来十二1　　…我们既有这许多的见证人，如同云彩围着我们，就当脱去各样的重担，和容易缠累我们的罪，凭着忍耐奔那摆在我们前头的赛程。

　　林前九24　　…在场上赛跑的都跑，…你们应当这样跑，好叫你们得着奖赏。

　　帖后三5　　愿主修直你们心中的途径，引导你们的心，进入神的爱以爱神，并进入基督的忍耐以忍耐。

　　基督徒的一生就是一个赛程，每一个得救的基督徒都必须奔跑这赛程，好赢得奖赏（林前九24）。这奖赏不是指一般的救恩（弗二8，林前三15），乃是指特别的赏赐（来十35，林前三14）。使徒保罗已经跑完这赛程，赢得了奖赏；他几乎是唯一把基督徒生活比作赛跑的人。在希伯来书里，他嘱咐希伯来的信徒要奔跑赛程；他说，要“凭着忍耐奔那摆在我们前头的赛程”（十二1）（希伯来书生命读经，六七○页）。

　　Heb. 12:1 …Let us also…put away every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us and run with endurance the race which is set before us.

　　1 Cor. 9:24 …Those who run on a racecourse all run… Run in this way, that you may lay hold.

　　2 Thes. 3:5 And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God and into the endurance of Christ.

　　The Christian life is a race. Every saved Christian must run the race to win the prize (1 Cor. 9:24). This prize is not salvation in a common sense (Eph. 2:8; 1 Cor. 3:15), but a reward in a special sense (Heb. 10:35; 1 Cor. 3:14). The apostle Paul, who has run the race and won the prize, was nearly the only one who likened the Christian life to a race. In the book of Hebrews he charged the Hebrew believers to run the race, saying, “run with endurance the race which is set before us” (12:1). (Life-study of Hebrews, p. 559)

　　这赛程…不…是得完全或得荣耀，因为那是赛程的目标。也不能说赛程是生命之律内里的运行，因为那是赛程的过程。赛程甚至也不是丧失魂，因为那是奔跑赛程的途径，而不是赛程本身。…主在约翰十四章六节…说…，“我就是道路。”赛程就是道路、行程。因为基督是道路，所以祂也是赛程。我们所奔跑的赛程乃是基督。…在宇宙中，神预备了一条独一的路，是我们必须行走的。…基督显现之前，神用预表来表征基督是神的道路；最显著的预表，就是帐幕。…帐幕…中有一条道路，从祭坛开始，经过洗濯盆、陈设饼的桌子、灯台、香坛，把我们带进约柜，就是生命之律所在之处。帐幕里的道路，就是基督是我们独一道路的图画。…保罗在希伯来六章告诉我们要逃跑〔18〕。我们必须逃离一切事物，而进入至圣所，就是我们的先锋耶稣基督所进入的幔内。这也是奔跑赛程的意思。

　　〔在〕十二章一节，…重担，也可译为重量，负担，障碍。赛跑的人脱去各样不必要的重量，各样缠累人的重担，使他们没有障碍，以赢得竞赛。请注意，保罗在这里是说“我们”，而不是说“你们”，他将自己也包括在这件事之内。…“容易缠累我们的罪”〔1〕…主要的是指缠累我们，使我们不能奔跑赛程的事，正如十章二十六节所说的故意犯罪，会使希伯来的信徒离开神经纶中新约的路一样。重担和缠累人的罪，都会阻挠并限制希伯来的信徒，使他们不能在新约的路上，跟从被犹太教所弃绝的耶稣，奔跑那属天的赛程。…十二章一节所提的罪，是很独特的，因为在原文里保罗在此加了指定冠词，而称之为“那罪”。这独一的、缠累人的罪，乃是故意犯的罪，指停止与圣徒们的聚集，放弃新约的路，以及回到犹太教去。

　　在这赛程中，会有很大的反对。因此，我们必须凭着忍耐奔跑这赛程（十二1）。这意思是说，我们要奔跑基督的赛程，就必须凭着忍耐忍受反对，绝不可疲倦灰心（希伯来书生命读经，六七○至六七一、六七五至六七七页）。

　　主引导我们的心〔帖后三5〕，是借着那灵的引领；神的爱已经借着那灵浇灌在我们心里（罗八14，五5）。帖后三章五节里神的爱，是我们对神的爱，乃是出自那已经浇灌在我们心里之神的爱（约壹四19）。在积极一面，我们需要享受神的爱，使我们爱祂，为祂活着；在消极一面，我们需要有分于基督的忍耐，使我们像祂一样忍受苦难，抵挡神的仇敌撒但（帖撒罗尼迦后书生命读经，四七页）。参读：希伯来书生命读经，第五十篇。

　　The race [is] not perfection or glorification, for that is the goal of the race. Neither is the race the inward working of the law of life, for that is the process of the race. The race is not even the losing of the soul, because that is the way to run the race; it is not the race itself… The Lord… in John 14:6 [said], “I am the way.” A race is a way, a course. Because Christ is the way, He is also the race. The race we are running is Christ. In the universe God has prepared the unique way which we must take… Before Christ was manifested, God used types to signify this matter of Christ as God’s way, the most striking of which was the tabernacle… [In] the tabernacle there is a way, starting from the altar; passing through the laver, the show-bread table, the lampstand, and the incense altar; and ushering us into the Ark, the place where the law of life is. The way in the tabernacle is a picture of Christ as our unique way. In Hebrews 6 Paul told us to flee [v. 18]. We must flee everything into the Holy of Holies where our Forerunner, Jesus Christ, has entered within the veil. This is what it means to run the race.

　　[In] Hebrews 12:1… encumbrance may also be rendered “weight,” “burden,” “impediment.” The runners in a race must strip off every unnecessary weight, every encumbering burden, that they might have no impediment to winning the race. Notice that here Paul says “us,” not “you,” including himself in this matter. “The sin which so easily entangles us” [v. 1]… refers mainly to the thing which entangles us from running the race, just as the willful sin mentioned in 10:26 would keep the Hebrew believers away from the new covenant way in God’s economy. Both the encumbering weight and the entangling sin would frustrate the Hebrew believers and restrain them from running the heavenly race in the new covenant way of following the Jesus who was rejected by Judaism… The sin mentioned in 12:1 is particular and unique, for Paul uses the definite article, saying, “the sin.” This unique, entangling sin was the willful sin of forsaking the assembling together with the saints, of giving up the new covenant way, and of going back to Judaism.

　　There is much opposition to this race. Thus, we must run it with endurance (12:1). This means that in order to run the race of Christ, we must suffer the opposition with endurance, never growing weary or fainting in our souls. (Life-study of Hebrews, pp. 559-560, 563-564)

　　The Lord directs our hearts [2 Thes. 3:5] by the leading of the Spirit, through whom the love of God has been poured out into our hearts (Rom. 8:14; 5:5). The love of God in 2 Thessalonians 3:5 is our love toward God that issues from the love of God (1 John 4:19) that has been poured out into our hearts. On the positive side, we need to enjoy the love of God so that we may love Him in order to live for Him. On the negative side, we need to participate in the endurance of Christ so that we may endure the sufferings as He did to stand against Satan, the enemy of God. (Life-study of 2 Thessalonians, p. 37)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Hebrews, msg. 50