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(For those who are visiting this page from
the topical studies page, this is a continuation of the study on Biblical
Belief.)
You may be asking why I felt it
necessary to review nouns and prepositions. The noun pistis
is used as the object of the preposition "by" throughout the
eleventh chapter of Hebrews. I wanted to make sure each of us
understood the role this phrase is playing as we examine this
chapter. Pistis is not the subject of the sentence in this
chapter, but is telling us something about the subject of each
sentence. The prepositional phrase "By faith" tells us
something about the relation of the sentence subject to the verb. I
would like for us to look at each verse where the writer uses the
prepositional phrase "by faith" and determine what it tells us
about the subject. Verse
1: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
things not seen." Unlike the rest of this chapter the writer uses pistis as the subject
of the sentence in this verse. He then proceeds to tell us that
faith is two things:
-
The
substance of things hoped for
-
The evidence of things not seen
Hupostasis
is translated "substance" in this verse. It is actually
used 2 other times in the book of Hebrews. In 1:3 it is translated
"person", and in 3:14 it is translated
"confidence". Paul uses the word in 2 Corinthians 9:4
(translated "confident") and 11:17
("confidence"). If you link to the online Greek lexicon
you'll learn that hupostasis indicates "that which has actual
existence". How often is that for which we hope something
without actual substance to us? Oftentimes we have no confidence in
things hoped for, because there is always the possibility that our hopes
may be dashed. This is not the case with Biblical faith. The
things for which one with true faith hopes have actual existence!
One with true faith has confidence in the spiritual things for which they
hope. The Hebrews writer continues with this thought when he says
that faith is "the evidence of things not seen". Elegchos
is translated "evidence" and means "a proof, that by which
a thing is proved or tested". We live in a "prove it to
me" world today. Many people seem to have the attitude that if
something cannot be perceived with one or more of the 5 senses then it
doesn't exist. Faith is the proof for the existence of something
that cannot be perceived by the physical senses. These things
are just as real as those which can be seen, felt, tasted, heard, or
smelled! Think for a moment about the electromagnetic
spectrum. There is a very narrow portion of this spectrum that is
visible to our physical sense of sight. However, the fact we cannot
see infrared or ultraviolet light does not mean they don't exist!
We've developed instruments which are capable of detecting these
wavelengths of light. In the spiritual realm faith serves as the
instrument which proves the existence of things we cannot perceive with
our senses. So we learn in verse 1
that through faith we have absolute confidence in things for which we
hope, and proof for the existence of things we cannot know with our
physical senses. Verse
2:
"For by it the elders obtained a good report." The
Hebrews writer now introduces faith as the object of the
preposition "by". In verse 1, faith serves as the
subject and is defined by the writer. Now he begins to tell us the
relationship between a different subject and its associated verb by
using faith as a prepositional object. We need to clearly
understand this relationship before we can understand Biblical
belief. Let's break down verse 2. The subject of this
sentence is "elders". The verb is
"obtained". Did the elders (forefathers) obtain a good
report? Yes. Why? Because of faith ("by
faith"). Did they have hope? Yes. Was their hope
some nebulous wish that was just as likely to fail as to come
true? No! Did they obtain a good report
because of something they could perceive with their physical
senses? No! (Recall the definition of
faith: it is the confidence that that one hopes for will be
realized, and the proof of the existence of something which
cannot be known by the physical senses.) Would the elders have
received a good report had they placed their trust in their physical
senses? No! This would not have been faith,
and the Hebrews writer tells us that it was by faith that
they received a good report. Let's keep these important points in
mind as we consider the actions of the forefathers as recorded in the
remainder of Hebrews 11. Verse
3: "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." The writer tells us something
extremely important about faith in this verse: I gain
understanding by faith! The Greek word translated
"understanding" is noeo,
and means "to perceive with the mind, to understand, to have
understanding". But what do people oftentimes say about
faith? When it's impossible for us to understand something,
then we believe it because of faith! This is NOT
Biblical belief!! The Hebrews writer tells us that true faith
leads to understanding. Faith is not what is left over when I'm
faced with something I cannot understand! When people make such a
statement, upon what are they relying for understanding? Their
physical senses! For example, why do I understand that fire is
hot? Because I've experienced the pain with my physical sense of
touch. Because of this experience my mind understands the nature
of fire. In verse 3 of this chapter we learn that faith is just as
valid a tool to mental perception and understanding as are my five
physical senses. To say I have faith when I don't understand
something is to make a false claim. The
Hebrews writer reinforces this point through the example he uses in
verse 3. He tells us that, by faith, we understand (noeo)
that the worlds were not made of things we can see. If we rely on
our physical senses for our understanding of the origin of the universe
then we do not have faith! Does this mean we cannot
use our senses to understand what has been created? No!
