As we continue in our study of Hebrews, I want to remind you of the theme of the second half of the book which is found in chapter 10 vs. 39, “My righteous one shall live by faith.”  And we have been studying various aspects of the life of faith in the subsequent passages.  I have said it before that the emphasis given in that doctrinal theme is on the word shall live.  And so we looked at the lives of many of the Old Testament saints in regards to how they lived by faith.  

Then last week, we looked at the life of faith as a race.  Particularly a marathon race.  And as part of that study we talked about the need for commitment, for discipline, and what sacrifices you must make in order to win the race of faith. Now this week, the author of Hebrews is going to take that idea of sacrifice and suffering and discipline and expand on those things, in order to show us what it takes to win the race, and to show us the purposes that we endure these things.  

Today I want to show you 4 things from this passage today which I hope will serve as an outline to better understand this very important passage.  And I believe it is very important because a lot of Christians today do not realize that things like suffering, and discipline and sacrifice are going to be part of the Christian experience.  Too many preachers and contemporary authors have been teaching a easy believe-ism type of Christianity that promises that if you have faith then your road will be free of obstacles, free of bumps, that living a life of faith is akin to taking a pleasure cruise.  The focus of most exhortation regarding the life of faith is only on what we consider “blessings.”

But the scriptures teach us another emphasis should be understood as well.  There is another truth which parallels the life of blessing, and that is the life of struggle, of difficulty, of wrestling, of a contest, even a battle.  Jesus said “In this world you will have tribulation, but take courage, I have overcome the world.”  And if we are to be overcomers, then we are going to have to endure tribulations and hardships as well, and the key to overcoming them is to realize that God uses such things to discipline us, to teach us, so that we might share in His holiness.  As James 1:3 says, “Consider it all joy brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance, and let endurance have it’s perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete lacking in nothing.”   So God disciplines us for our good, using trails and tribulations and sufferings here on this earth to discipline us, to teach us, how we might become more like Him.  As Phil. 3:10 says, “That I may know Him, and the fellowship of His suffering.”

This race of faith that we are called to run is something that we are to overcome, it’s something that we are to strive for.  It’s actually related here to a contest, something to win.  But it doesn’t come without a cost.  Thus the author says to the Hebrew church that they have not yet striven to the point of shedding blood in vs 4.  Yes, they had suffered some, but there was a sense that they were going to be called upon to suffer even more for the sake of Christ. And they were being warned to press on, and not grow weary and not be discouraged.  Especially in light of the trials that they were going through. And one way in which they could be encouraged was to realize that God was working through the trials to discipline them for their own good and the glory of God.

I want to make sure though you understand the term discipline. We have talked a lot especially in our Wednesday evening Bible study about God’s chastisement. Chastisement often comes in the form of consequences.  And chastisement is definitely a part of discipline. But inherent in the chastisement of God’s people is the principle of correction.  It’s not just punishment.  In fact, our punishment was put on the Lord Jesus at the cross.  So the purpose of discipline is not punishment but correction.  It’s to teach us, to change us, to make us more like Christ.  

The word discipline in the Greek is paideia. It is used eight times in this passage.  In the KJV it is translated chasten and in the NASB it’s discipline.  But the full meaning of the word is found in the classical Greek where it is used to speak of the training of children.  So it speaks of the process by which they are educated, informed, raised up, taught, molded, and yes, that includes chastening, reproofs, correction and so forth.  It’s important to realize the full meaning of discipline before we go on.  And God uses a plethora of means by which to discipline or train us, to bring us to spiritual maturity which include correction, chastisement, chastening, reproof, difficulties, trials, tribulations, hardships, sickness, weaknesses and afflictions. And enduring such discipline is a necessary and essential part of the life of faith.

Thus Peter says in 1Peter 4:12-13 “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you;  but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.”

Now there are four points, each with two sub points.  The four points are these; first, there are two purposes in discipline, then there are two perils in discipline, then two proofs in discipline, and then two products of discipline.  And they are all found in this text.  First we will notice the two purposes of discipline.  

The first purpose is discovered in the phrase – you have not yet resisted to the point of the shedding of blood.  This speaks of the battle within against the sin nature. Notice how the contest is shifted from running a race to fighting.   Paul makes the same transition in 1Cor. 9:24 “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but [only] one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.  Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then [do it] to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.  Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air;  but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.”

There is a war with sin that is going on inside us. Paul speaks of this to a great extent in Romans 7 speaking of this conflict that is in him, where he finds himself doing what he hates.  He says in vs 22, “For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man.  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.”  

His prescription then is that he buffets or fights his body.  He disciplines his body. He says elsewhere that he crucifies the flesh daily.  He brings it under subjection to the law of God.  And so the first purpose of the discipline of God which He brings into our life is to cause us to mortify the flesh, to resist the nature of the carnal man within and put it to death.  Paul continues in Romans 8:5-8 “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those [who live] according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded [is] death, but to be spiritually minded [is] life and peace. Because the carnal mind [is] enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”  So the first purpose of discipline is to cause us to live in the spirit and not in the flesh.

The second purpose of discipline is found in the next phrase in vs 4, “in your striving against sin.”  This speaks not of the conflicts within, but of the conflicts without. This is the conflict we are engaged in against sin, against the world forces, against the powers of darkness.  Ephesians 6:12-13 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.”

The discipline that God brings into our life is the way in which God leads us into battle against the forces of the world.  God’s kingdom is the kingdom of righteousness, and we are in a battle against the kingdom of darkness.  And in this struggle, in our difficulties, in our trials, our afflictions, our tribulations, we exercise righteousness and truth, and through the gospel manifested in us we overcome evil with good. Romans 5:3-5 “And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;  and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”  And by the exercise of the love of God towards the world, we win the world.

Let’s look next at the two perils of discipline.   So these perils are things that can possibly offend you or discourage you as you encounter the discipline of God in your life.  The first peril is found in vs 5, “Do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord…” That means that when God brings discipline into your life there’s a danger that you don’t take it seriously.  You shrug it off.  Maybe you even get mad at God and just decide you’re not going to submit to Him.  The word in the Greek indicates to despise it, or to have disdain for it. 

I think it’s natural to hate discipline, especially when it seems to make your life miserable.  And so it’s possible to have an incident or difficulty come into your life which is not what you want to see happen, and to get mad at God.  To despise the situation so much that you fail to be an overcomer in that situation, but it overcomes you.  You no longer are living by faith, you’re living according to the flesh.  

Maybe a good illustration of this is when someone treats you badly.  Someone says some insulting, hurtful things about you.  And rather than see this as some sort of test of your faith, as an opportunity to react as Christ would have you to react, instead you lash out in anger or retribution.  And as such you have treated disdainfully the discipline of the Lord.  You may have lost the opportunity that you had to show real sacrificial love for someone else, and as a consequence failed to act as an ambassador for Christ.  You acted in self defense rather than showing the sacrificial love of Christ for sinners.

The second peril is the opposite of regarding lightly, and that is described in vs 5 as “Nor faint when you are reproved by Him.”  To faint means to allow the reproof or affliction of God to cause you to sink into some level of despondency. This is when adverse circumstances get you so discouraged that you are close to quitting the race altogether.  You actually begin to give up.  You feel like God is against you, God must not love you.  And so you want to just quit the race. The author says, Don’t get discouraged, don’t become despondent.  That’s a real peril in the life of a Christian.  We are surprised, as Peter warns us about, when we encounter various trials.  We didn’t think hardship was going to be the path of discipleship.  We thought everything always works out good. No, we need to expect trials, expect discipline, expect God’s correction.  That through thorny ways, God leads us to a joyful end.

Then the author gives us two proofs of discipline.  There are two things that are proven by discipline…one, God’s love; two, that you are a child of God.  It’s hard for us to believe sometimes, but discipline or trials and tribulations in life are proof of God’s love for us, and proof that we are His children.  We would oftentimes believe the opposite is true.  And Satan would try to convince us of the opposite; that our trials and tribulations are an indication that God doesn’t love us.  

Notice however what the scripture says in vs 6, “FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.”  In Revelation 3:19 Jesus affirms His reproof and discipline are evidence of His love for us.  He said,  “Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline. Therefore be zealous and repent.”  

A good father is motivated to discipline His children because He loves them.  He wants the best for them.  He wants them to grow into the kind of adults that they should be. A parent that doesn’t discipline their children don’t love their children effectively.  I won’t say that they don’t love their children, but they don’t love them effectively.  Indulgence is not an indication of love.  Giving a child everything that they ask for is not love, it’s laziness on the part of a parent.  Maybe it’s even a sense of guilt that drives parents today to give their children every conceivable luxury.  And as a result this generation is one of the most spoiled, selfish generations in recent history.

But God is a perfect Father.  And He knows what we need in order to become the type of people that He wants us to become. And He knows that oftentimes reproof, suffering, discipline, and sacrifice brings about the best results.  The same is true in training in a sport isn’t it?  We often hear, no pain, no gain.  That’s why the author compares the life of faith with a sporting contest or a battle.  And a loving Father trains His children that they might win.

I grew up in a household where my Dad exercised his right to discipline with a very strict and heavy hand. I had a combination of fear and love for my dad.  Unfortunately, he was not as wise and discerning as he could have been.  Too many times I believe my dad disciplined me out of anger.  I think my mother incited my dad to anger to the point that when he got hold of me and my brother, he took out a lot of that anger on us.  

I remember one night when I was a young teenager, about 12 years old.  And this man came to visit the church who had once been a part of our church but had gone away.  This guy was a reformed drug user who had been saved and lived in my house for a short while.  But he had sort of backslidden and left town, and then a year or so later came back to visit one night. As a young boy I idolized this guy.  He was probably around 27 years old, well built, a kind of tough guy.  And my friend and I thought that he was the coolest guy ever.  He was staying at a woman’s boarding house about 3 miles away and had walked to church, so after church he was walking back to the apartment.  And my friend and I walked with him.  We didn’t intend to go all the way home with him, but we were so enthralled to be walking and talking with him that we didn’t notice the time.  

To make a long story short, we were sitting on his front porch talking about things when my Dad called the landlady who was a member of our church and found out that I was there.  He told her to tell me not to leave he was coming for me.  I guess a few hours had gone by since church was out, and they had been looking all over for me in the dark.  To make matters worse my sister had told my dad that a few weeks before when I got a particularly hard spanking I had said that I wish that I felt like running away from home.  And so I guess Dad figured that I had decided to run away from home and had left with that guy.

Well, I never got a chance to give my side of the story.  I got one of the worst spankings I think I had ever gotten before, and that’s saying a lot.  It wasn’t a spanking, it was more like a beating, I suppose.  My dad never did understand what really happened. And I guess I never forgot that night.  But nevertheless, I know that my dad really loved me.  The problem is that he didn’t know the difference between punishment and correction.  And he let his anger and perhaps fear get the best of him.

But God is not like my father.  The text here in Hebrews makes a distinction in vs 9 saying,  “Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?”  The difference is between our earthly fathers, is that they are but a type or a picture of our heavenly Father, who is the Father of spirits.  That means He is our spiritual Father.  And as such He is perfect, and He is motivated by His love for us, and His desire to make us perfect.  As 1Peter 1:16 says, it is written, “YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY.”  And the Father’s discipline is to bring about that likeness in us.

So, we’ve seen the purposes in discipline, to overcome the sin nature in us and the sin in the world, and we’ve seen the perils in discipline; either disdaining discipline or becoming discouraged. We’ve seen the proofs of discipline, that He loves us and that we’re the true children of God. Then there are two products in discipline. Two things that God produces through the trials and hardships or tribulations that we endure. And we see them in verse 9, “Furthermore we had earthly fathers to discipline us and we respected them, shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits and live?”

The first thing that comes as a product of discipline is life. Be subject to the spiritual Father and live.  And that is why it says here in this verse that our spiritual Father wants to subject us to discipline that will give us life, not death; eternal life, abundant life. It’s not just that we will live eternally, it’s that we’ll really live.  The way of sin is death.  The way of rebellion brings pain and trouble.  I said last week at Bible study that the consequences of a life lived as God would have us live is not just a reward in heaven, but a better life here on earth.  There are inherent, built in consequences to sin which is what God wants to prevent from happening in our life.  Jesus has come to give us life, to give us the words of life, that we might know how to really live.  So that we might not have to face the consequences of our rebellion. 

You know, the world tells us that if you want to really live, you need to do the things that the world says are rewarding.  You need to fulfill the lusts and passions of the flesh. That’s really living.  But the truth is that way leads to despair, to shame, to heartache, and ultimately to death. In reality, the believer who is obedient to God’s truth is living the Christian life as it was designed to be lived. The more rebellious you are, the more undisciplined you are, the more disobedient you are, the less you enjoy life and the more you suffer the consequences of sin.  And furthermore, our text teaches that if you aren’t facing the reproof of God when you sin, then that is evidence that you are not actually a child of God at all.  You know, when my dad thought I had run away from home and he was going to discipline me, he did not even attempt to discipline my friend who was also there.  Because my friend was not his son.  But because I was his son, he did discipline me. If you’re living a life of sin and not facing any chastisement or discipline, then chances are you’re not his child.  

But if you are his child, then His discipline is given that we might have the kind of life that He has planned for us.  A life that is full, that is peaceable, that is content, that is holy, that is righteous, that is profitable not only on this earth, but also in the life to come.

And that brings us to the last point, which is the other product of discipline; which is righteousness.  Holiness.  Listen to vs 10, “but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”

Now notice something in vs 11, he says, “All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful.”  There is a godly sorrow that leads to repentance.  And repentance leads to joy as our fellowship and communion with God is restored.  I don’t want you to get the idea from my story while ago that I was always this innocent victim of my dad’s discipline.  Most of the time I’m sure I deserved what I got.  I was a unholy terror as a kid.  But when my dad got finished disciplining me, most of the time, and I eventually stopped crying over the red marks on my rear end, I would end up coming back in the living room where my dad was sitting in his chair, and I would gradually sidle up to him, until he saw me and motioned me over.  And then I would crawl up onto his lap and lay my head on his chest and he would put his arms around me.  And I knew that I was loved, and that things were ok between us.

That’s the point of God’s discipline towards us as well.  It is to make us holy, righteous and that righteousness is the fruit of peace with God. When we are rebellious towards God, then there is no peace.  But when we submit to Him as our Master and Lord, as our Heavenly Father, and we repent and obey, then we have peace with God.  Our fellowship is renewed.  See, our sin does not make God disown us.  God could never disown us. In Isaiah 49:15-16 God says,  “Can a woman forget her nursing child And have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you. Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands.”

God intends through discipline to make us more like Jesus Christ.  He works through hardship, difficulties, trials and tribulations to refine us, purify us, to cleanse us from unrighteousness, to sanctify us and to make us holy.  Even as He is holy.  It is necessary.  It is useful for His purposes.  And in whatever affliction or difficulty we might bear, we can be assured that it is for our good, and for His glory. The discipline of God is building us up to righteousness so that we can live lives that are marked by peace.  

There is a famous line in a hymn written by William Cowper in 1774.  The line says, “Behind a frowning Providence, He hides a smiling face.”  Discipline often seems like God is frowning, like God doesn’t love you.  But behind a frowning God of Providence, there is the love of God for His children.  If you are God’s child, then God is at work in you to conform you to the image of His Son.  And we are conformed to His image by the fellowship in His suffering.  This world of sin, this body of sin, is overcome by suffering and by sacrifice.  And God works in that suffering, to bring about deliverance from sin, through the process of sanctification.  But He does so because He loves you and wants to have fellowship with you.  Do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor faint when you are reproved by Him.  But consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Consider Jesus who endured all types of affliction and trials and hardships in His battle against sin. And He has overcome sin and the world and the devil, and now sits at the right hand of God to be our helper, our intercessor, our Great High Priest.  Let us submit to the Father’s discipline in all our afflictions and hardships and trials that we might become like Christ, and have the life of Christ revealed through us to the world.

I suppose that I have been a runner my whole life.  Long before it was popular to go jogging, I used to run long distances as a young boy. I read a lot as a child, my parents choosing not to have a TV in the house, and I was inspired by some of the stories I read of biographical characters of earlier times.  And I suppose from those stories I was inspired to run.  

It’s kind of embarrassing to talk about it now, but I had a great interest in American Indian culture as a young boy, and I read about how particularly the Apache Indians could run tremendous distances.  They had  unique ways of training their young men to become long distance runners.  It was said that an Apache warrior could run down a horse, going more than 20 miles a day. And so I used to pretend I was training to be an Apache warrior and run long distances.  I used to get my younger brother to do it with me.  We would take off our shoes and shirts and run on gravel roads thinking that would make us tough like the Apaches.   

