“Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame and has sat down at the right hand of God’s throne.” (Hebrews 12:1–2, HCSB)
I have always viewed the Christian life as a journey. People overcome different barriers in their lives to fully understand the Gospel and become followers of Christ. Once this is done, the journey changes forever. Instead of a being destined to hell, a believer is destined to go to Heaven. I have always believed, and I have seen that the Bible has shown me that when one has come to follow Jesus, one can never really leave Him. He guides us on the journey. As Hebrews 12 shows us, Jesus is our pioneer, who leads us forward.
However, there have been verses which have bothered me from time to time. These verses are called the warnings in Hebrews. I have heard people tell me that based on these warnings, there is the possibility of a Christian who can turn away from the faith. But God has shown a visual representation which helps me understand how these warnings truly apply.
The diagram above shows the Christian faith as a journey. Before Christ, like the dotted lines, there were points at which I heard about Christ, but I never came closer to following Him. At some point however (not the big point or dot in the middle of the diagram), I came to know that I was a sinner who needed a Savior. As a result of this change of mind, I started to follow Christ. This is noted by the solid line, as well as the arrow point. My journey now begins and takes me into eternity in Heaven.
However, I still live on Earth. As a result, there will always be a temptation to not rely on Jesus on a daily basis. Yes, I am still saved for eternity. However, I can encounter problems which will cause me to stop relying on Jesus. I call this the temptation orbit. Jesus, (like the Sun to the Earth), still has a gravitational pull on my life. Yet, there are times which I may be tempted to disregard His leadership in my life. This is where the warnings come in. Note the concentric circles on the next diagram. They look like planetary orbits around the sun.
The big black dot represents my journey as a Christian. Instead of watching this journey from the outside, my journey is seen from the viewpoint of eternity, from God’s point of view. These temptations (to drift, to doubt, to deform – instead of being transformed, to despise, and to deny) can still lure me away from Jesus. Just like planetary orbits, the further away I get from Jesus, the less effective of a Christian I become. To put it another way, I would rather be close to Jesus and be most effective for Him instead of a “pain in the Uranus” to God.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In