However, we cannot rely on our senses to determine the origin of
the universe. Our senses help us understand what God has created,
but they cannot help us understand where these things came from!
This understanding comes only by faith. However, this
understanding is no less valid than that I gain by my physical senses as
I study the universe He created. As
a physician I've been in the audience at several scientific meetings where
the speaker has used the following phrase: "It's no longer
science but religion". This phrase is extremely offensive to
me! This phrase is generally used to refer to a scientist who
believes something to be true, but can't prove it scientifically.
What is the one who uses this phrase saying? Religion is void of
proof! It may well be that many scientists believe something for
which no proof exists, but such is NOT the case in true
religion! Faith is as valid a proof to those who wish to please God
as is an experiment to a scientist. In fact, faith is MORE
valid a proof than is many scientific experiments! Science is
continually being rewritten as new discoveries are made. The proof
which comes by true faith is valid throughout eternity. Verse
4: "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."
In this verse the writer tells us something else extremely important
about faith: when one has faith, an appropriate action results.
"By faith Abel offered..." Because of Abel's confident
hope and the proof he knew existed despite lack of physical evidence he
offered a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. Did Cain have a
living faith? NO! What did Abel's sacrifice do for
him? It served as a witness that he was righteous!
Recall again from our study of righteousness that only God can declare
one righteous. The Hebrews writer confirms this fact when he says,
"God testifying of his gifts". Why did God consider Abel
righteous? Because of the action that resulted from his faith!
Abel had true belief (pisteuo) in God. He knew God existed,
he surrendered to His will, and his actions reflected his
surrender. Cain did not believe in God. Oh yes, Cain knew
God existed. However, he failed to surrender to His will and his
actions reflected his lack of surrender. Let's
return to James 2 for a moment. Recall James
2:23, which says,
"And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God,
and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called
the Friend of God." But James continues in verse
24:
"Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith
only." What did Cain have? He had faith only! His
only tribute to God was his mental understanding of His existence.
He did NOT believe in God! God WILL NOT
impute righteousness to one who fails to surrender to His will and
manifest works consistent with such surrender. Such a one WILL
NOT be called a friend of God. Please consider how James
closes chapter 2: "For as the body without the spirit is
dead, so faith without works is dead also." (verse
26) The one who
believes in God's existence but does not fully surrender to His will has
a DEAD FAITH! Verse
5: "By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death;
and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his
translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God." As
we'll see throughout this chapter, we have the prepositional phrase
"by faith". This phrase is telling us something about the
relationship between the subject (Enoch) and the verb (was
translated). So, by faith Enoch was translated. But who
translated him? God! Why did God translate him?
Because he had received testimony that he pleased God. Martureo
is translated "testimony" in verse 5. The Hebrews writer
has already used the word three times so far in chapter 11 (verse
2,
translated "good report"; verse
4, "witness" and
"testifying"). With what is God pleased (Greek euaresteo)?
Euaresteo
is used in verse 5, and also in Hebrews
13:16. This verse reads,
"But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such
sacrifices God is well pleased." Here we see that God is
pleased with action (to do good and to communicate), not simply with one's testimony
that they believe in the existence of God. The Bible doesn't give us
specific actions performed by Enoch that pleased God, but we know from the
context of Hebrews 11, and also from 13:16, that there must have
been actions demonstrating Enoch's surrender to the will of God before
God would consider him pleasing and translate him directly to heaven. Verse
5, however, tells us something else about faith: It is by one's
faith in God that one receives spiritual blessings from God! Let's
read the first few words of verse 5 again: "By faith Enoch was
translated..." Who had faith? Enoch. What happened
to Enoch? He was translated. Who translated him?
God. Why did God translate him? Because of his testimony that
Enoch pleased God. How did God translate him? By
faith! The word "by" means "through the
agency or instrumentality of". So, through the agency or
instrumentality of faith Enoch was translated by God. Not only
is true faith associated with an appropriate action on man's part, it also
results in action on God's part! Without faith there is no
agent through which God can work in the lives of men. Let's move on to verse 6,
and the Hebrews writer will emphasize this point again. Verse
6: "But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he
that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of
them that diligently seek him." In my opinion, this is one of
the most well-known and often-memorized verses in the New Testament.
