_edited_p.png)
This is the fifth lesson on Hebrews 11 This one is on verses 23-31
The writer of the book of Hebrews wrote to people who were currently facing persecution with more to come on the horizon. The atrocities against Christians in the Roman empire was only beginning. They had much of which to be afraid. The author is purposely choosing the stories in chapter 11 to encourage them to persevere in dangerous times knowing God can and will deliver them.
In Hebrews 11:11 we are introduced to the faith of Sarah. The interaction she had with God moved her from a woman of fear to a woman of faith so that she could “do good without fearing anything that was frightening.” (1 Peter 3:6).
In the passage before us today, we meet more people who overcame fear. Fear is a constant obstacle to faith. One cannot walk in fear and walk in faith simultaneously. For a believer, the fear of the Lord will gradually replace fear of circumstances and fear of man.
We will see that:
A person who walks by faith fears God above everyone else.
A person who walks by faith believes God can be trusted in dangerous situations.
Being unafraid does not mean one denies the reality of what is fearful. Remember Sarah? She was praised for not fearing “anything that is frightening.”
What is the most frequent command of Jesus? Do not be afraid.
It’s good to note that Jesus never said, “There’s nothing to be afraid of.” Jesus never denies that this world is full of scary situations. “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:33.
There are frightening things in this world. Things that cause real fear. Jesus knows this. Jesus experienced this. Jesus never will deny your honest fears. He will never dismiss them.
But He does ask us not to be afraid of what is frightening. He does want our faith to grow so that we believe He is good and wise and powerful. He wants us to believe that in His presence, we can be fearless.
Remember when Jesus fell asleep in the boat during a storm? (Mark 4:36-41). The disciples were “so afraid.” Jesus rebuked them for having such little faith that they did not believe He cared for them and could protect them.
After seeing the sea’s response to a command from Jesus, the disciples “were filled with great fear.”
Part of the secret of walking by faith is learning to fear God. The fear of The Lord begins by recognizing God for everything that He is. Creator. Sovereign. Redeemer. King. It deepens as we learn that we will never know him completely. That He is God and we are not. That His "goodness" puts Him in a category very outside of ourselves.
The demons believe this of God, and they tremble. Demon-like trembling is not the fear of the Lord. For a christian, the fear of the Lord is bound together with love for Him. Love because He first loved us. Love because while we were sinners He sent His son to die for us. Love that amazes.
The fear of the Lord is “the thrill of being here in the center of the awful power of God, yet protected by God himself!” (Piper: The Pleasures of God, 186–187).
Faith in an invisible God can make us unafraid of dangers we see and we imagine.
******************************************************************************************
There is another kind of fear that is real - the fear of man.
This is not usually associated with fear of physical danger. It is the fear that people will not think well of me. It does not begin with a threat outside of me; It begins with my heart’s craving for the approval of others.
The fear of man is not an “honest fear.” It is idolatry disguised as fear.
(See also Gal.1:10; 2:12; John 5:44; 12:41-43)
And it is a snare that will ruin your life. Like any unrighteous desire, the fear of man can never be satisfied. The demand for more approval will increase. The enjoyment of that approval will diminish.
The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe. Prov. 29:25
Fearing man is also a burden we were never meant to carry. Notice how the prophet Isaiah explains how God wants to carry us, but we prefer to carry the idol of the fear of man!
They have no knowledge
who carry about their wooden idols,
and keep on praying to a god
that cannot save.
“To whom will you liken me and make me equal,
and compare me, that we may be alike? . . . .
“Listen to me, O house of Jacob,
all the remnant of the house of Israel,
who have been borne by me from before your birth,
carried from the womb;
even to your old age I am he,
and to gray hairs I will carry you.
I have made, and I will bear;
I will carry and will save.
Those who lavish gold from the purse,
and weigh out silver in the scales,
hire a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god;
then they fall down and worship!
They lift it to their shoulders, they carry it,
they set it in its place, and it stands there;
it cannot move from its place.
If one cries to it, it does not answer.
or save him from his trouble.
Isaiah 45:20; 46:5-7
The solution to this kind of fear begins with repentance and ends in the same place as a fear of danger: A growing fear of God will replace the fear of man.
******************************************************************************************
Now let's look at the examples of Faith in the middle of Fear that are given in Heb. 11.
Moses’s parents had much to be afraid of.
They were slaves under an all-encompassing authority. An authority who could decide who should live and who should die. They had no voice. When they hid their baby for 3 months in defiance of Pharaoh’s command, they were taking a great risk. When Miriam approached the Pharaoh's daughter at the edge of the Nile, she also was putting herself at great risk. Was the fear of death not something to be afraid of?
