Lay Aside Every Encumbrance And Sin

by Chris Simmons

When reflecting on the great examples of faith in Hebrews chapter 11, the writer brings us to a conclusion in the first verses of Hebrews chapter 12 when he says, “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” We are taught here that not only things sinful but those things which may not be inherently sinful but which simply hold us back and slow us down in our service to God must be laid aside. Paul addressed this point several times in his epistles where he teaches that Christians are to “lay aside the old self” (Ephesians 4:22; cf. verses 25 and 31; Colossians 3:8-9) and to “put on the new self” (Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10). There is an urgency to this laying aside which is not to be put off for a more convenient time.

There is a story in the Old Testament which helps to illustrate this point. We read in Genesis chapter 27 how that Jacob deceived his father and stole the birthright that belonged to his brother Esau. Due to Esau’s anger, Jacob fled and went to his mother’s brother Laban in Haran. On his way there, Jacob had a dream (Genesis 28:12-15) in which God repeated the promises originally made to Abraham and Isaac that “the land on which you lie, I will give it to you and to your descendants. Your descendants will also be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and in you and in your descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” When Jacob awoke, he made a vow to the God (verses 20-22) that “If God will be with me and will keep me on this journey that I take, and will give me food to eat and garments to wear, and I return to my father’s house in safety, then the Lord will be my God. This stone, which I have set up as a pillar, will be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.” He then made his way to Haran and there spent over 14 years in service to Laban in order to marry Rachel (and Leah). The Lord blessed Jacob richly (30:43) and he eventually leaves Haran to return back to his father’s house and his brother Esau. Initially Jacob was “greatly afraid and distressed” (32:7) about his reunion with Esau but when they eventually met, Jacob finds favor before Esau (33:1-17) and eventually settles in the city of Shechem in the land of Canaan.

When we get to Genesis chapter 35 God appears again to Jacob and says, “Arise, go up to Bethel and live there, and make an altar there to God, who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.” Jacob responds by saying “to his household and to all who were with him, ‘Put away the foreign gods which are among you, and purify yourselves and change your garments; and let us arise and go up to Bethel, and I will make an altar there to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone.’” It’s very interesting to note that scholars and commentators (Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary) estimate that by this time it has been 8 to 10 years since Jacob had returned to the land of Canaan and now perhaps at least 25 years since he had made his vow to the Lord that if God should bless him by returning to his father’s house in safety that the “Lord will be my God.” Jacob’s vow was one which would have to preclude any idolatry and any devotion or reverence to any other man-made god. Yet within his household such “foreign gods” remained and Jacob recognized the need for him and his household to put them away, to purify themselves, and go to worship the one true God. Why had Jacob failed to remember his promise he made to God? Why was the Lord not Jacob’s only God?

God had blessed Jacob not only while he was away but also since his return. Life was good and prosperity abounded. Is it not true that the enjoyment of great blessings can prove to be a significant challenge towards maintaining our faith and devotion to God? God warned the Israelites before they entered the land of this very threat (Deuteronomy 6:10-15; 8:11-20) to not only forget God but perhaps forget the promises and commitment they had made to him. How frequently does it happen today that commitments made to God in times of trials and tribulations (such as Jacob fleeing for his life from his brother Esau) are either forgotten, or if remembered, lose their fervor or priority in our lives and our sense of duty wanes? In a critical time in Jacob’s life, he committed himself to God and that the Lord would be his only God, but now over 25 years later, God found his vow unfulfilled. Jacob should have never allowed the foreign gods into his household (Genesis 31:19) but the blessings of God in bringing him back home should have inspired him to recommit to his vow and rid his household of the idolatry right away.

This is why we are exhorted in God’s word to remember our “first love” to God and never let it grow cold (Revelation 2:4) and why we’re to continually grow in our spiritual life and never forget our “purification from our former sins” (II Peter 2:10). We are called upon to remember the need to “pay what you vow” and fulfill our commitment to serve God all the days of our lives (Ecclesiastes 5:4-5). We’re to remember what we were apart from Christ and how that apart from Him we had no hope (Ephesians 2:12).

God reminded Jacob of his neglected duty and Jacob responded by arising and making the altar in Bethel as God directed him to remember his God “who answered me in the day of my distress and has been with me wherever I have gone” (35:3). Will we heed God’s reminder of our duty to Him to “lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light” (Romans 13:12) as God exhorts us through His word before it’s too late?