Hebrews 11 - Powerful Faith

God is faithful!

One of the early church choruses that I remember singing comes from Psalm 20:7:

Psalm 20:7–8 NIV

Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They are brought to their knees and fall, but we rise up and stand firm.

It is important that we keep the faithfulness of God in mind, especially as we are living in the last days. I was speaking with Jeremy, an old Army friend, this past week. He is a believer as well so our understanding of the events in the world was the same. We agreed that when we read the passages about the end of this world, we didn’t think about all the ripples that would take place in our lives. Jesus braced his disciples for difficult times in Matthew 24:

Matthew 24:4–14 NIV

Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains. “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Jeremy and I were referring to the pain that hurricanes, pandemics, wars, broken economies, and unemployment can cause. These things are real. These things hurt. But God is bigger!

Hebrews 11 shows us the kind of faith that helps us to endure.

Hebrews 11

To this point we have seen that Jesus is better than angels, animal sacrifices, Moses, the high priest, Melchizedek, and the Old Covenant. Hebrews 9 focused on the quality of the Blood of Christ. Hebrews 10 transitioned. It said, “Since all of this is true, we have an opportunity and a responsibility to deliberately pursue Christ. Hebrews 11 shows us what a life in Christ looks like.

Hebrews 11:1–5 NIV

Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead. By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.” For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God.

The Bible is filled with instruction about faith. This chapter is unique because it explains the characteristics of a Christian’s faith. Faith can mean “the way we believe (‘faith in Jesus’) and what we believe. It can be used to indicate mere intellectual assent which even demons give to the fact of God’s existence; or deep personal commitment, which only Christians can give.”[1]

We remember that not all the Hebrews who began in faith continued in faith.

Verses 1-3 tell us that faith faces the future. Faith frames our reality. These are really important understandings for the Christian. We live for the future and position our minds and emotions based on the Word of God. In our veterans program, Winning With Integrity, we require the servicemen and women to share their stories and finally speak it at a ceremony on the last night. Most are nervous but Dave Roever has said over and over, “Make your butterflies fly in formation”. Life isn’t easy but as Christians we can tell our fears and concerns to fly according to the promises and truths of the Word of God.

A Believer’s Faith

Hebrews 11 is filled with heroes from the OT. There is a lesson to be learned here about faith: (1) Faith pleases God, and, (2) Faith Sees Long Range.

Faith Pleases God

Faith must have 2 qualities: (1) Faith to believe God exists, and (2) faith to walk in a personal relationship with Him. The lives of Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Sarah all illustrate this Kingdom principle.

Hebrews 11:6 NIV

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

Hebrews 11:7–12 NIV

By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith. By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise. And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.

Hebrews 11:7-12

· Noah – built an ark to save his family; (result) – condemned the world and became an heir of righteousness

· Abraham – obeyed the call and went; (result) – received the Promised Land

· Sarah – mothered in old age; (result) – provided descendants as numerous as the stars.

One of the simple things that I share with couples getting married is that each of them should be responsible adults. Husbands should be able to trust their wives and wives should be able to trust their husbands. Can you imagine the conflict in a relationship where the wife cannot trust the financial management of the husband, the ability to follow through on a task, the confidence to trust him at work in the office or on the road. The wife would not be pleased at all with her choice in husbands.

In the same way, the faith that we place in God pleases Him. One dictionary defines faith as ‘Confidence in and commitment to God and Jesus Christ. These attitudes remain sure even though the objects of faith are unseen. True faith is seen in obedient action, love and continuing good works”.[2]

I heard a powerful statement this week:

“I’ve learned to kiss the wave that throws me against the Rock of Ages” – Charles Finney

Finney was a powerful Spirit filled evangelist. Why ‘kiss the wave’? Because he has learned that God is the sole source of comfort and deliverance. The wave that pushes us against Him is a blessing.

Our faith will be rewarded. It is a Kingdom principle….

Faith Sees Long Range

The next lesson that Hebrews 11 teaches us is that faith sees long range.

Hebrews 11:13–15 NIV

All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return.

“They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.” What a powerful statement. What a difficult statement. We live in a world where Uber eats shows up at the door in 20 minutes and Amazon delivers the next day. We aren’t at all crazy about waiting…

My friend Jaime Roever shared some thoughts earlier this week about her virtual teaching that blend right into this discussion. She wrote…

After I finish teaching my 1st Grade students, I have a two-hour break until I teach my 2nd grade students. In Vietnam, they eat lunch and take a nap during those two hours.