Maybe a greater fear gripped their hearts when they let Moses go into the household of Pharaoh? There had to be tangible grief and genuine concerns. What would become of their son? Would he ever know the one true God?
Jochebed’s Grief
Her labor came on hard and intense; the midwife missed his birth.
Death came close to her. She would not have it take her son.
For nine months she had laid down her life for this child.
For nine months she had prayed it would not be a boy.
Unafraid of the king, she hid him from curious eyes and loose tongues.
With her daughter standing watch, she placed his basket in the river.
“Momma”, Momma,” the girl’s voice broke through her thoughts.
“I have him. He’s back. The princess named him Moses.”
Back to her arm and her breast and her heart.
Back to her nourishment, care and her love.
She nurse him and prayed and wondered aloud
What plans the Almighty designed for her child.
He weaned himself. Never would she have denied him.
His diminished thirst hastened the certain and unwanted end.
Did a chariot arrive at her door? Did she walk to the palace?
When the child was pulled from her arms, did she grab at her chest?
A broken heart feels just like it sounds-
Stabbing, tearing pain, breathing against bruised ribs.
How long until her sobbing cries gave way to a lifeless living
Of uncountable days passed in numbing sorrow and demeaning slavery?
What God would ask this of a mother-
To love and labor and nurse, and when the bond is strong to strip him away?
Fearless of the pharaoh, she bowed low before her God.
She did not yet know her grief would bring relief for all His people.
Where did Moses’s parents get the faith to overcome what was so very fearful?
Moses’ parents saw that he was “beautiful.” The Hebrew word here is “good” - the same as in Genesis One where God spoke and it was “good.” Moses’ parents saw something of the hand of God in his birth. In the book of Acts, Stephen alludes to this in his sermon when he says that the baby “Moses was beautiful in God’s sight.” (Acts 7:20). Perhaps the stories of how God had providentially saved Israel from famine under the rule of Joseph gave them faith to believe that God would still work for His people, and so they looked for the fingerprints of God on everything around them.
It is possible that Moses was under his parents tutelage until he was five. His parents knew that the universe was created by the word of God. They knew the story of Abraham and the promised seed. They knew there was a coming King and an eternal kingdom. All this they taught to Moses.
Can we pause a moment and note the significance of the passing of truth stories from one generation to another and of the importance of parents teaching children in their early years? Mothers - you do not know what will be a part of your child’s future. You have been given today. Use it to teach your children of the character and promises of God.
Like his parents Moses lived unafraid of Pharaoh who was in a position to cause him great harm.
His faith helped him to overcome a natural fearful bent and have the strength to give up the known for the unknown.
Moses gave up the palace and chose the dessert
Moses gave up a royal position and chose slavery
Moses gave up the treasures of Egypt and chose the reproaches of Christ
Moses gave up the pleasures of sin and chose mistreatment with God’s people
The secret to overcoming fear? His eyes were fixed on the reward: the fulfillment of God’s promise. He saw the invisible God. (11:26, 27).
Our eyes can only be fixed on one thing.
Looking to the reward kept him from looking around at the frightening circumstances he was in.
Moses gave up temporal things for eternal things even if it meant “light momentary affliction.” He counted all things as loss because gaining Christ was everything! When he left Egypt, the word used is that he left it "in the dust." He took nothing with him. Everything he wanted or needed was ahead of him.
For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
2 Cor. 4:17,18
But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ. Phil. 3:7,8
Moses walked by faith because he had had a personal encounter with the living God that caused the nearness and presence of God to become his greatest treasure in life and in death.
The first time the word “endurance” is mentioned in chapter 11 is in connection with Moses. It is a theme of the book of Hebrews. We knew the writer would eventually bring this topic up. Moses’s endurance is connected with his “seeing him who is invisible.”
Just as the call of God to Abraham enabled him to keep on believing the promises given him, so the revelation of God in the burning bush enabled Moses to keep on believing God's promise of deliverance.
You and I have not had a burning bush experience.
The writer to the Hebrews tells us we have something better. We have the very words of the Son of God.
Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high Hebrews 1:1-3
Better than hearing from an angel. Better than hearing Moses stand up to Pharoah. Better than hearing Joshua command armies. Better than the forgiveness of sins offered by the High Priests. To Jesus we must pay close attention. (2:1-4).
And as we listen to Jesus, our faith will grow and we will be strengthened to endure.
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. Romans 10:17
Moses’s faith in the God who he saw in the burning bush fueled his obedience. Throughout the story of Mose’s interaction with Pharaoh we read, “Then the Lord said to Moses.” The Lord said. Moses obeyed.
