THE GREAT CLOUD OF WITNESSES?
A year ago (January, 2008), I shared a message based on Hebrews 12:1, about the need to loose the weight in 2008. The writer to the Hebrews instructs us to lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us. The emphasis of that verse is that we are to run as fast as we can and finish the spiritual race that God has put us in. Anything that hinders your relationship with God, or slows your spiritual progress, is a weight that you should lay aside. Perhaps for you it is television, or it could be too much sleep, or it could be too much time socializing, it could even be your career, or it could be various hobbies or habits. There are many things that are not necessarily sin, but they are time-consumers and they slow us down spiritually.
But God brought me back to this verse yesterday. There is another point that the writer mentions that I would like to emphasize at this time. "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside the weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith,..." (He.12:1-2).
What is this Great Cloud of Witnesses? Who are the witnesses? They are the great heroes of faith mentioned in the previous chapter. The witnesses are the people who have gone before us. They fought their battles, they won their victories, they are on the other side, and now they are observing us, cheering us on. Many preachers will tell you that once you are in Heaven, you are completely unaware of what is going on here on Earth. I think this Scripture points to the idea that perhaps those who have gone before us are fully aware of what we are doing and what we are going through. No doubt, if this is true, they have a much fuller picture then we do, of the real facts of the situations and circumstances that we are going through.
Hebrews 11 lists many Old Testament believers who are known for their lives of faith. It is a roster of Old Testament characters who took the promises of God, acted on them, and changed their generation and all of history. Hebrews 12 brings you and me into the picture with the words "Therefore we also". "Therefore" means "because of what we learned about those great heroes of faith". "We also" means that we can expect God to be just as faithful to us when we walk by faith. The "Great Cloud of Witnesses" clearly refers to those Old Testament men and women of faith. The key to their success is also the key to ours. We must keep our eyes on the Lord Jesus and not the circumstances of our day. We must also lay aside the sins and weights in our lives that slow us down. We must continue to run our race with patience, steadfastness, and endurance.
But this statement in verse one of Hebrews 12 says, "...since we are are surrounded..." by these witnesses. In other words, "Because these great heroes of faith are witnessing what we are doing and saying...", we need to run this race effectively. Since we now know that those who have gone on before us have the ability to watch us, what is this great cloud of faith heroes witnessing? Are they seeing you cave in or victoriously overcome the challenges and temptations of life? Are the witnessing you compromise you character and integrity or are they seeing the reflection of Jesus in you life?
The key to effectively running this race is two-fold: First, we are told to lay aside those weights and sins that so easily beset us; Secondly, we're told to keep our eyes on Jesus. Those faith heroes have left us a great testimony, but they should not be our primary focus. Jesus should be our focus. Jesus is the only human who ever ran this race without making a mistake. This same Jesus authored our faith and He will also see it through to completion.
