Follow Me!
Hebrews 12:12-17
March 20, 2016
In 1992 at the Barcelona Olympics there was a British runner by the name of Derek Redmond. He was competing in the 400m run.
He had already broken the British record and now was running for Olympic gold.
Half way through Derek tore his hamstring and hobbled to a stop.
After a moment he got back and sought to finish his race.
It was at that point that his dad bounded out of the stands
And helped Derek finish his race.
Many times (even recently in Job) we have talked about
The concept of bearing one another’s burdens.
It was Cain who asked God, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”
And Scripture answers with a resounding “Yes!”
Galatians 6:1-2 “Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.”
Romans 15:1-6 “Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves. Each of us is to please his neighbor for his good, to his edification. For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, “THE REPROACHES OF THOSE WHO REPROACHED YOU FELL ON ME.” For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
And that is precisely what the writer of Hebrews is saying here.
He is telling you to go and be like Jesus to those around you.
• Build your neighbor up
• Bear his weaknesses
• Don’t just please yourself
• Use the perseverance and encouragement of God and go pick up your brother
• So that both of you can glorify God together
As you know we are dealing with a group of vacillating people.
They are those who have made some sort of public profession of Christ,
But there is some concern that their profession may not be real.
The concern comes from the fact that
These battered people are considering leaving their race
And falling away from Christ.
If they leave, they will prove themselves to be apostates.
The writer has warned about them extensively.
Hebrews 3:12 “Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.”
Hebrews 6:4-6 “For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.”
Hebrews 10:26 “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins,”
The danger is real.
That those who have once professed Christ,
Might prove that their heart was never redeemed,
But was actually only evil and unbelieving
And that they then would choose to crucify to themselves Christ
And reject Him forever.
The writer has written strongly to that group of people
And has been begging and pleading with them not to reject Christ.
But he has also spoken to a different group.
He has spoken to those who are genuine and real, and he has asked them
To step up and encourage this weak group of people.
Hebrews 3:12-13 “Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”
Hebrews 10:23-25 “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.”
And this morning the writer asks for that encouragement again.
As you know we have been closely following the analogy of A RACE.
• We saw the runners walk through the hall of fame and look at all the displays and be encouraged by the faith of those who have gone before.
• The runners were asked to throw off all their hindrances and run.
• And as the race has grown long and the pain is getting intense, we heard the writer explain how God was using that pain to make us holy.
• Well now the writer looks past the limping runner and begins to look at the runner who is leaving him behind.
See, there is a temptation in every race just to finish, and finish quickly.
And if someone is struggling or limping, that’s their problem,
I’ve got to focus on my own race.
When Derek Redmond fell, his father came from the stands to help him.
The writer of Hebrews is yelling at the other runners
To tell them to come back and aid this hurting sprinter.
AND INCIDENTALLY YOU ARE THAT OTHER RUNNER.
You are the one who is being called upon to not only run your race,
But to help your brother run his as well.
It is a segment of Scripture filled with words of exhortation,
And he is calling to those of you who are currently running well.
And the writer is calling to you
• To look around you,
• To spot a struggling runner,
• To not only encourage him,
• But to help him run.
To, in essence, come beside him and say,
“Follow me, we’ll get through this together.”
3 main points
#1 STRENGTHEN THE PARALYZED
Hebrews 12:12
I always like when a verse begins with the word “Therefore”
You always have to ask, “What is the therefore there for?”
It’s there because this entire segment of exhortation
Hinges upon the doctrine we just covered in verses 3-11.
3-11 was DOCTRINAL
12-17 is PRACTICAL
In 3-11 we were reminded
• That our suffering is not as bad as Jesus’ suffering on the cross.
• That Scripture has told us the purpose of our suffering is to make us holy so we should not disregard that or give up.
• That discipline is natural and so God certainly uses it.
• To allow ourselves to be trained by it so that we can obtain the righteousness God intends for us to have.
Sorrowful now – Fruitful later
That was all doctrinal truth.
Now the writer wants us to take that truth and put it to use.
Use it to “strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble.”
It is important to note that the writer DOESN’T speak of
“your” hand or “your” knees,
But rather “the hands” and “the knees”.
He’s not talking about something you should do to yourself,
He’s talking about something you should do for someone else.
Well, what exactly does he mean here?
You really need a little bit of a word study to get the full effect.
