Hall of Faith (Part 4)

Introduction

How do we judge if something or someone is faithful? If you look up the word faithful in the dictionary, you’ll get something along the lines of “trustworthy” or “reliable” or “true to their promises” or something similar. We could say that the reason that we know that something or someone is faithful is because when all is said and done, we can look back and see that they came through and did what they promised to do. Whenever our car gets us from point A to point B, we are correct whenever we say that our car was faithful to do its job. We can reasonably expect it to do the same next time because its been faithful before. Sometimes, though, accidents happen. Cars break down. People don’t show up. The bottom drops out. Something that once looked faithful suddenly isn’t. This is how some people view the God of the Bible to be at times. They’ll read stories in the Bible of how God delivered people and rescued people and they’ll hear people say that God is faithful! Then the person listening in will assume that the reason that God is faithful is because God delivered this other person and rescued them from harm. They’ll then assume that they can expect God to do the same in their own life regardless of their problem because, after all, God is faithful. Now, we believe wholeheartedly that God is faithful, don’t we?

But how do we define God’s faithfulness? Some define it as being blessed, healed, delivered, or avoiding a tragedy in this life - that is the proof that God is faithful. There has been a massive rise in “deliverance ministries” in recent days who will tell you that if you have enough faith and shout loud enough, you can get God to essentially become your genie in a lamp and tell Him what you want Him to do. Back in March of 2020, whenever COVID-19 was starting to really spread throughout our country, there was a speaker named Kenneth Copeland (whose net worth is upwards of $750 million) who pronounced COVID powerless and defeated because Jesus Christ bore all of our sin and sickness on the cross. He argued that if you’re a Christian, you have the power to rebuke this virus and you’ll be protected because Christ is like a shield around you. To add some effect, he even blew “the wind of God” upon COVID and declared it gone and void. Why do people believe nonsense like this? Because so many inside and outside the walls of the local church don’t understand what it means that God is faithful.

So many believe wrongly that because God is faithful then they’ll never go through adversity, suffering, or tragedy in their life. The idea of suffering seems like something we all want to avoid, so of course we want God to take it away from our lives… but as we’ve been studying in Hebrews 11 the last few weeks we’ve been reminded over and over and over that the God of the Bible is not only faithful, but that He has a perfect plan for our lives. We’ve seen many faithful people who suffered mightily for the Kingdom of God - they didn’t suffer due to a lack of faith, they suffered because of their mountain of faith and their refusal to bend the knee to a secular culture. So it is in our lives today… God is faithful, to His promises… and as we’ll see today, God doesn’t promise His followers an easy, sickness free and persecution less life. Instead, He offers something infinitely better than happiness, healthiness, and wealthiness (?). As Corrie Ten Boom shared years ago, “In God’s faithfulness lies eternal security.”

Let’s continue walking through Hebrews 11 and see the security found in having faith in a faithful God, regardless of how we feel in the present.

Hebrews 11:32–40 CSB

32 And what more can I say? Time is too short for me to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets, 33 who by faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the raging of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, gained strength in weakness, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight. 35 Women received their dead, raised to life again. Other people were tortured, not accepting release, so that they might gain a better resurrection. 36 Others experienced mockings and scourgings, as well as bonds and imprisonment. 37 They were stoned, they were sawed in two, they died by the sword, they wandered about in sheepskins, in goatskins, destitute, afflicted, and mistreated. 38 The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and on mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground. 39 All these were approved through their faith, but they did not receive what was promised, 40 since God had provided something better for us, so that they would not be made perfect without us.