The writer to the Hebrews notes his obedience in instituting the Passover. The first Passover took place before the Exodus. It was celebrated in faith for what God was going to do. Subsequent Passovers were reminders of what God had done.
The sprinkling of the blood (of a spotless lamb) was a costly endeavor for slaves. It was an odd and a strange request. By this time, Moses is quite used to God’s “odd” commands. He’s seen God’s powerful hand in all the disasters He brought on Egypt. The people had seen it too. When he told them their obedience regarding the keeping of the Passover would keep them safe from the touch of the Destroyer, they obeyed. (Exodus 12:28,50). If you had seen all the plagues God handed out, wouldn’t a warning and offer of salvation sound good to you?
Can I stop to encourage leaders of God’s people and parents? Do not fear explaining the clear commands of God. Do not wonder how people will respond. Have you not learned that His commands are for our good.
“For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:3).
The people Moses would lead also needed to overcome real fears.
Fear, not faith, was the Israelite people’s first response when they saw the Egyptian army coming out after them. They “feared greatly.” Exodus 14:10. And complained. And Moses said to them:
“Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.” (12:13,14)
Notice how sight and fear are connected. Who or what we are looking at stirs up fear or calms it.
The people had to obey Moses even when the command contained uncertainties.
Whoever has walked through walls of water? What if the sides fell down mid-river? What if you were at the back of the line with the Egyptian army right behind you?
“But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.” (14:29)
“Israel saw the great power that the LORD used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.” (14:31)
Time and time again the faith of the people of Israel was tested. In Hebrews 11, their many acts of doubt and disobedience are not referenced. Their victories are. And what a victory was the conquest of the town of Jericho!
Forty years after the crossing of the Red Sea, a new generation is asked to walk by faith. To obey a clear command even though it contains uncertainties. To believe God’s promises will come to pass even if it will take a miraculous event to accomplish it.
Imagine hearing the battle plan for conquering Jericho, the walls of which were said to be invincible. Talk about commands that contain many odd details and many uncertainties! But the people of God persisted in obedience even when it didn’t make sense. The Lord’s presence was with them in the symbol of the Ark of the Covenant. It was Him that they feared. Not the difficulty of the assignment.
Notice the writer to the Hebrews emphasizes that the walls had been encircled for seven days. This was persevering obedience. Their faith did not falter on day six. They obediently followed God’s marching orders.
Rahab’s faith made her unafraid.
Rahab was a prostitute. She owned her own home, possibly an inn, where she ran her “business.” The home was built against the outer city wall. People in the city, including the king, knew who she was and what she did for a living. It does not seem like she had a husband or children. When she gathered her family, it was her father, mother and brothers.
Rahab had heard about the crossing of the Red Sea. (Ex. 15:14-16; Deut 2:25). This had happened at least 40 years earlier! She knew about Israel's complete defeat of the kings on the east side of the Jordan River in the previous year. (Numbers 21:21-35). Whereas other people in Jericho were in distress over this news, Rahab was in worshipful awe of the God who is “God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.
Notice that the writer to the Hebrews says that the citizens of Jericho perished because they “were disobedient.” (11:31). What command of God did they disobey? They did not believe in Him. They saw His wonders and power and it had no effect on them. They did not bow in worship.
Rahab’s faith was in the God of the Israelites and His ability to save his people. She was willing to cast her lot in with his people and affiliate with the spies. By hiding the spies and deceiving the king’s men, she declared she had exchanged her Jericho citizenship to citizenship with the Jewish people and their God.
The time between the visit of the spies and the fall of Jericho could have been three weeks or longer. Rahab continued to live in Jericho, but now as a pilgrim. In ever present danger, she quietly went about influencing family members to join her in her deliverance. She did not know much about the God of the Israelites. She knew little, if any, of their laws. She was the only one in Jericho to believe in God. Her faith was small, and yet what daring exploits she did! It was not her faith, but the one in whom she had put her faith that strengthened her.
Rahab is always referred to as “the prostitute” and yet here she is in the hall of faith! Her life is a testimony to the work of grace. The people of God are made up of the “sexually immoral” and “idolaters” who were “washed,” “sanctified,” and “justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the spirit of God.” (1 Cor. 6:9-11). It is not our past that identifies us. It is our faith in Jesus. It is not perfection that pleases God. It is our faith in Him.
Application Questions
What or who do you look at that causes you to fear?
How can you increase your fear of the Lord?
What in this world’s system do you need “to leave in the dust”?
Is there a sin or a suffering in your life that you need to evaluate with the eyes of faith?