Difference between revisions of "Sermon for February 1st, 2026"

Latest revision as of 21:57, 31 January 2026

John 15:1-19

15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my lambs.’ 16 A second time he said to him, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend my sheep.’ 17 He said to him the third time, ‘Simon son of John, do you love me?’ Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, ‘Do you love me?’ And he said to him, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Feed my sheep. 18 Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go.’ 19 (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, ‘Follow me.’

Hebrews 12:1-3

1Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart.

Faith & Film XIV - F1

• Film Clip #1 - Trailer

Three Minute Film Summary

Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt) is a Formula One racing prodigy whose brief career ended in a terrifying crash in 1990s. Thirty years later, Sonny is still racing, but only as a drifter-for-hire—living out of a van, bouncing from event to event, determined never to get close to anyone or anything that can break him again.

Sonny is approached by his old friend and former teammate Rubén (Javier Bardem), who is now the owner of a struggling Formula One team called ApexGP. Rubén is in a bind: the investors will force a sale unless Apex can win a race before the season ends. Rubén wants Sonny to come back to Formula One for one last run—to save the team, and because Sonny still has unfinished business.

When Sonny arrives on the scene, he meets Kate McKenna (Kerry Condon), the technical director responsible for the car, and Joshua "JP" Pearce (Damson Idris), the team’s young, immensely talented rookie. Joshua sees Sonny as a washed-up relic. Sonny sees JP as reckless and arrogant. Their relationship begins with suspicion, competition, and an unwillingness to trust each other on the track. Sonny pushes the team toward a more aggressive approach, insists on changes to the car, and repeatedly tests the limits of what the sport will allow. Sometimes it works—Apex starts scoring points and building momentum. Sometimes it creates blowback in the garage and deepens the tension between the two drivers.

Midway through the season, JP has a catastrophic crash in heavy rain after attempting an overtake at the worst possible moment. Sonny—instinctively and without hesitation—abandons the race to pull JP from the burning car. JP survives but is sidelined for several races, and Sonny is left to keep the team afloat.

When JP returns, the relationship boils over. A collision between them demolishes both cars and threatens to fracture the team for good. With time running out, Kate proposes an unusual way to settle the team’s hierarchy: a poker game, with the winner named the lead driver. Joshua wins—unaware that Sonny deliberately folded the winning hand.

Just as the team begins to pull together, sabotage intervenes. Kate is falsely accused of making of illegal upgrades to Apex's cars. The racing authorities order Apex to strip the upgrades, and Sonny—frustrated, furious, and shaken—crashes in Las Vegas, landing himself in the hospital. Rubén learns the full extent of Sonny’s old injuries and fires him for his own safety.

The climax of the film takes place at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, where Sonny convinces Rubén to let him drive one last time. The racing authorities clear Kate, the upgrades return, and Apex has its final shot. In an exhilarating race that features unconventional strategy, literal twists and turns, and a whole lot of luck—Sonny crosses the line first, earning his first Formula One victory and saving the team from being sold. In the closing moments of the film, JP turns down a glamorous offer from another team and stays on to lead Apex, while Sonny leaves to take up baja racing in Mexico.

Lay Aside Every Weight

Sonny has been carrying around the weight of his failures for 30 years, while his teammate JP carries a big chip on his shoulder. Here's a clip of both of them at their worst:

• Film Clip #2 - Swan

Swans, for what it's worth are a symbol of grace and beauty in literature (on the race track), but are known to be aggressive and territorial in reality (behind closed doors).

Both Sonny and JP come across as arrogant and self-absorbed, and their bad behavior keeps them (and their team) from succeeding. It's only when other characters force them to recognize and acknowledge (or confess) their "sins" that they are able to let go of their burdens and find redemption. This theme should sound familiar--it showed up in last week's movie, too.

Today's scripture reading from Hebrews describes this as a three-part process:

"Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses" (that's community, the friends, family and team members who call us into account),

"let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely" (that's acknowledgment of our self-defeating behaviors, confessing them and genuinely repenting of them),

"and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us," (that's a reminder that even when we are forgiven, we still need to work at it).

The Race Set Before Us

The passage from Hebrews goes on to speak of Jesus as the ultimate role model, the "pioneer and perfecter of our faith" who endured pain, hostility and shame "for the sake of the joy (the finish line, the prize, the trophy, the end goal) that was set before him" so that as our example, we "may not grow weary or lose heart."