We see in this passage that God can and does deliver His people miraculously. God does not always do this. A certain level of faith is not the ultimate deciding factor in God’s action… It’s not as though the people who were delivered were super Christians and those who were not suffered because they lacked enough faith. What we’re reminded of in our text is simply that sometimes God helps us to escape temporary suffering while other times He helps us endure through temporary suffering… But in all times, He is faithful to His children and calls on us to trust in His plan and obey His Word. Let’s pray

Biblical Faith Can Lead One to Escape Suffering (32-35a)

We arrive at the end of the Hall of Faith with even more examples of the wonderful truth that faith in God leads to action for God. We see how faith in God leads to God’s people doing amazing things through God’s power and for God’s glory. The preacher of Hebrews shares with us a very true and a very real aspect of faith in God as faith in God, trusting in God, can and does lead to deliverance. To further this point, he lists Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets but says that time is too short to tell about each person and how they walked by faith and trusted in their faithful God. Maybe you’re here and you’re hoping that time will be too short for us as well to talk about each of them! Let’s just look briefly at how God helped these people.

Gideon shows up in Judges 7 with an army of 32,000 to fight against the Midianites. God says that 32,000 is too many - we know that’s a large number because we live in a small town with roughly 15,000 in our whole county. Imagine every person in Dent County getting ready for battle, and then double the number - that’s a lot of people! 32,000 looks pretty small compared to 135,000 though, and this is the size of the army they’re facing. Gideon is ready for battle because he believes that the Lord will deliver them. 22,000 of the soldiers are fearful and God commands them to leave. 10,000 vs 135,000 are even worse odds. But then God still says that that is too many and he cuts the number to 300. 300 men destroyed an army of 135,000 how? By using military strength and power? Nope. By trusting in God and placing their faith in His power. In doing this, God delivered them and they destroyed their enemy. This isn’t to say that Gideon and the other people mentioned in verse 32 were perfect, far from it! But they placed their faith in the Lord. The point of including Gideon isn’t to say that every time that you drink water, you should make sure that you cup your hands because then you’ll be used by God - that isn’t the point. The point of including Samson in this list isn’t to say that you need to never cut your hair because whenever Samson was strong, he had long hair, and I want to be strong and used by God like Samson… that isn’t the point of these people. These people had flaws… do you remember what they are doing in this chapter? Why are they used by the preacher of Hebrews? To illustrate that faith in God leads God’s people to trust in Him and to progress in their walk with Him… not to suddenly become perfect. Again, God uses crooked sticks to hit straight shots.

Whenever you and I, like these people in the text, trust in God, the miraculous can and does at times happen! Look at the things listed in verses 33-35.

Conquered Kingdoms

Administered Justice

Obtained Promises

Shut the Mouths of Lions

Quenched the Raging Fire

Escaped the Edge of the Sword

Gained Strength in Weakness

Became Mighty in Battle

Put Foreign Armies to Flight

Received Their Dead Back to Life

How did all of these things happen? Was it because these people were so powerful in and of themselves? Absolutely not! Instead, they were empowered by the Holy Spirit and made strong out of weakness. Praise the Lord that He has the goods to get these things done! Again, the reason that these people appear in Hebrews 11 is not that we would “dare to be just like Daniel” but see how a faithful person like Daniel points us to Jesus and see how God at times does deliver His faithful servants. Jesus shuts the mouths of lions, Jesus even brings his servants out of fiery ovens, Jesus can even raise the dead! This is our God - He is able to do whatever He wants, however He wants, whenever He wants! He is still in the business of rescuing and saving people and we simply have faith that He can and still does do exactly that even today and Who has done this throughout Scripture too!

