Eyes On the Prize // The Verse After the Verse

It’s not a stretch to say that some Bible verses loom larger than others. They’re the ones we have hanging on our walls or tattooed on our arms. They’re the verses of Scripture that we love, we memorize, we cling to. But have you ever stopped to consider: “What about the verse after the verse?” I mean, there’s Scripture that immediately follows all of our favorite, most well-known verses. And in many cases, the verse after the verse grants us a deeper understanding of the context and meaning of these well-known passages, and how they apply to our lives. It’s time we stop settling for a sliver of Scripture, and open our minds and spirits to the fullness of God’s message to us through his Word.

God likens living out our faith to the running of a race—a metaphor that overflows with connections to the Christian life. We see this analogy at play in Hebrews 12:1, but the analogy doesn't stop there. Every athlete knows that to win a race, you need a winning training regimen. And in the verse after the verse, that’s exactly what God gives to us.