Sermon Tone Analysis

You gotta have faith!

If you grew up in the 80s and 90s, that statement might make you think of the song from George Michael.

His song was actually a song of romance and hope that he’s holding out faith that he’ll find the right match in the next relationship.

Sure doesn’t sound very FAITHFUL.

Or, maybe, that phrase makes you think of some piece of inspirational art.

Something that challenges you to let your Faith conquer your fears.

Some people talk about faith in a political party or in a political process.

Some people talk about faith as so it’s a fancy way of saying “guts” or “intestinal fortitude.”

but the faith we’re talking about today is more than that.

It’s more than guts or motivation.

It’s more than grit.

It’s more than wishful thinking or a vague hope.

The faith we’re talking about today is foundational to our relationship with God and our walk in the world.

Before we dive into the substance of our faith, let’s take a brief step back.

Last week, we considered the covenant the Jesus offers and how we should live in response.

That covenant should change our ACTS - Approach God, it should cause us to Cling to our confession, Think about one another, and Stick to it by faith.

The closing verse of chapter 10 says...

Turn the page on the next chapter, this theme of faith marks main point of chapter 11, as the writer of Hebrews provides example after example of men and women who lived by faith and how that was manifested in their lives.

Before we dive into some things that we can glean from Hebrews 11, we need to reflect a bit on their context.

We’ve mentioned before that the writer of Hebrews wrote to Jewish Background Believers - followers of Christ who were culturally Jewish and who used to follow the old covenant sacrificial system.

We’ve talked about how they were being pressured to return to that old system.

But, this week, as I was reflecting on this chapter and actually talking with a missionary, I realized that I missed something!

They lived in an honor/shame culture

As westerners and as Americans, we can easily miss the cultural context of Scripture.

Western culture is very individualistic.

We generally make decisions based on what is best for the individual.

We tend to think of consequences only in as much as they impact the decision maker and maybe those closest to them.

But honor/shame cultures are very communal.

The decisions that are made are generally evaluated by how they bring honor or shame to the family or the community.

There may be some variations from one community to another, but there is a communal pressure applied through parents or grandparents on the next generations in order to keep the family name honored or the tribe in good standing with other tribes.

We see this most clearly in Eastern and Middle Eastern cultures.

For example, I have a friend from Japan.

When she moved to the states to pursue college, her family was honored by that decision, because it elevated their status in the community.

But, when she began to explore Christianity and ultimately became a follower of Christ, her family was dishonored because so much of their religious system was tied into ancestral worship and veneration.

Her actions ran the risk of bringing shame to her family.

As a result, she has been shunned at times from her parents - even though, she is the one who has shown them the greatest amount of love and care in their final years.

We can get a sense of it with our cancel culture, but even that is more noise than substance.

Essentially cancel culture shames or ignores or publically ridicules someone who has taken a perspective that is contrary to the current cultural trends.

For example, Martina Navratilova (the famous tennis player who is also a lesbian) has been shunned by the LGBTQ+ movement because she doesn’t think that Trans-women (biological men) should be able to compete against women in athletics.

Other famous people like the author of the Harry Potter series -JK Rowling and the comedian Dave Chappell have suffered the same public shame from cancel culture because of their views on Trans issues.

I’m really only scratching the surface of the honor/shame culture thing.

It seems like it’s difficult to fully understand unless you are immersed in it.

Thinking back to the book of Hebrews and the audience to which the author is writing, their honor/shame culture was not simply a first century phenomenon.

This was something that went all the way back to the beginning.

The communal nature of middle eastern culture had been an issue for the people of God from the opening pages of Scripture.

And that, I think, is what the famous “Hall of Faith” in Hebrews 11 is really communicating.

So let’s consider faith and the challenge we have to follow the faithful.

Faith ...

The writer of Hebrews describes faith as...

Another translation shows it this way:

Faith is not a hopeful confidence or optimism.

Faith is assurance and conviction.

But it’s not vague or fuzzy.

We have to keep in mind - the object of our faith is the Triune God.

Not some wishful thinking or naive optimism, but God, His Word, and His Sovereign plan in the universe.

Over the next several verses, the writer of Hebrews chronicles so many ways that God’s people lived by faith, contrary to cultural trends and pressures.

One of the things we learn about faith in this chapter is that faith...

… is the means of approval (Heb.

11:2, 39-40)

Faith is the means that we are commended by God or accepted into relationship with Him.

I think this is because faith that is lived out demonstrates trust.

By faith that is.

As we continue reading throughout the chapter we learn that God accepted Abel because of His gift.

Enoch was accepted because his faith was demonstrated in how he lived.

The writer concludes the chapter in this way:

There is actually a whole lot more that we could unpack in this last verse - implications of their faith and our involvement in that faith because of what we have received through Jesus Christ.

But, I think here is the bottom line - we are approved by faith - not by our works.

You and I can only enter into a right relationship with God through faith.

It begins with belief.

Belief in who God is.

Belief in what Jesus has done for you - taking your sin on himself.

Taking the punishment that you and I deserve.

Now, if you’ve read over this chapter this week or even have scanned it while we’ve been talking, you might be thinking - there is a lot of talk about faith - but these people did works.

I’m glad you noticed that.

They did live out their faith, but I think here is the big difference in perspective or attitude:

Am I trying to win approval from God by how I live?

(works only - no faith)

Am I living differently because I’ve been approved by God through faith?

(faith first, works demonstrate faith)

From the outside the two might look very similar.

But the key is faith - that is lived out.

The very next book of the Bible, the book of James ,summarizes this beautifully,

So, we see that this faith, or confidence in God, is the way that we gain approval from God.

We take Him at his Word and order our lives around his ways.

We also see that faith...

… is the way to please God (Heb.

11:6)

In many ways, this idea of pleasing God comes back to the idea of faith that is lived out.

Do I think I’m approved or accepted by my works or by faith?

How I live reveals the focus of my faith.

But notice - it begins with believing that God exists - believing that God is.

Do you believe that there is a God?

The book of Romans tells us that God’s qualities have been revealed since the beginning of the universe.

Elsewhere, scripture says...

But, isn’t it predictable to use the Bible to reinforce the Bible?

Yes it is.

But the Bible’s view on the universe doesn’t have to be the only source of commentary.

(consider talking about Al Mohler and Professor Brian Cox - intelligent beings in the universe)

the point - The universe is such a finely tuned machine and the existence of life on this - or any planet - suggest that there must be some intelligent source.

A few degrees closer to or further away from our sun would be a drastically different outcome on earth.

I believe that precision points toward God.

So faith begins with believing in God and then believing that God rewards those who seek him.