I don’t know if that played into my running interests or not as I grew older.  But I continued to run through high school and I still run 3 or 4 times a week today.   I’m not a fast runner, I’m a long distance runner.  And I’m not even particularly good at that either.  In other words, I don’t run at a fast pace.  My strongpoint is that I just don’t quit.  I just keep plodding along.  And if you are on the road early in the morning you may see this tall old guy that looks like he’s jogging in slow motion down Route 26. When I’m on the road, it often serves as mechanism for my prayer life.  Perhaps I should pray that I don’t get run over or have a heart attack.  But for the most part I just pray about all the things I need to pray for.  And I find that the two go together pretty well, the jogging serving as a cadence for my prayers.  So I say all of that to illustrate that today’s passage is something that I can relate to.  And I suspect that a lot of you here can relate to running yourselves to some degree.  

Our text today likens the Christian life of faith to that of running a long distance race. I think the author is attempting to illustrate the doctrine that was given at the close of chapter 10 in vs 38, “BUT MY RIGHTEOUS ONE SHALL LIVE BY FAITH; AND IF HE SHRINKS BACK, MY SOUL HAS NO PLEASURE IN HIM.”  And then living by faith is likened in chapter 12 to running a long distance race.  illustrating that faith is not just some sort of static or passive thing, once and done, but it’s a life of faith, it’s a pattern of living by faith, persevering by faith that is what is being talked about here.  

He first talks about this race in the sense of the inspiration for the race. I mentioned earlier that I once found inspiration in the lives of early people on the frontier.  Hebrews talks about the inspiration that comes from those who have run the race of faith in the past.  I think he is talking specifically about those men and women of the Hall of Faith, as listed in chapter 11.  

Now notice what he says about these people in vs. 1 “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”  The word “Therefore” ties this back to chapter 11, the men of old that were listed there as heroes of the faith.  And you will notice that in that listing never was simply the starting point of faith given the emphasis, but the work or perseverance in which by living out they illustrated a life of faith.  

 So it’s a process, a pattern of faith, a life of faith that was given to us by this great cloud of witnesses.  And their exemplary faith should inspire us to run with faith.  Some people have interpreted this statement to conclude that it indicates the saints who have gone on before us are in heaven, seated in the clouds of heaven, so to speak, like some sort of amphitheater,  and they are watching us to see what we will do.

That’s not how the better commentators interpret this statement.  But rather it indicates that their lives were a testimony or a witness to us.  Their testimony, their witness of seeing that which is invisible serves as an inspiration for us to do as they did, and run the race that is before us by faith in Christ.

Now my view of eschatology means that I believe the dead in Christ are in Paradise, which is not in heaven, but in the heart of the Earth, so there is no way for the dead to be seated above the clouds in heaven looking down, yet I do believe that to some degree, we know not how much, the dead in Christ are aware of what is going on here.  And though I doubt that is their primary interest, yet I find evidence in scripture that they are aware of what’s going on here.  So to that extent they are witnesses to our lives.  

I’ll just give you a few examples to back that up.  Samuel, when he came up from the dead and spoke to Saul, spoke of things that were happening then.  He was conversant about the present day, even though he was dead.  Another example is given by Jesus in the story of Lazarus and the rich man.  Both the rich man and Abraham spoke of the rich man’s brothers who were still alive. Also another example is at the transfiguration, when Moses and Elijah spoke with Jesus concerning His ministry. So there is ample indication that they know of what is going on here, but I doubt our lives are the focus of our existence.  But rather the context makes it clear that this cloud of witnesses is a host of witnesses, witnesses to the faith, testimonies to a life of faith, that we are to look to as examples for inspiration to run our race.

Probably one of the few useful things that the internet has produced, amid all the unhelpful aspects of the internet, is youtube. And though youtube has every conceivably bad thing on it, it also has some good things.  For instance, you can fix anything by going on youtube and finding a tutorial.  Even someone as mechanically deficient as I am can usually fix things or learn things from watching youtube videos.  And so I often watch videos about things I am interested in.  Sometimes that includes exercise videos.  And I watch them in hopes that they will inspire me to get going on some exercises and get in shape or lose some weight.  

But what I’ve found is that inspiration alone is not enough.  I can watch four or five exercise videos a day, and never lose a pound.  I watch guys bust out 20 pull-ups, but I can only manage 3.  I may get inspired from watching and decide that starting tomorrow I’m going to start doing pull-ups every day, but by day two or three I’m usually already over it.  Inspiration can be a good thing, but it’s not enough on it’s own.

So what the author of Hebrews tells us is that in addition to inspiration we need to apply preparation. I was going to use the word “perspiration” because that indicates what is involved.  But I think I’ll stick with preparation.  What I mean by that is we need commitment.  We need to add work to our faith.  James said, “Faith without works is dead.”  We have to begin the work, the preparation, the training for the race.  

Notice he says in vs 1, “let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”  If you’re going to run a race, especially an endurance race, then you must get rid of things that will slow you down or trip you up.  In the King James it says lay aside every weight.  As I’ve said many times in regards to this verse, a weight is not necessarily a sin.  A weight may be something perfectly fine in and of itself, but it’s not the sort of thing you want in a race.  And the reason is that it may slow you down.  It may trip you up.

Someone said that in the ancient Greek games, which may have been the template for this passage, they used to train by running with weights tied to their bodies.  And before the race day, they would take off the weights.  Back when I was young and played basketball, we used to wear ankle weights in hope that it would make us better at jumping.  I was a terrible jumper.  I may be tall, but I can’t jump. Nowadays I think that they say that ankle weights aren’t good for your aquilles tendon.  But anyway, before the game, we would of course take the weights off.  We knew that we couldn’t wear ankle weights in a game and have any chance of winning.

I think that oftentimes in our life of faith, we burden ourselves with a lot of things that serve to keep us from really being effective in this life as Christians.  We weigh ourselves down by things such as possessions, careers, relationships, and so forth, which render us ineffective and inefficient in our faith.  They are not necessarily sinful, but they can become so, if they keep you from accomplishing your purpose.

I think it’s important to realize that the author of Hebrews and the Apostle Paul, talk about this life of faith as not just exercise but a race to be won.  A prize to be gained.  You know, when I run I don’t run in a race. I’m just jogging hoping to see some health benefit.  But they speak of running in a race.  Listen to Paul in 1Cor. 9:24-25 “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.  Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then [do it] to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.”   Do you think of your life of faith in that way?  As a contest?  As something to be won?  Or do you just see your life of faith as something passive, as just a life of leisure? I believe the apostles see it as a competition, as a goal, as a reward that we are to strive for.  Now that may go against this idea that we talk about so often that the Lord has done everything and we do nothing.  I think we have a responsibility to live by faith. We are responsible to put the spiritual life we have been given to work. 

One of the greatest weights or hindrances to this race of faith comes in the form of distractions.  We tend to lose our focus, to get distracted from our commitment to live for Christ.  I think that’s what is indicated there in the phrase “which so easily entangles us.” We can be tripped up very easily and fall away from our steadfastness as we allow our focus to be distracted by things that are not important. It’s no secret that I love surfing.  And there is nothing wrong with surfing per se.  But it can very easily become a distraction that keeps me from more important things.  And I’m sure you have your distractions as well, it might be  a love for golf, it might be fishing, even perhaps a friend or a family member.  I’m sure God knows what it is, if you don’t.  It’s things that distract you from your race.

And then he says not only to lay aside the weights, but the sin which so easily entangles us.  I’m ashamed to say that I am so easily entangled by sin.  I’m sure that is not the case with you.  But it is for me.  Sin is always crouching at the door.  But as God told Cain, you must master it.  We have victory over sin through our Lord Jesus Christ.  But I’m afraid that we all have a weakness for certain sins.  Your weakness may not be my weakness.  And my weakness may not be your weakness.  But we are have weaknesses.  And we need to lay it aside.  We need to turn from it.  Leave it behind.  Stop holding on to your sin.  

I think the problem is that too often we say, “Well, it’s just a little sin.  It’s not that big of a deal.”  And yet in a race, every little thing ends up making a difference.  I will never forget years ago we led a Christian Surfers missions trip to Eleuthera.  And there were no commercial planes that could handle all of our surfboards and equipment we wanted to take.  Only small planes can land at the airport.  So I found an old WW2 prop plane that was owned by Missionary Aviation, and we chartered it for the trip.  It was one of those planes the paratroopers used to jump from.  They had taken all the seats out of one side of the aisle and put a cargo net so that we could hold all of our surfboards and supplies were were going to be using down there to build a playground. And before the flight, they had us all line up and we had to weigh every little thing that was going on the plane.  They wanted to make sure that we did not exceed the capacity of the plane or it would not be able to make the takeoff. That didn’t exactly give me a lot of confidence in the plane.  

But I think we would be well served if we examined ourselves with such a critical eye.  Our life of faith after all is a matter of life or death.  And little sins, or little weights, can make a crucial difference in our results.  Jesus said we are to count the cost of being His disciples.  And oftentimes that cost is things that we want to hold onto, but really need to lay aside if we expect to win the victory.

Counting the cost speaks of difficulties that will beset us.  The race of faith does not come easily.  And to that end, we must add to inspiration, and preparation, another one, which is determination.  Notice it says, “let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”  The KJV says, “let us run with patience.”  The Greek word is “hypomone” which should be a familiar word to us.  It’s most well known context is in James 1:3 which says, “Consider it all joy my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces “hypomone” or endurance.  And let endurance have it’s perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”  

Hypomone is translated there as endurance.  But it also means patience, in that when you are suffering, you bear up under it.  To endure it.  Not to rid yourself of the trial, but to endure it patiently, knowing that God uses trials to train and refine us, to complete us that we might be useful to Him.

One thing is clear, is that the race we are called to run is not a sprint, but a marathon.  It’s an endurance race.  And that kind of running requires dedication.  I can tell you from experience, that when you run long distances, your mind will start finding every excuse possible to stop.  Or just walk for a while.  I find it really tempting to stop when I’m about halfway. I start thinking it’s ok if I just walk for a bit.  It takes determination to keep putting one step ahead of the other.  I’ve found that I need to trick my mind when those thoughts come.  My mind will say stop, and I’ll say, just go to that stoplight, or that house, and then you can walk.  And when I get to that house, I either trick myself again or I find that I forgot I was going to walk at that point.  But I keep making small goals for myself to go just a little further.

The life of faith, we must remember is described in chapter 11 vs 1 as the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.  Now that sounds great.  But in actuality it is often a source of discouragement.  How often have you found yourself in a situation and you said, “I don’t know when this will end!”  “I don’t know how much longer I can go on.”  We need  determination, perseverance  so we can endure to the end.   The point is that there is not always an immediate result to our faith.  It’s not a sprint.  It’s a marathon.  It’s going to cost us some sacrifice. It’s going to be painful sometimes.  You’re not always going to feel wonderful. The life of faith is not like going on a pleasure cruise.  But the reward is going to make it all worthwhile.

One of the greatest inspirations for running for me is an ex Navy Seal whose name is David Goggins.  At some point after he had been in service for a while he found himself quite heavy, about 260 lbs. And he decided he was going to do an ultra marathon to honor other Seals who had fallen in battle.  But he had never ran a marathon so first he had to do a race that would qualify him for this marathon.  And so he ran this race of 100 miles, in 24 hours, and he just wouldn’t quit. Everyone else was running in teams, they took turns at different legs of the race.  He ran the whole thing by himself. He had extreme dedication to finish the race, to not quit.  By the end of the race, his feet had several broken bones, he had all these physical problems, but he endured to the end and qualified to enter the next marathon.  Today he has ran in virtually every Ironman marathon in the world.  He is known as a tremendous runner of immense fortitude.  Ironically  he says he hates running.  But he is determined to do his best at it, and to not give up, and he has overcome great hardship and pain in order to accomplish almost super human feats. At last count he competed in over 50 ultra marathons and finished in the top five in about 20 of them.  Incidentally he also set the world record in 2013 for 4030 pull-ups.  Talk about inspiration.

The word “race” in vs 1 comes from the ancient Greek word agona, a word used for conflict or struggle of many kinds, and it was a favorite word of the Apostle Paul.  It suggests that this race is going to be difficult. In order to achieve great things you have to be willing to endure great hardships.  We love to sing the song Amazing Grace that says “through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come.”  But the truth is that we are really surprised to encounter any difficulties in the life of faith.  But that’s not what the Bible teaches.  Jesus said in this world you will have tribulation.  They will hate you because they hate Me. They will persecute you. That’s part of the life of faith that we must persevere through.  You have to be willing to make the sacrifice.  And the greatest inspiration of someone who made the greatest sacrifice of all time is of course, Jesus Christ.  So the author says that in addition to inspiration, and preparation, and dedication, we must add consideration. He says  “Consider Jesus.”  

The first step in considering Jesus is according to vs2 is fixing our eyes upon Jesus. Looking unto Jesus.  The idea in the Greek there is to look away from whatever else distracted you, and to fix your eyes on Jesus.  Focus on Jesus.  He has gone before us, and we can go where He has gone.

Let me tell you something.  You can run a lot faster if you have someone in front of you to set the pace.  But people will fail you.  The Old Testament saints of chapter 11 failed in their faith from time to time.  But Jesus never fails.  Jesus was the perfect example of faith, and you can count on Him to lead you in the way that you should go.  

Peter, you will remember took his eyes of Jesus and instead of walking on water he found himself sinking beneath the waves. He started looking around him.  Maybe he looked back at the boys on the boat and was about to say “Hey guys, look at me, I’m walking on….” then glub, glub, glub, the next thing he knew he was drowning. Keep your eyes on Jesus.

Peter, perhaps having learned his lesson the hard way, says in 1 Peter 2:21, “For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example to follow in His footsteps.”  I have said before that the original language there refers to a sort of handwriting exercise like they use to teach children how to write.  You trace over the lines on the pattern and learn how to write the letters.  That is how we are to follow Jesus.  Step by step, in the pattern which He has laid out for us.  That’s how you fix your eyes upon Jesus.

Notice it continues by saying, “fix your eyes upon Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” This idea of Jesus as the author and finisher of faith, or of our faith, speaks of the eternal purpose of Christ to become flesh, and to live the perfect life, to submit Himself fully to the Father’s will in all things, to believe in the Word of God, to trust in the care of God and the faithfulness of God.  And we are to trace our steps over His pattern.

He began the race as our representative, and He has finished the race.  He traversed the span of death and hell and time and space and was resurrected, and ascended to heaven to act on our behalf as our intercessor and Great High Priest.  And where He has gone, we can go.  As He was resurrected, so we will be resurrected.  As He is in the presence of the Father, so we will be in the presence of God. Because He lives, we live.

In John 11:25 Jesus said, ““I am the resurrection and the life, he that believes in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live; and he that lives and believes in Me, shall never die.”  As He is, so shall we be.  But as He  endured the cross, so must we take up our cross and follow Him. As He suffered the shame, so we must suffer shame for the sake of Christ.  Not that there is any shame in following the Lord, but that the world considers it shame.  There is no shame today for anything anymore.  Things that would make our ancestors roll over in their grave are now looked at without blushing, without any sense of shame.  But ironically, that which is noble, that which is good, that which is trustworthy, the life of faith, the life of Christ, is something that is scorned by the world.  And if we are not careful, we will find ourselves hiding the light which we have been given to carry because we are ashamed.  

Paul said in Romans 1:16, “I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation.”  I always liked the Olympic relay in which they carried the torch.  It was a symbol of the Olympic flame which has it’s roots in the ancient Greek games, and it is carried into every new Olympic Games around the world.  I want to proudly carry the flame which was lit for us by the ancient men and women of faith who ran before us.  I want to carry the flame in honor of the One who has gone on before us into heaven and finished the race and sat down at the throne of God.  The race that we are called to run is so much more important than any earthly games. The Olympic athletes dedicate their lives for a moment’s glory, for a temporal crown.  How much more should we dedicate our lives to run for an eternal crown of glory?  

Consider Jesus.  Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus.  He is our reward.  One day we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is in all His glory.  Let us not grow weary and lose heart.  

One of the hardest parts about running an endurance race is that it is easy to get discouraged out there all alone running along the side of the road.  It’s early, it’s sometimes cold, sometimes hot, sometimes raining.  And it’s easy to get discouraged in the race of faith as well.  But in the race of faith we do not have to run alone.  The Spirit of Christ is given to live in us that we might have the strength to run, that we might have the comfort and help of someone who will be with us.  Jesus said, I will never leave you nor forsake you.  We can run the race well, we can finish the race, the can be victorious in the race, because He not only has gone before us, but He goes with us.  Jesus said, “Behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Don’t lose heart.  Don’t be discouraged.  But encourage one another day by day.  And do not forsake the assembling of yourself together as is the habit of some, for that is how we are to encourage one another to keep running the race. Lay aside the hindrances and run the race.  Run with endurance.  Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus, and keep on keeping on. The reward that is set before us will make it all worthwhile when we will one day see Jesus face to face and be with Him forever.  

