A Great Cloud Of Witness

A. I’m impressed with athletes who train seriously. I know, that in life you don’t get something for
nothing. There are no free lunches. You must be willing to pay the price for victory. You never get
the best unless you give your best. You always get what you settle for.
1. Our son Philip was a cross country runner. Trained by running with weights on his legs. One thing he used to talk about was the exilleration of hearing the crowd cheering you as you near the end and cross the finish line. The faster you run, the harder you fight to win, the more they cheer. Can you visualize that? I hope so. If so you can understand Heb. 12. HEB.11, tells about Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Rahab, Moses and all those people who run the race of faith and crossed the finish line. And it says, “All those people are in heaven and they are cheering for you as
you run the Christian race.” Cheering you on. Moses is saying, “Go, Go .”
a. Heb. 12:1-3. When you became a Christian you entered the race of your life. Jesus paid your
entry fee with His blood on the cross. Baptism is not the end of the race. It's the beginning of the
race of faith and in Heb. 12, Paul says, “You need to persevere.” Persevere is a big word that
means, “Don’t stop.” All through the book of Hebrews Paul keeps saying one thing, "If you stop
running you loose.”
(A) Everybody here understands that. If you enter a rodeo or a race and if you pay an entry fee
and quit, you don’t win anything and in addition to that you loose your entry fee. All you
get is a lot of hard work for nothing. That’s why Paul says, repeatedly, “Persevere, stay
committed, stay focused, be determined to win at all cost.”
(1) Guess what? Sometimes you have to make some very serious sacrifices. Moses had to make that kind of decision. Look at Heb. 11:24-26. That’s a tough decision to make, especially if you have to make it alone. But, you and I don't have that obstacle, hindrance. Paul says in Vs. 1, "We are surrounded by a great cloud of witness." You have a cheering section. And it's not just anybody. It’s those who have already run the race before you. They Understand.
(a) I don't know about you, but that means something to me. No one understands,
appreciates like those who have done it before. They know. That's the unity,
camaraderie, that explains reunions and homecomings. That’s where you share a
common bond. Share stories, experiences you understand. My greatest
encouragement comes from those who have already run the race before me. Paul says the bleachers are filled with 1000's who already ran and won. You are being
cheered by champions.
(b) I remember in the service in 1955, when we were on a French Air Force Base named Bin Gurier. North Africa, close to the Algerian city of Marrakech during the French - Algerian War. The French had colonialised Morocco a hundred years before. The Arabs were trying to drive the French invaders out. The French asked for our help and so we were there to help keep Morocco under French occupation. We were under the protection of a battalion of French Foreign Legionaries. There were times at night, in the Sarah Desert it was cold and lonely. There were snakes, spiders, scorpions, Arabs and Burbers. Only one thing helped and that was the memories of home, Bess, her letters and the boxes of cookies she and mom sent.

(2) One of life’s great problems is loneliness. Loneliness can overwhelm, devastate and demoralize you. If you can't find a way to handle it, It can cause you to quit. What about those who loose life's mate? Make plans and the uture looks really good. Suddenly you come back from the funeral, walk into the house and call their name. The only answer is echo of your own voice. Bess is my daily encouragement, my
cheer leader, my picker-upper. Without her it would be easy to be discouraged and
just give up.
(B) But, you can’t quit. If you do you loose everything. Before you quit you need to look up at that “great cloud ow witness. Look at Joseph, he ran the race before you did. He’s there cheering for you. He understands, knows what it’s like to be abandoned, lonely. Betrayed by his brothers and sold into slavery when he was 17 years old. Separated for 20 years. Every day I looked across horizon saying, “Today my father will come.” He never did.
(1) But Joseph held on his faith in God. He kept running the race of faith and finding his strength in God. Maybe you never had a problem with loneliness. What about finances? That gets everybody. Financial pressures sometimes become so great it caused many to commit suicide. Many today are having financial problems. Failures in banking, oil, agriculture, towns growing smaller, businesses folding, empty houses. Paul says, "Don’t quit. I you quit you loose everything.”
(2) Look at the stands. In that cheering section is a man named Moses. He knows how you feel, he understands and he’s rooting for you. Moses knows what it’s like to loose everything. Reared in Pharoah's house. Grandson of the richest and most powerful man in the world. World was his oyster. One day he had to make a choice. Life of luxury or suffer hardship for God’s people. Life in the wilderness was not easy. It’s difficult and often disouraging. But, God did for Moses what He has promised to do for you. In Rom. 8:28.
(3) In the midst of your loneliness, financial and marriage difficulties, God is working in your life for you. That difficult circumstance is God's way of grooming and shaping you for greater things. What ever you do, don't be totally discouraged don't give up, don't you quit.
b. Maybe your problem is some constant desire, temptation, longing for a particular sin. You fight, fight, fight and the desire just won’t go away and you just want to give up and do it. When that happens look up into that great cloud of witness and see the apostle Peter. He’ll say, “Don’t give up, don’t give in.” I know how hard it is and how easy it is to give up and give in. I’ve been there, I know what it's like to struggle with self and the things self craves. I understand the discouragement and failure of cowardice. I know what it’s like to look up at Lord and say, "I feel so ashamed, please forgive me, again." "I know what it's like to weep bitterly over sin and failure in my life and to get another chance.” In Matt. 26:74-75, He knows he has committed the unthinkable sin, no better than Judas and thinks there is no hope. Mk. 16:1-3, 7. They are met by an angel who announces the Lord has risen. In Vs. 7, The angel gives them this specific message: “...go, tell his disciples and Peter, He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you." Peter ran as fast as he could to the tomb and was the first to enter and see that Jesus was risen. Jesus has given him forgiveness and new hope.
(A) Just don't give up. Just repent and confess you sin and God will forgive you and welcome you into His loving arms. I thought there was no hope, no help for me. I truly belived I had been kicked out just like Judas. But when the Lord spoke to Mary he told her, “Especially tell Peter,” I knew there was Hope, Help, Healing. Run your Race. Don't quit. Hear that great cloud of witness. They ran, they overcame, they won and you can too.
(B) Acts 20:32.

Spur - 09/14/03 am