Series: Running toward the Prize. #5. “The race that is set before us” (Heb.12:1).

“The Race” is about doing what God expects us to do between now and our last day on earth.

I am perpetually amazed that Christians, who know better, can entertain the notion that “Salvation by grace” can be fully realized by saying “Jesus is Lord.” Proponents of the “Faith Only” doctrine will fight you tooth and nail on this point.

Many passages contradict a “Faith Only” perspective, with this one being among them: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter (Mt.7:21).

Of course, the other extreme is just as easily attained. Some will happily define in detail what they believe YOU NEED TO BE DOING in “The race that is set before us.” Given half the chance they will micromanage every aspect of your life in the name of God. All the while they are achieving their ends, not God’s. Christian stewardship involves church, family, time, talents, money, job, and all else that God has put into your hands. God has gifted you resources and opportunities that are to be ‘grabbed with both hands and used as you run “The race that is set before us.” The advancement of the Kingdom is done on the move. The Bible ever inspires unto faith, prayer focuses our heart’s desires, and sharing the faith reveals the condition of the repentant and the unrepentant alike. It does what it does when you do what you do.

How the Holy Spirit works in the heart of a person is a divine mystery. Great then is the privilege He has bestowed upon us to be a part of His ongoing work on earth. We preach the Gospel – that which convicts the hearts of men of sin – to the world as we go about our daily lives. The simple message of Jesus dying on a cross to take your punishment and mine is powerful. It is the story of the sinless became sin for the sinner; One dying sins death, so we all can live. Faith in Christ draws the like-minded together into congregations. It is here that we are doing the will of our Father in Heaven, AS WE RUN THE RUN THE RACE SET BEFORE US.

John Staiger