So far in Hebrews 11, we see example after example of faith largely leading to something good. Enoch escaped death, Noah survived the flood, Abraham was blessed by God, Moses was used by God, Joshua led the Israelites into the Promised Land by faith, the list goes on and faith leads to positive outcomes in many of these stories. Think of the Israelites crossing the Red Sea like we talked about last week… The people are upset with Moses, they’re not happy with their leader and they’re on the verge of a mutiny because they want to turn around and go back to Egypt before the soldiers come and kill them because, after all, they’re trapped. Army on one side and a sea on the other side, and what do they have with them? A leader with a staff who says to trust in God? That’s it? Consider what happens in the text, though! Moses trusts in God’s promise and He stands on God’s Word and raises his staff and sure enough, the sea parts. The impossible happens! The victory comes! The Israelites walk across on dry land as the water is restrained by the power of God and the people walk across by faith. The Egyptians likely see this happen because they’re chasing them down and they see the Israelites walk across and they *presume* that they will be able to walk across too because they just saw it happen! But what’s the problem? They presume that their faith is well placed, but they don’t place their faith in God. They place their faith in what they see. We could say this: The Israelites walk across by faith in God… and the Egyptians suffer because they do not have faith in God. Here we see that faith leads to good things, lack of faith leads to bad things. We see this in some instances in our text… but there are some who stop here and fail to read the rest of the chapter as we also see that Biblical faith in God can also lead, second, to suffering

Biblical Faith Can Lead One to Endure Suffering (35b-38)

How many of us like a good surprise? Any Star Wars fans? All the way back in 1980 when dinosaurs (I mean bag phones) still roamed the earth, Star Wars Episode 5 was released “The Empire Strikes Back.” In this episode Luke Skywalker faces off against his bitter enemy Darth Vader. He was told that Darth Vader killed his father… but instead in this episode we learn something shocking as Vader tells Luke, “Luke, I am your father.” This completely changed the way that people looked at Star Wars and these two individuals as well. We’ve all experienced a surprise or plot twist in our lives - things are going well until, well, they unexpectedly aren’t. In Hebrews 11:35, we see a sudden and almost unexpected shift as the preacher of Hebrews says that these people escape suffering and then he says in the same verse… “Other people were tortured…” and continues on this next statement of some people having faith in God but not being delivered and having to endure suffering. This is a plot twist for many people! The reason why this is unexpected is because they’ve been sold a bill of goods, usually but not always out of a mega church in our country, that tells them this: If you follow God and place your faith in Him, it will make your life better. Church, the enemy isn’t dumb… he’s clever. This is a half-truth! Absolutely, it is better to follow Jesus - the whole book of Hebrews has been telling us that Jesus is greater! He gives us a better hope, a better peace, a better joy, an eternal and assured salvation! Yes, Jesus makes your life better. But if that’s what we tell people and we stop with that sales pitch, we’re going to have millions run to us with tears in their eyes and fingers pointed at our heart saying, “You told me that Jesus was going to make my life better… I’ve suffered, I’m sick, I’m alone, I’m distraught, I’m depressed and I’ve worked so hard and I have faith in God like YOU told me to, but I feel emptier now than I ever have. Why did you tell me that it was going to be better? I feel worse.”

Look at me, church. Jesus never said that following Him would be easy or lead to good feelings. He did say in Luke 9:23 that following Him was a call to die to self. He did say in 2 Timothy 3:12 that following Him was a call to suffer. He did say in John 16:33 that following Him was a call to experience trouble in this world. He also promised us that He was going to prepare a place for us. We’ll see in chapter 13 of Hebrews that He promises to never change and to always be with us. Who in their right mind would sign up for the things that follow in these verses? Torture? Mocking? Scourging? Imprisonment? Stoned? Being sawed in two? Killed by the sword? Wandering around in isolation? Mistreated? Poverty? That’s not what Jesus promises according to those we hear about on TBN. On a human level no one would sign up for these things… and this is why it’s called faith! Piper put it like this years ago, “Those who love God more than life and suffer willingly awaiting something better than what this world can offer are God’s great gifts to this world.” Do you love God more than life itself? This is what Paul shared in Philippians 1:21

Philippians 1:21 CSB

21 For me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Through prayer, I felt it best to provide some examples of Christians in Scripture, church history, and modernity who endured suffering well to demonstrate this reality.

Tortured - Jesus before His crucifixion. We have to start with the simple fact that the person who had the most faith in the history of the Universe suffered and endured it well. We serve and worship a crucified and resurrected Savior.

