How Running Your God-Given Race Brings Great Salvation

A couple of weeks ago, we did a podcast on ‘How to Run a Steady Race Right Into Glory.’ After that message, I told you to stay tuned for a second installment. So here goes. We are talking about the metaphor of running. After all, it’s a thoroughly scriptural image that the apostle Paul used from the ancient world. But did you know this modern-day fact about running? The percentage of those who own running shoes in America, but don’t actually run, stands at 87%.¹ What do you think is the percentage of people who say they are followers of Jesus but don’t actually follow? How many say that they are in the race for God, but if the truth is known, they are on the sideline watching? What is the impact of not running your race? Does it make a difference? How Running Your God-Given Race Brings Great Salvation. That’s our focus on this week’s Light On Life.

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About Emery

Emery committed his life to the Lord Jesus Christ over 42 years ago. He has served as both a full-time pastor and an itinerant minister. Both he and his wife Sharon of 38 years emphasize personal growth and development through the Word of God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is both the focus and the hallmark of their mission. Read more about them here.

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Great Salvation: The 1000 Mile Dog Race in Nome

If you remember previously, we talked about the story of John Steven Aquari.
You remember his famous line as he limped across the finish line dead last of the marathon in the 1968 Olympics, all bruised and broken up.
Somebody said, ‘Why didn’t you quit — you had no chance of winning.’
You’re hurting, your limping; you can hardly walk, let alone run.
He said, these epic words, ‘My country didn’t send me 5000 miles to start — they sent me to finish.
We talked about finishing.
Today, I don’t want to talk about finishing; I just want to talk about running — about racing.
Does your race make a difference?
Can your race bring great salvation, and with that thought, here is the Illustration of the Day.

Every year in Alaska, a 1000-mile dogsled race, run for prize money and prestige, commemorates an original “race” run to save lives. Back in January of 1926, six-year-old Richard Stanley showed symptoms of diphtheria, signaling the possibility of an outbreak in the small town of Nome. When the boy passed away a day later, Dr. Curtis Welch began immunizing children and adults with an experimental but effective anti-diphtheria serum. But it wasn’t long before Dr. Welch’s supply ran out, and the nearest serum was in Nenana, Alaska—1000 miles of frozen wilderness away. Amazingly, a group of trappers and prospectors volunteered to cover the distance with their dog teams! Operating in relays from trading post to trapping station and beyond, one sled started out from Nome while another, carrying the serum, started from Nenana. Oblivious to frostbite, fatigue, and exhaustion, the teamsters mushed relentlessly until, after 144 hours in minus 50-degree winds, the serum was delivered to Nome. As a result, only one other life was lost to the potential epidemic. Their sacrifice had given an entire town the gift of life.²

Peter’s Race Brought Great Salvation

Did you know that there was a point in the Apostle Peter’s life where he super-messed up?
Just like you and me, Peter spent a lot of time jacking things up.

Matthew 16:13–16 (NLT) — 13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 “Well,” they replied, “some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.”15 Then he asked them, “Who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.

You can see here in this crowd; there are four different opinions about who Jesus was.
Four different opinions but three of them were wrong.
Can I tell you, it’s always that way.
The majority of people in your world will not agree with your stand for Jesus.
When I first came to Jesus, people in my world told me that it wouldn’t last.
That is was just a phase I was going through.
One person gave me three years before I came back to my senses, in their opinion.
Well, it’s going to be 45 years since I met Jesus, and I haven’t looked back.
You have to live by the revelation of God in your heart.
If you yield to the opinions of men over God’s Word to your life, if you allow the thinking of this world to control your destiny, you will get pulled out of the race God has for your life.
On this day in Jesus’ ministry, only one person got the answer to this singular question He asked, ‘Who do men say that I am?’
The winner was Peter.
Peter got the answer right, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’
This whole scene you will find to be a repetitive happening.
Over and over again, you share your vision.
Time and again, you share the dream God put in your heart.
And when you do that, there will always be someone who disagrees, who tries to pull you out of your race and consequently out of your effectiveness.
It happened in the life of Joseph.
He shared the dream God gave for his life, and his own family hated him for it.

