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Looking Unto Jesus By Don McMurray

 Preaching at Calvary Baptist Church Lambton NSW

Hebrews chapter 12. Now you may well have already been through Hebrews recently, I don't know.
But one of the most encouraging passages to me is Hebrews chapter 12.
And when you come to Hebrews chapter 12 after seeing all these men of faith,
you come to these words in Hebrews 12,
For consider him who endured such hostility from sinners against himself,
lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.
You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin,
and you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons.
My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by him.
For whom the Lord loves, he chastens, and scourges every son whom he receives.
If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons.
For what son is there whom the Father does not chasten?
But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers,
then you are illegitimate and not sons.
Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us,
and we paid them respect.
Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live?
For they indeed for a few days chasten us as seems best to them,
but he for our profit, that we may be partakers of his holiness.
Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful.
Nevertheless, afterwards it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
I want us to think about the great need that we have today, looking unto Jesus.
There are so many people who are looking everywhere else, but not unto Jesus.
Even in the churches they are looking to the preacher, they are looking to the method,
they are looking to something else but unto Christ.
And it is very hard to convince some people that they need to be focused on Christ alone.
Sure we have plenty of problems, physical, mental, spiritual, all sorts of problems we have,
but we won't find the answer within ourselves or within any humanistic system.
The only place that we will find our help, our stay, our strength is in Christ.
And only as you look to Him with the eyes of faith,
will you find peace and love and strength to go on through life and through your troubles
and through the difficulties that do come before us.
This is the way of the Christian.
This is what he said to Peter.
After he had forgiven he said, follow me.
And when Peter pointed back to John and said, well what about him?
The Lord as it were said, none of your business, you follow me.
And I think we have got to have that focus constantly before our eyes.
And tonight I just want to look at three main headings about this looking unto Jesus.
And when we consider chapter 12 and verse 1,
the first thing that we notice that Christians have a race to run.
Christians have a race to run.
But firstly you need to ask yourself, well what is a Christian of course?
And all sorts of people think they are Christians today.
But it can only be a person who is convicted by the Holy Spirit that they are a sinner.
And they have shown that Christ alone is the one who has finished the work on the cross of Calvary.
And God gives them this gift of repentance and faith that they believe in Him.
They are born again of the Spirit of God.
And they know it.
Well what is the race that these Christians have to run?
Well it tells us here plainly, it's the race that is set before them.
Let us lay aside every weight and sin which is so easily ensnares us and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.
That is, it's the whole of Christian life that we are talking about.
It's a race of service and it surely is a race of sufferings.
It's a race of active and passive obedience to the living God.
And it's marked out by God's Word and the example of God's faithful servants.
And when he talks about race he talks about a track.
It's a definite path.
There's no crisis planning by God.
He has mapped out a course.
He has mapped out the race course if you like for us to run in.
He's mapped out the contest, where to fight on the way.
There's going to be conflict.
You remember when Paul finished his day?
What did he say there in Timothy?
You remember his words as he talked to Timothy?
Firstly in the first epistle to Timothy chapter 6 and verse 12 he said,
He said to Timothy,
And then when he came to the end of his ministry he says in 2 Timothy chapter 4,
He just says there in verse 7,
I have finished the race.
I have kept the faith.
For some time I used to rail against some Armenian people, not rail face to face,
but I would rise up against some Armenian pastors who I believe were truly saved,
but I couldn't go along with what they believed.
But then I started to consider,
These men have been still going on a lot longer in the ministry than I have.
So I thought I'd better wait until I finish the race, until I put off the armour.
And so Paul was able to say, in his race, there was fighting, there was conflict, there was struggles,
and who more telling than the apostle Paul who was the example of suffering that the Lord chose.
And he's talking about the inward conflict of the soul.
And it's clear that inward conflicts are often the result of outward conflict.
You remember in Paul again in Philippians, in Philippians chapter 1,
in verse 29 and 30,
For you it has been granted on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him but also to suffer for his sake,
having the same conflict which you see in me and now hear is in me.
