FAITH HOW IT HELPS US RUN THE RACE FROM EARTH TO HEAVEN
Paul's "faith" chapter the eleventh is his masterpiece the crown jewels of his writings. This chapter is a parenthesis. It interrupts his call to run the race from earth to heaven so we can think about faith the fuel, so to speak, which energizes us to start the race and run to the end. That is because our natural hearts love the world and are not interested in leaving it to go to heaven. God arrests us by sowing the good seed of the Word of God in our hearts. "Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God" Rom. 11:1717And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree; (Romans 11:17). It is God who implants faith within us, when we are saved "faith... is the gift of God" Eph. 2:88For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: (Ephesians 2:8). But what is this gift? What is faith? John defines it this way "He who has received His testimony has set to his seal that God is true" John 3:3333He that hath received his testimony hath set to his seal that God is true. (John 3:33). This means that faith is believing because God has spoken in the Bible. To faith every mouth must be shut when God speaks every argument silenced. Faith understands God's thoughts and acts on them. Not so the world which lacks faith. But the just shall live by faith, and the life of faith never wins the world's approval.
Faith then brings us into conflict with the world because the world rejects God's thoughts, God's Word, and God's Christ. Jesus, the Author and Completer of faith, said, "Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." Because we are one with Him we also say, "This is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith." Is the life of faith always victorious then? Yes it is victorious. That is the message of Heb. 11 which gives us the two traits of faith patience and power. These are needed because the path of faith is often a rocky one. The Lord prayed for Peter that his faith should not fail Luke 22:3232But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. (Luke 22:32); the apostles asked Him "increase our faith" Luke 17:55And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. (Luke 17:5). That is because faith is God-given and we are not to neglect any gift God has given us 1 Tim. 4:1414Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. (1 Timothy 4:14).
Faith is to become the mainspring of the new life. We are the Spirit born, the blood redeemed. We are to live our lives in obedience to the Bible, for in His written Word God is speaking to us in His Son Heb. 1:22Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; (Hebrews 1:2). And it is in proportion that we do or do not that our life of faith is increased or decreased.
Faith is a very ancient principle in God's dealings with His people. However if we read the history of the Jewish people in the Old Testament we might not think so. We would form the impression that the Jew was only influenced by what he saw. He had a visible priesthood and temple. His hope was a Messiah coming in worldly power and glory. Indeed the word "faith" is only found twice in the Old Testament. In Deuteronomy the Lord calls His people "children in whom is no faith" Deut. 32:2020And he said, I will hide my face from them, I will see what their end shall be: for they are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith. (Deuteronomy 32:20) in Habakkuk we find what God wanted from them "the just shall live by his faith" Hab. 2:44Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith. (Habakkuk 2:4). Paul quotes this last Scripture in 10:33 as a preamble to his faith chapter which demonstrates that faith is an ancient principle. His argument is that faith is the principle which sustained every child of God from the very beginning. He draws upon the Old Testament Scriptures, so well known to his readers, to prove his point.
His argument is divided into four groupings. The first group takes in the first seven verses. It commences with the beginning of things. It gives us the full range of faith creation, redemption, and in figure the Church and Israel. The second part begins with verse 8 and ends at verse 22. It gives us the patience of faith acting in God's people from Abraham to Joseph. The third part begins with Moses in verse 23 and ends with Rahab the harlot in verse 31. The great thought here is the power of faith, since "faith without works is dead" James 2:2020But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? (James 2:20). So the second and third parts give us the range of faith from God's promise to Abraham that his seed should possess the land of Canaan until that promise was fulfilled in the days of Rahab the harlot. When Joseph died in Egypt he commanded that his bones be buried in the land of promise. Joseph is a figure of the dead in Christ who enter the promised land, the glory, just as Rahab is a figure of those alive at our Lord's second coming who enter the glory of God. The fourth grouping begins at verse 32 and ends at 12:2. Here the people are in the land of promise. The subject here is the endurance of faith under harsh trials when one would have thought warfare was over. Actually it only began when they entered the land. But this grouping ends with Jesus, the Author and Completer of faith, who has run the race, and won the victory.
The Complete Range of Faith—Creation and Redemption; the Church and Israel
Paul's opening word is about how faith works in the child of God to make unseen things realities to his soul. So "faith is the confidence of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." Such is the range and power of faith going beyond the visible and making these things as true to the soul as if they could be seen and touched.
In this respect our faith is just as firm as that of the elders. The elders are the prominent men of faith who lived in the ancient world before the flood in the mists of remote history. They are commended by God. This is because, with them, all was of God. First they understood that the worlds were framed by the Word of God. Then Abel offered to God, Enoch pleased God, and Noah was warned by God. These elders lived and died thousands of years before we were born, but God hasn't forgotten them. He has enshrined their names in Scripture for that reason. Then, because He is God, He has arranged the record of their lives in such a way that they open up a great range of truth for our instruction. Two of the elders teach us about the works of God and two about the ways of God.
