Running the Race of Grace: Hebrews 12 Explained

The book of Hebrews is one of the most fascinating and mysterious books of scripture. Not only is the author unknown, but it contains many intriguing references to other events, and a distinct style that compares and contrasts the major covenants.

The book of Hebrews is a letter that is written to the Hebrews; as such, it has many elements that would be obvious to a Hebrew person of that day, but can be confusing to us.

Hebrews chapter twelve, contains powerful imagery about running a race, that can be perplexing and frightening if we don’t understand the message.

Today we examine Hebrews twelve with the lens of grace, and allow the finished work of Christ to bring us clarity.

How Jesus Conquered Your Sin (#3): The Cleansing of Conscience

Welcome back again to the third-part of our series on how Jesus has conquered your sin. So far we’ve seen some powerful truths regarding how sin is far deeper than actions that we commit, but it is an identity. Likewise, righteousness is also an identity. We also began to examine how Jesus changed our identity from sin to righteousness, and has cleansed us and given us a good and clean conscience.

Today, we are going to delve deeper into the cleansing of our conscience by Jesus Christ, and what a good conscience truly means.

How Jesus Conquered Your Sin (#1) — The Nature of Sin

When discussing Grace, the topic of sin usually follows closely behind. It is difficult people to comprehend their new life in Christ, when sinful behaviors are prominently in view. This struggle leads many to embark on a war against sin; with the primary markers being:

– Focusing on sin and behavior
– Feelings of fear, doubt, and condemnation
– Often consumed with guilt and unworthiness

Those of you that are familiar with my testimony, know that I lived that way for many years. I was focused so greatly on my sin that I kept a daily record of each sinful action. Every day I felt worse, more condemned, and further away from God. And the more I tried to conquer sin, the more I failed, and deeper into the pit I went.

So what does this all mean? Is sin an unconquerable foe? Not at all! What I want to share with you today is a different perspective, on how sin can be conquered, and has been conquered in Christ.

God’s Mercy and Grace (part 1)

Mercy and grace, two wonderful gifts that Jesus has given to us. His mercy and grace are always available to us, and they are always active; never dormant or stale. Yet oftentimes we find ourselves feeling as though God’s mercy has somehow left us. Sometimes we think that His grace has abandoned us in the midst of a crisis. I understand those thoughts and feelings, and I’ve felt them myself many times before. I know that it can be very disconcerting, frightening and even depressing; again I have experienced all of that.

But is it actually true that God’s mercy has left us? Is it true that God’s grace has abandoned us? It can be difficult to even confront that thought, because on the one hand, we are uncomfortable even contemplating it. Yet even so, no problem of any significance is ever solved by ignoring it. We can and should approach the problem directly, and we shouldn’t be fearful about it. For if we do indeed believe as we proclaim that “God is good all the time”, then whatever answer we find, we can be certain that it will be good and beneficial for us.

So today I’d like to have a discussion about the mercy and grace of God, and perhaps tackle some of the more palpable aspects of it, both negative and positive.

Your Healing is Unstoppable! (part 2)

Welcome back to the second part of our series looking at the truth of your healing, and the biblical reality that because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the truth that your healing is unstoppable.

Last week we took an honest look at the “sin problem”, and we answered the question of whether sinful deeds could actually impede or stop your healing… and I would encourage everyone to view that study if they have any doubts regarding healing and sin.

Today we are going to continue this theme, and look at a related argument regarding healing, which is healing is not guaranteed, and sickness is inevitable, because we live in a sinful world.

Much like what we looked at last week regarding sinful deeds stopping healing, this idea about a sinful world stopping healing is just as common – and just as crippling when it comes to healing, and so we will be examining it today in this study.

Nothing Can Hold-Back Your Healing

If you are in-need of healing, chances are that you’ve sought insight from many sources. And like myself in the past, you have probably run across the myriad of articles, books and opinions of various leaders that all seem repeat the same idea over-and-over again as if they were in an echo chamber… that healing exists, but there are all these prerequisites and qualifications before you can ever hope to receive it – and even then, it all depends on God’s will, so just don’t expect too much.