Paul said in Phil 3:7-8, 13-14 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, … 13 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of [it] yet; but one thing [I do:] forgetting what [lies] behind and reaching forward to what [lies] ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”  I pray you run in such a way that you might gain that prize. 

As we are coming to the end of our study of Hebrews 11, known as the Hall of Faith, you will recall that it was introduced in chapter 10 by the words, “My righteous one shall live by faith.”  We have talked extensively about that statement, examining various aspects of what it means to live by faith. And the heroes of the faith who are listed here are examples of righteous men and women who lived by faith.

But such a study begs the question, what is the life of faith?  What is this life which Christ has purchased for us with His blood supposed to accomplish in us?  What we hopefully all know is that it is spiritual life, eternal life, abundant life.  It is life in the Spirit, by the Spirit, of the Spirit.  But what does it accomplish?  Is it just a more moral, or more happy, or more blessed, or more prosperous, or more successful life than that which is of the flesh?  Is it simply lived for our sakes, so that we might be more fulfilled?

I would suggest that the writer of Hebrews is indicating something more than that.  I would suggest the answer is found in the first part of verse 33; “who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises.”   I believe we might characterize the life of faith as doing the works of God.  That’s what is indicated in those three concurrent statements.  That’s what is illustrated in the lives of the six men that he mentions in vs31, “Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets.”  Six men plus a large number of prophets, both known and unknown.  They were men who lived by faith, and accomplished great feats of faith in their lifetime.

What is indicated as significant about their faith is that they “by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises.”  Now I realize that the text has a comma following promises, and the list goes on to enumerate specific acts.  But I think that since there was no punctuation in the early scriptures, there is latitude in how we might determine punctuation.  And I think that in this  list, the first three serve as a heading, or summary, and then it’s followed by specific works which fit under one of those headings.

So I believe that this answers the question what does our life of faith look like? What is the purpose of life for us which we are saved and  left here on this earth. I suggest it is that we might do the works of God, which is to conquer kingdoms, specifically the kingdom of darkness. Many of those men’s acts of faith was to deliver the nation of Israel, or the church of God, from the dominion of pagan nations who worshipped idols. Secondly, the life of faith It is to perform acts of righteousness.  Now that requires faith because it is not natural, and by works of righteousness we manifest the love of God in our hearts, through which the world comes to know the truth of God.  And thirdly, the life of faith is to obtain the promises.  In other words, things which God has promised to us in His word, we are to lay hold of, and act upon in faith that He will fulfill.  

However, I’m afraid that for the most part, the modern church sees the life of faith as merely a means of personal enrichment, or prosperity, or as a means of gaining physical blessing.  And of course, they see it as fire insurance against the possibility of hell. But I think that modern Christians have such a low view of the hereafter, that they are only really concerned with the here and now and so the fear of hell is not quite seen as all that significant. But more important to the modern church is that  God just wants to love you, to serve you, to give you your hearts desires, to bless you, to make you happy, to fulfill your dreams, to make your life here on earth as successful and prosperous as it can be.

You folks who were at Bible study on Wednesday night might remember talking about Micah, who erected a shrine, who made an ephod, and added some idols, and then hired a Levite to be his own personal priest.  And after all that he said, “Now I know that the LORD will prosper me, seeing I have a Levite as priest.” That pretty much sums up the theology of a lot of Christians.  I will go to church, I’ll drop a five dollar bill in the offering box, I’ll say the blessing before dinner, and God will be obligated to bless me.  And that’s the extent of what it means to live a life of faith.  

However, on the contrary, I think that the scriptures teach us that God has saved us for much more than that.  I believe the scriptures teach that God has saved us and given us new life that we might do good works.  Ephesians 2:10 says, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

Now I have a large list I compiled of many verses of scripture which confirm that we are saved to do the works of God.   And I would like to share them all with you, but we don’t have time to look at all those and still finish the text here before us.  But let me give you just a few.  1Cor. 3:9, “For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building. Phl. 2:13  “for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for [His] good pleasure.”  Matt. 5:16 “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. 1John 2:6 “the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked.” And we know, of course, that Jesus came to do the will of the Father as He said in  John 9:4  “We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work.”

So it’s clear from Eph.2:9,10 which I just read vs 10 to you that though we are not saved by good works, but we are saved by grace through faith, yet we are created, that is we are given this new life, this life of faith, for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. And these good works are works of faith.  Works accomplished by faith in God, that He will give us the power to do what He has purposed in us to do. 

The point that needs to be emphasized is that God did not create in us a new life so that we might just be a better version of ourselves. But we all are called to accomplish these works of faith.  These men and women of faith that Hebrews alludes to, some whom we know and some we don’t, but they are given to us as examples, that we might follow in their footsteps of faith.  And though such men and women may not have been always what they should have been, though they may have not always been walking in faith, or always achieving good works for God, yet they did accomplish great works of faith for the Kingdom.  And they are given to us as examples of how we are to live the life of faith in our age as well.  

Now before we work through this list, I would point out that there are two sections to this list.  In the first part, 30-34, it lists feats in which you might say the persons were victorious over the temporal world.  There are a lot of theologians or preachers that want to capitalize on that part of the list and say that a life of faith is the victorious life in temporal things.  But in the second part, starting in vs35, it lists those who from a world’s standpoint were losers physically, but triumphed spiritually.  These are those who suffered for their faith.  And yet in vs 39 it says that all these gained approval for their faith.  Both those that were victorious physically, and those that suffered physically, both gained approval from God for their faith.  Both accomplished great works of God by faith.  So there is a contrast between those who had some sort of visible success and those who had an invisible success of faith.

So let’s look briefly at the men that are mentioned in vs 32.  The good news is that for those of you who’ve been at our Wednesday night Bible studies lately then you are well familiar with these men.  We spent a lot of time covering the life of David recently, and just finished with Judges, looking particularly at the life of these men. And  since it’s so fresh in your minds, then you should need very little review and  be able to think back with me and ask yourself what work of faith did each of these men do that qualifies him for this list?  

Gideon is the first, and you might remember when we first saw Gideon he was hiding out from the Midianites and winnowing his wheat in a winepress. But though he needed several confirmations from God, in the end this fearful man by faith in God’s word led 300 men into battle against at least 135000 Midianites, with the only weapons being torches and clay jars.  And  God gave him a great victory.

It’s surprising to see Barak listed here, instead of the prophetess Deborah.Barak was another man who seemed to not have courage.  Barak seemed to be afraid of taking on the enemy of God without Deborah going with him.  But in the end, he took 10000 men down the mountain to do battle with the great army and chariots of Sisera, and by faith in God he defeated the king of Canaan, the enemy of God and oppressor of his people.

Samson may seem like an unlikely choice for a man of faith.  When we look at his life, we see excesses of his flesh, and his life overwhelmed by earthy passions.  But nevertheless, God called him to be a judge of Israel, and Samson took seriously that call.  I think that Samson’s greatest work of faith is the last act of his life, when he called upon God for strength and killed more Philistines in his death than he had in his life.  He was willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of delivering the church of God.

Jephthah is remembered by many for his rash vow.  But God remembers Jephthah for his act of faith in engaging in battle with the Ammonites, while trusting in the Lord to win the battle. He was the son of a harlot, an outcast of his people, yet by the grace of God he was chosen to lead his people into victory.

David fought many battles for the Lord, not the least of which was his battle against Goliath in which he by faith defeated the enemies of Israel. But David’s faith was also exemplary in the long trial in the wilderness when Saul was hunting him to put him to death.  He trusted in the promise of God to put him on the throne in place of Saul, and trusted in the providence of God to accomplish it in due time. He patiently suffered for about 13 years until God fulfilled His word.

And finally, Samuel is mentioned.  Samuel was the last of the judges of Israel.  And he led the nation back to God. He anointed David as king even though it would be years before David would come to the throne.  Samuel too was a military leader that trusted in God in the face of the threat from the Philistines, and God brought about a great victory.

It’s no coincidence by the way that so many of these men were military leaders or engaged in warfare, doing battle for the kingdom of Israel against the pagan countries that surrounded them.  Though our struggle today as the people of God is not against physical kingdoms, yet we are still engaged in spiritual warfare, which is the greatest affront on our faith.  And we are called to engage the enemy as the church of God, doing the works of God through faith.

2Cor. 10:3-5 says, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,  for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.  [We are] destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and [we are] taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” 

Eph. 6:10-12 says a lot about this militant faith we are to have; “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual [forces] of wickedness in the heavenly [places.]”

And in 2Tim. 2:3 Paul says “Suffer hardship with [me,] as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.”  That verse parallels in many respects the admonition of the author of Hebrews in the first verse of the next chapter.  So the life of faith is likened to a spiritual battle, or as in Hebrews 12:1, an all important race we are instructed to run.

Hebrews then speaks of the other men and women of old who by faith achieved great things for the Lord. After the three headings in the list, the next one up is those who shut the mouths of lions.  The most obvious person that could be referring to is of course, Daniel.  Daniel knew the edict that promised death to anyone who prayed to anyone other than the king.  And yet Daniel confidently went about his prayer time as usual, knowing he was being watched, and yet trusting in God to sustain him. And though he was thrown into a den of hungry lions, yet God stopped the mouth of the lions so that Daniel might live to be a testament to the Lord.

The reference to those who “quenched the power of fire” could certainly be attributed to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who refused to worship the Bablyonian King. They expressed their faith to Nebuchadnezzar by saying, whether or not God delivered them from the fiery furnace they would not bow down to him.  They were prepared to be burned for the Lord’s sake. And God delivered them from the flames in order to use them to be a witness to the nation of Babylon.

Several prophets escaped the edge of the sword. Elijah for instance escaped the sword of Jezebel, and there are others that could be mentioned. That indicates that they were pursued and under threat of death because of their faith.  And yet they persevered by faith.  Another reference is to those who from weakness were made strong. There are many that could fit in that category.  But Esther comes to mind.  A woman of faith, a Jewish woman living as an exile in Persia, and yet God raised her up to become Queen in such a time as this and deliver her people.  She was a great example of someone who from weakness was made strong.

Then it says, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.  That could refer to practically any of the judges.  All of which found themselves up against far superior forces, but who proved,  like Jonathan said, that God is not limited to save by many or by few, and so they gained the victory over seemingly superior forces through faith in the invisible God.

Then in the next verse, as I’ve already mentioned, there is a change in the tone of the list, as these people do not seem to gain a great victory over the enemies of the Lord.  In fact, the people on this list suffer for sake of the Kingdom of God. But nevertheless, they accomplished much for the kingdom of God by their sacrifice.  FF Bruce said, “Faith in God carries with it no guarantee of comfort in this world. But it does carry with it great reward in the only world that ultimately matters.”

And I’m not going to try to find Biblical examples of who these statements might be referring to. To use the words of the author, “time will fail me…”  I”m sure the author of Hebrews could have identified who he was speaking of if that was his desire.  But I will make a comment or two as needed as we look briefly  at them.

He says in vs35, “Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection.”  Now there is the transition between the two types in the list.  On the one hand it mentions those that were resurrected after having died, and then contrasted with those who did not accept being released due to being tortured, presumably to make them recant their faith, so that they might obtain a better resurrection.  But both are noted for their faith.  However one sees a physical deliverance and the other a spiritual deliverance.  But from the human standpoint, the physical is much more desirable, isn’t it?  How often do we hear some preacher on television or somewhere offer physical healing as the result of faith? But the fact is that if God should heal, or even if He should raise someone from the dead as in the case of Lazarus, there will still come a time when this flesh must pass away.  The things of this earth will fail.  But that which is spiritual endures beyond the grave. 

Others, he says, were tortured.  Thus begins the list of trials for many of those who would live by faith. But the resurrection provides the means by which we LIVE by faith.  Those who are made alive by faith in Christ Jesus will never die. Their body may pass away, but their spirit will live in Paradise until the resurrection, when they will receive a new, glorified body.

When the recipients of this letter read the words, “and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment,” they must have readily identified with that statement.  The Hebrews themselves had suffered such things as the author had already reminded them in chapter 10 vs 32. The point being that they were not the first to suffer for the name of Christ.  The Old Testament prophets such as Jeremiah knew such torments firsthand, and it continued to the church age, from the first century until today, especially in countries such as Iran, China and Korea. 

Just the other day, I saw a post from my nephew Nathan Barber concerning a friend of his, who was a missionary to Cameroon, and he was killed two weeks after entering the country. He left behind a wife and eight children.  So there are still those who are suffering even today for their faith.

And it may one day be the sort of thing that we are called upon to endure. What we need to recognize is that suffering for the Lord’s sake is a great work of faith that accomplishes more for the kingdom of God than we can always measure here on earth. But more come to faith through witnessing the trials of the faithful than by witnessing the prosperity of the so called Christian.

Vs 37 continues the list of suffering with those who were stoned. Many Old Testament characters as well as Steven and Paul in the New Testament experienced stoning.  According to strong tradition, Isaiah was sawn into.  Who knows how many unknown during the Nazi and Communist regimes suffered similar fates.  But God knows those who have given their all for the sake of the gospel.

Some through faith we were told earlier, escaped the sword.  Now we are told of others who were killed by the sword.  The life of faith does not eclipse the possibility of dying for the faith. And yet the same accolade was given to both; all these, having gained approval by their faith.  Righteousness comes on the basis of faith, and these who lived and died by faith, were approved as righteous by God.

The author goes on to describe still more trials of the faithful: “they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.”  Paul said in Phl.3:7-8 “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.  More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ.”

It is difficult, if not next to impossible, to have all the niceties of this world, to have all the resources that one could hope for in this world, and not be held captive by them.  I once thought when I was a successful antique dealer, when I was on national television almost every week, when I lived in a beautiful house with a beautiful house and children, that I could be an effective witness for the Lord due to them being able to see how the Lord had blessed me. But I can say after losing all of that, that God has used me much more since then than I could have ever imagined.  It goes back to what was said while ago, “out of weakness were made strong.”  God has chosen to use the weak things, to confound the mighty.  And sometimes God has to bring us to weakness before He is able to use us.  

Paul said in 2Cor. 12:7-10 “Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me–to keep me from exalting myself!  Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me.  And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.  Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong.”

The writer of Hebrews wraps up his eulogy of those men and women of old who died in faith, by saying in vs39 “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.”  From Abel down through the ages to some long forgotten martyr in a foreign land, they ultimately lived and died in hope of a fulfillment that was never completely experienced on earth, yet so sure were they of it’s fulfillment that they pressed on to the very end of their days, living against the current of the world, living on earth as citizens of heaven. 

But now the promise has been fulfilled in Christ. He who died to take away sin, and was resurrected to live in Heaven for us as our intercessor and mediator, has procured completion for us.  God has guaranteed our fulfillment in Christ as the author and finisher of our faith.  His life, death and resurrection guarantees a better inheritance that will never fade away.  He gives us a spiritual inheritance of eternal life through Jesus Christ.  He is the perfect who has perfected us.  He is the author and finisher of our salvation. And in Him and through Him we  have the victory that overcomes the world.  1John 5:4 “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—even our faith.”

I trust that you have come to know, to believe in, to trust in, to have faith in Jesus Christ, and have received life in HIs name.  And I hope that you will live by faith in Christ, to do His will, and to serve Him.  Only one life will soon be past.  Only what’s done for Christ will last. 

Today we continue to look at the hall of faith as recorded in the book of Hebrews, chapter 11.   And we have spent several weeks looking at various Old Testament characters who exhibited faith, the kind of faith which Hebrews says in chapter 10 results in righteousness,  which in turn results in life.  

Last time we looked specifically at how faith  perseveres unto death, and even beyond death, to lay hold of the promises of God.  The title of that message was Facing death through faith.  I would encourage you to go to our website and read that message if you missed it last week. I don’t want to review all that I said last week, but rather press on in regards to this subject of facing death in faith.  Death is inevitable for all men. Heb 9:27 says “it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.”  But there is a choice that is given to us in the gospel.  And that choice is to believe God, to have faith in God, and receive life that continues after the physical death of this body, or to disobey God, and to receive eternal damnation.  

