| Christian Life and Doctrine | December 1967 |
The Power of Faith
“Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” —Hebrews 12:1
ONE of the main themes of the Book of Hebrews is the necessity of having an abiding faith in God and in his promises, if we are to be acceptable to him and walk victoriously in the narrow way of sacrifice. There is evidence within the epistle that those to whom it was addressed were not living up fully to their privileges as followers of the Master. They were urged to take more earnest heed to the things which they had heard, lest at any time they should let them slip. (ch. 2:1) They were also exhorted to “call to remembrance the former days, in which,” after they were enlightened, they endured a great fight of affliction, the implication being that they were no longer enduring so faithfully.—ch. 10:32-34
In chapter 5, verses 11 to 14, they are told that they were “dull of hearing,” and that for the time they had been in the truth they should have been prepared to be teachers, but instead of this they had need that one teach them again “the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.” This would indicate that for some reason the Hebrew brethren had not made the progress in Christian growth which they should have. There was probably more than one reason for this, and one of them seems clearly to have been a lack of faith.
In the opening chapters of the epistle the Hebrew brethren are reminded that God had spoken to them through his Son, whom he had made heir of all things. They are assured that the holy angels were ministering spirits “sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation.” (ch. 1:14) They are assured that they had been made “partakers of the heavenly calling,” and that Jesus was “the Apostle and High Priest” of their profession—the order of priesthood in the divine plan to which they had been called.—ch. 3:1
These apparently lukewarm brethren were also reminded that their High Priest, Christ Jesus, had been faithful and that faithfulness is the condition upon which they could continue to be members of his house of sons. We quote, “But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.” And then the admonition:
“Wherefore (as the Holy Spirit saith, Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: when your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do always err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.) Take heed brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. But exhort one another daily, while it is called Today; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfullness of sin. For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end.”—ch. 3:6-14
The general thought here seems to be that the Israelites in the wilderness provoked God through their unbelief, their lack of faith. This is further borne out by the last three verses of the chapter, which read, “But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness? And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.”—vss. 17-19
Faith Makes the Difference
The Israelites had many trials in the wilderness, but had they been able to exercise a firm faith in their God they would have known that he would help them in all their difficulties, and therefore would not have been rebellious so much of the time. Twelve spies were sent into Caanan to spy out the land and to report their findings. Ten of them reported that while it was good land it would be impossible for the Israelites to conquer it and to drive out the Caananites. Two of them reported their belief that with God’s help they could conquer the land.
What was the difference between the ten and the two? The majority report of the ten was based upon their lack of faith, while the minority report reflected the indwelling of a firm faith in the hearts of these two spies, Caleb and Joshua. The vast majority of the Israelites acted upon the report of the unbelieving ten and thus brought down upon themselves the displeasure of God, for “without faith it is impossible to please him.”—ch. 11:6
The Apostle Paul uses the faithlessness of the Israelites as a basis of warning for the Hebrew brethren to whom he was writing, and the same warning applies to us at this end of the age. “Let us therefore fear,” he wrote, “lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the Gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.”—ch. 4:1,2
The Two Gospels
As we know, the word “Gospel” means “good news.” The good news made known to the Israelites at the time Moses first appeared to them as one sent of God to deliver them from Egyptian bondage was that following this leader they not only could be made free from slavery, but would be led into the land which God gave to their fathers. (Exod. 6:1-8) This indeed was “good news.” To us the good news is that the greater than Moses came and laid down his life that we might be delivered from the bondage of sin and death, and that through him we have been made partakers of a heavenly calling, to live and reign with Christ for a thousand years, to liberate all mankind from bondage to sin and to restore the willing and obedient to an earthly Caanan—the restored paradise.
The good news of deliverance from Egyptian bondage and entrance into the land promised to Abraham was indeed a blessed Gospel. But it was of little value to the Israelites, because they could not, or did not, actually believe that God would accomplish this for them. There were times when they seemed to believe. They rejoiced to be delivered from Egypt, but cried out against Moses and the Lord when they reached the Red Sea. They rebelled against the diet of manna, and in many other ways revealed their hearts of unbelief. Had they really believed God the hardships of the wilderness would have meant little or nothing to them. Indeed, it was their lack of faith that brought about their long stay in the wilderness. Had they believed the report of Caleb and Joshua that with the help of their God they could conquer Caanan, their journey across the wilderness would have been a short one, and their entry into the land of promise a glorious victory of faith in which all would have rejoiced.
