Every Weight
To run a marathon and win, a runner must be fit and reduce all unnecessary weight. Lloyd Scott, a charity fundraiser, is known as the slowest man ever to run a marathon. He wore a 110-pound diver suit. It took him 5 days and 8 hours to finish the race. The point is that you cannot effectively run a long race requiring endurance in what is considered a reasonable time when you are loaded with weight. The Bible testifies to this fact.
Hebrews 12:1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
The great cloud of witnesses spoken of here is not your loved ones in Christ who have gone on before you, peeking over the edge of the clouds to look down on you. The great cloud of witnesses is the list of those mentioned in Hebrews 11 that make up the heroes of the faith.
That’s not to say it cannot include men and women of the faith down through history who ran a full and honorable race, fulfilling the will of God in their lifetime. But at the time of this letter, your loved ones weren’t even born. Chapter 11 of Hebrews speaks of the many different examples of what faith looked like for various heroes who walked in it.
Considering this great cloud of witnesses, we are encouraged to lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us! They were willing to let go of something that others would have prized, something others if not most, would never release, and yet, they let it go to obtain something of even greater value to them.
What is meant by the word weight? In Greek, it means hindrance, a mass, a burden. The translators into English determined to use the word weight.
Not long ago, while in a small fishing boat, I fired up the motor and began to take off after being in one spot and wanting to find another. I noticed the boat was not planing out as usual and was sluggish. Then I noticed I hadn’t pulled up anchor. Dragging the weight of the anchor made progress sluggish and slow. The anchor, meant to be good when used for the right reason, had become a heavy burden to the boat. It was not designed to be dragged behind the boat.
Too often, these passages are read, and weight and sin are lumped together. When we read it carefully, it says clearly, “the weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us.” Just as sin can hinder progress, weight can as well. Like the example of that boat anchor, burdens can slow us down, if not stop us in our tracks.
Not knowing your assignment from the Holy Spirit can result in taking on many burdens that are not meant to be yours. You can be carrying around weight that becomes a distraction and hindrance to you even though it isn’t considered a sin and seems good. That is why it says we must lay things aside and run with endurance the race set before us. We do not choose the race. We enter the race God chose for us. Thus, it becomes even more important to lay aside every weight!
That boat anchor I spoke of was good for staying in one spot for a spell. But it was a great hindrance if not lifted whenever it was time for the boat to move. So it is with many good things we sometimes take on unauthorized by the Holy Spirit and without the wisdom of what we can handle on our own. To run the race He chose, we must shed weight and only carry the load God gives us. It can’t be according to what others want to give us. It must come from Him.