Now though the focus of our sermon today is on Rahab, and her faith, there is verse 29 we don’t want to skip over which mentions the faith of the Israelites as they passed through the Red Sea.  And I would just mention that in that example we see the choice between life and death pictured very clearly.  The Israelites after leaving Egypt were caught between the Red Sea in front and the Egyptian army behind, and hemmed in by mountains on either side.  They were facing death, but they believed in God’s word, and they were saved by marching through the Red Sea, as though they walked on dry land.  

The Egyptians though, they were disobedient and unbelieving.  Time and time again God had given them the word of God through Moses, accompanied by signs and wonders from on high, and yet they continued to harden their hearts.  The result was that even when they finally gave in and let the children of Israel go, they changed their minds and pursued them with the intention of doing them harm.  And so though they had an equal courage to that which the Israelites had, and went boldly into the Red Sea on dry land, they did not have faith in God, and in fact were disobedient to what God had said that they should do, and so God caused the waters to return so that they were all drowned.

Now this illustrates the essence of the gospel.  Man is under the condemnation of death, and by faith in God we are granted life.  That’s the essence of the gospel.  And in a short form, that’s what is illustrated in vs29. It also illustrates that faith must be founded in the truth.  The Egyptians illustrate a type of faith in going into the Sea, but it is not united in truth and so it failed. Faith is not a saving entity in and  of itself.  It is faith in the truth of God.

The author then proceeds to give another illustration,  exhibiting in part the faith of the Israelites, and in part the faith of Rahab the Canaanite.  Now Rahab is who I would like to really focus on here today, and yet we are going to touch on a lot of other things in relation to our study of her faith.  But as a precursor to that, I must mention  the fact that Rahab’s inclusion here in this list of the heroes of the faith, is a really remarkable thing.

First of all, it’s remarkable in that she is a woman.  Of all the Old Testament heroes mentioned in this text, Rahab is the only woman to get prime billing.  It’s very interesting when you think of all the women of the Old Testament, and yet Rahab is the only one that is singled out as a woman of faith.  Now some of you perhaps are ready to raise your hand and say what about Sarah, wasn’t she mentioned in vs 11?  And you’re right, she is mentioned.  But if you were paying attention a few weeks ago when we got to that text, you will recall we spoke of the fact that the original Hebrew indicates it was the faith of Abraham and not Sarah who was being commended.  Remember Sarah laughed at the prophecy of the Lord?  But, irregardless, many translators believe it should be better interpreted as “By the faith of Abraham, Sarah received the power to conceive…”

But my intention is not to debate that again today.  Sarah as well as many other women such as Deborah and Esther and Ruth have many exemplary traits which are given as examples to us.  But I would point out that the author of Hebrews choses to highlight out of all of them, Rahab.  And that is extraordinary because of two things.  One she is a Gentile, a Canaanite, belonging to the city of Jericho, the enemy of God. And secondly, that she is a prostitute.

Now of the first point, from our perspective, being a Gentile is not such a big deal.  But from a Jewish perspective it was everything.  Gentiles were considered on a par with dogs.  And in those days, people didn’t have the same view of dogs that we have today.  They didn’t make pets out of dogs.  They didn’t buy them expensive toys and food and spend hundreds of dollars on them at the dog salon.  They didn’t pick up their poop from the sidewalk.  Dogs were considered a public nuisance.  And Jews considered Gentiles as dogs.  They despised them.  So for a Gentile to be brought into the family of God, when Jews thought they were the only ones deserving of God’s grace, was a real shocker.  And as you know, we all are Gentiles.  We too were outside of the covenant of God to Abraham.  But God has extended his grace to us by faith in Him, that as Galatians 3:7 says it might be the children of faith who are the sons of Abraham, and not just the descendants from the flesh.

The second point we can more easily identify as problematic.  And that is that Rahab was a harlot. Notice, even the author of Hebrews writing hundreds of years later still gives her this title.  Harlot.  There are some sins that go before us, and other follow after.  1Tim. 5:24  “The sins of some men are quite evident, going before them to judgment; for others, their [sins] follow after.”  Being a harlot seems to be one of those sins that do both.  It’s hard to lose the stigma of being a harlot in any age, no matter how contrite they may later be, or what they may later become.

But the fact is that sin is sin.  And most of us have committed sins that are just as grievous, if not worse than harlotry. The only credit we have is our sin is not so obvious.  But there are no such things as secret sins.  We may think so, but God sees all things, and He sees our hearts. Heb. 4:13 says, “And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” So there are no secret sins.  But we tend to look more disdainfully on those whose sins go before them.  Those sins which have immediate, drastic results like addiction, alcoholism, prostitution, etc.  We look down our noses a lot of times at such people caught up in those sins, and yet the sins of jealousy, lust, covetousness, idolatry, rebellion, hatred, lying, and such things we do not judge as harshly.  Because perhaps they are not so easily seen by others, and we hope are not so evident in us.

Nevertheless, God sees all.  And He certainly saw the sins of Rahab. And yet she is commended for her saving faith. Well, that’s God’s way of letting us know that the gospel comes to people who are in the natural sense unlikely prospects for God’s grace.  Jesus said I have come to seek and to save those that are lost.  We aren’t good prospects for salvation because of our merits, or because of our morals, but we are good prospects because we are sinners.

So Hebrews commends Rahab for her faith.  Twice in the account in Joshua 2 it says that she was spared because she hid the messengers Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.  But if you read the story, then you know that there is a problem with the way she does that.  The king hears of the spies and he sends men to Rahab’s house to seek them out, and demand that she give them up. Rahab had taken the two men and hidden them, and she said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. It came about when it was time to shut the gate at dark, that the men went out; I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them. But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them in the stalks of flax which she had laid in order on the roof.”  So she deliberately deceived the king’s men.

Now perhaps I would be better off to avoid this subject, but I can’t help but comment here because so many commentators over the centuries have made this out to be a sin on the part of Rahab.  And their argument is that if she would have told the truth, God would have delivered the spies another way.  But while I don’t doubt the purposes of God will be accomplished, I don’t know if I wholeheartedly agree with the premise that what she did was a sin.  And that is because the whole idea of a spy is to deceive, isn’t it? And these men sent by Joshua were spies. If you go into a land to spy out the land, the fact is you’re going to have to be devious, deceiving if you expect to be successful.  And so the question is, is it permissible to deceive in such cases.  At that point, I think Rahab had decided to be true to God rather than be true to her country.  Her theology was already established, and this was her chance to act in faith to God rather than in fidelity to her nation.  Her nation was an enemy of God.  

And I realize that this raises a lot of sticky questions that are not easily answered. Some of you may be familiar with the story of Diettrich Boenhoffer.   He was a pastor and theologian in Germany during the time of Hitler.  And he participated in some degree in a plot to overthrow Nazi Germany and specifically to assassinate Hitler.  And eventually he was captured and hung at the galllows, just three weeks before the Allies liberated the prison camp. He is considered a modern day martyr for the faith.  And yet there are some questions that arise from his working as a intelligence officer for the Nazi’s.  And yet at the same time working secretly to overthrow the government and assassinate Hitler.  I’m not sure how much subterfuge he had to do in order to do that.  But isn’t subterfuge in reality false representation?  Are we going to say that a Christian could never be a spy in a foreign country?  I think we are sometimes too quick to judge that which we are never likely to have to endure ourselves.  But I mention this today not to be controversial, but because there may come a day in our lifetime, when we may be faced with similar situations and have to make decisions as to what to do.  I will say one thing dogmatically.  It’s never right to deny Christ under any circumstances.  In vs35 we find the statement that people of faith who were persecuted did not accept release so that they might obtain a better resurrection.  I think that refers to them not recanting their faith.  Christians in particular during Roman times were given the option of recanting and they would be freed.  It’s never ok under any circumstances to deny Christ.  Because our faith is expressed in our confession of faith.  So as a Christian, it’s unthinkable that we could ever deny our faith for the purpose of saving our lives or any other lives.   

Well, I’m not going to try to answer every question there, other than to say that Rahab is commended for her faith in regards to how she treated the spies.  Now there is another aspect of Rahab which is given as a type to us.  And that is she was a part of a condemned people.  God pronounced His judgment upon the land of Canaan, and particularly upon the people of Jericho.  They were under the condemnation of death.  They were destined for destruction.  For 40 years they had watched the Israelites, and seen the power of God manifested towards His people.  Little did most of the Jews realize as they traveled through the wilderness  that they were intended by God to be a testimony to a watching world.  And yet most of the time during those years all they did was complain.  They turned again and again to rebellion and complaint and mumbling against Moses.  And so God was not pleased with them and let that generation die in the wilderness.  

But nevertheless, the Gentiles living in Canaan and it’s surrounding areas had multiple witnesses to God’s grace towards Israel.  Rahab recounts in Joshua 2 what their perception had been of the events since the Jews were delivered from Egypt.  She said in Joshua 2:9-13 “I know that the LORD has given you the land, and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land have melted away before you. For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. When we heard [it,] our hearts melted and no courage remained in any man any longer because of you; for the LORD your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath. Now therefore, please swear to me by the LORD, since I have dealt kindly with you, that you also will deal kindly with my father’s household, and give me a pledge of truth, and spare my father and my mother and my brothers and my sisters, with all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.”

That’s a pretty incredible testimony, isn’t it?  This is from a  woman who had no scriptures, had no prophet, had only the testimony of  God’s faithfulness in the life of the Jews, and yet from that she manages to come to faith in God.  That illustrates something that I have said many times, and that’s the greatest sermon that is ever preached is lived out in the life of a person transformed by the Spirit of God.  You are preaching a message to the watching world around you by your day to day life.  They may not seem to listen to what you say, but they see the way you live your life, and that speaks more to them than any sermon. And that goes for your family as well.  They are watching what you do more than hearing what you say.

So God had determined that Jericho is going to be destroyed, Rahab is one of the citizens of the city of Jericho and in this condemned city, she belonged with the others as condemned men and women. That, of course, reminds us of what this world is like, for that is what we all are naturally as we are born. We are part of a condemned world. We are condemned men and  women. The Bible makes it very plain that by virtue of the one sin of Adam in the Garden of Eden, all have sinned and are condemned.  But just as salvation from death came to Rahab on the basis of faith, salvation from condemnation comes to us on the basis of faith.

Now let’s look at this faith of Rahab.  Her faith comes not as a result of hearing about the love of God.  But her faith comes in response to learning of the judgment of God. She knows that God is going to destroy her city.  And she responds in faith to that impending judgment.  I think that we tend to minimize the judgment of God today.  We dare not speak of hell.  Of judgment against sin.  But without God’s judgment then there is no appreciation for the cross.  Before we can appreciate the love of God, we must come to understand the justice of God and learn to fear God. Psalm 111:10 says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.”  So on the basis of that fear of God she asks for salvation from death for herself and her family.

Then in response to her confession of faith, the men offer her exemption from death.  But only if she does what they tell her to do.  Notice vs14,  So the men said to her, “Our life for yours if you do not tell this business of ours; and it shall come about when the LORD gives us the land that we will deal kindly and faithfully with you.” … 17 The men said to her, “We [shall be] free from this oath to you which you have made us swear,  unless, when we come into the land, you tie this cord of scarlet thread in the window through which you let us down, and gather to yourself into the house your father and your mother and your brothers and all your father’s household. It shall come about that anyone who goes out of the doors of your house into the street, his blood [shall be] on his own head, and we [shall be] free; but anyone who is with you in the house, his blood [shall be] on our head if a hand is [laid] on him.”

I believe it was Clement in the first century who first published a sermon on the typology of the scarlet cord as a type of Christ.  When Rahab hung the scarlet cord outside the window upon the wall of Jericho, it was a sign of her faith in God.  It was obedience to the command of the spies.  If she failed to put out the cord, if she failed to bring in her family members under her roof, then she and her family would perish along with everyone else in the city.  The basis of our salvation is  suggested by that cord of scarlet that was hung from the window, fastened in the window. When we think of the fastening of the cloth hung from her window, we think of the Lord hanging on the cross, and we are saved by His shed blood for us.  So the scarlet cord is a foreshadowing of the cross of Christ.

Many years ago I used to deal in antiques and specialized in antique American Indian items.  And one of the things I used to look for were old Navajo blankets.  The ones that were really valuable were ones that had the very early dies.  And one of the first dyes that they had access to came from trading with the Spanish, and it was called cochineal.  Cochineal was used to make scarlet thread from ancient times.  It was derived from crushing a tiny bug.  And so it was very costly.  So perhaps there is even some symbolism to be found even in the cost of the dye.  Scarlet was a very costly dye color then as well.  And furthermore it came as a result of crushing.  Isaiah 53 says, “He was crushed for our iniquities.”  Rahab did not realize all that cord symbolized, but she had faith in what had been revealed to her, and was obedient to it.

Well, the story is familiar to all of you, I’m sure.  The Israelite spies made it back to the camp of Joshua, and the Lord instructed the Israelites to march around the city for 6 days, never uttering a word.  And on the seventh day, they were to go around 7 times, and then let out a shout and the walls would fall down. I can imagine the townspeople of Jericho watching this from the walls.  These walls by the way were immense.  Moses is recorded as saying that they reached up into heaven.  And Rahab her home built into the outer wall, so that her window faced out of the city.

But I can imagine how the citizens must have reacted to the sight of a million Jews marching around the city without saying anything.  It must have seemed bizarre, maybe even comical after a while.  I imagine they hurled insults and various objects at them, calling them names and so forth.  They ridiculed them, I’m sure.  And I can’t help but think of the correlation to the verse which says that “The word of the Cross is to them that perish foolishness. But unto us who are being saved, it’s the power of God.”  

Why seven days?  Is 7 a magic number?  I don’t think so.  Seven represents completion in the Bible.  And for seven days God gave them time to repent and they did not. I believe that the possibility of salvation by faith was extended to Jericho just as it had been to Rahab.  And yet they hardened their heart during the patience of God, whereas Rahab prepared her house.  Peter says in 2 Peter 3 that we are to regard the patience of God as salvation. God patiently waited 120 years during the time of Noah before bringing on the flood, and yet no one was saved but Noah and his family.  The invitation of God stands until the patience of God runs out.  And one day the patience of God will be completed here on earth in our day as well, and the door will be shut, and the wrath of God will commence upon the condemned. I wonder if we truly believe that.  If we did, I can’t help but think we would be more fervent in our appeals to those that are lost.

But by faith the result is that the condemned sinner is brought to safety. And we read in Joshua chapter 6: 25, “And Joshua spared Rahab the harlot, her father’s household, and all that she had. So she dwells in Israel to this day.”  After the walls collapsed, which must have killed most of the people especially as they were probably standing on the walls, the Israelites rushed in and slew every living creature as God commanded. And then they set the city on fire. And Rahab being saved from Jericho, which is burning, is a beautiful illustration of the saving of a brand from the burning, and an illustration of the destruction of the heavens and earth by burning as Peter describes in 2Peter 3:10 “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.”

Notice also the witness of her faith.  She brought her family under her roof, having convinced them of their need to trust in the God of the Israelites.  And as a result they were saved from destruction.  Any Christian who has been converted and has no concern for his own family, does not bring them before the Lord in prayer, does not seek opportunity to say something to them concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, his faith is a very doubtful kind of faith. The very first thing that she’s concerned about is her family.

I am sure that you all here are concerned about the faith of your family.  And yet I will ask you, when you have the opportunity to invite them to church, where they can hear the gospel preached, where they can see the testimony of Christ being lived out, do we find an excuse for not bringing them?  Do we seem to care only about our own destiny and not really about our loved ones? In Charles Spurgeon’s message on Rahab he says, “The spirit of proselyting is the spirit of Christianity, and we ought to be desirous of possessing it. If any man will say, “I believe such and such a thing is true, but I do not wish any one else to believe it, I will tell you, it is a lie; he does not believe it, for it is impossible, heartily and really to believe a thing, without desiring to make others believe the same. And I am sure of this, moreover, it is impossible to know the value of salvation without desiring to see others brought in.”

And that leads us to another  aspect of her faith, which is the exclusivity of salvation.  There was no salvation anywhere else. In John chapter 10, the Lord says, “I am the door; by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, shall go in and out, find pasture.” And elsewhere He said, “I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except by Me.”  There is but one place of salvation, when Jericho is destroyed, and that’s Rahab’s house on the outside wall of the city. One safe place! Today, there is one safe place and that place is Jesus Christ!  There is one safe place, and that is where the word of God is preeminent and authoritative and true, in the house of the Lord.

There is  another place in scripture where Rahab is talked about and that is found in James 2:25 “In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?  For just as the body without [the] spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.”  So the faith of Rahab was a faith that was working.  It wasn’t just a profession of faith.  Notice back in our text in vs 31, it says that Rahab did not perish along with those who were disobedient.  So there is a link between faith and obedience.  Faith requires action.  It requires stepping out in obedience to God’s word.

