The beauty of stripping (Hebrews 12:1)
- The whole point of this verse is to encourage his readers to run the race and to finish well.
- The context here is of course is the Christian life. The race marked out for us is the Christian Life.
- The writer gives us this exhortation to run the race well and finish well.
- The verse ends with “let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
- What I think is interesting here is the Greek word translated here as run.
- It’s the word from where we would get an English word like agony.
- This Greek word means: “conflict (1), fight (2), opposition (1), race (1), struggle” an effort of anxiety — conflict, contention, agony.
- The writer is telling us that the Christian life won’t be easy.
- So again, this word translated here as Run really as the idea of great struggle behind it.
- In this exhortation the writer also calls us to perseverance, to finish well.
- The Greek word translated here as perseverance means: steadfastness, constancy, endurance
- So how we do this, how do we run this race?
- “let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.”
- This is one of the steps needed to run the race of the Christian life.
- Most English translations say something like “throw off” or “lay aside.”
- But the Greek grammar here makes this a bit more emphatic.
- To strip or get naked is well within how this could be seen and understood.
- The author is making the point do whatever it takes to not let sin get in the way of you running this race.
- The author is saying do whatever it takes to strip off what hinders you from running the race.
- He is using rather dramatic imagery.
- Many scholars and historians point out that in this time period runners would often run naked so that their garments would in no way hinder their running.
- While the writer here is clearly using athletic imagery here, this concept also reminds us of the words of Jesus in Matt 5:29-30
- Jesus also tells us to do whatever it takes to not let sin trip us up.
- That’s the same thing the writer of Hebrew sis saying here.
- We run this race of the Christian life by keeping our eyes focused on Jesus and Jesus alone.
- But I also want you to remember the emphatic and dramatic nature of this verse.
- The imagery here is to strip down.
- …”Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses.”
- This is a reference back to chapter 11.
- In chapter 11, after explaining many heroic examples of faith, as well as instances of persecution, the writer refers to this collection of saints as a “great cloud of witnesses.”
- The story of these people should inspire Christians to endure persecution, as well as the struggle against sin.