.. The works of God creation No man's name is given us in verse 3 but Adam is implied, for the subject in that verse is creation, and man is the crown of creation. Adam is the first of "the elders" here. When Adam was created he heard God's voice and they spoke to one another. He did not need God's works to testify to God's existence. Adam himself was the proof of that. His faith concerned the creation which he could not understand. Like later men he knew that "the heavens declare the glory of God and their expanse declares the work of His hands there is no speech; nor are there words (where) their voice is not heard" Psa. 19:1313Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. (Psalm 19:13). Adam's faith concerning the creation is not shared by men of the world who attribute it to chance. The believer knows better "through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.”
Adam's name does not head the list of elders because he sinned and dragged the creation down with him because of his fall. God blessed Adam and Eve Gen. 1:2828And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth. (Genesis 1:28) and because the gifts and calling of God are irrevocable they will be with us in the Holy City. But once, man fell God could not bless the human race on the ground that He was their Creator. He must find a way of bringing fallen man back to Himself.
The works of God redemption Abel is the first of the elders mentioned by name. He is also the first to die in faith. Like Abel his brother, Cain heard the witness of their parents. They must have told the two brothers how they had fallen by disobeying God. They must have told them how they tried to cover up their sin by clothing themselves with fig leaves. God later cursed the ground for man's sake perhaps as a memorial of that. They must have told them that God clothed their nakedness with the skins of animals. That spoke of the death of another to fit us for God's presence. Cain acknowledged God in a distant way but rejected the testimony that he was fallen and needed a sacrifice if he were to approach God. Lacking faith he took the fruit of the ground and offered it to God. But God had cursed the ground because of man. What an insult to God to bring Him what He had cursed. Cain is the father of human religion which denies the death and blood shedding of Jesus Christ, God's sacrifice for sin. Abel who was a shepherd, took the choicest sheep from his flock and sacrificed them to God. He acted in faith and God accepted his offering because it looked forward to the death of Christ, God's Lamb. Cain, displeased at God for refusing his offering, killed his brother Abel because God had accepted his. Cain is the father of the world away from God. The world does not deny that there is a God. It denies the fall of man and feels that man's works should be enough for God. Cain was the leader in this folly. He worked in the fields and gave to God the fruit of the ground God had cursed. God rebuked Cain and warned his followers "Woe unto them for they have gone in the way of Cain." The way of Cain begins with insulting God, evilly treating His children and building a world to keep himself happy without God. Much is written about Cain in the Bible but only for our instruction. How blessed to rest in the death of Christ as Abel did in type. God says of him "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts, and by it he being dead yet speaketh.”
The purposes of God the Church, a heavenly people Enoch is the next of the elders. He is a figure of the Church raptured to glory at the end of her time on earth. "By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him." Enoch lived in the days before the flood, just as we live in the days before the tribulation. Although God promised never again to destroy the earth by a flood His tribulation judgments "the day of vengeance of our God" will be almost as severe. They will just take a different form. "Unless those days should be shortened no flesh should be saved." The great hope of the Church is the second coming of Christ to take us out of this world before the storm of the great tribulation bursts on it. Enoch pre-figures this. He does not pass through the storm like Noah but is translated before it bursts. So the Lord's promise to the Church is "I also will preserve you from the hour of trial which shall come upon all the world to try those who dwell on the earth" Rev. 3:1010Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. (Revelation 3:10). Enoch is translated that he should not see death. So at the end of the Church's time on earth "we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them" (the dead in Christ) "in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air and so shall we ever be with the Lord" 1 Thess. 4:1717Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. (1 Thessalonians 4:17). People searched for Enoch but couldn't find him. They will search for us too. We will be missing from our jobs, our homes. Who will dispose of our property, pay the bills that come in? It isn't what man thinks about us when we disappear from this world which is important. It is what God thinks of us. May it individually be with us as with Enoch "for before his translation he had this testimony that he pleased God.”
.. The purposes of God the Jew an earthly people Noah is a figure of the godly Jews who will return to the Lord after the Church. The Jew will replace the Church as God's witness on the earth. They witness against the beast of Rev. 13:11And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy. (Revelation 13:1). But they also witness for God, their message being "fear God and give glory to Him for the time of His judgments is come." They pass through the whole tribulation period. Some will be martyred others delivered. The tribulation is the birth pangs of a new world to be born. When it is over the Jews will do what Noah did after the flood sacrifice to the Lord. Then they will enjoy Christ's earthly kingdom for 1000 years.
A Summary of the Full Range of Faith
It is now time to review and consolidate what we have learned of the ways of God in this preamble to Paul's great treatise on faith. God has wrought two mighty works for the benefit of man creation and redemption. It follows then that He must have ways with man whom He has created and redeemed. He must enroll him in His school and educate him in His ways. In His infinite wisdom He has chosen to have two classes of people a heavenly people the Church, and an earthly people Israel. However in Heb. 11 we are given a glimpse of only the end of God's ways with His heavenly and earthly people. No doubt this is to contrast the beginning and the ending of faith. The contrast gives us the entire range of faith from beginning to end in capsule form. The beginning was the creation and in Abel the character of offering suitable to God the end is the rapture of the Church and the deliverance of Israel from the tribulation followed by the establishment of Christ's one world government over a renewed earth With this overall picture before us, we might consider two great thoughts which emerge from it. One is the necessity of the cross. Cain is ignored but Abel mentioned. All Cain's descendants were swept away in the flood just as all men must be judged who do not come to Christ. Noah offered a sacrifice at the end Abel at the beginning. Abel obtained witness that he was righteous in the beginning; in the end Noah became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. The other great thought is that God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Faith is given us to seek Him the reward comes at the end, when faith is no longer needed. What was Enoch's reward? Heaven of course, the same as the Church for both are raptured. What was Noah's reward? Why a renewed earth, you say, the same as the Jew's reward after the tribulation is over. You don't need faith when the millennial kingdom is established in power. But you can look back at the wisdom of God in giving us faith to acknowledge Christ as both Creator and Redeemer and to understand His ways with the Church and Israel. We await the kingdom of God in power.