Genesis 37:5–8 (ESV) — 5 Now Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers they hated him even more. 6 He said to them, “Hear this dream that I have dreamed: 7 Behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and behold, my sheaf arose and stood upright. And behold, your sheaves gathered around it and bowed down to my sheaf.” 8 His brothers said to him, “Are you indeed to reign over us? Or are you indeed to rule over us?” So they hated him even more for his dreams and for his words.

This was not arrogance on the part of Joseph.
The Lord showed him that he would be in a position as a ruler to bring great salvation to his own family.
God was going to maneuver his life in such a way that his family would be delivered.
Has the Lord ever told you to move away from your situation?
You’re totally comfortable.
Family is within reach.
The money you’re making is good, and God seemingly spoils all of that by telling you to move.
It happened to Sharon and me.
We moved to Oklahoma at the Lord’s direction.
Other families felt the prompting to move also and eventually came.
But some that the Lord was dealing procrastinated and wouldn’t move.
One of these family members lost their life because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
It pays to obey God.
Obedience is one source of salvation.
That’s what I am talking about here — how running your race brings great salvation.
There are always people on both sides of any issue — on both sides of any truth.
Here in Matthews’s gospel, the majority crowd believed the wrong thing about Jesus.
Again the lesson is that the majority is not always right.
This will help you when you turn on your local news program at night.
You understand that the news is not always right.
That the opinions that they postulate as fact in the name of journalism are just that opinions — not fact.
The media wants you to think that they are so much in the know about things.
That everyone else in the world believes as they do.
That’s one thing I’ve been saying to the Lord at different points.
I don’t believe a great amount of what the news media is trying to sell over the airwaves.
The majority does not rule.
God plus one is what makes the majority.
It’s His opinion that you need because He is all-knowing and never wrong.
He has never been wrong about anything.
So, here’s Peter running his race.

Matthew 16:17 (NLT) — 17 Jesus replied, “You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being.

Peter is on the right side of things — he’s in his lane.
The blessing is in siding with God.
It’s in standing with the Word of God.
You can’t take sides against the Bible and then get God’s promises to work for you.
Jesus then says this in response to Peter’s correctly identifying Jesus as the Messiah.

Matthew 16:17–20 (NLT) — 18 Now I say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you lock on earth will be locked in heaven, and whatever you open on earth will be opened in heaven.” 20 Then he sternly warned them not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

In verse eighteen, Jesus reminded Peter of something He had had already added to His course, to the track God gave him to run.
Jesus did that way back when He first met him.

John 1:42 (ESV) — 42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter).

Cephas is Aramaic language, and the name Peter is Greek.
The word means ‘stone’ in both languages.
Jesus says to Peter, ‘You are a rock.’
Being rock-like helps you in your race.
It helps you help others in their race.
Rock-solid convictions concerning the Word, concerning the person and work of Jesus, can help you steady others.
It pays to be rock-like.

A ship was wrecked in a furious storm and the only survivor was a little boy who was swept by the waves onto a rock. He sat there all night long until, the next morning, he was spotted and rescued. “Did you tremble while you were on the rock during the night?” someone later asked him. “Yes,” said the boy. “I trembled all night—but the rock didn’t.” Robert J. Morgan, Nelson’s Complete Book of Stories, Illustrations, and Quotes, electronic ed. (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2000), 605.

Again it pays to be rock-solid on the Word.

Luke 6:46–48 (ESV) — 46 “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? 47 Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: 48 he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.

Later on, Jesus challenged Peter to use his rock-like persona to build others up.

