Jeremiah 29:11 NIV
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Proverbs 16:25 AMPC
There is a way that seems right to a man and appears straight before him, but at the end of it is the way of death.
Hebrews 12:1 TLB
Since we have such a huge crowd of men of faith watching us from the grandstands, let us strip off anything that slows us down or holds us back, and especially those sins that wrap themselves so tightly around our feet and trip us up; and let us run with patience the particular race that God has set before us.
You have a particular race that God has set before you to run. I can’t run your race and you can’t run my race.
It is a spiritual race that has to do with the divine destiny God has planned for you to fulfill.
Lay Aside Weights and Sins
Hebrews 12:1 TLB
…let us strip off anything that slows us down or holds us back, and especially those sins that wrap themselves so tightly around our feet and trip us up…
Think of the annual Comrades marathon that people participate in every year. They are not wearing heavy coats while they are running. They are dressed lightly, so they can finish their race. They strip off anything that can hold them back or slow them down.
Let us strip off anything that is slowing us down or holding us back.
And the runner doesn’t wait until he’s run half the race to take off the coat. If he did that, there’s no way he could win the race.
It’s the same way in the spiritual realm. Sin will slow you down, it will keep tripping you up, and it can prevent you from running your spiritual race.
You see, sin in your life will not only hinder your fellowship with God, but it will also dull your spirit and cause you to be less responsive to the Holy Spirit’s leading. Sin left unchecked will cause you to live only in the natural realm, and you’ll miss God’s best for your life.
We must understand that there is a difference between a gift and character.
Jesus said you will know them by their fruit not by their gift.
Sin will take you further than you wanted to go.
Sin will cost you more than you wanted to pay.
Sin will keep you longer than you wanted to stay.
Weights are things that keep you bound to the natural realm. They are not necessarily sinful things. They are okay to do, things which may be good in themselves but are not what God has called you to do.
It might be acceptable for one person but for the next, it might not be.
James 4:17 NKJV
Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.
There are many things in this life that are not necessarily wrong, but they will slow you down in your particular race. They will hinder you from growing spiritually and from fulfilling God’s purposes in your life.
Notice Hebrews 12:1 says you are the one who must strip off the weights and sins that hinder you and hold you back in your Christian walk.
Of course, God will help you. The Holy Spirit, the Helper, dwells in you to give you the power and ability to obey God (John 14:26 AMPC). But God is not going to pull off your “coat” – those weights and sins that slow you down – and lay them aside for you. You are going to have to do it.
That is why some people have trouble running their spiritual race. They are not stripping off everything that would slow them down or hold them back.
Enter Through The Narrow Gate
Matthew 7:13-14 AMPC
Enter through the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and spacious and broad is the way that leads away to destruction, and many are those who are entering through it. But the gate is narrow (contracted by pressure) and the way is straitened and compressed that leads away to life, and few are those who find it.
Choose Life
Deuteronomy 30:19 NKJV
I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;
Run Your Particular Race!
Like I mentioned at the beginning, the reason some people sometimes have trouble running their spiritual race is that they are not running the race God told them to run. They are not following His plan or His purpose for their lives. When that happens, their race can become hard and burdensome to run.
Whats the point of running if you are running in the wrong direction?
Being out of the will of God brings dissatisfaction.
God doesn’t want the race He has set before us to be difficult and burdensome.
Matthew 11:28-30 NKJV
Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.
Matthew 11:28-30 MSG
Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with Me and work with Me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with Me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.
Have you ever tried to do what somebody else was called to do by God.
It can be very frustrating and difficult. And when they see them doing it easily, they become mad and jealous at them. But it’s because they are not in their place.
God said to a man of God, “It’s not what I called you to do that almost got you killed, it’s what you added to it, that almost got you killed.”
God said to a man of God, “I never told my leaders to bring the people’s problems to Me, I told them to take My answers to them.”
Lay aside the burden of care and worry.
A weight that you must lay aside as a Pastor, as a leader, as a believer, is to cast all your cares upon the Lord. We don’t take on the burdens and cares of people. We were not designed by God to do that. We want to finish our particular race, our ministry, our course with joy.
1 Peter 5:7 AMPC
Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully.
How God used my son to minister to me in Cape Town while on holiday.
Psalm 68:19 AMPC
Blessed be the Lord, Who bears our burdens and carries us day by day, even the God Who is our salvation.
I am not saying we shouldn’t be there to help others.
Galatians 6:2, 5 NKJV
2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
5 For each one shall bear his own load.
Often the difficulties we face in running our race are not the result of God’s yoke upon us or trying to fulfil His will for our lives. Many times, the difficulties we encounter are the result of what we have failed to do by not stripping off everything that would hinder us.
In the same way you might take your coat off and throw it down, make the decision to strip off every wrong motive, every selfish ambition, carnal inclination, and desire of the flesh that will hinder you in your race.
Lay aside weights and sins like pride, double-mindedness, spiritual slothfulness, and fear. You must do this if you want to do your best to run your spiritual race and finish your course with joy.