Jesús // Jesus

But today we are finally ending our series named Legend. We've been imagining this great stadium filled with great legends of faith and a race that we are running. And what we've done throughout this series is that we've chosen faith legends. And we've been talking about how these people would encourage us as we run this race. Listen, because there will be moments where you will not feel like running. And the encouragement that we need is to remember those great lessons of life that have been left for us by those that have gone before us. If you missed any part of this series, connect, go online, and there you can see any part that you may have missed. But the writer of Hebrews, he is writing to the new believers who are facing persecution and who are about to abandon their faith. In other words, the book of Hebrews is a great message of encouragement. Because the new believers were starting to doubt. And they're thinking that maybe it's best to go back to their old ways and back to their old traditions. So the writer of Hebrews, he begins to mention amazing characters. And he begins to talk about the great legends of the Old Testament, the heroes of faith. And he begins to talk about Abel, Enoch, Noah. He talks about Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob. He mentions Joseph. He mentions Moses, Gideon, David, Samson, Esther, and many others. And the readers get excited as they hear their names and everything that they did. So the writer of Hebrews, he goes through the list again. And he says, they did all of this by faith. They fought, they marched. They had faith in the invisible. God transformed their weakness into strength. And by faith, they did all of this. But we might believe that the author might end the chapter by saying, and these people

were the best of all time. And you will never be able to compare. But look at what the writer says. These were all commended for their faith. Yet none of them received what had been promised. Since God had planned something better. Wait a moment, but these people, they are their heroes of faith. However, the chapter ends with, yet none of them received what had been promised. Because God had something better. But I want to tell you that it wasn't something. It was someone. And that is Jesus. Jesus is the best desire and longing of the heart and the human soul. He has always been the desire of humanity. We see it throughout the entire history of the world. They always wanted a savior. Can't you see it on the big screen? How many new movies are coming out with superhero movies? Because the people want a champion. The people want a hero. hero, someone who can come and save them, but the writer says to his readers, don't look back with desire to your old ways, because your heroes of faith, men and women, they looked with desire but towards the future. And now the writer tells us, it is your turn to run the race. And this is the verse that we've used throughout this entire series. It says, therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And look at what it says, and let us run with perseverance. The race marked out for us. The writer is saying, run with perseverance. Don't run so fast like the athletes, but do it in a way that is sustainable.

In other words, get prepared to run this race long term, because it's not how you start off, it's how you finish. But you know, through the entire series, we've never read the following verse. And today we're going to read it in the message version. It says, keep your eyes on Jesus. As we run this race, we should keep our eyes on Jesus. That is what the church is about. Keep your eyes on Him. Not on your mistakes, not on your failures, not on your weaknesses, your fears, or difficulties. The writer is telling us, keep your eyes on Jesus. And look at what the verse continues to say. Who both began and finished this race we're in. He already ran the race for us. And He is our best example. Jesus faced every temptation, every path that we may need to face. He was tempted in everything and never sinned. In fact, the writer of Hebrews is telling us, that Jesus is our high priest. And that He can sympathize with our situation, no matter how hard it is. He understands because He's already been through it. This is why we can come to Him with confidence. Because He knows what you're going through. If you want to keep running this race, the main point of this series is this. And you can write this down. We look back to the witnesses, but we fix our eyes on Jesus. I want you to understand that we will never stop preaching Jesus. What He went through, what He faced, what we can learn.

Why? Because the message never changes. Jesus continues to be the answer. He is the way and we keep our focus on Him. And we rehearse His story over and over again. Listen, it's interesting, but in the Olympic Games, there's a sport that involves a team rowing in a boat. Listen, the participants are rowing in the boat with their backs to the finish line. They can't see the finish line. But if you can notice, there's someone sitting in front of them in the boat. That person sees them and he can see the finish line. The job of this person is to steer the boat and coordinate the power and the pace of the team that is rowing. Even though the team that is rowing, they can't see where they are headed, but he can. This is why they focus all of their attention on that one person. They fix their eyes on the person that is guiding them. When you don't know where to go or what to do, be sure to keep your eyes on Jesus. Because he does know where he is headed. Trust in him as he guides the boat of your life. And the verse continues to say, study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed. That exhilarating finish in and with God, he could put up with anything along the way. Cross, shame, whatever. And now he's there in the place of honor right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again. Item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. And today as we end this series, I want to talk about the seven statements Jesus made on the cross. And I believe that it will bring fresh air into our lives, so that we can continue on