“strengthen” translates ANORTHOO and it literally means “to set straight” or “to set up”
Luke 13:11-13 “And there was a woman who for eighteen years had had a sickness caused by a spirit; and she was bent double, and could not straighten up at all. When Jesus saw her, He called her over and said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your sickness.” And He laid His hands on her; and immediately she was made erect again and began glorifying God.”
It’s not just a word that means to encourage,
But a word that means to set them up or straighten them up.
Let me show you why.
He specifically says to do this to the “hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble.”
“weak” translates PARIEMI (par-ree-a-me) and it means “to relax”
These are arms that have quit pumping, and quit pushing,
They are just hanging limp.
“feeble” translates PARALUO (par-a-loo-o) it’s where we get our word for paralyzed. In fact it is often times translated that way.
Does that paint a picture for you?
• We have a runner who has quit running.
• They’ve sat down on the track.
• Their arms are no longer pumping
• Their knees are no longer moving
• They’ve all but given up, and they are about to exit the track
What does the writer want you to do?
ANARTHOO – “to set straight”, “to set up”
GO PICK THEM UP AND PUT THEM BACK ON THEIR FEET.
HOW?
With the truth you just heard.
(That is what the “therefore” is there for)
Go back to that runner who is sitting on the track about to quit.
• Remind him of what Jesus endured for him.
• Remind him of God’s purposes in this difficulty.
• Remind him that he should not faint under this hardship.
• Remind him that God is a Father who disciplines us for our good.
• Remind him that this struggle is part of the process to make him holy.
Take the truths about God’s discipline
And go pick up one of those runners who has all but quit running.
Maybe they are exhausted,
Maybe they are paralyzed out of fear,
Maybe they are discouraged by the difficulty,
But whatever the reason,
They need you to go pick them up and get them back on their feet.
STRENGTHEN THE PARALYZED
But that’s not all.
#2 STRAIGHTEN THE PATH
Hebrews 21:13-14
Now you’re going to like this one too.
“and make straight paths for your feet”
Now we’re not talking about the paralyzed runner,
We’re talking about you.
“your feet”
What does he mean?
The word for “paths” is TROCHIA (tra-kee-a)
It literally means “rut”
It was the word used of a rut that a wagon left in the dirt.
After you straighten your brother up,
You then run a straight course
And leave tracks that he can easily see and follow.
Don’t leave him behind, don’t run off without him.
• He needs to see where to run
• He needs to see how to run
• So you run straight
“so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed.”
Your brother is hurt, he is crippled.
He is “lame”
You have to understand that as an injured runner
He must be very careful about the path he takes.
He needs you to guide him through.
Imagine going hiking in the mountains
• And someone in your group sprains an ankle.
• You can’t just leave them there.
• But they can’t travel anywhere either.
• You’re going to have to go ahead, show them where to walk, sometimes where
to step, and you’re going to have to help them navigate the path.
• Failure to do that might actually cause further injury.
• In fact it my cause the ankle to “be put out of joint”
• What we want is to help that brother easily until his ankle has time to “be
healed.”
So you need to “make straight paths”
(make straight ruts for him to follow)
HOW DO YOU DO THIS?
You know how to make straight paths for your feet.
Proverbs 3:5-6 “Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight.”
Proverbs 4:25-27 “Let your eyes look directly ahead And let your gaze be fixed straight in front of you. Watch the path of your feet And all your ways will be established. Do not turn to the right nor to the left; Turn your foot from evil.”
We trust the Lord.
We obey His word.
We live the life He ordained.
This is the straight path, and it is the path your brother has lost sight of.
Obviously the call then is for you to SET THE EXAMPLE.
• That is why I called this sermon “Follow Me”
• You could call it “Run like I Run”
Now to some this sounds a bit over the top.
I mean after all, Jesus said, “Follow Me”.
Are you saying that I should tell people to follow me instead of Jesus?
No, I’m saying you should follow me while I follow Jesus.
1 Corinthians 11:1 “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.”
HERE IS THE FACT.
We were already told how to run this race back up in the first two verses.
Hebrews 12:1-2 “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
We run by throwing off our hindrances and fixing our eyes on Jesus.
But let’s be honest.
Sometimes this life is hard and in the middle of our race
We feel like we’ve lost sight of Jesus.
We get confused, we get discouraged, we don’t know which way to go.
Your brother can’t seem to see all the way to Jesus right now.
