By Faith V Hebrews 11:29-31

-By Faith, God Rescues His People

When I was research head of General Motors and wanted a problem solved, I'd place a table outside the meeting room with a sign: Leave slide rules here. If I didn't do that, I'd find someone reaching for his slide rule. Then he'd be on his feet saying, "Boss, you can't do it."

I. Delivered from Danger v. 29

When we pick up our passage, we are coming into the home stretch and we see three final specific examples of life by faith, all connected to the Exodus from Egypt and Conquest of Canaan

Our first example is from the children of Israel, fleeing Egypt

They find themselves in a critical moment, caught between the army and the Sea

On the one hand, they know that God has brought them safely out of Egypt and has moved in mighty ways.

On the other, practical reality tells them that they are in trouble!

God commands Moses to do two things:

Raise your staff

Send the people forward

When these two things happen, the Sea is parted and the people are able to walk across the Red Sea as though they were crossing on dry ground

Faith has a requirement:

Raise the staff

Move forward

Both of these require a measure of trust in the Lord

Please note though, that faith is the great distinction:

The Egyptian army enters the same Red Sea and clearly makes some progress forward

However, instead of deliverance, they find death there

In a fascinating way, the Egyptians see dry ground and drown. The Israelites see the Sea and they cross unharmed, by faith

Our deliverance always comes this way, by faith in the Lord

Our rescue from circumstance is not certain

However, our rescuer is!

In his book The Grand Essentials, Ben Patterson recounts the story of an S-4 submarine that sank off the coast of Massachusetts, leaving its entire crew trapped inside. Despite numerous rescue attempts, all efforts to save the sailors were unsuccessful. 

Toward the end of this harrowing ordeal, a deep-sea diver detected a tapping sound coming from the steel hull of the submerged submarine. Pressing his ear against the vessel, he realized a sailor inside was using Morse code to send a desperate message: "Is there any hope?"

II. To a Promised Land v. 30

This is not the end of the story, though

There are many failures and flaws, but after forty years, they make it to Canaan land

They cross on dry ground again, but over the Jordan River this time

Now, they find themselves facing the challenge they feared so greatly 40 years earlier

They are at Jericho, a walled city filled with warriors

God is going to give them the city and the land, but not at all in the way that they expected

God invites them to believe Him:

With boldness: He promises that He will tear the walls down

With obedience: He gives a specific pattern from them to follow, marching around the city

With patience: He does not do this immediately, but calls them out 7 days in a row

With expectation: They must be ready to fight when the time comes; they will shout in triumph and prepare for war

I hope that we don’t miss the power of this:

God didn’t just deliver them from Egypt

He delivered them to a place of promise

We can trust the Lord has a place and a plan for us as well

Hebrews 4:8–10

[8] For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. [9] So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, [10] for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. (ESV)

In the Philippines I heard a local pastor use the following parable to illustrate Christ's offer of rest (Matt. ll:28) and the response of people who won't trust Him completely: The driver of a carabao wagon was on his way to market when he overtook an old man carrying a heavy load. Taking compassion on him, the driver invited the old man to ride in the wagon. Gratefully the old man accepted. After a few minutes, the driver turned to see how the man was doing. To his surprise, he found him still straining under the heavy weight, for he had not taken the burden off his shoulders. 

III. Into a People v. 31

The last example of faith that we see might be our least likely of all:

Rahab is a Canaanite from the city of Jericho

She’s not exactly an example of morality either; she’s a prostitute

However, an incredible thing happens with Rahab that changes everything

Israelite spies are checking out the city when they make a decision to spend the night at Rahab’s home

They are in danger of being exposed when Rahab makes a bold choice: She hides them

This is a step of faith:

She recognizes that the Lord is powerfully with them and will give them the land of Canaan

She only asks that they deal kindly with her and her family when they take Jericho

This decision is everything:

By faith, Rahab identifies with the people of God

In a move that might seem a little surprising, God accepts Rahab into the family, by faith!

By everything practical that we understand, Rahab should be far from God:

She is not ethnically a member of the people of God

She is not religiously a member of the people of God

She is not morally a member of the people of God

But God brings her in to His people as a result of her faith!

What does she receive?

Safety- she is rescued from the battle

Identity- she is brought into the people of God

Legacy- she becomes a part of the story of redemption

There is a scarlet thread of redemption that runs through the Bible and it points us to its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus:

Matthew 1:2–6

[2] Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, [3] and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, [4] and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, [5] and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, [6] and Jesse the father of David the king.

And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah, (ESV)