The Patience of Faith From the Call of Abraham to Joseph's Commandment Concerning His Bones
The world after the flood, and the commanding figure of Abraham is our next subject. The flood was brought about by the corruption of God's order in creation caused by the intermingling of "the sons of God" (the fallen angels) with the daughters of men details of which are spared us. After the flood the memory of these contacts with angelic beings lingered on in Noah's family, fostered by Satan. Eventually an elaborate mythology in prose, poetry and song grew up praising the heroes and gods of old *1. Idolatry took root in the world and overgrew it like a noxious weed. "The gods" were made visible as idols and men worshipped them. Idolatry blotted out the knowledge of the true God from the earth.
God was determined that His Name should not be forgotten in the earth and so called Abraham out of idolatry. God spoke to him and he obeyed. He left his own land where idols were worshipped to go to another land which he knew not. Where could this be since idol worship was now universal? Enough that God told him that he should receive an inheritance. Noah had inherited a cleansed world Abraham's inheritance was to be future. But like Noah he had faith that what God had said would one day come to pass. Arrived in the land of promise he lived there like a stranger, dwelling not in houses but tents the most temporary and shifting housing conceivable with his son and grandson *2. His family followed his example not settling down in the land but spurred on by the promise of a future inheritance. What a lesson this was to the Hebrew Christians to be reminded of the strangership of their fathers in the Promised Land, waiting by faith God's time to possess it. No doubt Abraham's faith must have been tested by dwelling in the Promised Land yet having no inheritance in it. God must have told him of something better, or he would not have looked for "a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God." A heavenly kingdom then and not an earthly one should have been the goal of the Hebrew Christians, following the example of their father Abraham. Although verse 9 tells us of Abraham dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob that is only a statement of strangership. Up to this point Abraham has no son. He is an old man, his wife an old woman. How is God going to fulfill His promise to him? How can he have an heir, this stranger in the land of promise then? Faith does not look at the difficulties but at God, for with God all things are possible.
How gracious of God to count Sarah in the line of faith. For she laughed when she overheard the Lord tell Abraham that she would have a child. Afraid, she denied this to the Lord who reproved her gently saying "No but you did laugh" Gen. 18:9-159And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent. 10And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him. 11Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age; and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. 12Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also? 13And the Lord said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old? 14Is any thing too hard for the Lord? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son. 15Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, Nay; but thou didst laugh. (Genesis 18:9‑15). She must have repented of her unbelief later because it is recorded here that "she judged Him faithful who had promised." And so the child of promise was born and called Isaac Gen. 21:1-71And the Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken. 2For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. 3And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac. 4And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old, as God had commanded him. 5And Abraham was an hundred years old, when his son Isaac was born unto him. 6And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me. 7And she said, Who would have said unto Abraham, that Sarah should have given children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age. (Genesis 21:1‑7). Yet "these all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them distantly and were convinced of them." Now is this not "the confidence of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen?" Acting on their faith they admitted that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. A stranger is one who does not belong where he is a pilgrim is someone who is going to another place. The patriarchs were strangers. Inwardly they longed for the better and heavenly country v.16 outwardly they declared plainly they were looking for it. They all died in faith, not having received the promises v.13. Had God forgotten them then? Not at all. He was not ashamed to be called their God "the God of Abraham, of Isaac, of Jacob" Ex. 3:1616Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt: (Exodus 3:16). Not only that but God has prepared for them the city v.16 Abraham looked for v.10 whose builder and maker is God. What a difference from the city of Ur, which Abraham left in faith. Its builder and maker was man. It had no foundations and it has passed away.
The 17th verse, while continuing the overall theme of the patience of faith, also introduces the trial of that faith, but a trial within the general subject of the patience of faith. And so we read "by faith Abraham when he was tried offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said that in Isaac shall your seed be called. Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead from which also he received him in a figure" v.17-19. These verses, obscure at first sight, become crystal clear when we tie them into the account of these happenings in Genesis and into 11:12 which we have by-passed up to this point. God had told Abraham that Isaac was the promised seed. How could this be if he must die on an altar? And if that happened he was too old to have another son. God could not contradict Himself. He could not lie. Abraham's faith in God was so great that he believed God would raise Isaac from the dead after he sacrificed him. In that way God would fulfill His promises in Isaac in resurrection. All this took place so it would give us an advance picture of the Father and the Son at the cross. But it was only a foreshadowing of the cross, for Abraham was told not to kill his only begotten son. At the cross God the Father did not spare His only begotten Son. And yet how beautiful the picture is, for in resurrection life the Lord Jesus Christ, the true Isaac, becomes the Blesser of heaven and earth to those who are justified on the principle of faith. "He who spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?" Rom. 8:3232He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? (Romans 8:32). "All things" means heaven and earth the universe in simple language. Staggering and stupendous thought, for we were once God's enemies. This is confirmed in v.12 "the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable." This blessing for a heavenly and earthly people is founded on the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Isaac's death and resurrection in figure simply looked on to the cross. But it was an act of great faith on Abraham's part and God is a rewarder of faith. So God said to Abraham "because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son, that in blessing I will bless you and...I will multiply your seed like the stars of the heaven" (Isaac the heavenly man, figure of the Church) "and like the sand which is on the sea shore" (Jacob, figure of the Jew, the man of the earth) Gen. 22:16, 1716And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: 17That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; (Genesis 22:16‑17). While the blessing is divided this way Abraham is the father of us all. In other words he is the father of those justified on the principle of faith whether Jew or Gentile as Paul explains in Rom. 4.
