But what is a paraclete? This has challenged translators for some time. Many preachers point out that the Greek word is a sort of compound word meaning "called beside." And so a paraclete is someone who is called to be beside someone else, as Jesus and the Holy Spirit were called by the Father to be beside us. The translations range from Helper, Advocate, Comforter, Counselor, Paraclete, Encourager, and more I assume in the decades to come. But it seems that no word has fit just right.
I propose a meaning from the marathon running world, especially for those who have run or cheered on those who run marathons.
I have run five marathons and every single one was very hard, even though I ran cross country and track in college. I always wanted to qualify for the Boston Marathon but have not done that yet. I want to share with you one of the people in my life who was a paraclete to me, in that she was called to be beside me, to encourage me, comfort me, and exhort me to the finish line. I was on pace to qualify for Boston, and then in the last few miles of a marathon the human body starts to tell the human why the first man who ran a marathon to tell of the war died on the spot. The body weakens. The mind weakens. All those glorious thoughts of qualifying or even finishing are replaced by thoughts of quitting. You begin not to care at all about that finish line. Now all determination has turned into determination to quit.
Then the paracletes come in. These are the people who will do anything they have to do to make sure you get to the finish line. They will encourage you, tell you to keep going, tell you you are almost there, and they will even run with you.
My wife was there at 24 miles, right when I almost collapsed to the ground. I held onto her as the charlie horse overtook all my strength. She let me lean onto her. After some time she walked with me, and then she began to run with me for the last two miles, even though she was in jeans. She was called to be beside me.
How crucial was my wife to me finishing that marathon? Only a marathon runner can truly know, but I know that it was the only way I was going to finish.
A paraclete is a person who not only encourages their mom, dad, brother, sister, husband, wife, son, or daughter in the months and months of training, but also sets aside whole weekends for the sole purpose of coming alongside another person to encourage them to the finish line, to cheer them on, to tell them to keep going. A marathon is 26.2 miles. I have often told people that the first 26 miles are easy, its that last point 2 that is so so hard. That is why all of the paracletes cheer on their runners at the last point 2 of the marathon.
A marathon paraclete, a person who cheers on their runner that last point 2 of the marathon, is a rare person.
A life paraclete, a person who cheers on another person to keep going, "you're looking good" (when you look awful), who runs with you in jeans, who says, "there's the finish line," is a rare person.
How many people in your life have told you to keep going when you wanted to quit? How many people have told you to keep pressing on to the finish line, the prize of Jesus Christ? Not very many. Few are the paracletes of the world, gifts from the Father, full of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, who would be called beside another.
The Evil One, not the Bin Ladens or McVeighs. but Satan, the Devil - he is threatened by these paracletes. Those paracletes cheering on the side of the road are the kingdom of heaven come down to earth. So it is no wonder to me why Satan, who steals, kills, and destroys, would want to take out the people cheering at Boston, paracletes for their runners. He also wants to take out paracletes who are called beside us to encourage us toward Christ, to tell us to keep running.
But he has only an empty power, for Christ killed death, and so those paracletes in Christ still encourage us along with the whole cloud of witnesses, knowing that their cheering is not in vain, no but is shows even more how important it is for people to take their place, to be called beside people, to be a Jesus Christ person, a Holy Spirit person, a paraclete.
May Satan feel threatened by how we encourage one another today all over the world as the Body of Christ. And may our Father in heaven continue to remind us that all Satan's attacks are spoiled, and that he only has an empty power.
What encouraging word will you say to those who are running by in your life today?
No comments:
Post a Comment