Mocked/Scourged - the prophet Jeremiah

Jeremiah 20:2 CSB

2 So Pashhur had the prophet Jeremiah beaten and put him in the stocks at the Upper Benjamin Gate in the Lord’s temple.

Stoned - Stephen (first Christian martyr)

Acts 7:59 CSB

59 While they were stoning Stephen, he called out, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!”

Sawed in two - there is tradition that the prophet Isaiah met this fate

Died by the sword - the prophets in the Old Testament

1 Kings 19:10 CSB

10 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of Armies, but the Israelites have abandoned your covenant, torn down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are looking for me to take my life.”

Poor - again think of Jesus and his disciples not having a place to lay their head at night in some instances

Why would followers of Jesus Christ willingly suffer in these ways? Go back to verse 35, they didn’t accept release so that they might gain a better resurrection. Get this: Suffering and torture and pain and heartache don’t get the last word for a born-again follower of Jesus Christ. Those who suffer will be raised just like Christ was raised. Our life is hidden with Christ. He holds us fast. He is our hope in life and death. He helps strengthen us in the storms of this life. About a hundred years after Jesus’ ascended, there was a church leader called Justin who was being led to the Roman government official alongside 6 members of his congregation. They were commanded to recant and worship the Roman Emperor or face certain death. Reportedly Justin Martyr told his fellow believers this, “Brothers and sisters, they can kill us but they can’t hurt us.” From a human standpoint, Justin is dead wrong. Killing involves hurting… but from an eternal perspective, he knows something that the Romans couldn’t ever grasp apart from Christ. All death can do is make us better as Christians. So people can slander us and torture us and even kill us, but they can’t hurt us. Christ holds us. He’s got us. Our call is to live out the truth of 1 Peter 4:19

1 Peter 4:19 CSB

19 So then, let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust themselves to a faithful Creator while doing what is good.

Notice this verse, suffer according to God’s will. I’ve heard from so many speakers that it’s never God’s will for us to suffer. One even went as far as to say that he refuses to create a theology that allows for suffering. Newsflash, theology is the study of God, we don’t create theology… God has revealed Himself to us in the Scriptures as one who uses suffering for something, and this includes the list of people in Hebrews 11, it includes the people found throughout Scripture, and it even includes people like you and I today. Some of the best Christian people I’ve known have suffered the most - have you noticed that in your life? This was true for Paul as we see he begged God to remove his suffering in 2 Corinthians 12. He was beaten, betrayed, shipwrecked, stoned, and eventually killed. Many strong Christians suffer greatly, why is that? The statement why do bad things happen to good people is a Greek word called bologna because we know that the Bible says that we’re all sinners and we’ve all fallen short of the glory of God and there is no one righteous, not even one! But as much as that is true, whenever tragedy strikes someone that we love dearly, it’s easy to think of a dozen people who in our eyes deserved that more than the one we love.

I’m reminded of a woman from First Baptist Ozark named Karla Shelton. I didn’t get the chance to know her well because I was young, but Karla was a believer. She raised 2 godly children alongside her husband. She had an incredible voice and she used it to glorify Jesus. She served in her church. Then Karla got diagnosed with cancer. She was young - too young in the eyes of most people when they think of cancer. The cancer was aggressive and she had to undergo intense treatment… rather than play the woe is me game, she used that opportunity to share her hope in Jesus with other cancer patients and medical staff. She kept her focus upward, not inward. She looked to Jesus and she kept her faith in Him because she knew what Abraham and Sarah knew, God is faithful. She knew what Spurgeon shared years ago, “God is too good to be unkind and He is too wise to be mistaken. And when we cannot trace His hand, we must trust His heart.” She ran her race well with her eyes on Jesus. She kept singing until she couldn’t anymore. She kept coming to church, even when she couldn’t move around like she used to. She’s in heaven - not because she was a good person who dealt with her situation well… she’s in heaven and she’s pain free today, because she had faith in her faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. She didn’t escape suffering, but she endured it well until the end.

