This Sunday, the Lord willing, we will resume our series of messages from the Epistle to the Hebrews. Our text will be Hebrews 12:1-3.

Interestingly enough, just yesterday the Winter Olympic Games began. And I mention this because this is what was on the mind of the author of Hebrews as he sought to exhort his readers to greater faithfulness to Christ, especially in light of the persecution many of them were suffering at the time.

In these verses he speaks of the Christian life in athletic terms, or ‘Olympic’ terms, if you will. We are to “run with endurance the race that is set before us” (v. 1). The original readers of this letter were very familiar with the Olympic Games. The featured event was the pentathlon, which included a road race covering almost three miles. It is this grueling race, an excruciating combination of both speed and endurance, that is in view here in Hebrews 12:1.

As we all know, running such a race successfully requires much from the athlete. And this is the very truth that is applied to the Christian’s life in this passage. On Sunday we will learn much about the race we are in, and what must characterize our lives if we are to compete for God’s glory.