Paul made a timely application of Israel’s failure to the Hebrew brethren, and to all the spiritual Israelites of the Gospel Age. He admonishes us to “fear,” lest we come short of the promises which God has made to us, those promises which make up the substance of the Gospel which has reached our ears. We come short of those promises when we fail to meet the conditions which have been attached to them, and many times it is the lack of faith that causes failure.
As followers of the Master we are under the law of love. This means that our attitude toward the brethren, and toward all men, should be one that is controlled by love. If we fail in love we come short of God’s promises and fail also to enjoy the peace of mind and heart which could be ours. Love calls for patience, for understanding, for kindness, for tolerance.
We will not speak evil of those whom we love, even though their fleshly weaknesses may try our patience and forbearance. Why do we sometimes fail to exercise these qualities of love toward our brethren? It could be due to a lack of faith. If we really have faith that God exists, is watching over us, and has knowledge of our innermost thoughts, it should be a deterrent to evil surmising concerning our brethren, and also to harsh words which we might be inclined to utter to wound them. Nor should we say or do anything in the absence of our brethren that we would not say or do in their presence. How much more this would be true if we have faith in God and in the fact of his presence to guide and help us!
Israel’s Sins
Looking back to Israel’s experience we note the many instances when her kings and priests grossly disobeyed God’s commandments. Their reported sins against God are so heinous that one wonders why they even claimed to be the people of God. What led to this God-dishonoring conduct? It was probably their lack of faith. They lacked belief that their God existed and was dealing with them, else they would not have been guilty of such gross misdeeds. Even David, a man after God’s own heart, once allowed a curtain to shut God out from his consciousness while he transgressed against him.
Going back to Hebrews 11:6, how true it is that “without faith it is impossible to please” God. Those who come to God and undertake to serve him “must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” It is just as true that these must believe that God will discipline those who, having entered into a covenant to serve him, disobey his commandments—especially his commandment to love one another.
And love enters into many aspects of our Christian lives. If we love a brother we will not be jealous of his abilities and opportunities to serve the Lord. No one likes to admit that he is jealous. This is something that is felt in the heart, yet concealed as much as possible. But it is revealed in attitudes, and those attitudes sometimes create a spiritually unhealthy atmosphere among the brethren with whom we may be associating. All the Lord’s people should be on guard against the encroachment of such secret sins, but to gain the victory over them we will need a living faith in God and in the rightness of his ways.
The Works of Faith
In Paul’s letter of encouragement to the Hebrew brethren he reminds them of the accomplishments of faith in the lives and experiences of their brethren of old, the Ancient Worthy class. “Faith,” he says, “is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (ch. 11:1) We cannot see God, but by faith we know that he exists and is near to us at all times. How this thought should help us to control our thoughts, our words, our deeds! “The elders,” the apostle wrote, “obtained a good report through faith.” How is it with us?
“By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous.” We also are offering sacrifice. Paul calls it a “living sacrifice” and assures us that it is “holy, acceptable unto God,” our reasonable service. (Rom. 12:1) The acceptableness of this sacrifice depends upon our obedient faith in God and in his ways of righteousness.
“By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death.” (ch. 11:5) “By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear [reverence], prepared an ark to the saving of his house.” “By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.” (vs. 8) “Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive.”—vs. 11
“By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, … accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.” (vss. 17-19) This was indeed a strong faith, and all who know the promises of God must exercise the same strong faith, believing, as Abraham did, that God will raise the dead. If we have a faith like this, can the little vexing things of our everyday life really give us much concern? Believing, as we should, that God will raise from the dead that brother who is such a trial to us should help us to overlook his weaknesses, even as we would like to think that he overlooks ours.