Isaac and Jacob are given only a passing mention. In them the flame of faith is still flickering, because of God's faithfulness. The line of faith descends to Jacob through his mother's cheating, reversing the natural line of blessing. But the eyes of the Lord see all things. In the next generation Jacob reverses the blessing of Ephraim and Manasseh in spite of Joseph's remonstrance. Reason flows from nature faith from God. At the end of his days Jacob's natural strength was feeble but his faith in God never greater. He is the dependent man, leaning on the top of his staff, worshipping God.
The death of Joseph closes the subject of the patience of faith. The book of Genesis also closes with Joseph's death "they buried Joseph in a coffin in Egypt." Joseph represents the continuity of faith to the very end. On his death bed he spoke about the coming departure of the children of Israel from Egypt. This showed his complete faith that God would bring them to the land of promise. This was at a time when they were enjoying Pharaoh's smile and eating the fat of the land of Egypt. Why should they leave Egypt when they were so comfortable there? But Joseph had God's thoughts about this matter. He was so certain that he commanded that his bones should not be left in Egypt when the children of Israel left it. No they should take them with them and bury them in the promised land. This was carried out as it is written "and they buried the bones of Joseph which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt in Schechem in a plot of ground... and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph" Josh. 24:3232And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for an hundred pieces of silver: and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph. (Joshua 24:32). Thus the wheel had come full circle.
Joseph's dying commandment made it clear that he was a stranger and sojourner in Egypt just as Abraham declared publicly following the death of Sarah Gen. 23:44I am a stranger and a sojourner with you: give me a possession of a buryingplace with you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight. (Genesis 23:4). The world has become a cemetery to faith which seeks in patience and much trial a city whose builder and maker is God. Joseph is a beautiful figure of Christ as the future ruler of the world. It is fitting that the subject of the patience of faith ends with him. Like Joseph we await a future glory, for we are in "the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ" Rev. 1:99I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. (Revelation 1:9).
The Power of Faith Overcoming a World Opposed to God
Unlike Abraham, who was a mature man when he left his native land on his own faith, Moses was a baby when his parents' faith saved him. *3 This confirms the principle of "the household of faith" which we have already seen in the lives of the patriarchs. Pharaoh had commanded that all Jewish male babies be killed at birth. His parents disregarded the king's order and hid the baby Moses three months. Then by a ruse they had him raised in the household of the king who decreed that all Jewish male babies should be killed! He was adopted as the son of Pharaoh's daughter, and educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians an education much greater than empty modern man cares to admit.*4 He rose to greatness in the court. Then why didn't he use his influential position to relieve the oppression of his people? That is the way man reasons, but it leaves God out, whose purpose was not to make his people's lives more pleasant in a foreign land but to deliver them out of it and bring them into the land he had promised to Abraham. That would require power. So the patience of faith, long tried, now yields to the energy of faith in Moses and those who follow him up to Rahab the harlot. The key to this is found in verses 24 and 25, refusing the temptation of the world's glory and choosing to do the will of God instead. It takes power from God to refuse what appeals to our nature and to choose that which, while it is the will of God for us, is contrary to our natural desires. Now let us consider a number of choices Moses made.