What is faith? Humbly receiving from God what He gives to us… not what we want God to give to us.

Job 1:21 CSB

21 saying: Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will leave this life. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.

Job isn’t giving up - that is faith. The Lord Gives and the Lord Takes Way. This is faith! This is trust in the promise and providence of a sovereign God! Paul being locked in prison and preaching the Gospel isn’t giving up, it’s living out faith in a sovereign God whose plan is better than ours ever could be! As Adrian Rogers once said about the apostle Paul in Philippians, “If God wants me out of prison, fine; but if God wants me in prison, I’ll have a greater faith than the man who only has enough faith to escape: I’ll have enough to stay and not be offended.” He won’t always deliver you, but He’ll never forsake you! God forgets no one who loves and serves His Kingdom.

Sometimes God intervenes and does bring about deliverance, we’ve seen those examples! But other times He doesn’t… This brings some people to their knees as they cry out and ask, “Is God really faithful” if this or that happens? How can this happen to me? I have faith and I didn’t get the answer. I didn’t escape, I suffered. What happens then? Is God really faithful? Is He really there? Take heart, friend and be encouraged with these final few verses in our text

Our Faithful God Always Brings Us Home (39-40)

The God of the Bible is faithful. Do we mean He is faithful like our car is faithful? No, He is even more faithful than the best car out there. Do we mean that He is faithful like the meteorologist? No, He is even more faithful than the most accurate meteorologist out there. Do we mean that He is faithful like our family who loves us and cares for us? No, He is even more faithful than the best parents, sibling, spouse, or child that exists. He does not fail. He cannot change. He always comes through. He comes through in His way, for His glory, and for our ultimate good, even if that might not feel particularly good.

This means that in this world, things will look different for each of us as believers. Some will escape some suffering and others will have to endure it, what is a bold faced lie is to say that those who suffer lack faith in God. Those who are sick lack faith to believe that God can heal them. That’s a doctrine of demons and bad theology hurts people, pastors included. Look with me in Acts 12, as we find two disciples with great faith in Jesus experience completely different outcomes

Acts 12:1–2 CSB

1 About that time King Herod violently attacked some who belonged to the church, 2 and he executed James, John’s brother, with the sword.

Acts 12:7–8 CSB

7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared, and a light shone in the cell. Striking Peter on the side, he woke him up and said, “Quick, get up!” And the chains fell off his wrists. 8 “Get dressed,” the angel told him, “and put on your sandals.” And he did. “Wrap your cloak around you,” he told him, “and follow me.”

John’s brother, James died… but Peter was delivered. Why? Did the people not pray well enough for James? Did Peter have more faith? No. Was God unfair to James? No. We have to understand this fundamental point about persecution and faith, “The reason we are persecuted is because of our faith… but the reason we are able to persevere is also because of our faith!” The book of Hebrews is all about perseverance through difficulty, not perfection and also not placating to those in power to avoid difficult times. God shut the mouths of lions for Daniel and God did not rescue Isaiah. Some women received their dead back to life, and millions others did not. Is God faithful? I have no option but based on the authority of Scripture to say that He is! So, how do we make sense of this and the promises found in Scripture? How is God faithful if the result seems to vary from person to person?

Are you ready? It’s painfully simply, but profoundly significant. The result that we experience in this life is NOT God’s final stamp of approval or seal of condemnation. Some people have it really good in this life and we might say they’re blessed by God, but they’re so blessed that they can’t see their need for God. Likewise, some of the people who suffer the most for the glory of God will be vindicated on the last day when God says, “Well Done.” Heaven is our focus. We live for an audience of 1 and His applause drowns out a billion distractions in this life.

