Lay Aside Every Weight
Hebrews 12:1-3 “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured from sinners such hostility against Himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.”
The children of God who have passed on before us, these saints, they are a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us and watching us. In some senses, they are like an accountability partner. Think of someone who was a godly role model in your life and who has passed on, they are in the cloud of witnesses. Knowing that not only the Lord is watching us, not only are a host of angels watching us, but also those Christians who loved us and have passed on are watching us. No pressure.
The children of God who have passed on before, the angels, and the Lord Himself all want us to live a Christ-like life. They want us to lay aside the cares of the world and the things that burden our hearts. If we find that we are stressed out by all the pressures of the world, let us give those to God. Give Him all our anxieties for He cares for us (1 Peter 5:7).
Don’t let sin take hold of us. Detangle ourselves from sin and run the endurance race of the Christian life. If we stop to sin a little, we have stopped running and become distracted with the passions of the flesh. We have gone off track. Let us be vigilant to stay on the straight and narrow path running the endurance race, fighting the good fight (1 Timothy 6:12). We are not sprinting to burn out fast. We are to persevere for the Lord. He persevered through suffering, shame, and crucifixion for our sakes. How much more should we persevere for Him who offers so great a gift of salvation to us. Let us lay aside every burden and sin of the world that weighs us down to run the race with our eyes looking towards Jesus.