The first choice which the life of faith demands is between God's will and man's. The world would assert its authority and claims over us, but faith gives us energy to overcome the world. Egypt in Scripture is a figure of the glory of the world its ruler Pharaoh is a figure of Satan, its prince. Moses' parents chose God's will. Then when Moses attains maturity he follows the faith of his parents. They disobeyed Pharaoh's commandment because it was contrary to God's will he rejected a worldly position which could only be an encumbrance to a man of God. The second choice now looms before Moses but he surmounts it. "Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season" v. 25. If the court and its politics does not appeal to you Moses, why don't you take it easy and enjoy a life of pleasure as a nobleman? Certainly the stroke of the Egyptian lash which he could expect if he identified himself with God's people would be enough to make most men pause. Why suffer, when pleasure is freely offered? God does not deny in His Word that sin can be pleasurable. But He warns us that such pleasures do not last for long they soon pass away. Moses weighed the alternatives and made the right choice. He chose to identify himself with God's people and suffer with them. The third choice was between the reproach of Christ and the treasures of Egypt. But many years were to pass before Christ was born so what is meant by Moses choosing "the reproach of Christ"? Well the Scriptures Moses penned and the tabernacle and its furniture he had built all spoke of Christ. That is why Moses was so intelligent when he met Christ on the Mount of Transfiguration. The choice here is between lasting, eternal spiritual treasures and the beautiful gold, alabaster, jade and other Egyptian riches. They seemed so valuable at the time. But what happened to them? Thieves plundered them from the pharaohs' tombs. What is left is locked up in the museums of the world artifacts of the past for the gaze of the curious. The fourth choice was whether to leave Egypt entirely, so incurring the wrath of the king, or to accept one of a series of compromises the king suggested to maintain some link with Egypt. Moses' parents acted in faith, not fearing the king's wrath. Moses went further he endured that wrath. Both were sustained by seeing Him who is invisible this is faith in power. Moses' choice was to leave Egypt. His fifth and final choice was to observe the Passover. Knowing God he understood that there was no difference between the Jews and the Egyptians for "without shedding of blood there is no remission" (i.e. of sins) 9:22. The Passover lamb of Ex. 12 spoke of Christ. It must be perfect, for Christ is perfect. It must be seen by all the people for four days and then be killed (just as Christ is seen as God's sucking Lamb in four gospels at the end of which He is put to death). Its blood must be put in a basin. Then a clump of hyssop was dipped into the basin. The blood drenched hyssop was used to sprinkle the side posts and lintel of their doorposts with blood. Hyssop is a low, ground hugging weed, a figure of man's need of repentance and self judgment when accepting Christ as Savior. The blood was not applied on the door but the doorposts. The reason for this is that Christ is the Door and He is without sin. The doorposts surround the door as God's people surround Christ and we need the blood because we are sinners. "I am the door by Me if any man enter in he shall be saved." And so the blood on the doorposts witnessed to the Egyptians and anyone else in Egypt that if they walked through the door they would be saved. Some did. How else can we account for the mixed crowd who went with them out of Egypt Ex. 12:3838And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle. (Exodus 12:38)? Nobody could be killed where the blood was, for God's guarantee was "when I see the blood I will pass over you.”
Once the Passover is observed the emphasis passes from Moses to the people. By keeping the Passover they now become God's people provisionally redeemed by the Passover lamb's blood. So it is they (not Moses, their leader) who are said to pass through the Red Sea like dry land. The Red Sea is a figure of death and judgment through which man must pass, for "it is appointed to men once to die and after this the judgment" 9:27. The Egyptians followed the Israelites into the passage in the Red Sea God had opened up for His people because they were sheltered by the Passover lamb's blood. The Egyptians were not under the protection of the Passover lamb's blood. They entered the Red Sea confident in themselves. They are like people today who think they can face death without Christ. Well the Egyptians were drowned but the children of Israel arrived safely at the other side. They proved the truth of Jonah's words "salvation is of the Lord" Jonah 2:99But I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay that that I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord. (Jonah 2:9). Certainly that was the theme of their redemption song as they celebrated the victory of the Lord on the banks of the Red Sea. The desert journey historically came next. However it is not even mentioned because it was reviewed in Chapter 3 and shown to be only unbelief. The crossing of the Jordan is also ignored, because to faith the people went into the Red Sea and came out of the Jordan.
The land God promised Abraham now opens up. The trial of faith has proved God to be true. What next? "By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they had been encircled seven days." The order of events in verses 30 and 31 is reversed. That is because when Rahab received the spies in peace v.31 she already saw the walls of Jericho fallen down by faith v. 30.
The Faith of Rahab the Harlot
The greatness of Joseph shines out in Scripture when he replies to Potiphar's lusting wife "How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God" Gen. 39:99There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God? (Genesis 39:9). What a contrast to our subject here Rahab who sinned against God not once but repeatedly for she is called Rahab the harlot. What is more she lied to her king twice and committed high treason against her country. In short a very wicked person. In spite of that her faith saved her.
The story of Rahab and the fall of Jericho is the story of the gospel in veiled form. For this reason some of the people and places are full of figurative teaching. Joshua is a figure of Jesus, his two spies of evangelists seeking the salvation of sinners who would bow to His authority. The king of Jericho is a figure of Satan. Jericho is a figure of the world as a pleasant place it was called "the city of palm trees." It barred the entrance to the Promised Land in figure heaven. Rahab received the spies in peace, being convinced of the message of coming judgment. She hid them from the wrath of the king as Moses' parents did an act of faith. She lowered them safely to the ground by a scarlet cord a figure of the blood of Christ. Man must be lowered when the death of Christ is in question for in God's eyes the spies in figure evangelists are only different in degree from Rahab "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God." Just as the evangelists reached safety by the scarlet cord so Rahab and her relatives could only be saved by displaying that same scarlet cord in the window. The blood of the Passover lamb was publicly displayed in Egypt on the side posts and lintels of the doors. It could be seen on the streets. Here the scarlet cord is just as publicly displayed in the window on the wall. The gospel is to be preached to the world it is not the secret of a few. As for the spies they left in peace, living in a mountain for three days. Then they came down and told Joshua what had happened. Joshua had sent them out as Christ sends out His evangelists. So they reported back to Joshua when their work was done just as an evangelist communes with the Lord about His work. As for Rahab we read "by faith the harlot Rahab PERISHED NOT with THOSE WHO BELIEVED NOT" a statement which should always be linked with those golden words in John 3:1616For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16) "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him SHOULD NOT PERISH but have eternal life.”