How do we know that God is faithful? Not through deliverance from physical and emotional complications, but by being delivered from sin and death and being brought into eternal communion with a holy God through our mediator, Jesus Christ. Our faithful God always brings His people home. This world has some awesome things, but it’s not our home. These people in Hebrews 11 didn’t receive in their lifetime all of the things that God promised them - do you know why? Again, this world was not their home, but also because God had something better for them and that could only be a true statement after Jesus Christ came, lived a perfect life, fulfilled the Old Covenant in full, and brought about a New Covenant that is written upon the hearts of God’s people. Because of Jesus, their faith is now made sight. Their reward is realized. Their account is credited with His righteousness. They looked forward to the day when Jesus would come and change everything… you and I live on the other side of the cross - we can look back with confidence and see that of course our God is faithful! Look at Jesus!

We do not work for our victory… on this side of the cross, we work from victory. The victory has been won. The end has been written. All of my eggs are in Jesus’ basket - anyone else there with me?

Application

These saints of old are not made perfect through their hard work and good deeds. They are made perfect by the blood of Jesus Christ who took their place on the cross and paid for their sins in full. My question for you this morning is simply this: Have you been washed in the blood of Jesus Christ? Have you repented of your sins, placed your faith in Jesus, and been changed from the inside out by His power? Are you demonstrating this faith in the way that you live your life? If your answer is no, friend count the cost! Jesus is greater than whatever this world offers. What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit His soul? Answer: It’s not worth it! Humble yourself, look to Scripture, repent of your self-righteousness and self-sufficiency and trust in a God who alone is able to save. Place your faith in Jesus today.

If you are saved and you seek to grow and demonstrate your faith through action, like these people in Hebrews 11, let’s look at 2 ways that we can all be challenged to apply the truth of God’s faithfulness and our calling to walk by faith and not by sight.

Application:

Trust in God in the Triumphs and Tragedies of Life

It’s easy to have faith when life goes our way! In the triumphs and mountain tops, everyone feels good and we can say that we trust in God because we genuinely feel awesome inside… but in the tragedy, our feelings change. Our emotions change. Our situation changes… Do you know who doesn’t change, though? God. He stays the same. He deserves our trust and our worship, regardless of our circumstances. We can depend on Him because He’s faithful. We do what is right, not what is convenient. We seek to please our Father and we trust in Him.

Step Out of Step with a Godless World

Part of trusting in God means that we have to act differently. We live in a godless world and we cannot live in such a way that pleases our fallen world and attempt to please God all at the same time.

Join in the roll call of the Redeemed and be found among the Faithful. One step at a time. One action at a time. One day at a time. He who calls us is faithful. He holds us fast. Trust in Him. Share His Gospel message.

“Biblical faith is confidence in the promises of God that leads ordinary people to action and results in various earthly outcomes but always results in the applause of our Father in heaven.” Do you have this type of faith today, if not, I’ll be standing right here and I don’t care if you’ve been coming to church for 50 years or 50 minutes, if you want to know more about what it means to place your faith in Jesus, I’d love to talk with you about exactly that.

Working Outline of Hebrews 11

Biblical Faith Makes a Difference (1-3) (Past Tense)

Changes the Way We Think

Changes the Way We Engage with Others

Changes the Way We Live

Changes Our Heart

Biblical Faith Must Be Demonstrated (4-31) (Present Tense)

Trusting in God (Abel)

Walking with God (Enoch)

Standing with God (Noah)

Following God (Abraham)

Waiting for God (Abraham)

Trusting in God (Abraham)

Continues Forward, not Backward (Isaac/Jacob/Esau/Joseph)

Chooses Christ, not Comfort (Moses)

Commits to Walk, not Waver (Israelites enter Promised Land)

Biblical Faith Modifies Our Destination (32-40) (Future Tense)

Biblical Faith Can Lead One to Escape Suffering (32-35a)

Biblical Faith Can Lead One to Endure Suffering (35b-38)

Our Faithful God Always Brings Us Home (39-40)