“By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son Of Pharaoh’s daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward.” (vss. 24-26) What a faith! It led Moses deliberately to choose a course which he knew would entail privation and suffering, and possibly death. It was a faith that gave him assurance of God’s watchcare, and of his ability and willingness to reward him for his faithfulness.
The record of Moses’ faith continues: “By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible.” (vs. 27) Does our faith see the “invisible”? If it does, then why should the little trials and vexations of our daily experiences disturb us and rob us of our rest in Christ? If we are tempted to give a sharp answer to words of criticism, let us remember to glance at the “invisible,” realizing that he knows and cares.
The record continues, “And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gideon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection.”—vss. 32-35
To this group of faithful servants God openly displayed his protection and care. They did not credit their accomplishments to any power or ability of their own. Their faith in the invisible revealed to them that it was their God who helped and delivered them in all their experiences. Should it not be so with us? If today we were successful in overcoming, let us realize that this victory was not our own, but the Lord’s, and thank him for the power of his salvation.
There Were Others
God did not test the faith of all the Ancient Worthies in the same manner. Paul continues, “And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword; they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; (of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not [the fulfillment of] the promise: God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.”—vss. 36-40
We, like the Ancient Worthies, also have trying experiences from which the Lord does not deliver us. But if our faith is strong as theirs was we will see his invisible presence and realize that his almighty power is sustaining us in the suffering, whether it be mental or physical. If our faith is vital we will know that he knows what is best for us, and that he will permit just those experiences which will be the very best if we leave the choice with him. How blessed indeed it is to realize, by faith, that he truly does know and care!
Jesus, Our Exemplar
After mentioning many of the outstanding servants of God who make up the Ancient Worthy class, Paul refers to them in general as a “cloud of witnesses” with which we are “compassed about.” And then, from this cloud of witnesses which should be such a great stimulus to our faith, he takes us to the greatest of all examples of faith, even Jesus. He admonishes, “Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.”—ch. 12:1-3
A living faith in the unseen God will enable us to lay aside the unnecessary weight of worldly cares, as well as “the sin which doth so easily beset us.” It is doubtless true that each follower of the Master has peculiar weaknesses against which he has to fight specially. However, we are inclined to think that here the besetting sin referred to by Paul is the sin of unbelief. As we have noted, throughout the epistle he has stressed the great need of faith, and reminds us that the Israelites failed to enter into rest because of their unbelief, or lack of faith.
We may think of non-Christians as being the only unbelievers, but we, too, can experience a measure of unbelief, and as a result fail to be victorious in our experiences. “This is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith,” John wrote. (I John 5:4) Is our faith overcoming the world? Or, when we look out upon the world, with its pleasures, its selfish spirit of greed and gain, its lust for power over others, does our faith weaken and therefore fail as a shield against the allurements of the world? Do we look away from Him who is invisible, and begin to esteem as valuable the visible things of the world with which we are surrounded?
And what about the weaknesses and the cravings of the flesh? Is our faith in the invisible God helping us to overcome these? Or, failing to remember that he is looking on, ready to help if we will but turn to him, are we forgetting the God with whom we have made a covenant of sacrifice, allowing our flesh free rein to think and speak evil, and in other ways go contrary to our professions as new creatures in Christ Jesus? Here also it is a living, vital faith that will make the difference between defeat and victory.
This is also true with respect to our great Adversary, the Devil. He is as a “roaring lion” seeking to devour us. Do his “roars” fill us with fear, or is our faith in the power of God’s protection strong enough to withstand the Adversary’s attacks? God will deliver us from our “lion” Adversary, even as he delivered Daniel of old. How wonderful is our privilege of laying hold by faith upon this blessed assurance!
Paul says that the joys set before Jesus enabled him to endure the cross and to despise the shame. Those joys were set before Jesus through the promises of God, but he needed faith if they were to be of practical value to him during his life of suffering, and especially on the cross. Essentially these same joys are set before us. Are we able firmly to grasp them by faith, and, following patiently in Jesus’ footsteps, ultimately attain to the kingdom glory with him? We can, if the power of faith continues to work in us to will and to do of God’s good pleasure.