And, finally, Rahab’s faith provides a picture of spiritual blessing. In Matthew 1:5-6 we read that a prince of Judah by the name of Salmon was the father of Boaz by a woman named Rahab, Boaz was the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of David the king, and thus of the line of Jesus Christ.  Think of that, Rahab, a harlot, brought into the family of God, not only brought into the family of God, but in time married Salmon, a prince of Judah, and from the prince of Judah there has come the true prince, making her one of the great, great-grand mothers of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Rahab, the harlot, shows that no one need despair at the judgment of God coming upon the world. As Paul said “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.”  Faith in Christ results in life everlasting for those who were formerly condemned to destruction.  I hope that you have such faith in Christ, and have committed your life to live for Him.  There is hope in none other.  And I trust like Rahab, you will see the blessing of God upon your life, as you live in His service and that you will see the salvation of your family, through the witness of your faithfulness.  If you do not have the assurance of eternal life in Jesus Christ, then believe in Him today, and call upon Him to save you.  

Isaiah 55:6-7 “Seek the LORD while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near. 7 Let the wicked forsake his way And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And let him return to the LORD, And He will have compassion on him, And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.”

In our study of Hebrews we have come to the great faith chapter, chapter 11, and the author is giving a roll call of the heroes of faith.  He introduced this doctrine of faith in chapter 10 vs 38, saying that “my righteous one shall live by faith.”  And we have said that the emphasis given in that verse is on “shall live.”  So he says that righteousness is granted on the basis of faith.

Then, you will remember he described faith in chapter 11 vs 1, saying, “Now faith is the assurance of [things] hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old gained approval.”  And in our message last week we concluded that based on the context of that statement we might say faith is being sure of what we hoped for, and certain of what we do not see, as revealed by the word of God, so that we might live in accordance to that faith.

And that brought us to the hall of fame of faith, in which he gives illustrations of living faith in the men of old.  He started with Abel, who was an example of the worship of faith, then Enoch, who illustrates the walk of faith, then Noah illustrates the working of faith.  We looked at all three of those men last time.  

Now this week we begin to look at his account of the faith of Abraham.  Abraham is often called the father of faith, or the father of the faithful.  In Romans 4:16 Paul says that salvation is of faith “according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.”   And it’s interesting that all  three major world religions consider Abraham as their father, Christians, Jews and Muslims. 

Abraham’s faith illustrates all of the aspects we have seen so far in the previous men of old, and then some.  He is a great example of living faith.  He is the premier example of saving faith as well.  We are given Abraham as an example of saving faith in Romans 4:3,  Galatians 3:6, and James 2:23, all of which say essentially the same thing, which quote from Genesis 15:6, which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

In other words, Abraham is given as the premier illustration that men are saved by faith and not by works. He was justified by faith in the Lord. But as James says, faith without works is dead.  And to that end, James says that faith produces works.  James 2:21-23  “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar?  You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected;  and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “AND ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS,” and he was called the friend of God. You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.”  In other words, Abraham was justified by acting on that faith, not just by passively believing, but actively trusting and then acting upon that belief in what God had promised. 

Now that sort of living faith is what I think the author of Hebrews wants to illustrate here.  That not just a profession of faith, but  a life of faith that is essential to the Christian life.  I have determined that there are 7 characteristics of living faith that are illustrated for us here in the life of Abraham.  There are many things that can be learned from the life of Abraham, but these 7 characteristics are given to us here in this passage, and I think that they are all examples that are for our benefit, if we are to truly live by faith and receive approval from God.

Number one, Abraham illustrates the obedience of faith.  Vs 8, “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.” 

Notice first that Abraham was called by God.  The scriptures clearly teach that God calls men and women to follow Him, to become His disciples. There is a sovereign call of God that is God’s prerogative, and I confess that I do not understand how it works.  But I am satisfied that He is just, and He is good, and that He has come to seek and to save those that are lost.  But though I do not understand His call, yet I believe it’s His divine right, and no man comes to Christ unless God draws him. 

But though that may be true, it is also true that it’s man’s responsibility to respond in obedience to that call.  And somehow God’s sovereignty and man’s responsibility are both in play.  I am not responsible for God’s call, but I am responsible for my obedience to that call.  And Abraham was found faithful because he was obedient to the call of God.  He went out from the land of Ur of Chaldee, a pagan country, the land of his fathers, who were idolators, and he went out following the call of God.  He acted in obedience to the word of God.  It’s so important to recognize that if Abraham said he believed God but remained where he was, then it would be evident that he did not have faith.  But he was obedient to God’s call, which was the evidence of his faith.

And that an example of  faith according to vs 1, isn’t it? “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” Abraham went out not knowing where he was going, as vs 1 indicates faith is the evidence of things not seen.  Faith steps obediently into the unknown being assured that what God has said promised was true.  Let’s not ever minimize the importance of obedience. Faith and obedience are inseparable.  As James said, your obedience by your works is evidence of your profession of faith.  Bottom line, if you say you love God, but don’t do the works of God, then either you are a liar or God is.  I would suggest that the evidence for your faith is your obedience. 

Obedience doesn’t mean perfection though.  Anyone who has studied Abraham knows he wasn’t perfect.  He fell short several times in his life.  But his faith justified him so that when God recounts the life of Abraham he says he was considered righteous in the sight of God because of his faith.

Secondly, Abraham lived by faith. This has already been said, but it’s illustrated in vs9 “By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign [land,] dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise;  for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.”

I think a lot of us are happy to consider ourselves saved by faith, but then we live according to what we think is the reality of the world.  Abraham was in the world, but not of the world.  He didn’t live in a palace, which he probably could have afforded, simply because he was looking for the city of God.  His citizenship was in heaven, the heavenly Jerusalem.  Some of us are living like we are going to be here forever.  I remember many years ago when I was a successful antiques dealer, I built a big brick house in the Williamsburg style.  And I spared no expense in making sure all the details were correct for the period.  I had wide plank flooring throughout, 10 foot ceilings, four fireplaces, the works.  And I told myself that I would live there all my life, and then I would pass it on to my kids and they could live there, maybe their kids after them.  But God had other plans.  He took my house away from me that I might not be so attached to things of this world, and to have my hope fixed on the house which God is preparing for me.  Abraham didn’t put down roots  in this world.  He was looking forward to what God had prepared for him, and furthermore, he separated himself from the idolatry of the world, even to the extent of leaving his family.  Nothing was more important than being close to the Lord.

Thirdly, Abraham looked by faith. Vs10, “he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.”  Another way of saying that might be that Abraham kept his eyes upwards.  He had a spiritual perspective.  He saw through the lens of hope in a future which God promised him.  He was not focused on the reality of his present circumstances, but he was focused on eternal things.  That eternal perspective is illustrated in vs 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.” 

Listen, there is a real temptation in evangelical circles today to think of the Christian life in terms of the physical, and not the spiritual.  We want to ascribe faith to the idea that God wants us to be successful, God wants us to be healthy, wealthy and wise. God wants us to live our best life now, and that means that we get to have our cake and eat it too.  I used to think that way when I was an antiques dealer.  I thought that being a Christian meant that God would bless me financially and materially, and bless me in regards to my health.  I had to go through some really difficult times, financial ruin, physical illness, seeing my career go up in smoke, and the loss of those things that made me change my perspective, from me being the center of my world, to God being the center of my world.  Abraham kept looking up.  He had a spiritual perspective and looked for fulfillment of God’s promises in eternity.

The fourth aspect of faith we see in the life of Abraham is the power of faith. Now vs 11 illustrates this principle.  But there are some problems in the translation.  And the best translators think that this verse is speaking of Abraham’s faith in regards to Sarah’s ability to conceive.  Now I can’t explain that, since I’m not a Hebrew scholar.  But those that are think that is the proper meaning of this text.  Anyhow, it takes two to tango, as they say, so I think it’s fair to include both Abraham and Sarah as having the power of faith to conceive, though they were both physically well beyond their time in life when that would have been possible.  

So vs 11 should read, “By faith Abraham also together with Sarah received ability, or the power to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since he considered Him faithful who had promised.”  Paul said in Romans 4:19 concerning Abraham, “Without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb; yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform.  Therefore IT WAS ALSO CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.”

You will remember that God gave Abraham the promise 25 years before that he would have a son, and yet God waited until there was no human possibility any more in Abraham or Sarah’s bodies, until he was 100 years old before bringing about the conception of Isaac, that we might know that the power of God is not limited by what is humanly possible, but His power is made perfect in our weakness. God is the God of impossibles.  Jesus said in Mark 10:27 “With men [it is] impossible, but not with God; for with God all things are possible.”  But as a caveat, let me remind you that the impossible was according to the promise of God.  God promised it, with man it was impossible, but God’s power overcame man’s weakness.

The next characteristic of the faith of Abraham is he had faith even in death. Verse13 “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.  For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own.  And indeed if they had been thinking of that [country] from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. 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.”

Abraham and his heirs were convinced that God would fulfill His promises to them, and even in death they continued to look forward o the fulfillment of those promises.  They believed in the promises so fully, that their faith was not diminished by death.  And that is because faith believes that eternal life is from God, and though this body may pass away, they will continue to live through Him.  

Christian faith confidently looks beyond death, because we believe in the promise of everlasting life.  Jesus said in Mark 12:26 concerning Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, “But regarding the fact that the dead rise again, have you not read in the book of Moses, in the [passage] about [the burning] bush, how God spoke to him, saying, ‘I AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, AND THE GOD OF ISAAC, AND THE GOD OF JACOB’?  “He is not the God of the dead, but of the living…”  In other words, Jesus was saying that the patriarchs were still living. 

And Jesus said in John 11:26 “everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”  Well, Abraham certainly believed in that, because Jesus said later, that Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and He saw it and was glad.” (John 8:56).  Hebrews 2:14 tells us that Satan keeps us in bondage through the fear of death, but Christ has died to take away death and render him powerless.  That’s the triumph of our faith; death has lost it’s power.

The 6th characteristic of the faith of Abraham is probably his most famous, and that the testing of his faith. In vs 17, “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was offering up his only begotten son;  it was he to whom it was said, ‘IN ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS SHALL BE CALLED.’”

Abraham’s offering up of Isaac was the supreme demonstration of his faith.  All of the aspects of faith were tested in this great event.  The test of one’s faith reveals the character of one’s faith. And Abraham’s test of faith revealed the character of his worship.  In fact as I’ve often pointed out, worship is first mentioned specifically in the Bible in this context.  When Abraham is about to leave his servants and travel on to the mountain alone with Isaac, he says in Genesis 22:5, “Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go over there; and we will worship and return to you.” What an amazing way to speak of sacrificing your child, as worship to God. I’m ashamed to consider how we have trivialized worship today, merely clapping hands and watching people sing.  The first point of worship is sacrifice, and that is, according to Romans 12:1 primarily laying down your bodies, your life, as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service of worship.  

So Abraham offered up his son, which he had waited faithfully for 25 years to receive from God, and he called it worship.  Next  revealed  in this test is Abraham’s obedience.  Abraham didn’t delay, he immediately got up early the next morning and set out on the three day journey to Mt. Moriah. He was obedient even though it must have broken his heart.  He was obedient even though it must have been unbearably hard.  He was obedient even though he could not see how it could possibly work out.  He was obedient because he valued friendship with God as more important than any human relationship.  Thus James said Abraham was called the friend of God.  Jesus said, “How can you say to Me Lord, Lord and do not the things that I say?”  If you love the Lord, then you will be obedient to the Lord and put Him first above all else.

The other primary aspect of Abraham’s test is that it revealed his faith in the face of death.  Abraham not only believed in life after death, but he believed that God was able to raise the dead.  Our author makes the point that Abraham had received a specific promise; that “IN ISAAC YOUR DESCENDANTS SHALL BE CALLED.”  So Abraham believed God’s promise so completely, that he knew that somehow God would have to raise Isaac from the dead in order to fulfill that promise. 

Notice also the text I read from Genesis 22 while ago, Abraham said “the boy and I will go over there, and WE will worship and return to you.”  So Abraham had supreme confidence in the promise of God, and in the power of God to raise even the dead.  What faith!  But again, I want to remind you that in every circumstance, in every testing, Abraham’s faith is founded not on his own preferences or wishes, but upon the promises of God.  Faith without an underlying promise of God is not faith at all, its’ just wishful thinking.

The last point is almost a restatement of the previous one, Abraham calculated his faith. The text says considered, or in other versions its accounting, or considered, or reasoned.  All of which are trying to express the idea in our modern lingo that Abraham did the math. Our faith is founded on the promises of God which cannot fail.  He considered all that God had said, all that God had brought about, all that God had promised concerning the future, and he calculated that God was able to raise the dead.  Now I’m sure that Abraham had never seen anyone ever raised from the dead before.  But when he considered all that God had promised and what God had done, he deduced that was God’s only option.  Because he knew that God kept His promises, His word will not fail.  

And though none of us have ever witnessed someone being raised from the dead, we believe in the promise of God that we who are dead in Christ will rise first, then we which are alive and remain will be caught up together with the Lord at the last trumpet, and we will live forever with the Lord.  I hope we believe it as fervently and calculatingly as Abraham did.  After all, we have the resurrected Jesus who has gone on before us, being witnessed by 500 people after his death.  Abraham had none of that.  

But what else Abraham saw and believed in this is something special as well.  And that is the author says “from which he also received him (that is Isaac) back as a type.”  What that is referring to I have already mentioned.  But in this illustration of the ram caught in the thicket to provide a substitute for Isaac, was a parable or a type of Jesus, who was the Lamb of God slain for the sins of the world.  And in light of that illustration, many believe is what is meant by Jesus saying, “Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it and was glad.”  

In other words, Abraham recognized what God was promising.  That through Isaac, His seed would be called, through whom all the nations of the world would be blessed, and He that was to come would be the one who would crush the serpent’s head, by offering Himself as our substitute, to take our place in death, and God would raise Him from the dead, and seat Him on the throne of majesty on high, as our Savior and Lord.  Abraham saw figuratively at that point Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God who would take away the punishment due to us.  No wonder Abraham rejoiced to see that day.  He received life for his son, and in the ram caught in the thicket he saw the antitype of Christ, the Savior of the world.  

Well, that’s the faith of Abraham.  It’s saving faith.  It’s faith to live by.  It’s faith to die by.  It’s a life of faith.  But that life of faith must have a beginning.  We are born again by faith in Jesus Christ.  To believe in Him is first and foremost believing in who He is and what He came to earth to do for me, and what He ever lives to do as my High Priest.  And my response to His call is to repent of my sins, and turn from the world and follow Him in obedience.  And God said my faith is credited as righteousness.  By grace are you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, its a gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. I pray that you respond to Him in faith today, and accept Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, that you may receive new life through Him and that you might continue to live by faith that we might have victory over sin and the world and even death. 

As we finished up the last chapter, you will remember that I said that the writer was making an introduction into the life of faith.  He has spent 10 chapters telling us who Jesus Christ is, and what He came to do, and what He is now doing, and what He will do in the future. And if we are going to be able to draw near to God, it must be through Jesus Christ, and by Jesus Christ. And that is our goal, to draw near to God, to be reconciled to God, to have life through God.

But if we are to draw near to God, then it must be by faith in what Jesus has done, by faith in what He is doing and what He will do, and faith in what He has told us to do. And so the writer concluded chapter 10 with one tremendously important principle in vs38, “My righteous one shall live by faith.”  And we said that the emphasis in that verse is on the words, “shall live.”  It is a living faith.  It is  trusting and acting in faith in what God has said.

So in chapter 10, faith was contrasted to knowledge.  Knowledge without living faith was shown to be what faith is not.  In this chapter then we are told what faith is.  And that is how the writer starts the chapter, by saying what faith is.   But rather than giving us just a definition of faith, the writer tells us what faith does.  This famous chapter known as the faith chapter, or the account of the heroes of faith, is full of the works of those heroes.  As James said, “faith without works is dead.”  And these are examples of living faith.

Here, the word faith indicates the belief or knowledge which leads to faithfulness, and the hope that without seeing, believes it true, and acts accordingly.  So this is not simply a doctrinal definition of faith, but statement of what faith does, and enumerated by many illustrations of men and women living in faith.

In vs 1, then, the author says, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”  It’s a parallel statement, a two part description of what faith does.  Faith is the assurance or some versions translate “substance” of things hoped for.  Both are indicated here, meaning the basis, the confidence of things hoped for. .