this race that he's called us to run. The first lesson is this, forgive everyone who's trying to ruin your life. Listen, Jesus is being mocked, treated horribly, with nails in his hands. And he is there hanging on the cross. With both his shoulders dislocated, the people that were crucified, normally they wouldn't die of the pain. They would die of suffocation. Because the only way to take a breath on the cross, that person that was there hanging on the cross, they had to put all of their weight on that nail in their feet. And push themselves up against the cross, with those deep wounds in their backs. And then take a deep breath, and then let themselves go. In the middle of that difficult moment, the Lord says this statement. Jesus said, Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing. Jesus teaches us a very important lesson here. And he tells us, you will not be able to run this race if you carry resentment. Listen, I heard a pastor teaching about forgiveness. He is a pastor in South Korea, he's got the biggest church in the world. His name is David Yonggi Cho. And he said the following. Every day I forgive so many people, because I hate so many people. And it may sound a little funny, but I understand. Because forgiveness is something that Jesus has called us to walk in every day. And here's the second lesson, if you'd like to keep moving forward. Help others. Those who are experiencing your same struggle, this is a powerful principle that you should try out and see how true it is. Listen, when you are in your worst day, look for someone that is also going through their worst day and help them. You will be surprised how you will begin to feel. In fact, Jesus was dying in the middle of two criminals, while one of them kept insulting

Jesus. The other criminal's story was different. And this is where Jesus says his second statement. The criminal said, Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. Jesus answered him, I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise. Jesus didn't answer him and say, hey listen, stop bothering me, I have my own problems right now. That's not what he did. But Jesus ministers to this man. And the Lord is there ministering to someone on his worst day. This is why when you serve people, it's not just about them, it's also about you. And you will realize how you will begin to take your eyes off your own problem. And the Lord will begin to use you in the life of another person. And you will see that what you're going through, God is using it to encourage others. It's an incredible teaching. The third lesson we learn. Be sure you've taken care of those closest to you. And be sure that when you're going through something, when you're about to give up, be sure to take care of those closest to you. Why would Jesus give us this life lesson? Because on your worst day, it is those people that are closest to you that we many times hurt. And you may be kind to everyone. But as soon as you get home, you take it all out on your family. And you think and you say, well, they should understand me because they're close to me. And that is the wrong attitude. Listen, we may be at home fighting and yelling at each other. But as soon as the phone rings, and they say, oh, how are you? And you say, oh, I'm blessed. Praise be the Lord, amen, hallelujah.

But as soon as you hang up, you start fighting again. Jesus is there hanging on the cross. And there is Mary watching her son bleeding and dying. The scripture says that out of all 12 disciples, only one of them followed him to the cross. And that was John. And John is there with Mary looking at Jesus on the cross. Jesus looks down from the cross, and he thinks, what's going to happen with my mom? What's going to happen to her? All the scholars believe that Mary's husband, Jesus's earthly father, died prematurely. Because he is never mentioned in the scripture again. And what Jesus said next would have been inappropriate if Joseph were alive. But Jesus looks at Mary. He looks at his mom. And he says the third statement. He says, mom, there is your son. John, take care of my mom for me. And what's interesting to me. Is that Jesus in His worst day, He is not hurting those closest to Him. He is loving those closest to Him. And there's some of you that need to be reminded of this. Listen, especially the men. You give the best to your boss, but you give the worst to your family each day. You give the best to the world, and you give the worst to your children. And it should not be this way. Jesus teaches us this important principle to be sure to take care of those closest to us. And here is the fourth teaching. Realize that until you get to heaven,

there are some things you will never understand. When you're going through a bad day, when you feel like giving up, and you're running this race, if you're anything like me, you're going to begin to say, Why? This isn't fair. No one else is going through this. And you ask yourself, Do I truly deserve what I'm going through? God, if you're alive, why won't you answer me right now? But you know what? I don't feel bad. Because Jesus Himself asked this question. In His fourth statement from the cross, and He said the following, He said, My God, My God, why have you forsaken me? On His worst day, when He's representing humanity. Jesus said this, I have questions, but I'm satisfied not knowing the answers. But I continue to believe that He is still good. There will be things that will not make sense right now. Maybe in a year or ten years. Or maybe not until we are face to face with the Lord. Maybe not here, but one day things will make sense. This is why when you are in your worst day, remember this. And here is the fifth teaching. Be human enough to acknowledge your need. But what do we say?

