Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as if it were dry land, but when the Egyptians attempted to do so they were drowned. By faith the walls of Jericho fell after they had been encircled for seven days. By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had received the spies in peace. And what more should I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets — who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received their dead by resurrection. Others were tortured, refusing to accept release, in order to obtain a better resurrection. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned to death, they were sawn in two, they were killed by the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, persecuted, tormented — of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.
Yet all these, though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better so that they would not, apart from us, be made perfect. ~HEBREWS 11:1, 29-40
During this season of Lent, we decided to use the Faith series suggested by Sundays and Seasons. It's been a great series talking about the faith of Noah, Abraham, Moses and, this week, the Israelites.
Looking at the writing from this chapter of the letter to the Hebrews, there are some interesting themes. First, is that the writer of this letter depends heavily on the Old Testament tradition, specifically, the fathers of the faith. And the second is that seems to view the lives of these father of the faith (he does speak of Rahab, also) through the lens of the Christ event, claiming, for example, that Moses did what he did because of Christ.
What I find interesting about the passage for tonight, however is that when the writer of the letter to the Hebrews speaks of the faith of the Israelites, he does so within the context of the leaders (specifically the judges and kings) that save the Israelites from themselves.
God sent Moses to free the Israelites from the slavery they were under in Egypt...the people griped and moaned...but God worked through Moses and led them through the Red Sea.
The people questioned Joshua about the plan that God had given him for the destruction of Jericho...but God worked through Joshua, the people lived out the plan and the walls came a tumblin' down. God worked through Rahab to keep the spies of the Israelites safe when they snuck into Jericho.
Gideon was chosen by God to free the Israelites from themselves and the idolatry they had gotten themselves in to, he destroyed the statues of Baal and Asherah and challenged the people to turn back to God.
Barak was chosen to lead Deborah's army against the Canaanites, who had oppressed the Israelites. He was victorious.
Jephthah was chosen to lead the Israelites in battle against the Ammonites, who had rules over them, scripture says, because God had handed the Israelites over to the Philistines and Ammonites when the Israelites had turned their back on God.
Samson was a Nazarite, chosen to lead the Israelites against the Philistines. A messenger of the Lord when to Samson's mother and told her about the son that she was going to have, that Samson was going to be a Nazarite...this meant that his mother could drink no alcohol while she was pregnant and that during Samson's life, he would never be able to drink alcohol or cut his hair (there were other stipulations as well, but these were the most well known of them). God used Samson to defeat the Philistines, he killed many single handedly.
(Check out Samson's story in the book of Judges...it's really good)
Then we have Samuel, who was on the cusp of the transition of the era of the Judges and the era of the Prophets (Samuel was the last judge and first prophet). Samuel led the Israelites against the Philistines and defeated them 20 years after the Israelites had been defeated by the Philistines and the ark of the covenant was taken.
Finally, we have David, second King of Israel. He was the youngest and the smallest of the sons of Jesse, but God had plans for him and he was a great king. He did have his weak spots (Bathsheba) but God stayed by his side, showing him, through Nathan, where he had sinned and helping him to repent.
The writer speaks of the prophets as well, doesn't name any more of them specifically.
Here's what I've noticed, though..the writer of the letter to the Hebrews speaks of the faith of these individuals, of Noah and Moses and Abraham and the Israelites (and their judges and prophets and kings) but the thing that sticks out here is how God's faithfulness plays in. God never abandoned the people that God chose...God let them live out the consequences of their sinful actions, but God never left them.
Adam and Eve were forced to leave the garden, but God provided clothing for them. Cain was forced to wander and be alone after killing Abel, but God protected him from those who would want to avenge Abel.
Noah never spoke out on behalf of his neighbors (he never speaks, actually), which, depending on how you want to interpret it, is or is not a big deal as Noah never questioned the instructions the God had for him.
Moses had doubts about the mission that God had for him, but God provided the resources for him to use and was with him all along the way from Egypt to the edge of the promised land (the consequence of his mistrust of God at the end of his life was that he never got to see the promised land).
The Israelites doubted God, questioned God, turned from God again and again, but God never turned away from them. God delivered them through the Red Sea, provided for them in the desert, brought them (despite the years of wandering) into the promised land, and provided for them leaders that would bring them back to a focus on God instead of on themselves and other deities.
This is all about God's faithfulness towards us and the result of God's enduring faithfulness is that we have been given the ability to trust in and be faithful to God in return. And that, my friends, is pretty cool.
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