Now lest we run away with that statement and conclude that everything we might wish for is therefore Biblical faith, on the contrary it means that which is true.  And the evidence of that being true is that our hope is founded upon the scriptures, upon the word of God. Faith is not wanting something to be true, and then wishing it to be true, and therefore it can become true. The “things hoped for” are not mere figments of the imagination; their basis is the word of God, and therefore they are true though not yet realized. Faith is believing God’s promises to be true, though there might not be any evidence that it is true.

The early church father Chrysostom said, “Faith gives reality or substance to things hoped for.”

Last week I said that faith looks back at what God has done, and what God has said.  And in vs 1 we see that hope is an essential element of faith, in that it looks forward to what God has promised to do.  That forward looking apect of faith is indicated in the phrase quoted in the previous chapter, the just shall live by faith.

And the second part of that description is that faith is the evidence or conviction of things not seen.   We see the ground wet in the morning, and though we did not see it rain, and there may be no clouds in the sky, yet we believe the evidence indicates that it did rain.  So we see the evidence of God and His promises fulfilled, though we were not there to see all of them.  We believe in the evidence of scripture, both in it’s prophecy and in it’s fulfillment.  We believe in it’s historicity and it’s authority to determine our life, and then act on that faith.

So then faith is being sure of what we hoped for, and certain of what we do not see, as revealed by the word of God, so that we might live in accordance to that faith.  

In vs 2, the writer adds, “For by it, [for by faith] the men of old gained approval.”  Literally: obtained a good testimony.  They obtained a good testimony from God.  They gained approval from God.  Romans 4:3 “For what does the Scripture say? ‘ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.’”  That is merely an embellishment on the statement in chapter 10 which we have been quoting, “My righteous one shall live by faith.” Our righteousness comes on the basis of our faith in God.  That is how we get approval from God. 

That principle is stated in Philippians 3:9 which says, “and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith.”  So we gain righteousness through faith, specifically faith in Christ’s atonement for our sin.  2 Corinthians 5:21 says, [God] made [Jesus] who knew no sin, to become sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”  Through our faith in Christ and His work, God transfers our sin upon Jesus, and His righteousness upon us, that we might be approved by God, that we might draw near to God and receive life through Him.

Now notice that they obtained a testimony from God that they were righteous.  Vs.4, “through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying…”  So the testimony of God is the testimony of scripture, that these men of old were righteous before God because of their faith. And we will be looking specifically at this testimony in the weeks to come as we go through this chapter. 

So we that believe are also testified by God in His word that we are righteous, and we appropriate that testimony by faith in His word.  For instance, we believe Romans 3:21-22 which says, “But now apart from the Law [the] righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets,  even [the] righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction.” That is the testimony or the witness of God that we are righteous, approved by God.

That approval that results in righteousness is restated negatively in vs 6.  “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”  Without saving faith, it is impossible to be found pleasing to God. Without faith, it is impossible to be approved by God, impossible to draw near to God.  

As Jesus said, “No man comes to the Father except by Me.”  So we come to the Father, through faith in Jesus Christ, by faith in His righteousness, by faith that His sacrifice was acceptable to God, and efficacious for me, and that He is our Mediator who even now ministers for us in the spiritual realm, ever living to make intercession for us. And that faith in Him, results in our righteousness before God, that we might draw near to Him through Christ’s blood.

Now we are going to look at four testimonies today of the kind of faith that the writer is talking about.  The first is found in creation itself.  In vs 3 it says, “By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.”  This verse is critical because it shows that faith is founded upon the word of God. The foundation of our hope is the word of God.

And at the very beginning of the word of God, in Genesis, is the account of creation, where God spoke and things were created out of nothing.  Evolution believes that things evolved into more complex things.  But there had to be something from which it evolved.  Water, for instance, is an essential compound to evolution.  But evolution cannot account for how water existed.  Evolution depends upon the existence of matter.  But creation depends upon God who created something out of nothing by His word.

Psalm 33 says in vs6 “By the word of the LORD the heavens were made, And by the breath of His mouth all their host.” And in vs 9 “For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast.”

That which was not seen, became visible according to the word of God.  And in the same way, our faith looks forward in hope that what is not yet seen will one day become visible.  Paul says in Romans 8:24-25 “For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees?  But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it.”

Perhaps that’s why Abel is the first man to be spoken of as a man of faith, and not Adam.  Because Adam had seen God, and Abel had not.  So the first example of faith is found in vs4, “By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks.”

Everyone is familiar with the story of Cain and Abel.  Abel was a herdsman, and so he brought a lamb for his offering to God, whereas his brother Cain was a farmer, and he brought the first fruits of his crop.  The scripture says that God had regard for Abel’s sacrifice, but He did not regard Cain’s.  Now Abel’s sacrifice was offered in faith.  But that does not mean that if Abel had brought a fruit offering in faith God would have accepted that as well.  Faith, you remember is founded upon the truth of God’s word.  Jesus said, “God is Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.”

So although it is not stated fully, it is believed that God gave an example of the kind of sacrifice that He would accept when He slew the animals in order to make clothing for Adam and Eve after their fall.  The picture of the blood being shed  and then being clothed in righteousness cannot fail to be seen in this example.  I believe that Cain deliberately disobeyed that illustration by God and decided that his offering to God would be according to what he thought was acceptable.  So he brought an offering based on his works, and Abel acted in faith according to what God had shown Adam and Eve. He may not have fully seen the significance of the blood being shed from a lamb for the forgiveness of sin, but nevertheless, he was obedient in faith to what God had declared.

What is apparent again and again in the testimonies recorded in this chapter, is that faith is tied to obedience to the word of God.  And also it should be noted in this example of Abel, that faith does not always result in a physical reward here on earth.  Abel died because Cain murdered him in jealousy.  But God Himself testifies to the righteousness of the faithful. Abel’s blood still speaks to us, reminding us of the value of the hope of eternity.  

And one more note, is that though Abel is dead in the flesh, yet he still speaks.  I think that speaks to the fact that the dead in Christ are alive and waiting the resurrection. Jesus speaking to the Jews said in Matt. 22:32  ‘I AM THE GOD OF ABRAHAM, AND THE GOD OF ISAAC, AND THE GOD OF JACOB’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.”  That’s another illustration of the vs, “My righteous one shall live by faith.”  The life that God gives as a result of faith in Christ is eternal life, and they who believe in Him shall never die.

That principle is illustrated further by the second example of faith who is Enoch.  Not a lot is said about Enoch in the Bible other than he was the father of Methuselah, and that he lived 365 years.  Then the famous line in Genesis, “Enoch walked with God and he was not, for God took him.”  In the Greek translation of the Hebrew text, there is an even closer association with our text, in that it says, “And Enoch pleased God, and he was not, for God took him.”  The writer of Hebrews quotes directly from the Septuagint repeatedly, and so it’s evident that was what he had in mind here.

Look at our text in vs5, “By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death; AND HE WAS NOT FOUND BECAUSE GOD TOOK HIM UP; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God.”

What is noteworthy about Enoch’s faith is that it pleased God, because he walked with God, therefore he walked according to God’s word. Psalm  119:9-11 says, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping [it] according to Your word.  With all my heart I have sought You; Do not let me wander from Your commandments.  Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You.” 

Enoch walked with God. I don’t think that necessarily has to be taken literally, that he walked with God in person. I think he is presented here as a man of faith, therefore believing in things he could not see.  So to walk with God means he was in daily fellowship with God, he was in agreement with God.  Amos 3:3 says, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”  So Enoch walked by faith according to God’s word, and God was pleased with him.

Again also we see this reference to those of faith not tasting death.  Enoch was taken up because his faith was pleasing to God.  We too who are of the faith will never die, but will be taken to Paradise, to await the resurrection at the last trumpet, and we will be with the Lord forever.  And we are reminded in vs 6 that if we would be pleasing to God, then we must have faith, for without faith we can never be found pleasing to God.  We must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.  

One more illustration here this morning, to finish up those who lived during the age of the antediluvians.  And that age appropriately ends with Noah.  Vs 7, “By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.”  

Noah had never seen rain, much less had ever seen a flood. And yet he believed God who said it was going to rain, and he built an ark in obedience to God’s word and it was credited to him as righteousness.  God’s word was the substance upon which he acted, and in obedience he built an ark according to God’s word.  What an amazing testimony he gave to the world, preaching as it were, of the judgment to come for 120 years.  He never saw a convert.  But our text does say that through his faith, he brought salvation to his household. 

Oh, that we might be men and women like Noah.  Firmly, resolutely being obedient to the Lord’s word, in spite of the fact that it is unpopular, in spite of the fact that the world thinks we are crazy.  And somehow our faithfulness in preaching the message of the truth, we might save our families from the coming judgment.  The Bible teaches us that it is appointed for a man once to die, and after that the judgment. The only hope for the world is that by faith our judgment  is transferred to Jesus Christ, and by His sacrifice we receive His righteousness. 

And we are told that Noah’s faith resulted in him becoming an heir of righteousness.  To be an heir is to receive something which you did not earn, but receive as a gift of Him who has died.  And we receive righteousness by faith in Christ. 

The key verse in all of Hebrews is “My righteous one shall live by faith.”   Saving faith, Biblical faith is first of all faith in God’s word.  It’s faith in Christ’s atonement as efficacious for my sin.  It’s walking in agreement with God’s word, acting in accordance to His will, trusting and abiding in Him.  Faith is believing in His promises, acting in obedience, standing firm in the midst of persecution or ridicule, and by that perseverance being a testimony to a watching world, and just as importantly a testimony of living faith to our families.  And such faith results in becoming an heir of salvation, even eternal life, that we will never die, but live forever with the Lord.  

Are you a man or woman of faith today?  Do you believe His word, and believe that Jesus died for your sins, that you might be approved by God?  I trust that you will have faith to follow Jesus, and walk with Him and trust in Him as your Savior and Lord.  The promise of righteousness is given to all who draw near to God by faith in Christ Jesus.  

Hebrews, as many of you have probably realized by this point, has some pretty difficult passages.  And we are looking today at what should be the last of such passages that present for many people theological difficulties, or perhaps what they even might consider theological inconsistencies.  And I say inconsistencies, because on the surface it would seem that certain verses in this book are at odds with the teaching of the New Testament as a whole.  

But I hope to dispel any such concerns here today by treating this passage in a way that is first of all consistent with the greater message of the gospel.  It is a dangerous thing to let a verse or two in one passage become a dogmatic doctrine, especially at the expense of other scriptures.  As I have often said, scripture is best used to interpret scripture, and scripture should be used to confirm scripture.  As we saw last Wednesday in our study of Gideon, he asked three times for confirmation of the Lord’s word.  And God did not rebuke him, but confirmed it to him.  Scripture will never contradict scripture.  

Many theologians, in attempting to address this passage, tend to enter the debate on the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints, or on the opposing argument, that you can lose your salvation.  I would readily confess that I am not as smart or as educated as many of those theologians and so I am not going to debate them on those issues.  In fact, call it ignorance on my part, or hopefully divine illumination, or at the least common sense, I don’t really see those issues addressed here at all. But rather what I see presented here is a contrast between faith and knowledge.  

The author in the next chapter is going to address the type of faith that is required for salvation, and for living the Christian life.  In fact, both require the same thing.  One cannot have saving faith, and another type of faith that is for living the Christian life.  But what the author is doing here I believe is setting up the next chapter, called the faith chapter, by giving something of an introduction to faith, and doing that especially by showing what faith is and is not.  In chapter 11, he tells us what faith is, and gives us many examples of living faith.  At the end of this chapter, as I see it, he tells us what faith is not.  

Now let’s take a look at our text from that standpoint.  As we finished up the last section prior to this passage, the author spoke in vs23 of holding fast the confession of our hope.  Hope is another way of expressing Christian  faith.  He could just have easily have said, hold fast the confession of our faith.  Isn’t that what our creeds consist of?  Our salvation is based on our faith. But as I said last week, faith looks backwards at what Christ has done, and hope looks forward.  But hope is still an essential element of faith. In the very next chapter, vs 1, it says, “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” So faith and hope are essentially related.  In vs 38 of this chapter, we are told that the righteous one shall live by faith.  “Shall live” refers to forward looking faith, or another way to express it is hope. You shall live.  That’s hope.

In describing this hope, the author goes on to say don’t forsake the assembling of yourselves together, love one another, and encourage one another as you look forward to Christ’s appearing.  That is living faith, living in hope, confidently trusting in God’s word.  And we said last week that exhorting one another was primarily  the preaching of the word of God, among other things.  

Now as to the preaching of the word of God, we are told in Romans 10:17  “So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.”  So we know that the preaching of the word of God is essential to the building up of faith. But the point that is made here, is that knowledge of the truth is not in and of itself saving faith.  In other words, it’s possible to know a lot of facts about God and our Savior Jesus Christ, to even believe in God, and yet not have saving faith.

That is what he is saying in vs 26. “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins.”  In other words, it’s possible to sit under the preaching of the word, to hear the word of God, to believe in it in an intellectual sort of way, and yet not be transformed by faith in Christ, not be reborn by faith, not be a new creature by faith, but yet still be enslaved to the same sinful passions, and still willingly engaged in them. 

Such persons have a knowledge of the truth, but still continue in sin.  Now this is not talking about sinning occasionally, or even becoming backslidden, but this is talking about someone who has heard the truth, but it never goes deeper than skin deep. They have never truly repented of their sins, but instead, they willfully, intentionally, continued in their sin.

Now how do I know that is what is being spoken of here? Because the author himself delineates this willful sinful lifestyle in vs29.  Notice the three aspects of this kind of willful behavior as outlined in  Vs29.  “How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?”

First of all, this is someone who has heard the truth, they have a knowledge of the truth, but in deliberately continuing in their life of sin they essentially  trample underfoot the Son of God.  That means they have a contempt for the work of Jesus Christ.  Secondly, such persons consider the holy blood of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ as lesser value than the value of their own autonomy. In effect, Jesus giving up His life has not resulted in them giving up their life.  And third, such a person has insulted the Spirit of Grace.  He has blasphemed against the Holy Spirit.  He has rejected the conviction that comes from the Spirit of God, resulting in eternal damnation.  If you reject the conviction of the Holy Spirit, then you cannot be saved.  If you have contempt for Jesus Christ then you certainly cannot believe in Him and have faith in Him.  And if you consider HIs sacrifice as an unclean thing, then His sacrifice is of no benefit to you.  As it says in vs 26, for such people “there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins.” 

Now it is patently clear that such a person who meets all the characteristics outlined in vs 29 cannot be a Christian, they never were a Christian, and unless they have a dramatic change of heart before they die they will never become a Christian.  In fact, I think all of us would be in agreement that if they did in fact express the rebellion and disdain for Christ mentioned in vs 29, then they wholeheartedly deserve to be consumed by the fire as described in vs 27. They are actually enemies of Christ. They give homage to another sovereign, who is no less then themselves. And so they deserve the terrifying judgment which is to come upon the adversaries of Christ.

I think we all would agree with the author, that if the Israelites who rebelled against the law of Moses received the penalty of death in their human bodies for their rebellion, how much more should those who have rejected one greater than Moses, Jesus Christ our Great High Priest, who ministers in heaven for us, how much greater punishment should these persons receive,  even to their very souls?

The Bible makes it clear that judgment is certain, it is promised, and it is coming soon.  And lest you take it lightly, God Himself warns us in vs30, which is quoted from Deut. 32:35-36,  “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY.” And again, “THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE.” Now He is speaking in the sense that all the people on this earth are His people.  Both saved and unsaved.  2Cor. 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”  He is sovereign over all, and those that rebelled against Him as their Lord will suffer the judgment of that rebellion.

Now for the good news, the gospel is simply that for the Christian; good news, which is that for the man of faith, God has placed our judgment upon Jesus Christ.  His sacrifice took away our judgement. Isaiah 53:8 says “by oppression and judgment He was taken away.” In vs 6, “But the Lord has caused the inquiry of us all to fall upon Him.”  That’s the good news for those who have saving faith in Him.  But for the one who has rejected His sacrifice, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, and so that person must bear the judgement of God upon themselves.  And that is a terrifying thing to consider.  Vs.31, “It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

So that’s a picture of the person who rejects Jesus’s sacrifice, scorns the blood of the covenant, and disregards the gospel; they are without hope, without faith, and destined for judgment and destruction.  I don’t find any indication that this could ever be referring to a person who has become a true believer by faith in Christ.  I don’t find any reference to someone that has been saved but then fell into sin.  I don’t find any reference to someone that has backslidden.  Such Christians will receive discipline, without which it would be evident that they are not the children of God, but illegitimate children.  God does discipline his children when they sin. 

