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10th Sunday after Pentecost, 08/18/2019
Sermon on Hebrews 11:29-12:2, by The Rev. Ryan Mills
29By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as if it were dry land, but when the Egyptians attempted to do so they were drowned. 30By faith the walls of Jericho fell after they had been encircled for seven days. 31By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had received the spies in peace. 32And what more should I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—33who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, 34quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. 35Women received their dead by resurrection. Others were tortured, refusing to accept release, in order to obtain a better resurrection. 36Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37They were stoned to death, they were sawn in two, they were killed by the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, persecuted, tormented—38of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. 39Yet all these, though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised, 40since God had provided something better so that they would not, apart from us, be made perfect. 12:1Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, 2looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God (NRSV).
In the Name of the Father, and of the Son+, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Any of you with kids or grandkids know the challenge of figuring out what to do with them over the long summer vacation. This summer our kids have been in the local town summer camp, where one of the activities has been the “Camp Olympics”. And these Camp Olympics take a classical Olympic event, like the relay race where runners pass a baton to the next runner, and spice them up a little for elementary school tastes. In their version the runner gets a baton to run with, but they have to go through an obstacle course of old tires, they have to spin around making themselves dizzy and run off track, and in the biggest challenge of all they have to eat a donut with no hands, suspended on a string, before passing their baton to the next runner, surrounded by their cheering teammmates. Some of you want to sign up for this camp now you know that there’s donuts! So it seems in keeping with the summer camp spirit that today we hear in the letter to the Hebrews, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us.” The Book of Hebrews imagines the Christian life as a race, as a relay race in fact. For generations, the faithful have been running the race, passing on the baton of faith from one generation to the next, from one believer to the next. But this is no easy sprint to the finish line, but one with many obstacles and dangers and dizzying distractions, that all threaten to knock us off track and prevent us from crossing the finishing line with that baton of faith in our hands. And so to encourage us in this relay race the Book of Hebrews says, “Remember the children of Israel, who passed through the Red Sea by faith. Remember Joshua, and the Walls of Jericho that he brought tumbling down just by faith. Remember Rahab, the prostitute who hid the Israelite spies in her home, by faith.” These are just a few of the great cloud of witnesses, we’re told, those who have run their leg of the relay in faith, and passed the baton of faith down to us. But we’ve known runners of faith like that too, haven’t we? I think about my grandmother Helen, born in a little house on the prairie 100 years ago and a determined woman of great faith. This week I found one of her Bible study books, all underlined and charted out for class, a literal baton of faith passed on down to the next generation. But some we only know by their acts of faith from afar—the recounting of ancient martyrs who looked forward to the hope of Christ makes me think about the young couple Jordan and Andre killed in El Paso two weeks ago now, protecting their baby with their own bodies, their sacrifice together both an act of love and faith in God but also a plea for a better world for him, one free from violence and hate. Or closer to home I think of Eileen, a member here of blessed memory, and the way she made everyone feel special and loved, the way her grin lit up the room, the way she cheered on and encouraged generations of kids and “her choir” week by week--I think her last words as she finished her race in faith, “Thank you, God.” Who are the runners of faith, who are among that great cloud of witnesses in your life? Those passing down to you what is most important, cheering you on now from the stands, placing the baton of faith in your hands and whispering to you, “Run!” They all knew that in this race, our eyes are not focused on getting a medal that wears out or rusts, that we’re not focused on our own glory or power over others, that we’re not even focused on our weakness or doubt or sin, which are all very real, but Hebrews says today, instead in this race “we look to Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.” Jesus is the pioneer of our faith, we’re told, or the author of our faith, another translation says; he is the one who has gone before us and written the story, he has written our story, and he is who we put our faith in, he is who we put our trust in. And for the sake of the joy of Easter, for the sake of the joy of giving you forgiveness, life, and salvation; for your sake of your life’s story and that it might find its meaning in his, he endured the terrible Cross, we’re told, and disregarded its shame. All your sin, all your brokenness, all of your failures, even the parts you don’t want to think about--he is not ashamed of any of it, he has taken it all upon himself, because he is not ashamed of you, because you are his, and he loves you more than he even loves himself. And with our eyes on him, and on his great love for us, and cheered on and encouraged by the cloud of witnesses, by Joshua and Rahab, by Jordan and Andre, by Helen and Eileen and all the rest, we now run our leg of the race, running with perseverance the race that is set before us. Perseverance means that the running isn’t easy: that there will be obstacles, harder than any obstacle race of tires, that there will be heartaches, that as we bear our Cross as the saints of old there will be sufferings, and we will inevitably stumble. But there is encouragement, we’re told today, vast bleachers of cheering saints and angels we cannot see, and there is refreshment, maybe not a donut on a string, but the refreshment of this house and this church family, the refreshment of cooling baptismal waters and broken bread and shed wine, the refueling gifts of Christ himself to keep you running strong. So we keep on running in faith, not focusing on how great or how poorly we’re doing, but with our eyes are fixed on Jesus, knowing that he runs with us, that he pulls us towards him, that he has finished his race through suffering and death and is now seated in glory at the right hand of the Father, which means he is present everywhere for us, a very present help in our every need, and that when we’re exhausted and out of gas he even carries us on his shoulders across the finish line, because he is ours and we are his, forever. I’ve said it many times before, but I love how the altar rail here at Trinity curves around in half-circle, like there is another half circle on the other side of this wall that we cannot see. And as Christians, we believe in faith that there is: for in the Holy Communion that great cloud of witnesses completes the circle, in the heavenly banquet that has no end they cheer us on from the other side as loud as they can. Their faith has turned into sight. But our eyes are fixed in faith on Jesus, the author of our faith, the author of our lives, who loves us and is not ashamed of us. He endured the Cross, and he has won the victory. And as you now run the race that is set before you, trusting in him, you will win the victory too. And the Peace of God that passes all understanding guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Amen.