Hebrews 12:1-8 NKJV
12 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
3 For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. 4 You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. 5 And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons:
“My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,
Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him;
6 For whom the Lord loves He chastens,
And scourges every son whom He receives.”
7 If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? 8 But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons.
In chapter 11 we considered the great cloud of witnesses. Their example encourages us to faithfulness and endurance, so that we “lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily entangles” (1). The weight and the easily entangling sin are the inborn sin within us which we call original sin because they are always with us to tempt us with passions and evil lusts. The cloud of witnesses encourages us to put these aside, to cut them off, and crucify them so they don’t lead us into sin and impenitence, disqualifying us from the prize of everlasting life.
We primarily look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. He is God’s Son by nature, not adoption, and yet He suffered the shame of the cross and the hostility of sinners. He despised the shame of the cross because He knew the outcome of His sufferings. Afterwards, He would sit down at the right hand of the throne of God to reign over all things and justify and sanctify believers.
As believers in Christ, we must fight against sin and endure the hostility of the world. The author of Hebrews, citing Job 5:17, calls these “the chastening of the Lord.” While the sinful flesh and the unbelieving world work for our downfall, God uses them for His own purpose of disciplining those who are His children by faith and baptism. When we struggle against sin and when we endure hostility from the world for the sake of Christ and God’s Word, these are signs of our sonship. Just as an earthly father disciplines his son so that his son learns how to behave correctly, so our heavenly Father—who rebirthed us as His own in baptism—disciplines us in godliness. Our temptations and crosses teach us to look to our Father in heaven for aid, so that like our elder brother Christ Jesus, we may despise our temptations and crosses because we know the outcome: the joy of everlasting blessedness for all who finish the race of faith. We keep our eyes fixed on Him, so that we may, like Him, endure all things as our Father’s discipline, rejoicing in the outcome.
Let us pray: Strengthen our faith, O Lord, to view every temptation and cross as Your fatherly discipline, so that we do not lose heart, but joyfully endure as Christ endured. Amen.