In the next chapter he makes it clear the distinction between discipline and judgment. Hebrews 12:6-11 “FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.”  It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom [his] father does not discipline?  But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?  For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He [disciplines us] for [our] good, so that we may share His holiness.  All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”

So God does reserve discipline for His children so that they may share in HIs holiness.  But our passage today is not talking about discipline of His children, but of judgment towards those who are clearly not his children, nor were they ever.

Now my assertion that those were not ever truly saved is born out by the author of Hebrews as well in the next section, starting in vs 32, in which he states that he is convinced of better things concerning his readers.  We aren’t sure who his readers are particularly, but it’s believed to be a Christian church made up of primarily Jewish converts somewhere near Rome.  But irregardless of exactly who he is referring to, we can be confident it was to an early Christian church, probably prior to the fall of Jerusalem.

And so he says in vs32-35, “But remember the former days, when, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings,  partly by being made a public spectacle through reproaches and tribulations, and partly by becoming sharers with those who were so treated.  For you showed sympathy to the prisoners and accepted joyfully the seizure of your property, knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and a lasting one.  Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.”

Now obviously, he is describing a congregation who has first of all been “enlightened.”  This same word was used back in chapter 6 vs4, and in that case, it is clear from vs 9 which follows, that it is a referral to salvation.  Hebrews 6:9 “But, beloved, we are convinced of better things concerning you, and things that accompany salvation, though we are speaking in this way.”

So in this passage, he says that his audience after being enlightened, or born again, endured a great conflict of suffering. Now I don’t think it is important that we identify which particular persecution of the early church he was referring to.  I don’t believe there is any consensus among theologians anyway.  But the point is that suffering and tribulations are part of parcel of the Christian life.  Jesus Himself said in this world you will have tribulations.

1Peter 4:12-13 tells the early Christian church, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you;  but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.”  

Their perseverance in the midst of persecution was an indication of their faithfulness. Their faithfulness in persecution, in suffering, was evidence of a life of faith.  He says because of their faith they were made a public spectacle.  That makes me think of the public spectacle that went on last week in the Senate confirmation hearing regarding Judge Kavanaugh.  I don’t know the extent of that man’s faith, or his innocence for that matter.  But I can easily see a template there that there are those in government who would make a public spectacle out of anyone who professes to be a Christian or to hold onto Christian values.  I’m sure the day is coming when a lot of us will have to pay the  price of being a public spectacle because of our faith.  

James called such trials, tests of our faith.  These Jewish Christians, the author is saying, are evidenced as Christians by the perseverance in their faith.  They were not sunny day Christians.  But when they had to suffer, even as Christ suffered, they bore that suffering well, without renouncing their faith.  Though their possessions were taken, they accepted it joyfully knowing that they had a better possession and a lasting one in heaven reserved for them.

I wonder if we would have the same attitude in the midst of persecution.  If our possessions were taken because of our faith, I wonder if we could manage to continue joyfully to worship the Lord, to assemble together, to risk our lives for the sake of others who were suffering?  I wonder.  Because I must confess I see most Christians today as unwilling to suffer the loss of anything for the cause of Christ.  They give lip service to God, but when church or service to God interferes with the kid’s soccer game, the soccer game wins and church loses.  When an important job or contract interferes with our worship of the Lord, then it seems that God’s priorities take a backseat to our needs.  I’m afraid that outside of some  imaginary dramatic time in the future which we might have to bear persecution, in reality in the here and now we dutifully avoid even the most innocuous affronts to our faith by caving in to demands of the world.

But nevertheless, the author commends the Christians here for standing firm in persecution, and looking for a lasting kingdom which will not fade away.  So their faith is commendable, and their faith is made up of three elements which he describes in the next couple of verses.  First he says, your faith needs confidence. The Greek word there is parrēsia, which means freedom, boldness, assurance, especially in speaking.  I think he’s indicating a boldness in proclaiming the gospel, which he says has great reward.  The rewards of proclaiming boldly the gospel has the reward of winning souls for the kingdom of heaven.  I think there will be no greater reward  given in heaven, than to those who lead others to the Lord.

Then he says, you need endurance, or perseverance, steadfastness.  But endurance for what?  To do the will of God.  That’s so important.  We are saved to do the will of God.  Paul reprimanded the Galatian church in Galatians 5:7 “You were running well; who hindered you from obeying the truth?”  You need endurance to finish the work which God has called you to do.  Do not be weary in well doing.  It’s more than possible for a Christian to get distracted from what is really important. It’s very easy to get discouraged in this life of faith.  It’s easy to become despondent when you see the world seemingly prospering in their rebellion, but we are suffering in our obedience. But there is a great reward for those who finish the race that is set before them.

This is another evidence of faith, that you do the will of God.  Peter had a lot to say about the will of God.  In 1Peter 4:1-2 he sys, “Therefore, since Christ has suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same purpose, because he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.”  That is really the essence of the life of faith, to live for the will of God, rather than according to our will.

So we live in faith, with endurance and boldness, doing the will of God, with an eye on the future hope of Christ’s return, that we might receive our reward.  Notice, the Christian looks forward not to judgment, but to a reward.  Christ has taken our judgment, and our reward is to be with Him forever.  

Verse 37 and 38 contain another quote from Habakkuk, in chapter 2 vs 3 he says,  “FOR YET IN A VERY LITTLE WHILE, HE WHO IS COMING WILL COME, AND WILL NOT DELAY. BUT MY RIGHTEOUS ONE SHALL LIVE BY FAITH; AND IF HE SHRINKS BACK, MY SOUL HAS NO PLEASURE IN HIM.”

This is really the key verse of this whole chapter.  And it sets up the next chapter as well.  On the one hand it is an Old Testament prophecy  regarding the coming of the Messiah.  But on the other hand it is a prescription for the life of a Christian.  This quotation from the second part of the verse, the quote “my righteous one shall live by faith,” is used in the New Testament three times.  It’s used in Romans 1:17, Gal.3:11, and here in this verse in Hebrews.  And the emphasis that it is given here in this instance in Hebrews is on the word “live.”  That’s really the key to this passage, the idea that faith is not just a head knowledge, but it is a way of living, in trusting in Christ, in dependence upon the Holy Spirit, no longer living for the lusts of the flesh, but for the will of God.

This is the distinctive of a Christian.  It’s not knowledge of the gospel, it’s not knowing a lot of facts about God, it’s trusting and obeying the word of God.  It’s living in faith, living by faith, not only in the past work of Jesus Christ on the cross, but in the present work of Christ in me and through me.  Do you have faith enough to let Christ have control of your life?  Do you trust God enough to give Him everything to be used for His service?  That is how we really live, by the power of Christ in us.  No longer for ourselves or in our own wisdom or strength, but in faith we submit to the Lord all that we are, and in all that we do.

The author of Hebrews has confidence that the church he is addressing does in fact have that kind of faith.  And so he gives them an encouraging word in vs39, “But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul.”  Now the first part of that verse obviously refers to the people in the first example, those who had a knowledge of the truth, but continued to willfully sin by rejecting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and spurning the offer of salvation He sacrificed Himself to procure.  Those people he says are those destined for destruction.   When they saw the cost of Christianity they drew back, or shrunk back, and they do so to their ultimate destiny which is destruction. 

But he is convinced this church he is writing to who have suffered for the cause of Christ, and persevered in faith, those folks he says have faith to the preserving of the soul.  There is your case for the perseverance of the saints.  A living faith, a faith that continues to the end, results in the preservation of the soul.  Our faith in the Son of God, who is eternally seated in the heavenlies, interceding on our behalf, having made a perfect, effective, once for all sacrifice, is able to keep that which I have committed to Him.  

The question today is do you have that living faith in Jesus Christ.  It’s possible to have gone to church your entire life, and have all knowledge, and yet not be saved.  I pray that if you’re here today and have never trusted Jesus Christ with your life, turned from your sin, and asked Him to change you and remake you into a child of God, then you would take advantage of this time to do so today.  Do not harden your heart.  Do not consider HIs sacrifice as a common thing that is of no interest to you.  In a very little while,  He is coming again, and He will not delay.  His righteous one shall live by faith.  Are you righteous in the sight of God?  You can be through faith in Jesus Christ.

In our study in the book of Hebrews, we have learned much doctrine regarding who Christ is, and what He has accomplished on our behalf.  Now there is a switch of emphasis in the book, and from this point on the emphasis is not primarily doctrine, but application.  And so in this passage we are considering certain duties and responsibilities we have as Christians.  It’s not enough to believe in facts about Christ, but we are exhorted to act in response to them.  Faith requires both the acceptance of facts, and the application of faith.  

In the next chapter, that two fold aspect of our faith is clearly stated.  Hebrews 11:6, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who [diligently] seek Him.”

So in this passage then is an invitation to enter the heavenly sanctuary, and by the means of that, we are exhorted to three specific solemn duties. You’ll notice the statements in verse 22, “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith.” Verse 23, “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope.” And then verse 24, “Let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works.”

The life of a Christian is sometimes stirred up by exhilaration to run the race, to soar to new heights, but other times it is a disciplined, step by step march in what seems like an uphill battle.  The life of a Christian is not always going to be a celebration.  It’s not something that our feelings are always going to support or agree with.  But our faith is not founded upon our feelings, which may be up one day and down another, but our faith is founded on the promises of God, and to that we must maintain our duty to uphold.

So if we divided the book into two parts, then we could classify the first 10 1/2 chapters as phase one, as having to do with doctrine; and the remainder as phase two having to do with application. In vs 19, the author says, “Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter.” In one sense, that’s the summary again of the first half of the book. Then, “let us draw near” is the summary of the second part of the book.

Usually when you see a passage beginning with the word “therefore” you need to go back and review the previous passage in order to determine what it’s there for.  However, in this case, the author provides a summary for us in vs 19-21 which is one great, contingent doctrinal statement of the ministry of Jesus Christ, which has been the subject of the first 10 chapters. Another summary can be found in the words of Jesus Himself, in John 14:6, as He said “I am the way, the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father except by Me.”  

The point in this passage being therefore, knowing all the doctrinal aspects of Jesus’s work on our behalf, let us draw near to God. And as I said, in the first three verses are a summary of that work.  In vs 19, he says that we may enter into the Holy of Holies by the blood of Jesus Christ. Even as the old covenant priests could only enter into the Holy Place by the blood, so we can enter in by the blood of Jesus.

In vs20 he says we may enter by a new and living way which Jesus inaugurated by His death. The point in review here is that it is a new way to draw near to God, as opposed to the old way under the old covenant.  That way is dead, and done away with, and a new living way is opened up, because Christ ever lives to make intercession for us.

And the author adds a beautiful analogy there in vs 20, in which as the temple veil separating the Holy of Holies was rent in two from the top to the bottom at the crucifixion of Christ, so he says that this new way to God was opened up by the rending of Christ’s veil, ie, His flesh.  

The third point of his summary is in vs21, in which he says, we may enter because we have a great high priest over the house of God.  And of course all of that doctrine of the high priesthood of Christ according to the order of Melchizadek we have covered thoroughly in previous chapters.  The only point we might add is that when it says over the house of God he is not talking about the temple, or the sanctuary in the wilderness, nor of any cathedral or church building, but the house of God means the people of God.  We are the temple of God who dwells not in buildings made with hands, but in the hearts of His people.

Now having given us three points of doctrinal review in regards to our privileges in Christ, he now gives us three injunctions, or three exhortations, or three responsibilities of worship.  That is the point of our salvation, that we worship God in the way that is acceptable to Him.  As Jesus Himself said in John 4:24  “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

So the author of Hebrews begins with an invitation to worship.  He says in vs22, because of all that Jesus has done on our behalf,  “let us draw near.” The invitation to confidently enter the holy of holies, to draw near to God.  To draw near to the source of all life. Come to  the headwaters of the spring of living water, let us come and drink freely.  This is really the purpose of divine redemption; to enable us to draw near to our Lord Jesus Christ and to live in communion with him, He in us, and us in Him. 

This Hebrew audience might have heard this invitation to draw near to God and were reminded of Isaiah 29:13 where the Lord said: “Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips, But have removed their hearts far from Me.”  I suppose that same sentiment could be made in regards to the modern church today, “They draw near with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.”  The heart is the seat of our affections, and for many of us our affections are towards the world and not God.  Outwardly we may feign interest in God, but God sees our hearts.

But nevertheless, God calls us to draw near to Him in truth.  James 4:8 says, “Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”  that connection between drawing near to God and purifying your heart is the concern of the author of Hebrews as well as evidenced by the next phrase in vs 22.  

Draw near to God, he says, with a sincere heart, or a true heart. Now a lot of people may be sincere, but sincerely wrong.  Sincerity does not guarantee acceptable doctrine or worship.  But sincere in this application is better rendered true, a true heart.  As opposed to a disloyal heart, or an adulterous heart.  A heart which is torn between two loves is not a true heart.  Jesus said, “You cannot serve God and mammon.”  1John 2:15 says, “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” So a true heart is a heart totally devoted to the Lord.

And then he says draw near with full assurance of faith. This speaks of the boldness, the confidence with which we may enter the Holy of Holies.  This confidence is in our High Priest which has already been established in Hebrews 4:16 which says, “Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” 

But it’s not just confidence bordering on arrogance by which we enter, but in the assurance of our faith.  Now if you read what chapter 11 says faith is made up of, then that almost seems like a contradiction of terms; assurance and faith. Hebrews 11:1 says,  “Now faith is the assurance of [things] hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”  How can we be assured of things which we cannot see?  The fact is that all of us daily have faith in things we cannot see, or understand.  We have faith that our cellphones can send photographs through thin air, thousands of miles away, to just one person. We have faith in scientific works that depend upon sub atomic particles that cannot be seen.  Assurance of faith then is simply to trust that such promises of God are true, and then to act in accordance with them.

So our assurance of faith is not in ourselves, but it is in Christ.  Our assurance of faith is not in experiences that we might have had, it’s not in dreams that we have had, it’s not in some mystical thing by which we determined God spoke to us.  But our faith is in Christ and that His finished work has satisfied the Father’s requirements of righteousness.  Our faith is in Him, and He is our assurance.

Next, he says we draw near  “having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”   In referring to blood and water I think it refers to an inner and outer cleansing from sin. Our hearts are sprinkled clean by the blood, and our bodies are washed with the water. One cleansing is inside, and one is outside.  The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. The hymn Rock of Ages speaks to this double dose of cleansing.  It says, “Let the water and the blood, from thy riven side which flowed, Be of sin the double cure, save from wrath, and make me pure.”

Now some theologians want to correlate the water to baptism.  And though I don’t believe that is what is being indicated here, yet is is true  in that baptism symbolizes  dying to the flesh, and being raised to newness of life in the Spirit. However, perhaps a more appropriate reference to the washing of the body with pure water is found in Ephesians 5:25-27, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her,  so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,  that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.” So the effect of the word of God upon the body, soul and spirit is that we might be washed, having no spot or wrinkle, but holy and blameless.  That certainly is in keeping with the intent of our text.  And as Psalm 119 says, “Your word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”

In the Old Testament as well, there was an emphasis on the new covenant’s ability to cleanse us from sin as evidenced by Ezekiel 36:25-27 “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols.  Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. “I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”

Those who have been cleansed inwardly by the blood of Jesus Christ will cleanse themselves outwardly from every defilement of flesh.  2Corinthians  7:1  “Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.”  So when we worship God, we can come into His presence in assurance of faith, because we have a clean heart and a body that is in submission to HIs word.

The second injunction is  “Let us hold fast  the confession of our hope without wavering for He who promised is faithful.”  Holding fast is our response to be steadfast, to hold on to what we have confessed, our faith in Christ.  Satan loves to try to shake our confidence in Christ.  He raises objections and questions as to why God allows this thing to happen, or why did God allow that to happen, to make us wonder if God really cares.  

But the injunction is to hold fast without wavering in our hope, because He who promised is faithful.  What is meant by hope?  What are we hoping for? Let’s look again at 11:1, which says, Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.  So hope is the invisible object of our faith, that which is not yet evident.

Someone has said that “Faith is the beginning of our spiritual life, and hope is the continuance of it.” Faith looks to the past. Hope looks to the future.  And our future is founded upon the promises of God. 

He says, “For He who promised is faithful.” That is, the promises are connected with the promisor, so  the promises of God are the words of God and, thus, their authority, their power, is the fact that they proceed out of the mouth of God. 

Our salvation is dependent upon whether or not we have faith, but our hope is dependent upon God’s faithfulness.  Our eternal life is dependent upon God’s faithfulness to complete that which He has begun, to fulfill that which He promised.  2Timothy 2:13 says,  “If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.”  Our hope is not in our faithfulness, but in His faithfulness.