The circle of promise began with Abraham. His wife Sarah conceived Isaac the heir of promise when natural hope had faded. But what began with Abraham ended with Rahab, who entered the Promised Land by faith. Sarah and Rahab are the only women mentioned in this passage. They are contrasting personalities. Sarah was a Jew, Rahab a Gentile. Sarah was a devoted wife to a man of God, Rahab a dissolute woman. In spite of this the harlot Rahab's faith shines brighter. Sarah laughed at the thought of conceiving a son in old age and then denied that she laughed to the Lord. Rahab, secure in a fortified city whose walls were built to keep God out, had faith that they must fall. Rahab, who was evil in the eyes of man for fornication and high treason, justified God, of whom it is written that "He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him" 11:6. Her reward is that her name is recorded in Holy Scripture, not only in the account we have been considering but in the genealogy of Christ Matt. 1:55And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse; (Matthew 1:5), although Sarah's name is not found there.
Rahab is the watershed in this passage between the entrance to the land and their subsequent warfare in it. At the beginning Abraham believed God. At the end Rahab trusted in the ultimate victory of God's people. If Abraham had been alive he could not have been more astounded than Paul at Rahab's faith and the end of it. Paul exclaims "and what more shall I say?" He is speechless.
This brings us to the last grouping of the faith chapter which opens this way "for the time would fail me to write of Gideon and of Barak and of Samson, etc." As an old man Paul hasn't time to expound them so he gives us an outline.
The Endurance of Faith Under Testing in the Promised Land
Paul's readers would understand why he wrote this passage. When their fathers went through the desert they were at peace, but as soon as they entered the Promised Land they were at war. This is the story of the book of Joshua. True the Lord fought their battles for them but the land had to be taken by the sword just the same. Now the Jews who were reading this epistle were in the land. Like their fathers they were at war but not the kind of war their fathers fought. It was spiritual, not carnal warfare "for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds" 2 Cor. 10:44(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) (2 Corinthians 10:4). Their fathers wanted to avoid war. They wanted to eat the grapes of Eschol the good fruit of the land but they did not want to fight gigantic men and storm fortified cities. Their spiritual warfare must be conducted along better lines than their fathers' carnal warfare. Paul exhorts them "we are not of those who draw back to perdition but of faith to the saving of the soul" 10:39. That is the great introductory thought of Chapter 11. It runs throughout the chapter and is prominent at its close.
The power of faith to overcome in times of indifference This part opens with Gideon in verse 32 The watershed verse partly in and partly out of the promised land and ends with the opening clause of verse 35 "Women received their dead raised to life again" another watershed death and life. Prevailing faith bridges death and life, the desert of this world and our Promised Land heaven.
The first four servants of God cited might look to us to be men of weak faith in contrast to David, Samuel and "the prophets." However God is not looking at His servants here through our eyes, but His own. Consider the times. Rahab the harlot brought us to the entrance of the land. With the goal of entering the land attained the subject of the patience and energy of faith comes to a close. But once in the land the people's faith grew dimmer. "And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua and all the days of the elders who survived Joshua" Judg. 2:77And the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the Lord, that he did for Israel. (Judges 2:7). "In those days there was no king in Israel every man did what was right in his own eyes" Judg. 21:2525In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes. (Judges 21:25). That was the setting in which Gideon, Barach, Samson, Jephthah worked the works of faith.
Gideon Judg. 6-8 overthrew Baal's altar and scattered the Midianites who oppressed God's people. In Barak's day Judg. 4-5 Israel was ruled by a woman Deborah. She ordered him into battle but he refused to go unless she went with him, which she did. He illustrates those who act on the faith of others. This is not the brightest aspect of faith. Consequently although he faced nine hundred chariots of iron with only ten thousand men, it was not he who killed Sisera, the general of the opposing army but Jael, another woman. Still Barak is celebrated in the joint song of Deborah and Barak as the one who led captivity captive. So he became a distinct type of Christ doing this in heaven "when He ascended up on high, He led captivity captive" Eph. 4:88Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. (Ephesians 4:8). Samson Judg. 13-16 was a Nazarite from his birth. We see in him how our fallen flesh is constantly opposing the faith God has given us. He triumphs more in death than in life as we do if we put our flesh to death. Jephthah Judg. 11-12 Championed the title of God's people to the inheritance God gave them, doing battle with the Ammonites. David the warrior king ends all further question of that title. He does not defend the inheritance he secures it with the sword and establishes the kingdom in power. Samuel and the prophets speak of testimony and warnings. God has been faithful will His people be? So Samuel is linked to David whom he anointed the prophets, unspecified, follow. Two of these prophets Elijah and Elisha can be identified in the short statement which closes this part on prevailing faith. Anyone reasonably familiar with the Old Testament Scriptures can identify those whose victorious faith is described in verses 33 and 34 for example Daniel and his friends, and the women in v.35 who received their dead raised to life again 5.