This is what Godly racing (or Godly competitiveness in any vocation) looks like. In the film, Sonny and JP learn to look up to each other, to learn from each other, and work with each other. Jesus may not have explicitly been their role model, but I would say that whenever we model goodness and kindness and generosity of spirit, we are in fact reflecting Jesus, intentionally or otherwise. Being a Godly competitor doesn't mean losing sight of the prize, but it does mean we pursue it with both grit and grace, with fierceness and joy, with passion and perseverance. And following the example of Christ, we move from being self-focused to other-focused (as both of the main characters do in the film). That's how you win the race.

But When You Grow Old

A big part of the story line in this film is the age gap between JP and Sonny, the mentorship that develops between them, and the idea of passing the torch to a new generation. There are many examples of this kind of mentorship in the Bible--think Moses and Joshua, Elijah and Elisha, Paul and Timothy, or... Jesus and Peter. Our scripture passage from the gospel of John takes place right after Jesus' greatest triumph (his resurrection from the dead), but also after Peter's biggest failure--just a few days earlier, he had denied and betrayed Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.

Standing now in the presence of his risen Lord, Peter probably felt the full weight of that shame, that failure. But Jesus gives him a second chance, and asks him three times "Do you love me, Peter?" and cleverly allows Peter to undo his three denials of Jesus with three affirmations of love. Then Jesus gives Peter a new commission--if you love me, Peter, then feed my sheep. Take care of the team. In doing this, Jesus simultaneously forgives Peter, redirects his focus from himself to others, and marks him not as a failure, but as a leader.

And then he gives a little bit of intergenerational advice: When you were younger, he says, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go. Growing older and wiser is recognizing that, as someone tells Sonny in the film, "No one drives forever. Not even you." When you are young, you do whatever you want. But when you are older, when you are responsible for others, you do things you don't want to do, things you have to do for the good of the team. You lead, you teach, you pass the torch to a new generation.

It's All in the Cards

If you pay attention, you'll notice a recurring theme in the film: Cards. Sonny's father was a gambler, and at one point he says that he himself was his father's biggest gamble. Sonny carries with him a deck of cards wherever he goes. He likes to toss cards at a target to pass the time. He puts a random card in his pocket at the beginning of every race. A lot of film critics have pointed to the cards as a racer's superstition. Some have suggested they symbolize the random chance that is part of high-stakes racing, where every risk is a gamble, and could be your last one. This is the view from Ecclesiastes 9: "The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong. . . but time and chance happen to them all."

While there is some truth to this interpretation, I think there's more to it. I'm going to show you three very short clips that (pardon the pun) put Sonny's cards on the table.

• Film Clip #3 - Sonny Prays

Whenever Sonny gets into his race car, he pauses, takes a knee, and bows his head in prayer.

• Film Clip #4 - Hail Mary

Sonny corrects a board member on the origins of the phrase "Hail Mary."

• Film Clip #5 - Seven of Spades

The emblem on Sonny's helmet, and on the shoulder of his uniform is the seven of spades. Seven is the biblical number that represents God, and the spade points upward to the heavens. I think Sonny, as a card-enthusiast, is well aware of the random chance inherent in his sport--but he also knows who is in control of his fate. His emblem, the seven of spades, points to God, the one who really holds all the cards. Proverbs 16:33 says that the dice are cast into the lap, but the decision is the Lord's alone.

In the final race of the film, Sonny is out of tricks--his race has run it's course, he's behind, and there is nothing more he can do to win. He needs that "Hail Mary." Watch what happens next:

• Film Clip #6 - Miracle
• Film Clip #7 - Sonny Thing

Sometimes when you lose, you win. That's not just a "Sonny thing," it's a "Son of God thing." Jesus is the one who said that the first will be last and the last will be first in the kingdom of God.

Our task is to work hard, train hard, do everything that we can in every race... but ultimately we put our fate in God's hands, and trust him to do what he does best. It might be a win. It also might be a loss (Sonny endures plenty of those in the film, too). The beautiful thing is that either way, for those who love God and are called according to his purpose, (in the words of Romans 8:28), God orchestrates all things toward our greater good.