in today’s reading, “Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,” the witnesses of these saints who have gone before us, and who stand like the throngs of cheering fans by the finish line, “let us also cast aside every weight and the sin” that so easily entangles, “and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us.”

Their race is our race. Their perseverance is our perseverance. The preacher begs us not to grow weary or become distracted by our own hardships, looking to our own sorrows and our own sacrifices, but rather looking to Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, looking to Jesus who has run the race before us to the finish, to Jesus who has gained the victory over death itself, looking to Jesus, who empowers us to persevere.

This is the preacher’s thrilling call to a Lance Armstrong level of perseverance in our lives as Christians.

Now, I don’t know about you, but I have a hard enough time keeping up with my five year old son, much less competing or winning a 2000 mile bike race. What does a Lance Armstrong level of perseverance look like in my life or your life? Better yet, what does a Jesus Christ level of perseverance look like in our lives? How do we stay looking toward Jesus despite our own hardships?

We are blessed, actually, to live in a country where our Christian faith is not a life-threatening practice as it is in Sudan and elsewhere. We don’t face such penalties, but we do face the slowly growing encroachment of a post-Christian culture. When the coach calls for Sunday morning sports practices, or when the boss calls a Sunday morning meeting, we feel the pinch of our culture tax our commitment to keep the Sabbath holy. When populist religion elevates pluralism over any one religion, we face the stigma of the outsider in professing our particular claims of the truth. This is the division that Jesus spoke about in today’s gospel reading from Luke—how the faith of some will come at the expense of rejection and division.

We face challenges of maintaining an attitude of Christian love and generosity in a world of meanness and sarcasm and materialism. With all of our productivity gains, we can still barely fit in time for our family, much less time for God. We also face hardships that tax our energy and draw us into our own distress. Some of us know our own battles with illness. Many of us have lost loved ones to illness and tragedy. All of us, in some way, have experienced the hardship of broken relationships. We all, in some way bear the scars of division and separation. We all have been hurt, and we all have done hurting at some time in our lives. This is one of the sins that cling so closely: the cycle of distrust and insecurity and isolation.

We know from experience that these are greater challenges than the mountain section of the Tour De France. We face them every day, and we sometimes find ourselves weary and losing hope. What does it look like to continue to reach out in love to those who mistreat us? How do we show God’s love to a hostile world? What does it look like to reach a Jesus Christ level of perseverance in love and faith and devotion?

I know many stories of Christian perseverance. Some stories are too long and some are too personal to tell, but I could recreate some of the themes for you. Consider a father who loved his daughter deeply. She spurned his direction, got into loads of trouble, but he continued to love her and reach out to her. She broke her father’s trust often, she cheated him and stole from him. But still he loved her. He never gave up on her, though she defied the discipline he asked of her. When she hit rock bottom and landed in jail, he was there for her. He visited her and showed his love for her with affection and with his persistent teaching. When she was released, they were restored to each other, and her life began to turn around. Though he never gave in to her crimes, he persevered in his love for her, tough, tenacious and actively engaged in winning his daughter back.

There are other stories like this: marriages that survive affairs because of the perseverance of a betrayed spouse, friends who choose to argue out their differences rather than walk away, communities that fight injustice through love and prayer rather than fists and riots.

But most of all, there is Jesus himself, Jesus who loves us despite our indifference or rejection of him, Jesus who shows us God’s love like that persistent father. Jesus ran the race; he bore hardship so that we might be freed from the cycle of sin and separation. By such self-giving love that God shows us in Jesus Christ and through the gift of the Holy Spirit, we can be filled with the grace to love others ourselves, despite our hardships, despite our challenges. Filled with a palpable sense of God’s love, we cannot help but let that love flow into our loves and overflow into the lives of those around us, in our church, in our homes and in our community. By that love, we can resist the negativity around us and seek the joy of ordering our lives with God at the center. Looking to Jesus, we can persevere with greater tenacity than Lance Armstrong.

Come to God this morning. Come and receive that love and let it spill over into the lives of others. By God’s love and by God’s grace, we can run the race and persevere in our lives in Christian faith and hope and love.