A Great Cloud of Witnesses

Hebrews 12:1 is sometimes understood to mean that those who have already died are in the celestial world looking down upon earth, paying close attention to the way those still alive are living their lives. While such an interpretation is nothing akin to heresy, there is another way one might interpret the text.

After sharing a lengthy list of departed saints in chapter 11 who lived "by faith," the author then writes: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." It seems more likely to me that those still alive who have not yet completed the race are looking to those who have completed the race successfully in order to find inspiration and hope so they will endure. Therefore, those alive look to those dead and find encouragement to "run with perseverance" in order to finish the race.

Would you like to spend eternity with someone who died as a faithful believer? If so, the call for us is to look to those departed saints and consider how they lived. And ultimately, we "fix our eyes on Jesus...who endured...so that you will not grow weary and lose heart" (Heb. 12:2-3).

Think about it. Grandparents and parents, children and grandchildren, aunts and uncles, husbands and wives, friends and neighbors have run the course of faith and endured. Consequently, they are in the celestial realms as those who successfully and faithfully overcame Satan through victory that comes through Jesus. As we remember their lives we also remember how much we admire them, how much we'd like to be with them again. And we find reason to push forward.

Who has departed physical life that meant a lot to you? Who endured faithfully that you'd like to be with again? Why are these people important to you? Share a story with us of someone you love and admire who has finished the race and now you look to them for inspiration.

--Terrell