So there's an inward turmoil goes, there's an inward struggle.
And I often find that the greatest conflicts I have are in the mind.
The devil seems to attack my mind.
And I think that's why Paul says to the Ephesians, only put on the whole armour of God,
and the helmet of salvation.
And how are we going to maintain a good stand against such terrible attacks that come on our mind?
Well it's only by looking unto Jesus.
We at the Elomo Vail seem to have had tremendous attacks of the evil one lately.
In the last few months there's been tremendous attacks on families.
And I was saying to June a few weeks ago how just before that the devil attacked my mind in such an evil way concerning my wife.
That I could see our marriage disintegrate, I could see our family disintegrate, I could see the church disintegrate.
It just came out of nowhere, just this tremendous thought which I've never had before.
And so we need to see that we need to focus upon Christ.
There is an inward turmoil and it's often because of outward conflict.
In 1 Thessalonians 2 and verse 2, verse 1 he says,
For you yourselves know, brethren, that our coming to you was not in vain,
but even after we had suffered before and were spitefully treated at Philippi,
as you know, we were bold in our God to speak to you the gospel of God in much conflict.
So there's a boldness about the people of God that they go and they speak the gospel to various people
and there may be conflict, but they speak with boldness as they look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of their faith.
But how are the Christians to run?
Well, here in Hebrews it tells us that we are to run in a special manner.
I'm surprised, I think with the Olympics we're almost getting back to the original Olympics.
If they wear anything less, they won't have anything on like they did when they ran in Athens, I believe, in the early days.
But so often we as Christians can have a lot of baggage, a lot of unnecessary things that hinder us in the running.
But he says here, we are to run conscious of those who have completed the race.
He says, look, therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,
and these witnesses is that word for martyrs.
And as you look back in chapter 11 of Hebrews, you'll see that there are myriads of people who have gone before us.
The struggles and strife that you and I have had, people have already had that.
There's nothing uncommon to man, you know, he tells that in Corinthians, doesn't he?
Everything that we suffer is common to man.
And so people have gone through the struggles and strife that you have in your family, in your church,
if you're a preacher, in your pulpit, all those things, this cloud of witnesses have gone around us.
Those people whose lives and actions testify to the work and the effect of faith in their lives,
whose faith received witness in the Scriptures.
Remember, as you read Hebrews 11, now if I was to ask you which verse in Hebrews 11 was your favorite,
you'd all come up with all sorts of answers.
But you can't help but notice, without faith it's impossible to please God.
And those that come to him must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of those that diligently seek him.
And that diligently seeking is running the race despite the opposition.
But I guess as I look down and I see by faith Rahab did this, by faith Abel did this, by faith Noah did something else,
by faith Abraham did something.
But as I come down towards the end of the chapter, the thing that really strikes me after talking about great men,
men like Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah and David and Samuel,
who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,
quenched the violence of the fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong,
became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.
Out of weakness they were made strong.
These are the crowd of witnesses, the people who have sealed the testament of their faith with their blood,
the people who died that we might have this book in our hands,
the people who preached the gospel without equivocation and stood for what we believe.
Men of faith, but it wasn't because they were strong, but because God was strong.
Out of weakness they were made strong.
And sometimes we want to think that we are strong enough to overcome this, strong enough to face so and so.
Well if we're looking to our strength, then God may well let us go in our strength,
and we'll run in the face of the enemy.
We'll be overpowered by the enemy, but God might have all the glory that we rest in His strength and not our own.
Even in Psalm 18 verse 35 He says, your weakness, your gentleness has made me great.
Sometimes people think it's their robustness or their ability to win the argument, but it's gentleness often that wins a person.
Well you can see many things in that book, Fair Sunshine, some of you probably got that book about the Covenanters
and how there was one woman there to try and make her repent from her profession of faith in Christ.
They took a babe that she was suckling and they put it in another cell and her separate cell.