Man likes to nurture his faith on outward evidences of the Holy Spirit's triumphs such as revivals, or mass conversions. "Thy people shall be willing in the day of Thy power" is that thought Psa. 110:33Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth. (Psalm 110:3). But it takes great faith to overcome in the midst of indifference. "If you faint in the day of adversity your strength is small" Prov. 24:1010If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small. (Proverbs 24:10). The people were in the land but too indifferent to hold on to the inheritance God had given them. "Buy the truth and sell it not" we are told Prov. 23:2323Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding. (Proverbs 23:23). For us the message is "let that therefore abide in you which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son and in the Father" 1 John 2:2424Let that therefore abide in you, which ye have heard from the beginning. If that which ye have heard from the beginning shall remain in you, ye also shall continue in the Son, and in the Father. (1 John 2:24).
The patience of faith to endure persecution, martyrdom, and apparent defeat a new and somber section opens with the words "and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection." They would not recant from the truth God had given them. That truth was very little to what we have today in the New Testament. The point is they valued what they did have. Of these the world was not worthy. They are written in the book of life. Those who are faithful unto death are promised a crown of life see Rev. 2:1010Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. (Revelation 2:10). Their names are not written on the pages of Scripture only the character of their sufferings and rejection. The record of their sufferings begins in v.35 "and others were tortured" and ends in v.37 "being destitute, afflicted, tormented." The relative positions of these saints and their persecutors will be reversed after death as the Lord warned "Now he (Lazarus) is comforted, and you are tormented" Luke 16:2525But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. (Luke 16:25). Those who lived in hiding without a home on earth are the last class. "They wandered in deserts and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth" 11:38. This is the faith of the outcast the faith not only to endure complete rejection but apparent defeat. To the world they were banished out of sight their cause lost. But God, as the result of the world's judgment of them, passes judgment on the world "of whom the world was not worthy.”
Then Paul reverts to the beginning of this treatise on faith. At the very beginning it was by faith that the elders obtained a good report 11:2; here at the end "all these having obtained a good report through faith received not the promise" 11:39. This is a sharp reminder to the Hebrews that these worthies in whom they boasted never did see their expectations fulfilled. Why then should they still prefer a visible Messiah to One in glory? They must see now that through all this great span of time God kept the flame of faith sometimes flickering, sometimes burning brightly, but always there never going out. It continues the same way in our time, sometimes waning, at other times increasing, but always displaying the patience and energy found in this eleventh chapter. But those who lived and died by faith in this chapter could not be "made perfect" without us. To be made perfect is to receive our glorified bodies in the resurrection of the just, of whom it is written "blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection on such the second death has no power" Rev. 20:66Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. (Revelation 20:6). Those who went before us in the path of faith must wait until Christianity has gone from the earth.
Faith—Its Originator and Completer
The "faith" chapter ends at 12:2 not 11:40. How could we exclude Jesus from the consideration of faith He who is its "Leader" or "Author" or "Originator" as variously translated, as well as its Completer. That is, He is its beginner and ender. Those mentioned before Him in Chapter 11 walked different parts of the path of faith He all of it. No wonder He is called "Jesus Christ, the faithful witness" Rev. 1:55And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, (Revelation 1:5).
The Lord Jesus appeared "at the end of the age." The Hebrews to whom Paul wrote had seen His works. Although the faith chapter is primarily about the Old Testament saints, toward the end it seems to take in New Testament saints. The widow of Nain, Mary and Martha would be examples of women who received their dead raised to life again.*5 Stephen did not accept deliverance. He followed Christ until the heavens were opened and he saw Him in the glory. The end of faith is seeing Christ in glory. You do not need faith in heaven you need it here.
In closing the faith chapter Paul appeals to the good testimony of those who have preceded us in the path of faith those who are imperishably enshrined in his eleventh chapter. In view, of their witness laying aside every weight and the sin which so easily entangles us, we are encouraged to run the race which lies before us with endurance, fixing our eyes on Jesus. Paul set the example, running the race in Philippians. He knew two things are against us in running the race carnality and ritualistic religion. So he told the Corinthians, who were carnal, to subject the body in order to win a prize at the end of the race 1 Cor. 9:24, 2724Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. (1 Corinthians 9:24)
27But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway. (1 Corinthians 9:27). He wrote the epistle to the Hebrews to advise them that their ancient earthly religion was hindering them running the race from earth to heaven. He exhorts them here to get rid of every weight and the sin which so easily besets us. A runner is slowed down by carrying weight sin diverts us from the race track. The weights are outside things but they are not defined. In this we see the wisdom of the Holy Spirit who looked down the ages and took into consideration their diverse character varying with the social and national traditions of a world into which people are born at different times. To the Hebrews the weights were those of their religious traditions which were contrary to Christianity sacrificing animals, temple rituals, etc. What about us today? We can only generalize and say they are encumbrances to Christian life. Sin is the inside thing. We still have a fallen nature which urges us to give up the race and settle down on earth.
