Well, good morning, Christ Covenant Church. It’s great to be with you this morning. It’s a privilege this morning actually to be here with you wearing two different hats today. Certainly any time I preach at Christ Covenant I’m wearing my teacher in residence hat, as I’m here on staff in a part-time capacity, and I always love to do that, but today is unique, because today is Reformation Sunday, and today I’m also here in my capacity as the president of Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte.

And for those of you who might be new to the world of Christ Covenant, there is a long history between RTS and Christ Covenant Church and it’s been a tradition, in recent years at least, that the president of RTS comes and preaches on Reformation Sunday. In fact, this church, if you don’t know, nearly 30 years ago, was one of the founding congregations that helped bring RTS to Charlotte, and ever since it’s just been such a blessing to see that friendship, that relationship, to see how God has blessed not only RTS but Christ Covenant, and it’s just a privilege to be able to be here to preach to you that capacity today as well.

It’s also, of course, as I said, Reformation Sunday. Some of you may think to yourself, well, what in the world is Reformation Sunday? Well, we always put it on the last Sunday in October to try to get it as close as possible to the day that Martin Luther nailed the 95 theses to the door of the Wittenberg Church, which is actually October 31. So this October 31, I don’t know what you’ll be doing, but it’s a good day to remember that Martin Luther on that day in 1517 started the Protestant Reformation. So every last Sunday in October, whatever that happens to be, we talk about some aspect related to Reformed theology or the Reformation, which is a whole vast swath of doctrinal discussions available to us.

But today, as you’ll see in just a moment, I want to focus on a topic we don’t talk about as much in the Reformed world. Even though it’s right there in our TULIP, the P in TULIP, which is Perseverance. Today I want to talk with you about running the Christian race and not stopping.

So on that score, let’s turn our attention to God’s Word today.

Hebrews chapter 12 is where we are. Hebrews, chapter 12. So if you have a Bible or a phone or a tablet, if you’re at home watching this on video, Hebrews chapter 12, verses 1 through 2 is where we’ll be focusing our attention.

Now as you turn there, you’ll notice this, of course, is a very famous passage. Arguably the most famous passage in the book of Hebrews, and certainly one of the most famous passages in the New Testament. Every time I pick a famous passage, I probably think to myself, well, maybe I shouldn’t pick a famous passage because it’s hard to live up to a famous passage. But this is so rich, so deep today, it’s fitting for this theme of perseverance before us.

So let’s listen to what God has to say to us today. Hebrews, chapter 12, verses 1 through 2.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin which clings so closely and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Amen. Let’s ask God now to bless the reading and the preaching of His Word. Let’s pray.

Lord, we hear that passage today and we confess right out of the gate, Lord, that we are often not very good runners. And Lord, we also confess that there’s many times in our lives, maybe even today, when we’ve thought about stopping. But Lord, we praise you that this passage is not so much ...