I don't want anyone to know that I have problems. But I tell you today, be human enough to acknowledge your need. And here is a story we find in John 19, 28. Later, knowing that all was completed, and so that the scripture would be fulfilled. Here is the fifth statement. Jesus said, I am thirsty. He is saying, I have a need. Listen, He gives us permission to be honest and ask for help. We all know that we need one another. This is why it's best for you to find a church. It doesn't have to be this church if you don't want. But don't do life alone. Connect to a church. Join a small group. We are going to be launching our small group season in just a few weeks. Join the team. Someone who knows what your name is. And to ask you how you are doing. And they will not accept, I'm okay, as an answer. Someone who is truly there for you. And the sixth teaching is, be assured there is a purpose and an end. There is always a purpose and an end. One day all of this will end. There will be no more death, no more pain, no more sickness, no more cancer, no more fear. God will dry every one of our tears, and this will be an incredible day. But there is both a purpose and an end, and Jesus has the power

to give purpose to the bad day that you're going through. And here is the Lord's sixth statement, it is finished. He wasn't talking about his life. He was talking about his conquering of the devil's curse upon our lives, so that every bad day can have a purpose and an end, because Jesus conquered the grave. He conquered the cross, he conquered death. He didn't just do it for himself. He did it for you and for me. And he gave a purpose to that bad day that the devil wanted to use for bad. He is going to change it for good. And here is the last statement, finally surrender your day to God and let it go. Listen, some of you need to do this today. You've been trying to fix it on your own, and you need to surrender. And the Lord's last statement, Father, into your hands I commit my spirit. He's saying, I am surrendering my life to you. I am keeping my focus on you. I am running my race with perseverance. Because when we recognize this, we can run a different way. And you know that there are people watching. Therefore since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, you have all of heaven watching you as you run this race. I can hear them encouraging us with their life lessons. I can hear Noah that built the ark in Genesis telling us, if God told you to build an ark, you build it. Walk in obedience. I can hear Abraham saying, if God told you to go out, you go out by faith. I can hear Sarah telling us, continue to trust in God even if it doesn't make sense. I hear Moses telling us, even though he had a stuttering problem, don't allow for your limitations to keep you from believing in a supernatural God. Continue to run your race.

I can hear Joseph saying, don't give up even if you didn't start off well. Even if rejection comes your way. You can be healed even if they don't tell you they're sorry. Don't give up. Keep running your race. I can hear Esther telling us today, you are here for such a time as this. I can hear Samson telling us, failure is not final. Get up and keep going forward. Gideon telling us, be strong and brave. You are a brave warrior, keep running. Jonah telling us, even if you make mistakes, you serve a God of second chances. But in the midst of these voices, we hear the sweet voice of the good shepherd named Jesus that says to you, son, daughter, in the world you will have trouble, but take heart. I have overcome the world. You are an overcomer. You are a champion. Keep running. Let's keep running with perseverance. Let's keep our eyes on Jesus. And one day we will end this race. But it will be in victory. In success. And we will reach the end. Close your eyes and bow your heads please. If you're going through any type of difficulty, why don't you open your hands there where you are? Maybe it's your marriage, your family, your job. Maybe it's your finances or your health. If you're going through difficulties in this moment, then surrender.

Keep your hands open as a sign that you will let it go. That bad day that you're going through. You're going to let it go. Release it. And you're going to surrender to the Lord. This is why Jesus said, if you are weary and heavy burdened, come to me and I will give you rest. Father, allow me to pray. Father, on this day, I pray for each person that is going through pressure. Lord, I pray so that we can surrender. Surrender completely to you even if we don't understand. I pray asking you, Holy Spirit, to remind us each day, please, that we should keep our eyes on Jesus as we run this race. I ask you in the name of Jesus Christ, maybe you're here and you feel far from God. And the reason is because you have not surrendered to Jesus. He is the only one that can fill the longing of your soul. If you are that person that would like to surrender to Christ today, there where you are, repeat this prayer with me. And say, Lord Jesus, thank you for coming to die on the cross for my sins. Today I accept your forgiveness. And I open my heart so that you can come in. Forgive all of my sins. Change me from the inside out. Make me the person that I wanted to be.

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