1. “Run to Win!”
Hebrews 12:1-6

2. 810 Westshire Dr., Joliet, Illinois
One of the many places called “home” was Joliet, Illinois. Well remember the basketball goal and backboard Dad put up…

3. …There is a cost to count and a cost to be paid
…There is a cost to count and a cost to be paid. The inspired author takes you and me out into a stadium…

4. That’s right. The Christian life is here described as a race to be run
That’s right! The Christian life is here described as a race to be run. Elsewhere the Bible speaks of the Christian life as “a battle to be fought” or as “a field to be sown and harvested.”

5. Learning that being a Christian is like being a spiritual athlete
PURPOSE:
Learning that being a Christian is like being a spiritual athlete

6. I Rid Ourselves of HIND- ERANCES
A. Lay Aside Sin That Entangles

7. Remember Samson? As long as he remained true/loyal to the will of God he was unconquerable, but, when he broke his vow and became disloyal, he was weak…

8. I Rid Ourselves of HIND- ERANCES
A. Lay Aside Sin That Entangles
B. Lay Aside Needless Weight

9. Writes when he was a boy he had to cross Buffalo River each day on his way to and from school. One day while fording the river, he saw a crow wading in the shallow water. As he neared the crow it flew just a few feet away…
Clovis Chappell
Preacher and author

10. II Realize Our Available HELPS
A. Look Forward

12. Exodus 20:15
“Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the Israelites to move forward.’”

13. Luke 9:51
“As the time approached for Him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem.”

14. Luke 9:62
“No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”

15. Luke 17:32
“…Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. Remember Lot’s wife.”

16. II Realize Our Available HELPS
A. Look Forward
B. Be a Team Player

17. 2 Chronicles 20:15
“He said, ‘Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but the Lord’s.’’”

18. We are surrounded by “a great crowd of witnesses” – saints of old watch with eager interest while we run the race…

19. II Realize Our Available HELPS
A. Look Forward
B. Be a Team Player
C. Have Patient Endurance

20. Galatians 6:9
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”

21. III Rely in Our Need for HUMILITY
A. Look Unto Jesus as Our Redeemer
B. Look Unto Jesus as Our Example

23. Conclusion and Summary
Years ago in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, there was a football team called the Kentucky Colonels. While they were winning one game after another, the team use to go into the huddle for prayer as soon as they ran onto the field… “No, we do not pray to win. We pray to play. We ask God to give us the grit and stamina to play the game as it out to be played.” O, that we would pray…