When we were in Paris and the rest of France, we were able to see the Louvre, other museums, art galleries, and many famous works of Art. We saw the Mona Lisa and other great oil paintings. One thing that struck me as I looked upon the original works of art of which I have seen reproductions dozens or even hundreds of times before in my life, is that the reproductions are never as good as the original. They can be like the cloud of witnesses in our text but they are not anywhere near the value and power of the original! A picture of a painting is not the painting itself: not nearly as vibrant and alive!
This reminds
me of our faith and a temptation for some Christians who maybe even grew up in
the churches. I have met some people – even in seminary - who hadn’t ever
read through their entire Bible even once! There are people who identify as
Christians who look to or through others instead of to God directly for their
faith. They rely on preachers, teachers, parents, authors, musicians, friends,
anyone, instead of relying directly on God.
These are the
folks who we hear about who may even ‘lose their faith’ when they go to
seminary or when they are challenged in any other way by someone who has a
different interpretation or faith perspective than their own. These are the
folks who can’t defend their faith because they don’t know their faith – people
who have only seen reproductions of God or commentaries on His Word – and may
never have even met Him or if they did, then they seemingly prefer to read
about Him instead of spending time with Him.
When we read
Christian authors but don’t study the Bible; when we listen to podcasts,
preachers, teachers, and our friends but not to God we only see a reflection of
the truth, a reproduction, a copy… and a copy is not worth nearly as much as
the original. No one is going to try to steal a postcard of the Mona Lisa and
sell it to a museum for millions of dollars! No one is going to hang a
photocopy of Monet’s Waterlilies in the Louvre.
Likewise we
shouldn’t just rely on other people’s copies for our faith in God – especially
when the original Jesus Christ –who is the author and perfecter of our faith -
and the very living Word of God is right here for us to experience anytime we
like.
Hebrew 12:1-2a 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…
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