Luke 22:31–32 (AMP) — 31 Simon, Simon (Peter), listen! Satan has asked excessively that [all of] you be given up to him [out of the power and keeping of God], that he might sift [all of] you like grain, 32 But I have prayed especially for you [Peter], that your [own] faith may not fail; and when you yourself have turned again, strengthen and establish your brethren.

Did you hear that? Strengthen the brethren; that’s part of what we are to do as we run our God-given race.
And with that thought, here is the Definition of the Day.
The Greek word ‘strengthen’ used here means to cause to be inwardly firm or committed, to confirm, to establish,³
That’s one part of your God-given race: help to strengthen, help to cause your brother or sister in Christ to stand firm, to be inwardly committed, help them to be established.
Now to strengthen the brethren, you have to be strong yourself.
You can’t give what you don’t have. He gave the right answer — he believed the right thing, and Jesus said.

Running Your Race: Revelation

So, nothing new was added to Peter’s life, just a reminder about his name change.
Just a reaffirmation of how God viewed him as a solid rock of a man.
The rest of verses eighteen and nineteen is where the Lord adds new stuff to Peter’s God-given race.
This stuff Peter didn’t know.
It’s a new revelation — new territory — a new piece of track that Peter was supposed to run on.

You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you lock on earth will be locked in heaven, and whatever you open on earth will be opened in heaven

Now we have a foundation: upon this rock, I will build my church.
What was the rock Jesus referring to?
There are several things here you should know.
First, Jesus is tapping into His physical surroundings.
This entire scene takes place in Cesarea Philippi.
In Old Testament times, Cesarea Philippi was known to house a cave that people thought was the Gateway to Hell.
Jesus was talking about that rock — that Gateway to Hell.
He is saying, ‘I am going to build my church right in the devil’s face, and there is nothing that he is going to be able to do about it.’
That’s one rock Jesus was referring to.
Here’s another rock.
How did Peter receive the knowledge that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God?

Matthew 16:17–18 (ESV) — 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Peter got the right answer by revelation.
How are you going to get the right answer?
The same way — by the process of the Spirit of God revealing the Word of God to your heart.
You need the revelation ministry of the Spirit to run your race.
You need it to be effective in running your God-given race so you can help others receive great salvation.
Jesus said, in effect, to Peter, ‘I am going to build my church on the rock of revelation of the Word of God.’
When Jesus said, “I am going to build my church, He is not talking about buildings.”
He’s talking about people.
Jesus is talking about the ‘ecclesia,’ the called-out ones.
The church is not an organization.
It’s not a denomination.
The church is not materials.
It’s not brick and mortar.
The church is people.
Jesus said, “I am going to build my church, my people who are called by my name with the Word of God and the revelation of that word to their hearts.’

1 Peter 2:2 (ESV) — 2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—

Running Your Race: Keys

By that’s not all Jesus told Peter that day.
He told him about the rock, but He also told Peter about the keys.

Matthew 16:19 (ESV) — 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

What are keys for?
They are to open up doors.
One of the doors that the keys open is the door of authority.
Listen to Jesus, ‘Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.’
What are you binding on earth?
You don’t bind good on planet earth — you don’t bind good, righteousness, purity, and holiness.
No, you bind what’s bad — what’s evil — what;’s putrid and ungodly.
You bind the works of the enemy.

Running Your Race: Exercising Authority

In the Old Testament, you do not see anyone dealing with the devil.
Adam was supposed to.

Genesis 1:26 (ESV) — 26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

God gave Adam dominion, but he flunked out of the school of authority.
The authority that he was supposed to use to chase the serpent out of the Garden he lost.

Matthew 13:12 (ESV) — 12 For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.

The devil stole Adam’s authority.
You have to use it or lose it.
Under the Old Covenant, you don’t see Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob casting out devils or making any reference to them.
That doesn’t mean they weren’t there.
You don’t see Moses, Elijah, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, or Daniel dealing with devils.
For all of the thousands of years that span from genesis to Malachi, you see minimal reference to Satan at all.
There are a few references, but for the amount of time, like 4000 years, very little is revealed about devils, demons, and evil spirits.
But as soon as Jesus comes on the scene, who pops his head up?