So tell him just to follow in your footprints while you follow Jesus,
Until he gets his barrings back.
Understand?
Elijah did this in his day. Remember the showdown at Mt. Carmel?
1 Kings 18:21 “Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you hesitate between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people did not answer him a word.”
In the Septuagint (which was the Greek Old Testament)
The word they used for “hesitate” there
Was the exact same word used for “lame” in verse 13.
It was a people who were vacillating and confused.
They were paralyzed and didn’t know what to do.
• Elijah stepped in and picked them up.
• He then stepped out and showed them how to trust God.
• He called down fire on Mt. Carmel and by the end of the chapter the people
had united solely behind God and the 450 prophets of Baal were all dead.
So what am I supposed to do?
(pick up my brother and call down fire from God?)
No, the writer gets specific for you.
(14) “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.”
You run them on a course that seeks “peace” and “sanctification”
In other words you set a Christian example.
I mean if they are going to follow you while you follow Christ,
You’d better try to run as much like Christ as possible.
• Be mindful of how you run
• Be mindful of how you walk
• Be mindful that you are living like a genuine follower of Christ.
Matthew 5:16 “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”
Don’t give them any of this “Do as I say, not as I do” nonsense.
You’d better “make straight paths for your feet”
If they are going to follow you, you’d better lead them well.
Do you get the idea?
And incidentally, the word for “Pursue” is the word DIOKO
It was a word commonly translated “persecute”.
It spoke of a relentless pursuit.
Why so relentless?
• You are leading this man on a path for “sanctification”
• If he doesn’t obtain that “sanctification” then what?
• He won’t ever be saved.
“without which no one will see the Lord”
This is NOT a verse that teaches some type of “works” salvation
As though there is some level of righteousness
You have to achieve in order to see God.
We are talking about a discouraged person here.
And although they have made some sort of profession, we don’t know it it’s real or not because they are contemplating quitting.
If they do, it will indicate they are not saved, and will not “see the Lord”.
You make sure they don’t quit.
Strand them up, tell them to follow,
Show them how to walk in peace and holiness.
SET THE RIGHT EXAMPLE
And we don’t have to spend much time talking about all the harm that has been done to Christianity from so-called Christians setting a bad example.
Strengthen the Paralytic, Straighten the Path
#3 STRIVE TO PROTECT
Hebrews 12:15-17
Now here is the tough part.
Here is what you may not have realized.
This runner was down, and contemplating quitting,
And here you are trying to straighten him up and help him run straight.
The problem?
Others who have already quit are now trying to pull him away from you and to get him to quit too.
That is what apostates often do.
They seek to take as many people down with them as they can.
That is why we refer to them often times as SPIRITUAL TERRORISTS.
Those who come in dressed like you,
But then set off a bomb to kill as many as they can.
Remember Peter talking about them?
2 Peter 2:1-3 “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves. Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned; and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”
2 Peter 2:17-19 “These are springs without water and mists driven by a storm, for whom the black darkness has been reserved. For speaking out arrogant words of vanity they entice by fleshly desires, by sensuality, those who barely escape from the ones who live in error, promising them freedom while they themselves are slaves of corruption; for by what a man is overcome, by this he is enslaved.”
So while you are trying to encourage this person down the track,
The apostates are seeking to pull him off.
The writer of Hebrews calls to you to defend him.
“See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God”
That is to say that no one falls away and proves themselves false.
See to it that no one quits on Jesus.
Why would they?
Because of the influences around them.
“that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled;”
• There will be those who mingle amongst us.
• There will be leaven which seeks to leaven the rest of the dough.
• There will be those who seek to defile.
The writer calls them a “root of bitterness”
The cause “trouble” and they defile “many”
Deuteronomy 29:17-20 “that there will not be among you a man or woman, or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the LORD our God, to go and serve the gods of those nations; that there will not be among you a root bearing poisonous fruit and wormwood. “It shall be when he hears the words of this curse, that he will boast, saying, ‘I have peace though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart in order to destroy the watered land with the dry.’ “The LORD shall never be willing to forgive him, but rather the anger of the LORD and His jealousy will burn against that man, and every curse which is written in this book will rest on him, and the LORD will blot out his name from under heaven.”
Watch out for that “root bearing poisonous fruit and wormwood” or bitterness.
That bad influence in the body
That wolf among the sheep
That false teacher
That lump of leaven
You have to “see to it” that this apostate
Does not cause your crippled runner to stumble to destruction.
