Running with Our Eyes Fixed on Jesus
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January/February 2016 • $3.95 FrontLine BRINGING THE TRUTH HOME Run with Patience January/February 2016 | VOLUME 26 | NUMBER 1 Run with Patience 14 8 18 FEATURES Running with Our Eyes Fixed The Fruit of Fervent Prayer 6 on Jesus 35 Mary MacGregor Thomas Brian Collins Jesus is our final and climatic example of One who ran the race with an eye on the promised reward. DEPARTMENTS Understanding and Responding Mail Bag & News from All Over 8 to Persecution 5 Chris Pennington On the Home Front We must let Scripture set our expectations and 20 inform our response. Wit & Wisdom 23 David Atkinson Pressed to Prosper, Propagate, Very Clear Biblical Teaching and Pray 11 24 David C. Innes Robert Vincent In God’s magnificent armory of instruments At a Glance skillfully designed for His people’s good, an 26 Habakkuk: From Consternation to entire corridor is dedicated to the bittersweet Confidence and Contentment in God gift of suffering. Layton Talbert Rethinking America’s Shrinking Newsworthy 14 Christianity 29 Robert Condict Jonathan Threlfall Is every change a wave that threatens to dash 31 On Language & Scripture us against the rocks? Mark L. Ward Jr. The Race That Is Set Before Us 32 Answered Prayers and Open 18 Greg Baker Opportunities The coming of the Holy Spirit upon the dis- Tony Pelc ciples would be even better than having the The Necessity of Hard Work physical presence of Jesus with them on earth. 38 Jerry Sivnksty We would like to thank Dr. Joel Arnold for coordinating this issue of FrontLine magazine. Visit us on the Web at www.fbfi.org 2 It’s Time to Run Joel Arnold run? We should lay aside sin and every unnecessary Like the breath of God impediment. If we aren’t sure what our experience will be when we run, we find it requires patience. that brought life to Adam’s If we ask where to run and with what focus, the body, every word that God has breathed out answer is that we are to look to our chief example, is powerful and brings life to the hearer. The result, Jesus Christ. But all of these are explanations for our then, is that all of God’s words are profitable for the most basic task—to run. spiritual life of the people of God. We need them all. And yet some passages speak more powerfully to “So Great a Cloud of Witnesses” a specific need, situation, or juncture in the life of the Of course, there’s a further background to the church. Recognizing that most of the New Testament command of chapter 12. The lives chronicled in is situational—written to a specific church with a chapter 11 are the cloud of witnesses, testifying to specific need—the epistles have a specific historical us as we run and affirming that we are hardly the background. The original recipients are our fellow first to run this race. And yet we might miss several believers, sharing in our faith across thousands of notable features. years and culture. For all our differences, the chal- For example, if you plot a timeline of the individu- lenges we face are the same, and the theological als in chapter 11, something becomes immediately answers we need are unabated in their power. And so obvious. The chronicle starts with Abel and Enoch, the passages that most direct us in our present milieu only progressing to Moses by verse 23. By the time are often those whose original context closely matches the author has reached Rahab (v. 31), still quite our own because the first recipients faced situations early in biblical history, most of the passage (85%) is similar to our own. already done. The author then breathtakingly covers a thousand years of history in one verse, including “Let Us Run” the largest group of OT books in one word—“the Hebrews 12 addresses people who face a newly prophets” (v. 32). resistant society. Some of the recipients have even The effect is to highlight just how many witnesses suffered persecution—losing not their lives but suffer- there are.1 Like a preacher who has entirely too much ing a sharp financial setback. They are now tempted to share in the short time given him, the author has to capitulate, and some of them will leave the faith to stop short. Fully covering the lives of the witnesses altogether. And so the author calls them to finish the would overflow from this chapter into volumes race—to keep on running, even when the resistance more. “And what shall I more say?” he asks us. “The seems to mount with every passing year. time would fail me” (Heb. 11:32). Move forward to today. What Christian among These witnesses exemplify the challenge of godly us does not feel as though the earth has given way living, the faith that saw them through, and the fact beneath our feet before the tsunami of progressive that it brings great rewards. But the author actu- public opinion? We wonder about the ongoing ally chooses to call something else to our attention. viability of our churches, institutions, and outreaches. It’s the fact that they all died waiting. The chapter If caught unguarded, we’re tempted to seek an easier ends reminding us that “these all, having obtained way. And in the face of that, Scripture calls us not a good report through faith, received not the prom- merely to exist, not merely to move forward, but to ise.” Verse 13 explains further that “these all died in run. faith, not having received the promises, but having Grammatically, this command is the core of the seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and passage. In fact, it is the only command in verses 1 embraced them.” and 2. The other phrases simply link to it and tell That emphasis almost seems to cut against the us how. If we ask why we should run, the answer is point of the chapter, as though somehow their faith that we have a cloud of witnesses. How to prepare to and trust were betrayed. But we simply have to ask Continued on page 4 3 what was the content of “the promises” (Heb 11:9, 11, 13, following Him. In yet another type of argument common 17, 33, 39). While it certainly includes things such as the in Hebrews, everything we endure, He Himself faced and land (v. 8) and the resurrection (v. 19), the core is clearly overcame. And so we run following in the footsteps of the the promised Messiah.2 From the beginning of the Old One who “endured the cross, despising the shame, and is Testament (Gen. 3:15) to the end (Mal. 3:1–4), the longing set down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:2). and hope of every Old Testament believer was for this One. You can almost hear their collective cry—“When will Conclusion He come?” Their struggle, suffering, and waiting stretched All of this calls us to understand better both the passage across the centuries, as they lifted up their eyes in hope for at hand and what it means in the present challenge. Brian the promised Savior. Collins helps us exegetically in Hebrews 12:1–2; Chris Pennington delivers the theological foundation; Robert “Looking unto Jesus” Vincent covers historical context; Jonathan Threlfall chal- And so do we. The final encouragement of Hebrews lenges our disposition or attitude; and Greg Baker leaves 12:1–2 is that we look to Jesus. We could legitimately say us with practical application. that our experience of waiting is completely different than Because Scripture is always the most relevant thing we theirs. They lived a life of faith, waiting for Him to come. could say in a crisis. Within all of Scripture, Hebrews 12:1–2 We know who He is, what He did, and even the theological stands out as one of the more striking parallels to our his- significance of His life and death. To use a kind of argu- torical moment. Commanded to run, reminded of those ment that very much fills the book (Heb. 2:1–3; 4:14–16; who came before, and ultimately looking to Jesus Christ as 9:13–14; 10:28–31; 12:18–29), we are only the more respon- the supreme example, we must fulfill our part in our time, sible for our greater knowledge. testifying that it’s worth it. It’s time to lift our eyes from the But the passage actually seems to be emphasizing our moral chaos, pick up our feet from the sinking sand, and continuity with them. They endured. So must we. Their put away the unnecessary distractions. It’s time to run. endurance was only because of faith, as is ours. And most Dr. Joel Arnold serves in the Philippines under Gospel importantly, the object of our faith and theirs is the same— Fellowship Association. He and his wife, Sarah, have Jesus Christ. As they waited for Him to be born, we wait for three children. Among other ministries, Joel teaches at Him to return. As they put their faith in what He would do, Bob Jones Memorial Bible College in Quezon City. we rest in what He did. ______________________ 1 Because profoundly, He is not just the object of our faith. We sometimes speak of those recorded in In this great cloud of witnesses, He is also the climax—the Hebrews 11 as though they were selected specifically because supreme Witness above them all.