FAITH’S HALL OF FAME

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

 

Hebrews 11:1

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”

 

In Hebrews Chapter Eleven we read about what many Christians call, “The Christian Faith’s Hall of Fame.” The scripture speaks in this chapter of some basics of what the Christian faith is all about.

 

Verse one defines faith as being absolutely sure of what our hope in God is all about. It’s about being certain of what we do not see. It’s being convinced that the God who is invisible to us actually exists. It’s establishing your life around the fact that Christ will one day return and take us all home to be with Him and our Heavenly Father in Heaven.

 

Hebrews 11:3

“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.”

 

Verse three gives us another basic belief of our faith. It tells us that the universe and everything contained in it was formed by the command of God. It tells us that everything we see around us was made not over eons of time out of pre-existent matter but out of nothing simply by the spoken word of the Creator; Almighty God Himself.

 

This chapter in Hebrews then begins listing numerous men and women of faith who down through the centuries have demonstrated their trust in the God of the Bible.

 

The list is interrupted by comments stating a crucial truth important to anyone who desires to please God. It states in Hebrews 11:6, “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

 

Faith is a critical characteristic to possess if you wish to be please your Heavenly Father. It might seem obvious that anyone who has faith must believe that God exists, but we might be surprised that much of the faith that people possess is surface faith. Surface faith is only inches deep and when the going gets tough such weak faith can deny the existence of God. Faith that goes deep into a person’s soul relies upon God for strength, recognizes that faith is a gift from God and that God desires for us to grow in such faith. Such deep faith hangs tough when adversity takes its toll on a person’s life. Deep faith trusts God in the midst of overwhelming odds and horrible circumstances.

 

Hebrews 11 continues listing more individuals that were faithful to God. Noah was faithful because he was warned of unseen things and responded in obedience by building the ark. By his faith he was saved from the destruction of the flood. Abraham obeyed God by going where he was told to go even though he did not know where he was going. Abraham’s faith was further proven by God granting him a child even though he and his wife were far beyond childbearing years. Because of their faith Abraham and Sarah had descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky.

 

Several comments are given to us in this chapter concerning those who have deep faith in God. We are told they these people were faithful to the day they died. This means they finished their lives well by living to very end with strong faith in God. Many people have strong faith in their youth and it fades as they grow old. Deep faith grows deep roots in our soul as we age and becomes even stronger as years are added to our lives. An important part of the faith of those mentioned in Hebrews 11 was recognizing the fact that they were aliens and strangers on earth. Their true home was in heaven with their Lord and God. They thought of themselves not as people of the earth, but children of the Mighty God who ruled from Heaven.

 

Hebrews continues with the list of members of the Faith’s Hall of Fame. Moses is mentioned as refusing all the privileges of being a son of Pharaoh. Instead he allowed himself to be persecuted along with the people of God. Moses’ faith rested in his belief in a God who was invisible, but worked visibly in mighty ways. Because of Moses’ faith; great miracles were preformed through him. God’s people were released from bondage through the great plagues and the Red Sea parted by the power of God working through Moses. God also used the great waters of the Red Sea to destroy all of Pharaoh’s army. Moses’ faith in God caused these huge ocean waters to part to save God’s people but they also collapsed and were used to kill the soldiers of Pharaoh. By faith the walls of Jericho fell because the people had faith in God’s plan for them to walk around in a circle seven times. This shows us the power that rests in true faith in God. Nothing is impossible for God if men and women have faith in Him.

 

The writer of Hebrews admits here that he doesn’t have the time to discuss all the examples of men and women of faith contained in history. They are too numerous to list and describe; but he does state that by their faith they conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength through their faith in God. They became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies not in their own abilities and strength but because of their faith in God. He goes on to say that women received back their dead, raised to life again because of their faith in God. Others were tortured and refused to be released because they knew that their faith would sustain them. By their faith they knew that God was calling them to a life of sacrifice to demonstrate their faith and receive a greater reward in heaven. Hebrews 11 continues on by saying that some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. Men and women of faith were stoned to death; they were sawn in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated. Such accounts sound beyond belief when compared to the lives we live as Christian in this United States.

 

The writer of Hebrews sums up his opinion of these people by stating that the world was not worthy of them. They were men and women who trusted God and endured great hardships and torture because they knew God was calling them to be a witness for Him in their lives. Through their lives and death others would marvel at their dedication and love for God. Through their witness others would commit their lives to the One True God of the Holy Bible. Through their lives we see role models of faith to pattern our own lives after. These faithful followers of our Heavenly father wandered in deserts and mountains, and lived in caves and holes in the ground. Such hardships are common to those who truly wish to be faithful to God no matter what life brings their way.

 

Here the writer of Hebrews makes a most interesting comment in Hebrews 11:13. He states, “These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised.” Hearing this we might ask the question, why did they endure such hardship never to receive what they had been promised? Why were they so faithful to the end when they didn’t obtain what God had pledged to give them? The answer comes to us in the last verse of this chapter of Hebrews 11:40. It says, “God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.”

 

What God had promised these faithful men and women was never received on earth because something better would be given to them in Heaven. This “something better” was Christ our Lord. These Old Testament saints were faithful to their Heavenly Father and in their lifetime would never see the reward for their faithfulness. They trusted in their God that He would reward them for their faithfulness. He will do this when Christ returns to take the New Testament saints home to be in Heaven. Together the Old Testament saints of faithfulness and we New Testament believers will be given glorified bodies. Together we will live with the Lord Jesus Christ in the heavenly mansions that God has prepared for us. Together we will worship our Heavenly Father. Together we will see our Lord face to face. Together we will share in the benefits of living a faithful life.

 

May we all be faithful as those who have gone before us. May you seek a deep faith in God.

 

“Lord, I renounce my desire for human praise, for the approval of my peers, the need for public recognition, I deliberately put these aside today content to hear You whisper, ‘Well done my faithful servant.'”

Alistair Begg