Why do we keep losing a race we actually want to win? 92% of New Year's resolutions fail by Valentine's Day—and it's not because we're lazy. It's because we're lost.
In this first message of our "Run the Race" series, we dig into Romans 7-8 and Hebrews 12 to uncover the real reason our goals, habits, and resolutions keep falling apart. The answer isn't a better system. It's a person. And it starts with one question: Who's running?
đź“– Key Scriptures: Romans 7:15-25, Romans 8:1-15, Hebrews 12:1-2, Galatians 6:9, Daniel 6
‍
Running Hard, Going Nowhere | Sermon Notes
Sermon Notes
We're busy, tired, and moving—but can't answer "What are you running toward?"
Paul describes an ongoing loop—not a stumble, but a pattern. In verses 15, 18, and 19, he uses the phrase "I keep on doing," revealing something deeper than occasional failure. There are two versions of us at war: the one who delights in God's law versus "another law waging war" (vv. 22–23). Even believers who love God can't get it right on their own strength.
Romans 7:24 (NIV) "What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?"
Key Question: Not "What's the right program?" but "WHO can rescue me?"
Romans 7:25 (NIV) "Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!"
The answer isn't a better strategy—it's a Person. Notice that "delivers" is present tense: God keeps delivering daily. The gospel isn't just how you start the Christian life; it's how you live it every day.
Romans 8:1 (NIV) "Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."
Romans 8:15 (NIV) "The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, 'Abba, Father.'"
You're not a slave earning your place—you're a child who already has one.
Stop living like an orphan. You have a Father.
Obey → then be accepted
You're accepted → now obey
You're not who you used to be, but not yet who you're going to be—and that's okay. The goal isn't to earn a new identity; it's to live from the one already given.
You don't run TO earn an identity. You run FROM one.
Hebrews 12:1–2 (NIV) "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, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
The Order Matters: Hebrews 11 (identity/belonging) comes before Hebrews 12 (running).
Fix your eyes on Jesus—you have been crucified with Christ! Focus not on your track record, failures, or others. He's the champion who already won.
"The Christian life is not our living a life like Christ, or our trying to be Christ-like, nor is it Christ giving us the power to live a life like His; it is Christ Himself living His own life through us; 'no longer I, but Christ liveth in me.'"
— John Stott, The Message of Galatians
"Your struggle with sin is not an identity crisis. It's a grace crisis. When you forget who you are in Christ, you'll try to do yourself what only grace can accomplish. Romans 7 is the cry of someone who needs rescue, not more willpower. Stop letting yesterday's failure define today's identity. You are God's child—not because you ran well, but because Jesus ran to you."
— Paul David Tripp, New Morning Mercies
"The Christian life begins and continues by looking away from ourselves to Christ's finished work. Romans 8:1 dismantles the performance treadmill. You're not running to earn God's favor; you're running because you already possess it. Every spiritual discipline becomes worship rather than a desperate attempt to gain approval. When failure comes, you don't collapse under condemnation but run to the cross where your acceptance was eternally secured."
— John Piper, Future Grace
"'Christ lives in me' is Christianity's revolutionary manifesto. Your entire existence is now about expressing His life through your unique personality. This transforms how we approach habits: Bible reading isn't a duty but encountering your Bridegroom; prayer isn't ritual but breathing in His presence; repentance isn't groveling but running home to your Father."
— J.I. Packer, Knowing God
"Hebrews 12 describes resurrection life in motion. You run not to achieve new creation but because Easter's power already pulses within you. Fixing your eyes on Jesus means seeing the finish line already crossed. When weariness comes, remember: you're channeling the same power that rolled away the stone."
— N.T. Wright, Surprised by Hope
"God's race for you has custom mileage and terrain. The weights we carry often include others' expectations—good things that aren't your things. Throw off everything that hinders your specific race, even if it's celebrated in someone else's journey. Your cross won't look like your neighbor's because your assignment is uniquely yours."
— Elisabeth Elliot, Keep a Quiet Heart
"Cheap grace demands nothing. Costly grace demands everything—yet gives infinitely more. It calls you to run while assuring you the race is already won. When you fall, it doesn't excuse sin but lifts you with the promise: 'You are mine.' Your discipline is the daily working out of what Christ has already worked in."
— Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship
"What comes into our minds when we think about God is most important. But infinitely more crucial is what comes into God's mind when He thinks of you: redeemed, beloved, clothed in Christ. When Romans 7's struggle overwhelms you, preach Romans 8:1 to your heart. Condemnation can't touch you because the Judge became your Substitute."
— A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy
"The race is not a sprint but a marathon. The 'sin which so easily entangles' is not just moral failure but the subtle unbelief that makes us doubt God's promises. We fix our eyes not on the finish line but on Jesus Himself."
— R. Kent Hughes
‍
