Abraham: (Re) Born to run
God’s People on Mission
Abraham: (Re)Born to run
A few years ago, I decided to take up running. And while Ros has been nothing short of supportive and encouraging, she doesn’t mind giving me a friendly poke in the ribs from time to time. Like when she shares a quote with me, particularly in the presence of our friends. She reminds me that:
The wicked run when no one is chasing them. (Proverbs 28:1a)
That’s a fair proverb, and at times it has left me speechless. But it turns out that there is ample evidence in the Bible, that if we want to be people who are ready for God to move and work in our lives for His glory, then we should be ready and prepared to run.
Possibly the most famous foot race in Scripture was between the two disciples, Peter and John. They had received the report that Jesus had risen from the grave, and ran to find the empty tomb. (For the record, John took the honours, and records it in his Gospel, though he removes his name possibly at an attempt at humility 😉)
But my greatest inspiration is from Abraham. And remember, at the point in his life that this happens, he is now in his late 90’s. We read:
So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground (Genesis 18:2)
This is in the heat of the day no less. And that isn’t the end of his efforts, after hurrying to the tent to instruct Sarah to prepare food (and if you look carefully, you can see that what Sarah prepared was a regular part of the sacrificial offerings as instructed in Exodus and Leviticus.) Abraham then runs again:
And Abraham ran to the herd, took a tender and good calf, gave it to a young man, and he hastened to prepare it. (Genesis 18:7)
The Lord had come to his place, and for Abraham that was reason to run. For Peter and John, The Lord had risen, or so they had been told, so the only appropriate response for them was great haste. It makes me wonder at what the rest of the disciples were up to.
Contrast their response with the religious leaders in Jerusalem, when the Magi arrived telling of the birth of the Messiah, they were happy to give instruction as to what the Scriptures said but didn’t move themselves to explore the possibility that the One they had waited centuries for, had finally arrived.
When it comes to meeting our Lord – the most appropriate reaction is to run. Run to worship Him, run to serve Him, run to Obey Him. As I consider how we apply this instruction to our lives I wonder what our response should be. Let me make a couple of suggestions:
Firstly, I’m not going to encourage you to join me in my training, you can enjoy your Saturday morning sleep-ins if that is what you are accustomed to. But the first thing that comes to mind for me relates to spending time with the Lord. That we prioritise times in prayer, in personal study in His Word, and in meeting together with our Church family to build up and encourage one another. These are all clear instructions from our Lord, and we do well when we hasten to obey.
A second instruction I’d bring relates to the times we are living in. All believers are told to be watching and anticipating the Lord’s return. We are commanded:
“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.” (Matthew 25:13)
You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. (1 Thessalonians 5:5-6)
These are days of great encouragement and expectation for believers, days when we are told to be looking up and eagerly awaiting our redemption. None of this requires great physical effort and long hours of training, just keeping our minds on the things of God, and being obedient to Him above all else.
One final running scripture to encourage you. This is my favourite and it reminds us from where we draw our strength as we continue the race we are on, and enabling us to finish well:
But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
They will walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)
