Our examples of faith
In this chapter God has given us some great examples of faith. As an overview I looked at the names of some of these faith warriors:
verses 1 -12
our faith or God’s faith or both
Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah
verses 13-
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab
verse 32 list
Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets, Hebrews 11:32
As Paul wrote in Galatians that there is neither male nor female. The topic of faith has no boundaries. Let’s look at Paul talking about faith:
But before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed. Therefore, the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise. Galatians 3:23-29
Verse 28 is the key verse for us:
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” NASB
The reason I brought this up is because did you notice that at the end of each list of heroes a woman is mentioned. This is because faith knows no boundaries. We have all been saved by grace and by the gift of faith. Rahab for example was a prostitute and she is also found in the genealogy of king David and our Lord Jesus. Although the world scoffs. For example, Abel had faith and then he was murdered because of jealousy. Enoch did not even taste death! However, these examples of faith looked beyond the natural eye and trusted God. They were completely convinced in the truth and love of God that there is something beyond this life.
For these examples there is no old and New Testament. The old and new testaments are one tapestry and what links us to these examples of faith is the gift of faith itself in Christ. Why do I say these things? Apollos explains to us in the text so we ought to read it with our eyes open:
13 All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. 14 For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. 15 And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them. Hebrews 11:13-16
Brothers and sisters, we have as a hope a heavenly place in God’s presence for ever! We need to believe this. A lot of these examples of faith died hundreds of years before the time of the crucifixion and resurrection. With the eye of faith however they saw the promises of God. What about us. We have seen the promises of God and we have historical, verifiable records that Jesus died and was raised from the dead. We should be even more convinced about the truths of God’s word. How convinced are of the truth of God’s promised in Christ? Would you put your life on the line like these ancient believers did? Apollos gives us a taste of what they went through in chapter 11:
32 And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets, 33 who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. 35 Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection; 36 and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. 37 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated 38 (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground. Hebrews 11:32-38
When one reads these experiences of these ancient believers, we ought to feel humbled. We live fairly comfortably (in the West), and we can walk this walk of faith quite safely. Let us be thankful to God for what he did for us. Apollos continues by saying:
And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect. Hebrews 11:39-40
Believers, those who walk by faith are part of this tapestry of God.
Reflection.
A lot of these believers by faith persevered under the most horrendous conditions. They persevered to the ‘end’ whatever their end was going to be. Are we too convinced by the truths of the Gospel? Are we convinced as believers about the promises of God? In Christ God says yes to us and yes to life. I sometimes wonder about the Jerusalem Church and what happened. We do know though historically that the Jewish Christians left Jerusalem before it was flattened by the Romans in AD 70. We owe these Jewish Christians a lot. In the small time of Luke’s records in the book of Acts; St Paul, Barnabas, the twelve Apostles. These men were Jewish, and this faith went beyond the boundaries of ethnicity, gender, colour, social standing and every stratum of community. Let us not forget that Jesus was of very Jewish descent. Christianity is not a religion of the West but of the Middle East.
When we pray, we ought to be grateful for the channels God used for bringing life to his Church. We ought to pray for everyone including Arabs and Jews. In Christ there is no gentile or Jew! In Christ we love both. There is too much racism in the world and sad to say there is also racism in many religious institutions. Let us also remember that the New Testament was also written by God fearing Jewish men.
This is me going on a tangent. I suppose when you read some secular history from Josephus, one knows that James the Lord’s earthly brother was murdered in cold blood in Jerusalem. As Christians today our roots are also from Jerusalem. Jesus taught in the second Temple on the mount before it was destroyed. The Church is made up of many nations and we are all one in Christ.
I want to finish off by saying that sometimes a day can be grey and misty, but you still know the way to your destination. On other days the sun might be shining, and you can see the way better. At other times, the sun might be too bright, but you still know the destination. Christ is the way, and the world will throws obstacles in front of us but by faith we still know the way because Christ is the Way the Truth and the Life amen!
Weaver1has's Blog 
October 1, 2021 at 12:58 pm |
Thank you Hasan. I found this very interesting.
October 1, 2021 at 9:32 pm |
Thanks for replying. I hope it blesses everyone that reads it.