Usually, I rest but don’t sleep during that time because once I’m in bed, the struggle is too real to get out of it. So last night I was walking past my classroom and could see the glow of my computer. I stood there peering in, thinking of all the great things that just happened in class and knowing more great things were to come in the next one. And then God and I started talking about “the waiting”.

You know...the time when we are waiting for something to happen in our lives. It can feel so long. Hard. Heavy. I have been there many times before and I always understood God was in those times of waiting, yet it still always seemed so hard. But what if all those moments we have looked at waiting as being a struggle, we chose to look at them with purpose and joyful expectation of what is to come instead?

Maybe you are in the waiting and feel heavy and tired. I want to encourage you with this:

Psalms 85:8-9 TPT Now I’ll listen carefully for your voice and wait to hear whatever you say. Let me hear your promise of peace— the message every one of your godly lovers’ longs to hear. Don’t let us in our ignorance turn back from following you. For I know your power and presence shines on all your devoted lovers. Your glory always hovers over all who bow low before you.

The next verse goes onto say,

Psalm 85:10 Your mercy and your truth have married each other. Your righteousness and peace have kissed.

The waiting doesn’t seem so unpleasant when you know that it’s where mercy, truth, righteousness, and peace are.

Friend, let’s be steadfast with joy. A devoted lover waiting with anticipation for the kiss.

The wait will be worth it. (Jaime Roever, posted August 25)

What a great point! What are we doing in the waiting. The heroes of the Bible trusted God and awaited the promise.

Hebrews 11:17–38 NIV

By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death. By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future. By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff. By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions concerning the burial of his bones. By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict. By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and the application of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel. By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned. By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the army had marched around them for seven days. By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient. And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were put to death by stoning; they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground.

Then in verse 39, he brings it to the lesson that Christians need to understand:

Hebrews 11:39 NIV

These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised,

God has something better for us!

Something Better is in Store for You!

God has something better for you that can only be realized by walking in faith in Jesus Christ. I know, it is tough to believe it right now, but it is true. Apparently we are not the first generation to have difficulties. Charles Spurgeon pointed it out in the late 19th Century.

There will be time enough for you to ask all proper and right questions, and to have them answered, when you have sought and found the Savior. But, meanwhile, your immortal soul is in jeopardy, so attend to that first of all. A man who is sinking in the sea is mad if he says, “I won’t lay hold of that rope until I understand all about astronomy.” A man in a burning house does not need to trouble his head about geology; his first business is to get to the fire escape. He can leave his study of geology until tomorrow.

So, you unconverted ones should “seek first his kingdom and righteousness,” and all other things you need shall be added unto you (Matt 6:33).[3]

Your thinking needs to be about Jesus Christ, nothing less! You need to realize the promises of God. Everett R. Storms, a schoolteacher, decided to make a detailed study of promises. He found a total of 7,500 promises made by God to man.

Our world is in a mess but it is not out of God’s hands – His promises are sure!

What Does God Have in Mind for Us?

A good place for us to go is the end of the story, Revelation 20-22.

1. Satan is defeated - Rev. 20:10

2. Death is defeated - Rev 20:14

3. Sin is banished - Rev 21:27

4. We live forever with God - Rev 21:3; 22:5

5. There will be no more sin, tears, or sorrow - Rev. 21:4

6. The Heavenly City is revealed - Rev 21:2, 10-14

7. The earth is made new - Rev 21:5

8. Paradise is restored - Rev 22:1-3

That leads us to the next idea – Hebrews 12, “Therefore”….

Since these things are true…what will you and I do about our lives? Have faith – it pleases God. Look long range at the promises of God – you will be cheered up!

[1]Brown, R. (1988). The message of Hebrews: Christ above all (pp. 196–197). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. [2]Manser, M. H. (2009). Dictionary of Bible Themes: The Accessible and Comprehensive Tool for Topical Studies. London: Martin Manser. [3]Spurgeon, C. (2017). 300 Sermon Illustrations from Charles Spurgeon. (E. Ritzema & L. Smoyer, Eds.). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.