I’ve often told the story of my kids when they were little and we had to cross a busy road.  And I would always tell them, “Hold on to Daddy’s hand.”  I wanted them to hold on tightly.  To stay close to me.  To obey me. But their security was not in their ability to hold on tightly.  Their security was in my ability to hold them tightly.  Thus he says hold fast your confession, but God’s faithfulness is the reason for our confidence.

The third responsibility we are given is let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds.  Notice the three Christian virtues we have seen so far in this passage; faith, hope and now love. Faith looks backward, hope looks forward, and love looks outward. That’s so important to understand.  Love from the world’s standpoint is all about me.  How I feel.  But Christian love is sacrificial love for others.  It is outward, not inward.  True Christian love is outward.

Now the means by which we can love one another is found in the second part of this injunction; “not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together.”  We can’t stimulate each other to love one another unless we’re in the presence of one another.  You can’t stimulate a TV set to love someone. You can’t encourage anyone through your car radio.  Church is not just a Sunday service, it’s not just hearing and singing songs, it’s joining with the body of Christ, the communion of the saints, assembled together before the Lord. 

Let’s read vs 25 in it’s entirety again just for emphasis; “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some but exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the day approaching.”  If the characteristics of someone who is spiritual is having the virtues of faith, hope and love, then you can be sure that when a person forsakes the meeting of the saints, that’s a sign of declining faith, decaying hope, and dwindling love.

I want to emphasize the point he is making about stimulating one another to love and good deeds, or to encourage, or your version may even say provoke one another.  The Greek word there is parakaleo, which is usually translated as encourage, or exhort.  And it’s meaning according to the Greek lexicon is to call to one’s side, to address, to speak to, to exhort, entreaty, instruct, admonish, beseech, to encourage, to strengthen, to teach. In other words, its the teaching of the word of God, the preaching of the gospel. That’s how we stimulate one another in the assembly of the saints.

In fact, you remember the disciples, as they are walking down the road toward Emmaus, and talking with the Lord who they thought was a stranger, and he was drawing out from them what they felt about the things that had been happening. And then he expounded to them the Scriptures and, you remember, they said, “Did not our hearts burn within us while He talked with us along the way?” And so they walked with him as he spoke from the Old Testament about himself. They listened to his word. Their hearts were stirred and then the Scriptures said, they gathered together. So they gathered, met together, and then our Lord departed from them. It’s almost a parable of what it means to grow in the knowledge of the Lord, spend time with the Lord, listen to him as He, through the Spirit, expounds the word of God, enjoy the fellowship with him, eat with Him and grow in grace in the knowledge of the Lord.

So in closing, he says we should assemble together so much more as we see the day, the day of our Lord’s appearing, approaching.  We don’t know the day when the Lord will return, but each day brings us closer to His appearing. We are looking for that day, waiting for that day, working for that day, when we will receive our inheritance.  Let us be found faithful when He comes, and let us encourage one another to love and good deeds in keeping with His word.

I extend an invitation to all who are here today, that you draw near to God through the blood of Jesus Christ, through a new and living way.  Come in faith, with assurance that Christ has gone before us, providing the perfect sacrifice for our sins, that we might be reconciled to God and have full access to the Source of all life.  Draw near to Him today in faith, and be cleansed from all unrighteousness.  The price has been paid in full, the invitation has been given to all, it depends on you to accept this gift of God, even everlasting life.  

So far in Hebrews we have been learning the doctrines of our salvation through Jesus Christ. And to that end, we have seen that Jesus is superior to the prophets of old, He is superior to the old priesthood in that He is our great high priest of a different order, an eternal order since He forever lives to make intercession for us. And as our great high priest He ministers in a better sanctuary in heaven, a spiritual sanctuary of which the temple on earth was only a copy. And as our high priest He mediates a new covenant, having replaced the old covenant with something better.

Now today, we are going to examine the superior sacrifice that Jesus offered as our High Priest. And to do that, the author of Hebrews begins by making a familiar comparison, at least it’s familiar if you have been following us in this book. The comparison is to the old covenant, and all the attendant elements of that. And what he tells us in vs one is that it was an inferior covenant because it was only intended to be a shadow.

A shadow refers to what we might call a type, or a symbol, or a picture of something still in the future. If you could imagine a timeline starting with Moses and going to today, you would have approximately 4000 years represented on that timeline. And right in the middle, at ground zero, so to speak, is the cross. And the cross is casting it’s shadow back over the time period to Moses. Under the law, the Jews could not see the cross clearly, but it’s purpose was foreshadowed in the sacrificial system which was given to teach them of it’s future reality.

So when the author speaks in vs 1 of the law being only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very image, or form of things, then we can recognize that in the old covenant, in the sacrificial system under the law, the Jews saw an outline of atonement, an outline of redemption, a symbol of redemption, but not the actual image of atonement. Just as you might see your shadow on a sunny day, and you can see certain features that are true to life there, but for the most part you only see an outline, or a silhouette. The details are not filled in.

Even when the old covenant was well in effect, the Jews knew that there was a new covenant which was promised in the future. Jeremiah prophesied about this new covenant in Jeremiah 31:31-33 saying “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”

So the Jews knew that the covenant they were under was due to one day be changed. The old covenant was weak, not because of some fault in the law, but because of the weakness of man on whom it was dependent to observe. Yet they found comfort in the rituals and ceremonies, and they mistakenly put their trust in keeping them, rather than their faith in God for forgiveness and righteousness. And not only is that true of the Jews in that day, but it is true of professing Christians in our day as well. Many people go to church every week, or even several times a week, to reenact rituals and ceremonies which they believe will absolve them of their sin, and yet there can be no forgiveness through rituals, or even through sacrifices of bulls and goats. But as Paul said in Phil. 3:9 “[that we] may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of our own derived from [the] Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which [comes] from God on the basis of faith.”

The old covenant then, was a system of sacrificial shadows. And as a shadow, it lacked the substance in itself to take away sin. Notice what it says in vs1, “since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form or image of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near.”

Now please understand that this word perfect refers to completeness. It carries with it the sense of accomplishment or finishing. The fufillment of it’s intended purpose. So in that sense, in vs 2, he says that if it could accomplish completion of their atonement, then it would have ceased to be offered. If the blood of bulls and goats actually completed atonement, then it would not need to be done again and again.

What the sacrifices did in a technical sense was express confession and repentance of your sin, and offered a token sacrifice of an animal’s life as a covering for sin. You remember when Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden, and they hid from God because they recognized their sin, then God killed an animal, or animals, and made coverings for them. So the sacrifice of animals indicated a covering for sin. But even more to the point, such sacrifices foreshadowed a future sacrifice which would cleanse completely from sin. 1John 1:7, 9 “but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin. … 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

But complete atonement was not appropriated under the old system, for it says in vs3, that “in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year.” Every year they had to go through the Day of Atonement again, because once again their sinful nature had caused them to sin against God. So the old covenant actually served as a reminder of their fallen nature, of their hopeless situation to live as God required. As Paul said in Gal. 3:24 “Therefore the Law has become our tutor [to lead us] to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.” The daily offerings for sin and the yearly offerings on the Day of Atonement served to remind them of their hopelessness to be freed from sin.

So every year there was more animals killed, and more blood poured over the altar, and then the next year it had to happen again, year after year. And what became apparent was that according to vs4, “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” The sacrificial system was only a shadow of what was yet to come.

That’s why the author called it the good things to come in vs 1. Because it was a great day when that imperfect system would be superseded by a superior sacrifice. God never delighted in the death of bulls and goats. I was talking to someone the other day about how that in the book of Jonah, God speaks with compassion about the livestock of the Ninevites. And He spoke of wanting to spare them, because they too are His creation to which He gave life. That’s at least a part of what He is talking about in vs 6, when He says, while quoting from Psalm 40, “IN WHOLE BURNT OFFERINGS AND [sacrifices] FOR SIN YOU HAVE TAKEN NO PLEASURE.” But in total, He says such sacrifices do not satisfy God.

So the old covenantal system was only a shadow of the sacrifice that God desired. And so God prepared a superior sacrifice. And we read of that in vs. 5 and 6, which is a quote from the Septuagint translation of the Psalms, chapter 40, which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew text. And what the author of Hebrews recognizes in that passage, is that it is referring to the Messiah, who is Jesus Christ.

And what he is saying is that the superior sacrifice, offered by the great High Priest of the new covenant, is the offering of Himself. Let’s look at the quote from Ps.40, Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, “SACRIFICE AND OFFERING YOU HAVE NOT DESIRED, BUT A BODY YOU HAVE PREPARED FOR ME; IN WHOLE BURNT OFFERINGS AND [sacrifices] FOR SIN YOU HAVE TAKEN NO PLEASURE. “THEN I SAID, ‘BEHOLD, I HAVE COME (IN THE SCROLL OF THE BOOK IT IS WRITTEN OF ME) TO DO YOUR WILL, O GOD.'”

Notice first that it says when He comes into the world. This speaks of the incarnation of Jesus Christ, when according to John 1:14 “the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” What God desired was not the bodies of bulls and goats, but the body of a person. The bulls and goats were only intended to be a temporary picture of the person that was to come, and that person was Jesus Christ.

And let’s understand something; Jesus came to offer Himself as a guilt offering for us. Isaiah 53 makes that clear. Isaiah 53:10-12 But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting [Him] to grief; If He would render Himself [as] a guilt offering, He will see [His] offspring, He will prolong [His] days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand. As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see [it and] be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities. Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors.”

What Jesus did was voluntary. He poured out Himself to death; He offered Himself as a sacrifice for our sins to satisfy the judgment of God upon sinners. Make sure you understand that. The blood of bulls and goats could never take away sin, because the penalty for sin was man’s death. That was promised at creation, that if they ate of the tree they would die. Romans tells us that the wages of sin is death. The death of a lamb or a goat never took away sin. It merely provided a temporary covering, pointing to the day of God’s full atonement when He would appoint His only begotten Son to come to earth, to take on flesh, to bear our sin, to die in our place, so that we might be spared eternal death. Christ came to do for sinners what sinners could never do for themselves. We could never offer a sacrifice that would take away the penalty for our sin. But Christ could and He gave up His life for our sakes. As John said when he saw Jesus, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

So not only does Psalm 40 say Jesus had come to do the Father’s will, but He conformed His will to the Father. He desired to do His will. And the will of God was that a person would die for his sin. That was God’s standard, God’s law. And God would not be so unjust as to deny His law. But in His grace to us, God designed a way to fulfill the requirement of the law, but do it through a substitute.

Notice especially the phrase; “Behold, I have come to do your will.” What the old covenant could not do, Christ has done in the new covenant. He kept the law to perfection. He kept the eternal council of God in redemption. He did what the Father told him to do and said what the Father told him to say. He kept the law because we could not keep the law. The grounds for the new covenant is based on what Jesus did, not on what we must do. What the priests did day after day and year after year was the basis for the old covenant. They themselves however were sinners, offering sacrifices first for themselves and then for the others. But Christ, as the superior sacrifice, had no need to offer a sacrifice for Himself, as He perfectly kept God’s will, and He completed what they could only point to. And as such, according to vs 9, “He takes away the first in order to establish the second.” When the fullness of the type was manifested, the first became obsolete and as such is done away with.

When I first was married, I worked as a manager in a hotel downtown. And I kept a picture of my wife on my desk. But after work, when I finally made it home, I did not need to look at a picture anymore. I enjoyed the reality of my wife. And in a similar way, when Jesus had come as the superior sacrifice, there was no more need of the picture presented in the old covenant.

So the will of God was that Christ would offer Himself as the complete offering for sin, once for all. We have looked at the sacrificial shadows, we’ve looked at the superior sacrifice, now last point, let’s consider the sanctifying sacrifice. The sacrifice of Christ as our High Priest is superior not only because it is sufficient to pay the penalty of sin, which is death, but it is sufficient to provide the reward of righteousness, which is life. In other words, Christ’s sacrifice not only justifies sinners, it sanctifies sinners.

Sanctified is one of those church words we throw around that perhaps a lot of people don’t know what it means. What sanctified means is to set apart, to consecrate for holiness. In the temple service when the tabernacle was being built, they made vessels for use in the temple. And they were different than ordinary cups and bowls you might use in your house. They were made of gold or silver or brass for use only in the tabernacle. And to show that they were set apart for holy use, they were sprinkled with the blood of a sacrifice that they might be useful in the temple. Now that was another picture, a picture of sanctification, that we might be set apart in our salvation for good works, and then useful to God in service to Him.

So Jesus’s sacrifice accomplished both of those things. Vs 14 says by one offering he has completed both of these things. He saved us from the penalty of death, and gave us a new life, made a new creation, and set us apart for holiness unto the Lord to be useful to Him. He uses us as we yield to the Holy Spirit. And that continual usage and obedience to His will is the process of sanctification.

Now notice two types of sanctification are mentioned here. In vs 10 he says, “By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” So Jesus’ obedience to the Father’s will by offering himself as a sacrifice for our sins, sanctified us. That means positionally, He transferred us from the dominion of darkness into the kingdom of light. We now belong to God, made holy by the righteousness of Jesus Christ, set apart from the world.

But then having been set apart for holiness, having been set apart for good works, now we ARE BEING sanctified, according to vs.14, “For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.” The tense of that word means continual. We are sanctified past tense in vs10, and are being sanctified present tense in vs14 in one offering. In other words it’s a process. Whereby we are continually offering up to God the service of our lives.

Romans 12:1,2 says that this acceptable service is nothing less than the sacrifice of our body, even as Christ laid down His body. Romans 12:1-2 “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, [which is] your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Listen, Romans just gave us the secret to being sanctified. It’s renewing your mind. That’s the other benefit of Christ’s sacrifice – beyond just forgiveness, its’ the ability to be free of sin, not only free of the penalty of sin, but free from the power of sin. Sin no longer has dominion over us.

Rom 6:5-9, 12 says, “For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be [in the likeness] of [His] resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with [Him], that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. … 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts.

Now the secret, like I said, to this sanctifying process is found in renewing the mind. And just as our sacrifice was not something we could do, neither is our sanctification something we can do all by ourselves. But Christ does it for us through the sanctifying work of the Spirit. And He does that by renewing our mind. And our new mind, the mind of Christ comes through our willingness to crucify our will, to lay down our life, that we might do His will.

Notice in our text in vs16 is a quote from Jeremiah 31 which speaks of this new mind that we are given by Christ. ““THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THEM AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS UPON THEIR HEART, AND ON THEIR MIND I WILL WRITE THEM,” He then says, “AND THEIR SINS AND THEIR LAWLESS DEEDS I WILL REMEMBER NO MORE.”

Another Old Testament passage in Ezekiel 36:26,27 says practically the same thing. “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. “I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.” He’s speaking of the new covenant.

The Spirit of Christ renovates our minds and our hearts, so that we might have new desires. And so the sanctifying work of the Spirit is to renew our minds, through the washing of the word of God, that we might desire to do things which are pleasing to Him, and then He gives us the strength of the Holy Spirit to fulfill that desire, so that we might do the things which God desires. That’s the purpose of the Holy Spirit; to equip you to do the will of God.

The gospel say that when Jesus came up out of the water of baptism He was filled with the Spirit and was being led by the Spirit, and in the power of the Spirit began to preach and do might works. That is the template for us as well. We must like Christ, submit to the Father’s will, laying down our lives for His sake, and being raised to new life, now to live for Him through the power of the Spirit in obedience to the word of God.

Let me just say one last thing in closing by way of practical application. This renewing our mind is not a once and done thing. Our justification was once and done. Jesus’s sacrifice was once for all as it says in our text. But our sanctification is a process. And when we slip up and fall back into sin, when we become mired once again in the world, we contaminate our minds, our consciences become corrupted. We begin to think like the world. We begin to listen to the world and believe the lies of the devil. And so when God as our Heavenly Father brings correction and discipline to our lives to bring us back, we can confess and repent and God will forgive us. But we need to ask Him to renew our mind. We need to get on our knees and implore God to do a supernatural restoration of our minds once again, that we might have the mind of Christ, that we might have the desires of God.

David was a man after God’s own heart. He wrote scripture which Christ and the apostles quoted from extensively. He was God’s anointed. And yet he sinned, not just once, but many times. And in Psalm 51 we find there a template of how we need to approach God after such corruption has entered into our hearts and implore Him to renew our minds and create a right spirit within us. Listen to David’s prayer and if necessary, make it your own.

I’ll just read a few excerpts from Psalm 51 in closing.
“Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being, And in the hidden part You will make me know wisdom. Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. … Hide Your face from my sins And blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. … Restore to me the joy of Your salvation And sustain me with a willing spirit. … For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; You are not pleased with burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.