Luke 4:33–34 (ESV) — 33 And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, 34 “Ha! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God.”

No one in the Old Testament had an experience, as you see recorded in Luke 4:33–34.
These devils were screaming out when Jesus showed up.
‘Leave us alone,’ they said.
Jesus dealt with devils, and not only did He deal with them, but He also began training others to deal with them too.
He knew that He would be going back to His Father in heaven.
He knew that He would take back the lost authority that the devil had stolen from mankind.
No longer will it be like Old testament times — demons walking around unimpeded.
Once Jesus began to cast them out, once Jesus began to take authority over them, it was meant from then on to be the case with humanity.
In your God-given race, you are supposed to help humanity by exercising authority over devils.

Running Your God-Given Race: How to Exercise Authority

How were they or you and me supposed to exercise this authority?
What tool do we use?
Do we chant, read incantations, and swing incense around like they do in the movies?
Do we cast out devils Hollywood style?
Remember this singular fact, Hollywood knows nothing about exercising authority over devils.
Some of those folk out there are full of devils themselves.
You can’t exercise dominion over devils when you are full of the devil yourself.
Listen to these verses.

Matthew 10:1 (ESV) — 1 And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction.

Luke 10:17–19 (ESV) — 17 The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 18 And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you.

These disciples cast out devils by using the name of Jesus.
That’s how you do it — that’s how you exercise authority — that’s one way you help bring great salvation to people.
Jesus authorized these people to go in His place and do the same works that He was doing.
If I told you to go and purchase something for me down at the local store and because I had an account there, I told you to go and get this item and sign my name to the bill.
What am I doing?
I am authorizing you to go and do business in my name.
The sales clerk at the store may not know who you are.
The manager may have never seen you.
The person that carries out the package for you may have never met you.
But they all recognize that name by which you are shopping.
And, they hop to it because they know that name.
They act just like it was me standing there in that store in person.
That’s just what Jesus did.
He gave you the use of His name, and He said, ‘Go do Kingdom of God business in my Name.’
When you see the devil, and you tell him to leave in Jesus’ name, he does it because he recognizes that name, and he acts like it was Jesus himself standing there.
How Running Your God-Given Race Brings Great Salvation to others.
You guys have a great God-week in Jesus’ Name, Amen.

___________

References:

Source: What Counts: The Complete Harper’s Index, edited by Charis Conn Galaxie Software, 10,000 Sermon Illustrations (Biblical Studies Press, 2002). ↩
Source unknown Galaxie Software, 10,000 Sermon Illustrations (Biblical Studies Press, 2002). ↩
William Arndt et al., A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 945. ↩

emeryhorvath.com

Equipping people to pursue God's glory

How Running Your God-Given Race Brings Great Salvation

Podcast: Light on Life Season 8 Episode 29

by Emery Horvath

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Read the Notes

Accept the Challenge

Join the Conversation

Episode Resources

You can find more information click on the links below:

About Emery

Subscribe to the Podcast

Share the Love

Podcast Notes

Great Salvation: The 1000 Mile Dog Race in Nome

Peter’s Race Brought Great Salvation

Running Your Race: Revelation

Running Your Race: Keys

Running Your Race: Exercising Authority

Running Your God-Given Race: How to Exercise Authority

Listen to the Audio

Click Play to Listen | Right Click to Download | Subscribe in Stitcher Radio

Read the Notes

Accept the Challenge

Join the Conversation

Episode Resources

You can find more information click on the links below:

About Emery

Subscribe to the Podcast

Share the Love

Podcast Notes

Great Salvation: The 1000 Mile Dog Race in Nome

Peter’s Race Brought Great Salvation

Running Your Race: Revelation

Running Your Race: Keys

Running Your Race: Exercising Authority

Running Your God-Given Race: How to Exercise Authority

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