And so she became so swollen and screaming and the baby was screaming, but she would not, she would not denounce the Lord.
We've never had to go through those things, but we have a faithful God.
They're witnesses to the sincerity and the reward of faith in Jesus Christ.
But also as we run it involves pain, interrogation.
You notice here in verse 5, and you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as sons.
My son do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by him.
For whom the Lord loves, he chastens and scourges every son whom he receives.
Sometimes we forget that there's no gain without pain.
It's this scourging which they used to have the Jewish method of 13 stripes on the breast, on the bare chest and 13 on each shoulder, 40 less one.
They were scourged like our Lord was scourged.
Just as an undisciplined child is an unloved child and a miserable child.
Let us think and thank God that he disciplines us as his children. He does it.
A man who was asked why he was looking over a wall replied, because I can't see through it. A very simple reply.
When Christians can't see through the wall of pain, the wall of confusion, the wall of hardship or despair.
They need only to look over the wall into the face of their loving Heavenly Father who sent their son into the world to die for it.
Just as God's love has predestinated us and redeemed us, it also disciplines us.
You remember how Joseph was disciplined there in chapter 50 verse 20.
He said to his brothers, you meant it for evil, but God meant it for good.
You remember how it was that Moses couldn't enter the promised land. He could only see it afar off because he became angry when God said just to speak.
And you remember also that there was Miriam who rose up and thought that she was equal with her brother Moses.
But God made a leprous and she had to stay outside the camp.
The Lord chastens those whom he loves.
When you think of David in Psalm 119, I thought it was a lovely little section there.
In Psalm 119 and verse 67 and 71.
Before I was afflicted, I went astray, but now I keep your word.
Verse 71, it is good for me that I have been afflicted that I may learn your statutes.
That's the testimony of a man of God who knew the chastening hand of the living God.
What about Peter? When he stood before the Lord and said, not so Lord, don't you think that you're going to cross?
The Lord said, get thee behind me Satan. He said, when Satan has sifted you, then you'll be able to speak.
Job. You know Job, he had a lot to say, he had plenty of fiction, we had plenty of fictions, but nothing like Job.
When Job was there, there was all these so called comforters around him. In chapter 5 and verses 17.
Behold, happy is the man whom God corrects. Therefore do not despise the chastening of the Almighty.
For he bruises, but he binds up. He wounds, but his hands make whole. He shall deliver you in six troubles.
Yes, in seven, no evil shall touch you. In famine, he shall redeem you from death.
And in war, from the power of the sword. You shall be hidden from the scourge of the tongue.
And you shall not be afraid of destruction when it comes. You shall laugh at destruction and famine.
And you shall not be afraid of the beasts of the earth. For you shall have a covenant with the stones of the field.
And the beasts of the field shall be at peace with you. You shall know that your tent is in peace.
You shall visit your dwelling and find nothing amiss. You shall also know that your descendants shall be many.
And your offspring like the grass of the earth. You shall come to the grave at a full age as a sheaf of grain ripens in its season.
Behold, this we have searched out. It is true. Hear it and know it for yourself.
A man under great affliction could write and say such things.
Well, we've seen that it means we are to run, we are to be ones who have scourges, we are to be also to be trained.
In our text from Hebrews we are to be trained.
What rebels there are today who don't want to be trained by the Lord, who want to do their own thing, who want to run their own way.
Frank Sinatra said, I'll do it my way. Very popular song. And people want to do it. Everyone wants to do that which is right in their own way.
Even the lack of disciplines encouraged by our governments. There's Peter Barnes, the Presbyterian minister in Maxwell.
He's fighting this battle about discipline in the school, corporal punishment.
And he might come to the point where they go right to the wire and may even lose their accreditation with the government.
But he's fighting these things and the government is doing whatever it can to pull down the values that we have had.
But what does the scripture say? It talks about sparing the rod and spoiling the child, doesn't it?
It talks about delivering your son from hell if you chase him between times.