“see to it” is EPISKOPEO
(an EPISKOPOS is an “overseer” or “pastor” or “shepherd”)
HE IS TELLING YOU TO:
Oversee this, take ownership of it.
Do not let that wolf in sheep’s clothing cause trouble and pull your runner away.
WELL CAN YOU GIVE ME AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT A ROOT LIKE THAT LOOKS LIKE?
Indeed I can
(16-17) “that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.”
• Hopefully everyone in here remembers Esau.
• He was the older twin to Jacob.
• Jacob was the recipient of God’s promised blessing and birthright.
• God decreed that before the boys were ever born.
• But Esau was born first and so by natural law, both the birthright and the blessing were his.
• You know the story of how Jacob took the blessing…how he dressed up in goat skins and deceived his father.
Esau’s folly began with the birthright
Genesis 25:27-34 “When the boys grew up, Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the field, but Jacob was a peaceful man, living in tents. Now Isaac loved Esau, because he had a taste for game, but Rebekah loved Jacob. When Jacob had cooked stew, Esau came in from the field and he was famished; and Esau said to Jacob, “Please let me have a swallow of that red stuff there, for I am famished.” Therefore his name was called Edom. But Jacob said, “First sell me your birthright.” Esau said, “Behold, I am about to die; so of what use then is the birthright to me?” And Jacob said, “First swear to me”; so he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew; and he ate and drank, and rose and went on his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.”
That is one of those passages that often gets misread.
So many times I’ve heard that passage preached and then
The preacher just takes off criticizing Jacob for manipulating poor Esau.
Look the writer of Genesis tells you the point.
“Thus Esau despised his birthright.”
What happened?
• Esau chose the now over the later.
• Esau chose the flesh over the Father.
From God’s perspective it was the ultimate slap in the face.
All the promises God had given to Abraham and then Isaac
And Esau valued them at less than a bowl of pea soup.
God was insulted.
God here calls him “immoral” and “godless”
How could he trade all the blessings of God for something as insignificant as a bowl of soup?
AND THAT IS NOT ALL.
The story continued even to the day when Jacob received the blessing from Isaac.
You remember Esau falling and crying and begging Isaac,
“bless me too father!”
(17) “For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.”
Esau is such an illustration!
Make an observation that REMORSE does not equal REPENTANCE.
• The rich young ruler went away sad, but he still went away.
• Judas felt so bad he hung himself, but he didn’t turn to Jesus.
• Esau wept, but he didn’t repent.
He was sorry for the consequences, but not sorry for the action.
Make sense?
Esau is the illustration for every religious person who fails to trust Jesus.
Jesus said over and over and over
Matthew 8:11-12 “I say to you that many will come from east and west, and recline at the table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven; but the sons of the kingdom will be cast out into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”
There will be weeping, but there won’t be salvation.
That was Esau
That is an apostate
That is a root of bitterness
It is someone who chooses the flesh over the Father
Someone who shows remorse, but not repentance
And the writer says you had better “see to it” that a person like that
Doesn’t influence and pull away the person you’re trying to help.
YOU PROTECT THEM FROM THAT PERSON.
This is why things like church discipline are more than important,
They are essential.
1 Corinthians 5:6-8 “Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough? Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”
Churches that refuse to discipline are in direct violation
Of what the writer of Hebrews is saying here.
• You can’t just let those bitter sinful roots influence and pull people away.
• You’ve got to protect those weak and weary runners
• You’ve got to do everything you can to make sure they don’t “come
short of the grace of God”
SO DO YOU UNDERSTAND THE POINT OF THE WRITER?
Listen again to what Paul said:
Romans 15:1-6 “Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves. Each of us is to please his neighbor for his good, to his edification. For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, “THE REPROACHES OF THOSE WHO REPROACHED YOU FELL ON ME.” For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Galatians 6:1-2 “Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.”
Don’t just be so preoccupied with your race
That you fail to see that person running next to you
Is starting to lag behind and has sat down on the track.
• You go back and get that person.
• You straighten them up with the truth about what God is doing.
• You tell them to run in your footsteps and you run straight and leave a good example.
• And while you run you make sure some other quitter doesn’t run up beside them and convince them leave the track.
You are your brother’s keeper.
Strengthen the Paralyzed
Straighten the Path
Strive to Protect
“Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.”