And note that it is a race we run, not a walk or a trot. The Jews marched out of Egypt to the Promised Land. We run there. It is a matter of urgency for the prize is greater, and lasting. We are in a hurry. What is your goal the horizon of this world or running the race and attaining Christ in glory? The eye of the runner is to be fixed on Jesus for He is the goal. He has run the race from earth to heaven and if He were not there what would heaven mean to us? Others have run this race before us without this great knowledge that we have that Jesus is at the end of the race. God has provided a better thing for us that is Christianity that they without us should not be made perfect. Think of the race in terms of Isa. 40:3131But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31) "Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength they shall mount up with wings like eagles they shall run and not tire and they shall walk and not faint" that is why the Apostle employs the heavenly figurative language of "a cloud of witnesses." The cloud is the eagle's domain and we are to soar heavenward in the clouds like the eagles the meaning of the figure. But we are also to run the race set before us, for while heaven is our goal we are on earth so "they shall run and not tire." But if we don't discard our weights we may slow down to a walk. Even if that should happen we "shall walk and not faint.”
The runner's eye is always to be on Jesus. How did he reach the goal? Why by the cross. He endured it, with all the agony such a cruel death meant. He despised the shame men heaped upon Him. Why? Because when He should ascend from this world to the glory of God He would sit down at the right hand of the throne of God. On earth He was on a cross in heaven on a throne. God reverses man's verdict and awards Him glory. With this prospect before Him no wonder He despised the shame which the man of dust gave Him. "In Thy presence is fullness of joy" and that was where He was going "by Thy right hand" the throne God awarded Him "there, are pleasures forevermore" see Psa. 16:1111Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. (Psalm 16:11).
As the Author and Completer of faith Christ walked the path of faith perfectly. His people before Him, in patient faith had waited God's time to enter the land then in the energy of faith they began the journey out of Egypt which led them to the Promised Land. He retraced their pathway for He identified Himself with God's people. If Abraham was a stranger in the land of promise Christ was a stranger in the world His hands had made. For the major portion of His life He displayed the patience of faith. He was subject to His earthly parents. He was a carpenter. Only God the Father saw in Christ the plant whom He had planted. So He grew up before Him as a tender plant and as a root out of a dry ground Isa. 53:22For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. (Isaiah 53:2). His baptism at the Jordan marked the end of the patience of faith and the beginning of the power of faith. That is because the Jordan, being the entrance to the land, had signaled that change in those who walked the path of faith before Him. Moses marked the energy of faith and he was tempted. So must Christ be, to display the energy of faith also. Moses was tempted by the offer of all the glitter of Pharaoh's court its wealth, power, education, delights and seduction of the flesh. Christ is tempted by the devil, not with a small part of the world like Pharaoh's court, but with the offer of the whole world. Having overcome Satan, His public ministry begins with power casting out demons, healing the sick, raising the dead. But it ended the same way as those of whom the world was not worthy that patient faith which endured even apparent defeat. So the Lord identified Himself with His people in these two traits of faith patience and power in the exact way they are presented to us in Heb. 11. And if Enoch was translated that he should not see death 11:5 it was only made possible for him as it may be for us because Christ by the grace of God tasted death for everything 2:9.
Faith connects the soul with God. It sees Him who is invisible 11:27. It sees the Lord, for the end of its trial produces peace and holiness for us 12:14. Faith refused what can be seen (the world, because it is opposed to God) and chooses what can't be seen (God's world to come).
A path always starts with some man walking the route first and marking it out for others to follow. So Christ is the Leader of our salvation. What He said to Peter He says to all of us "Follow Me." He gives us faith to do so. He walked the path we are now treading. He is now at home in His Father's house, and we are strangers in a world which cast Him out. So we do not merely walk the path of faith. Our feet speed up. We are in a race from earth to heaven. The end of the race is the end of faith, for the goal is attained seeing Christ in glory.
Faith—What Is It?
What a question to raise, after a detailed examination of Paul's faith chapter! But we do raise it, to summarize a subject which can so easily be lost in such a wide ranging study.
It might help us to understand faith by contrasting it with unbelief, the opposing principle, and tracing both back to their origin in the garden in Eden. Unbelief began with not listening to and obeying God's Word. It is the sad fruit of the reasoning of the human mind, aided and abetted by Satan Gen. 3:1-61Now the serpent was more subtile than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 2And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 4And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 5For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 6And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. (Genesis 3:1‑6) questioning God in self will. Because of the fall this is the natural tendency of every one of us. So God has to give us faith to believe that what He says is true rather than man, the world, and Satan. This gift enables us to accept Christ's words both for salvation and as the rule of our lives. Once believed power comes in to the Christian's life.
We see how the principle of faith works in the conversion of Saul on the Road to Damascus. "Who art Thou Lord?" he inquires. When told that Jesus is Lord he accepts His testimony as true because God has spoken, and God cannot lie. In this way he reverses what man did in the Garden of Eden believing the devil's lie. Instantly power comes in "Lord, what wilt Thou have me to do?" Acts 9:5,65And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. 6And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do. (Acts 9:5‑6). He goes on to turn the world upside down by preaching the gospel. The world began with Cain's unbelief but "this is the victory which overcomes the world, even our faith" 1 John 5:44For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. (1 John 5:4).
Put succinctly, faith is unquestioned trust in the truth of God's Word, not only for salvation but to Carry on for God in a world opposed to Him until we reach the heavenly city.