Oh, the blessedness, brethren, of being trained by God. I think it's a marvelous thing, isn't it?
That we can be chastened of the Lord and feel the affliction so sorely, but in God's mercy he brings us out to the other side.
It's a blessed thing to have God the Father as one who loves us as his children in such a way he's prepared to correct us and stop us from going some of the ways which would lead us into terrible disaster.
To the Christian who is responsive to the Lord's discipline, it proves two things. It proves God's love, doesn't it?
And it also proves our sonship because he chastens those whom he loves.
And if you're not true children of the living God, well, you won't know anything about this chastening I've been talking about.
It proves that we are his sons and that he loves us. And this is what the child of God expects.
If we do the wrong thing, if we go the wrong way, if we turn our backs on the way that he's shown us and he has to chasten us to bring us back, then we know that God loves us. He won't let us go.
So, what benefits do you receive because of your Heavenly Father's correction?
Well, here in Hebrews chapter 12 there are a few things in verses 9 through 11 of Hebrews chapter 12.
Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected us and we paid them respect.
Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live?
For they indeed for a few days chasten us as seems best to them, but he for our profit, that we may be partakers of his holiness.
Now, no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful.
Nevertheless, afterwards it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who are trained thereby.
Well, it shows us several things. What benefits do we receive because of our Heavenly Father's correction?
Well, I think in verse 9 it shows that there is a willing submission, a willing submission.
We have had human fathers who corrected us, we prayed them respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits?
And so it teaches us a submission, a willing submission to what seems good in the sight of God.
And also it says there an assurance of sonship as we just looked at because there he talks about life.
Shall you not be much more readily in subjection to the Father of spirits and live?
To be in subjection to the Father who is the source of all life is indeed to live.
In him we live and move and have our being. We are to have life in that more abundantly.
To turn away from him is to turn away from life.
The old commentator John Brown, he understands the spirits, the Father of the spirits to mean our spiritual father as opposed to our natural fathers.
He to whom we are indebted for spiritual and eternal life is the Father of our spirits.
Our spirits bear witness with his spirit that we are the sons of God.
And we have the spirit of adoption which cries out Abba Father. Here is the witness that we have.
And also what do we receive? Well we here see that there is a partaking of his holiness in verse 10.
For they indeed for a few days chasten us as seen best to them but he for our profit that we may be partakers of his holiness.
There is only one kind of holiness and that is God's holiness.
The sphere of redemption is indeed a sphere of holiness.
We see that in Romans. Romans 8.29. A lot of people get hung up on this Romans 8.29.
You know the thing that I like about it, well there is so much to like about Romans 8.29 but just look at it for a moment.
For him he foreknew, whom he foreloved, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his son that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
You know it's a marvellous thing isn't it? The fact that you and I in our weaknesses, our frailty and so many times we have fallen short of what we should be.
But in it all God is conforming us to the image of his son. That's real predestination isn't it?
Predestinating us to be conformed to Christ. That is a marvellous doctrine don't you? That's a marvellous reality.
Don't let's put the doctrine over there and our lives over here but this is a work of God's grace. He is actually working in us.
To will and to do his good question. And with all the chastening, with the difficulty of the race that we're running, here God is conforming us, making us more like Christ.
Bringing us more into this position of being yoked with him that we might love him and walk in obedience of life. Fancy.
One day we will be like him. We shall see him as he is. And I don't know about you but sometimes I just grant, Lord do a quick work.
I make such a mess of things. Work quickly in my life.
And another thing we notice too is that Jesus is the author of our faith.
Looking unto Jesus it says in Hebrew the author and finisher of our faith. But he is the author of our faith. He is the originator of our faith.
He is the rewarder of our faith. He led the way to glory in a perfect obedient life. Didn't he say lo it is written in the volume concerning him.
I come to do thy will O God. I delight to do thy will O God.
He is the one who is perfectly obedient to the Father. He is the captain of our salvation.