Believe me, I’ve seen those same articles – and they make it seem as though physical healing is more difficult and more precious and guarded of a gift than eternal salvation! The worst part of it is, because of such beliefs, precious people are dying every single day because healing has seemingly been fenced-off – and it has hindered the faith of many people. So today, I want to encourage you with the actual truth of Christ, the Gospel truth (which includes healing), that in-reality, nothing can hold back your healing today.

If you need healing, whether it be spiritual healing, emotional healing, or even physical healing, this study will set you free to receive it today.

Your Conscience is Cleansed in Christ

One of the most misunderstood areas of our psyche, from a Biblical standpoint, is our conscience. This was an area that I was affected in for a number of years, because I heard and believed the lie, and it led me down a very dark path, which served to place an artificial barrier between myself and God and ministered condemnation and death to not only my soul, but my physical body as well.

This extremely destructive lie, was that I had to be constantly aware of and conscious of my sin; to do otherwise would mean that I would have a seared conscience – which I was told meant that I would not be able to “feel bad” about my sin any longer, and God would give me over to destruction. The only remedy for this was to constantly remind myself of sin and constantly be aware of my sin and keep myself from ever forgetting it.

Many people have heard this same lie and believed it like I have, and if that describes you today, then you are going to be very glad that you are reading this today, because this is not only totally backwards from the truth, and quite wrong, but it is also very damaging to our relationship with God, and has kept people bound in chains, sometimes for their entire lives. However the truth will make us free, and that is what I want to share with you today… the truth regarding your conscience.

How Jesus Makes You Free

One famous statement made by Jesus is found in John 8:32, where He says “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free”. Now these words spoken by Jesus have been repeated and re-used for all kinds of things. It is quoted in churches all across the world, but what is it really saying? What are we free from? How are we made free?

I have spoken with many people who recite the words that they have been made free, but are still very much bound. I have lived that way myself for many years! It happens because of sheer ignorance a lot of times… So what I want to share with you today, is the truth about the truth… the truth that Jesus spoke of, the truth that will actually make you free – and everything that means. So today, you can say that you are free, and actually know what it is that you are saying. So that you can truly be free, and not just be reciting empty words. You shall know the truth, and the truth will make you free.

You Have Been Freed From the Curse

Close your eyes for a moment and imagine yourself bound. Imagine your hands, arms and legs bound with chains; imagine being shackled tightly and how you would feel, not being able to move at all. Now imagine that there was a divine miracle, all of the chains that bound you have instantly fallen off; you are no longer bound. You were not able to move at all before, and now you are free to move around as much as you desire. You have a reason to rejoice! You have a reason to celebrate! You were a prisoner, and now you are free!

This scenario is actually more than just an imagination – it is a wonderful reality. You and I were prisoners once; prisoners to sin, prisoners to sickness, disease and all the curse of the Law of Moses. Now however, we have been set free. We have been released from all of the curse, however many people do not yet realize that they have been set free. They are behaving and living as though they are still bound, even though the shackles are no longer holding them in-place. Today we will be studying the wonderful reality that you have actually been released from the curse. You do not have to live in bondage and fear any longer. Jesus has delivered you.

You Are the Manifestation of Jesus Today

In our continuing study of who we are in Christ, one thing that tends to receive a lot of push-back from the traditionalists in the world today, is the truth that in Christ Jesus today, we are the manifestation of Him on the earth. We are the manifestation of Jesus to all of the people of the world today. This idea irritates those who believe that it is insolence to in any way liken ourselves to Jesus They believe that because He is so much greater than us, that it is an insult to even make any kind of comparison which connects Him with us. It may seem right to our human thinking, however, God Himself has a different idea than this traditionalist view.

That’s why as we study today, we are going to be taking a look at precisely what Jesus has to say about Himself and us, and what our relationship to Him actually is. And by seeing this truth, we will no longer have this perceived distance between us and God any longer. We will be able to embrace our true nature in Him; and live in the truth that He wants us to live in.