Faith Unbound

Some of the Hebrews had forgotten that their faith in Christ was made effective through his suffering, death and resurrection.

This is a scripture of contrasts; they defy categorization or boundaries.

Contrasts:

Success in this life.

God made it possible for his people to pass through the Red Sea, but they had walk through it having faith that God would hold back the water.

God made the walls of Jericho fall, but his people had to walk around it making noise, trusting God would do it.

God delivered Rahab and her family because she believed the spies of Israel.

The example of Rahab was unexpected. How could a prostitute who lied, and betrayed here own people, be listed among the faithful?

Just because God commended a person for acting righteously, does not mean that God approved of every action.

Rahab had likely heard the story of the people of God who had been delivered from Egypt, sustained by God in the wilderness.

She chose to go with God’s people having hope in the future fulfillment of God’s promises.

Suffering in this life.

All but the very few exceptions (Enoch and Elijah) eventually died, others were tortured, mocked, flogged, chained, or imprisoned; others were stoned to death, sawn in two, or killed with weaponry; many suffered destitution, persecution and torment, left wearing harsh animal hides, wondering in deserts and mountains, and living in caves or holes.

“By Faith” these people did something because they trust God’s instructions.

There were very real consequences whether

Temporally good or bad,

But, always eternally good when acting in obedience to God,

Or, eternally bad in disobedience to God.

There was judgment for those who did not believe and did not act in obedience to God.

Isaiah made clear in chapter 5, God expected justice from the Israelites, his vineyard, but found bloodshed, God expected righteous and heard cries of despair.

Sometimes when a vine is diseased or unfruitful, the vinedresser must prune limbs or even dig up the vine from the roots.

While the faithful who came before Christ obtained a good testimony, they had not yet received the promise of eternal life.

When Jesus, the anticipated Messiah, came, he did not come to bring immediate miraculous peace to the earth.

Jesus came to divide the righteous from the unrighteous (brining fire to the earth), no matter how each were related. – Luke 12

The truth is just because we do good things, it doesn’t mean we only receive good consequences in this life.

Just because we were born to good homes, does not mean we get to keep them.

Just because we were born into privilege, does not mean we won’t end up as outcasts.

Some have had no good life at all, yet come to eternal, unspeakable joy with God.

Whether our lives consist of pleasures or terrors, God of love breaks into our lives and gives us the better way to eternal life with God in Jesus Christ.

Faith requires courage. Faith that is effective beyond boundaries.

This is faith of God in Jesus Christ.

In verse 35 contrasting elements met:

The triumph achieved through faith, and suffering endured for and by faith.

Even the triumph of miraculous resurrection from death is overshadowed by the better resurrection to eternal life through faith in Jesus Christ.

In chapter 12, Paul pointed out the example of the faithful witness in relation to Jesus Christ.

Jesus is called “the pioneer and perfecter of their faith,” not just the perfect example of a person acting upon faith in God, but also as the one through which faith in God is made perfectly effective.

The cloud of witnesses, came to perfection through Jesus Christ by way of the cross. They were resurrected from among the dead in Christ’s resurrection.

Even death could no longer prevent them from coming into the eternal presence of God.

Jesus Christ patiently, and willingly, endured pain, shame, and death upon the cross so that God’s people could be perfected whether they suffered in life or not.

Christ received his suffering and death as joy, knowing that his people would be free to receive perfection by way of faith. It is his joy to bring them joy.

Since those who came before were able to persevere in faith before Christ had come, those who believe in Christ join the great crowd of witnesses.

It is Jesus Christ who brings us to perfect life and love in God.

Through Christ, the way of righteousness was open to everyone who renounces sin and evil and accepts the grace of God come to us through Jesus Christ.

By baptism, we show to others that we have become dead to sin and evil and are resurrected to new life in Christ.

After baptism, we work to confirm the resurrected life in us as the Spirit of God works to perfect us in holy love of God and others.

When living this resurrected life, we join the great cloud of witnesses.

This is why Jesus Christ took up his cross with joy instead of fear and shame.

Through Christ, we are resurrected, no longer bound but freely enabling us to live with God in holy love.