I wonder if you remember when you were first saved. Some people can't but some people can. It wasn't a wonderful experience.
For some it was just the lights seemed to go on. How could I not see? How could I not see that Christ died for me on the cross of God?
And you were in love with Christ. You wanted to tell everyone about Christ. You couldn't contain Christ.
It was just a marvellous work of grace that was done in your life. You knew your sins were forgiven.
And you were rejoicing in his great salvation. You remember what Pilgrim did when he stood at the cross?
And the burden rolled back and went down into the sepulchre. Didn't he say he made three leaps for joy, didn't he?
He led for joy and we lead for joy as we consider what God has done. The one who loved us.
Why do we love him? Because he first loved us. There can never be a love the reverse that will win merit with God.
It must be that he loved the sinner. That he saved the sinner. It must be that we love him because he overcome the grave.
He overcome Satan. He overcome sin. He overcome all things for us.
But not only is he the author of our faith but he is the finisher of our faith.
And when we think about him being the finisher we think about him being the perfecter of our faith.
He is the victor over sin and Satan and death as we have just said. He is the King of Kings and he is the Lord of Lords.
He is seated at the right hand of the Father with all the power, with all the authority.
He is not going to come again and become Lord. He is Lord. He is Lord.
And this look is the one that says in Philippians 1-6, he who has begun a good work in you will perform it, will complete it for the day of Jesus Christ.
Not only have we been saved by his grace, we are being saved daily by his grace, we shall be saved by his grace and we shall be in eternity with him.
He begins and he finishes. And think of how he ran. He too had a goal on which his attention was inflexibly fixed.
He had his eyes set as a flint towards the cross. He had a goal. He had a finishing post to run to and it was the joy that was set before him.
Who for the joy that was set before endured the cross? The joy. The joy of completing the work of reconciliation.
Of being at that day to see of the travel of his soul and be satisfied that he is the days man that stood between God and the earth.
And he is the one that took the hand of the sinner and took the hand of God as it were and he reconciled us to himself through the cross.
What a wonderful work it is. When we look at him, the one whose joy was set before him, of reconciling sinners to himself.
His joy is the joy of heaven over every sinner who repents.
There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine who need no repentance.
And his joy is seeing every soul for whom he died brought into that kingdom in time and space.
And also see how he had to endure the cross to obtain the joy.
Who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross? Without the cross there is no crown.
Our cross we bear in this life is trifling compared to his cross.
Moreover his determination to endure the cross meant despising the shame.
Since nothing more disgraceful could happen to any man than to suffer public crucifixion.
A fate designed for the basis of criminals and the lowest of the social class of the time.
The shame of the cross, where Christ bore the sins of the world, is something infinitely more intense than the pain of the cross.
He bore our sins and our iniquities in his body on the tree.
It was this awful bearing of our sin that made him cry out,
My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
When the darkness came and God, as it were, turned his back on his son.
Others suffered the same shameful pain, the two thieves on the cross.
But he alone has endured the shame of human depravity and all its foulness and degradation.
Brethren, he despised the shame and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
We run together. How did he run the race? Alone.
He tried the wine press alone.
When he had these friends who were with him for years, they left him all for success.
We can run together, but he ran alone.
He ran alone to the cross.
Whereas we run towards the prize of the everlasting salvation and glory which he won for us through his death on the cross.
Oh, what a Saviour that he died for me. Isn't that the solemn thing?
That's a grandson, a grandson.
But let me just finish quickly on this and I've probably taken too much time.
Christians have an example to encourage them. You and I have an example to encourage us.
Brethren, look afresh at Hebrews chapter 12 verse 3 and 4.
For consider him who endured such hostility from sinners against himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in yourselves.
Are we few in number tonight? Have we ever been discouraged because we are few in number?
Well, we'd be lying if we said we weren't. Of course we get discouraged.
Of course we can see that it would be marvellous to have things better.
But we don't look at our discouragements to be encouraged.
We're to consider Christ who endured such contradiction of sinners, hostility against them.
And I tell you there's been plenty of hostility against you people, against us, against those who will stand for the truth in this place, in this city.
But we're not to look to those who oppose.
If we do, we'll get into a siege mentality. We'll be fighting on every front instead of looking unto Jesus and getting on with the world.
Sure we get weary, but brethren consider him. The going does get tough, but consider him brethren.
People laugh and they ridicule us. Of course they do, but consider him.
It's not easy being the only Christian in your group, in your workplace, in your neighbourhood.
But consider him. Consider him above everything else that happens in your life.
We're so prone to get sidetracked. We're like the Christian and faithful. They saw the hill difficult and they took byway meadows and they ended up in doubting despair.
We're so prone to get sidetracked, so prone to sin, so prone to saint in our minds.
Well he says here, consider him, lest you become weary and discouraged in your mind.
And it suggests a sudden or momentary breakdown in endurance. It's in the present and that's what I felt several weeks ago in this onslaught on my mind.
It was sudden. The apostle knew that because that is how he found the going, he knew this tremendously.
He had to go on in the present looking unto Jesus, considering him. That is why under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit he wrote verse 3 here.
For our encouragement, for your encouragement, for my encouragement, consider him. Don't consider your circumstances, don't consider the troubles, don't consider what's past, but consider him.
He endured all for our saint. And of course we need to remember verse 4, you have not yet resisted to bloodshed striving against sin.
Brethren we get it pretty easy in Australia. We've not resisted to the point of martyrdom.
We're not like those who are under the throne of grace who have been beheaded for Christ's sake.
The cause of our conflict is really sin. To fight against it is a good cause because sin is the worst enemy both to God and to man.
We need to fight against it. Our spiritual warfare is both honorable and necessary for we are only defending ourselves against that which would destroy us.
And therefore if it is, if it should get the victory over us, we fight for ourselves, for our lives brethren and therefore ought to be patient and resolute in the fight.
We have to consider him. We haven't resisted unto blood but we've got to go on and on and on looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our sight.
And that's the only way to press forward to heaven. We can't look at anyone else or anything else but to him.
Now all these words won't help us one scrap if you haven't got a Guernsey, if you're not in the race.
You won't know anything about this. You need to have a start in the race.
And the only way you can get a start is go to the one who set out the race, the one who gives you a start in the race and the one who will carry you through the race.
You must come to Christ. You must go on day by day looking unto Jesus, conscious that we're surrounded by a cloud of witnesses and they're cheering us on.
And they say, come on, up and at him. You can do it. You can go forth by the grace of God.
And may he help us, each one of us, to run for our life and enter into the joy of our Lord. Amen.
Let us pray.
Father, we are thankful that we do have your word that has endured the test of time, that has been handed down from generation to generation.
And despite the attacks of the evil one, you have preserved it for us to this day.
But Lord, some of us are getting older. The race set before us seems to be towards the end of our lives.
We're nearer to the day in which we will be with you.
I pray, Father, that you'll not have us to be slack, that you'll not have us to look inward or to look to other people.
But help us, Lord, to be faithful to the end, to be able to say with the apostle, I've fought a good fight. I've run the race. I've finished the course.
Father, help us to go forward from this night forward, knowing that you are the God, the God who called us out of darkness under your marvelous light,
the God who loved us so much that you sent your Son to die for us, the God who is so concerned that we be godly and holy,
that you're confirming us, conforming us to the image of your Son, who is perfect holiness.
Father, we pray that you'll do this work in us. We pray that you'll encourage Wallace and the folk here in their ministry
and that instead of being small or downcast in any wise, Lord, that they'll look unto Jesus, the only one who's able to do a good work,
the only one who's able to bring people under the sound of the gospel, the only one who's able to take us out to people in the world.
And so may you do this for them and for our own folk there in Ellimold Vale. We need thee every hour. Every hour we need thee, our Blessed Lord. Amen.