But how many of us who've committed this verse to memory truly understand
what it says? In verse 5 the writer gave us an example of one who
pleased God, and how his faith resulted in a miraculous action by
God. However, in verse 6 he tells us how one will not be pleasing to
God. One who does not have faith CANNOT please
God. It is impossible, the writer says. Let's enter what we've
learned about faith in place of the word faith. One who does not
have full confidence in hope cannot please God. One who relies only on
their physical senses for understanding cannot please God. If you've
gone through some of my other studies you know how I emphasize the
importance of the coordinating conjunction "and". In the
next phrase the writer tells us two things that the one who comes unto God
must believe. These two things are joined together by
"and". (As you know, this word tells us that the word or
group of words on the left side of "and" is of equal importance
to those on the right side.) The one who comes unto God must believe
that He is and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek
Him. In this phrase we again see the fallacy behind the "faith
only" doctrine. It's not enough for one to simply believe that
God is. One who comes unto Him must also believe that He is a
rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. He doesn't reward just
anyone. One must diligently seek Him to be rewarded by Him. Ekzeteo
is translated "diligently seek" and means "to seek out or
after, to search for". Paul says something similiar in his
sermon on Mars Hill. Acts 17:24-28 says, "God that made the
world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth,
dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men's
hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and
breath, and all things; And hath made of one blood all nations of men for
to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times
before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; That they should seek
the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be
not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move, and have our
being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his
offspring." Paul uses the word zeteo ("to seek, to
seek for") in verse 27. The Hebrews writer tells us that action
MUST accompany a belief in God's existence before one will
be rewarded by Him. The one who simply believes but does not seek
God in order to find Him will not be rewarded by Him. In Hebrews 11
we've already considered a man who had faith only: Cain. When
he failed to accompany his belief in the existence of God with appropriate
action he failed to be rewarded by God. Verse
7: The writer in these next several verses gives examples of those
in the past who, by faith, demonstrated an action consistent with their
faith. I'd like for us to consider these
examples and apply the principles we learned in the first few verses of
Hebrews 11 to understand the role of faith in their lives. "By
faith Noah prepared..." Again we have faith (pistis)
serving as the object of the preposition "by". It is
telling us something about the subject (Noah) and the verb (prepared) of this
sentence. So, through the
agency or instrumentality of faith, Noah prepared an ark. Noah's
faith resulted in action. But that's not the only "by
faith" in verse 7. The writer continues, "by the which he
condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by
faith." How did Noah become heir of righteousness? By
faith! But who declares one righteous? God!
So, through the
agency or instrumentality of Noah's faith he was declared righteous by God
and became heir of righteousness. His faith in God was required
before God could declare him righteous, since it is by faith
that one becomes heir of righteousness! Again we see faith serving
as the agent by which one receives blessings from God. Verses
8-10: By faith Abraham obeyed and went out; by faith Abraham
sojourned. God called Abraham to leave his home and journey to a
place, not knowing where he was going! Here again we see faith in
action. Abraham could not have been trusting his physical senses,
since God didn't tell him were he was going. Abraham realized that
God's word was just as valid as the information he gained by his senses,
and he acted upon this realization. The writer tells us where
Abraham was looking as he sojourned in the promised land: "For
he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is
God." Verses
11-12:
Through faith Sarah received strength. Abraham and Sarah were
promised a son, yet they were well past childbearing years. It was
through Sarah's faith that she received the strength from God to conceive
Isaac. If Sarah had not had true faith, God could not have given her
the power to conceive! It was through her faith that she received
this power from God. Again we see the requirement of faith before
God can reward those who diligently seek him. Consider what can
result when one refuses to rely solely on their physical senses for
understanding and obeys the commandments of God: "Therefore
sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of
the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore
innumerable." Verses
17-19: By faith Abraham offered up Isaac. The son that God had
promised Abraham and Sarah, who was born in their old age, through which
all nations of the earth would be blessed, was about to be sacrificed on
an altar. How many of us have that kind of faith? What must
Abraham have known about God to do such a thing? God was able
to raise Isaac from the dead! Not only was God able,
God would absolutely have to raise Isaac! Abraham had
absolute confidence in God's promises (if he hadn't, Isaac would never have
been born), and God promised that it would be through Isaac that all
nations would be blessed. If Isaac was dead, this couldn't have
happened. Therefore, had Abraham sacrificed Isaac, he would have to
have been raised from the dead. Consider
the subject and verb in each of the following verses... Verse
20: By faith Isaac blessed... Verse
21: By faith Jacob blessed... Verse
22: By faith Joseph made mention and gave commandment... Verse
23: By faith Moses was hid... Verses
24-26: By faith Moses refused and chose... Verse
27: By faith Moses forsook... Verse
28: By faith Moses kept... Verse
29: By faith they passed... Verse
30: By faith the walls of Jericho fell... Verse
31: By faith Rahab perished not with them that believed
not... Verses
32-38: "And what shall I more say? for the time would fail
me to tell of Gedeon, 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: 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." Consider
everything these people did through faith! This is not a dead
faith! The true faith of one who is pleasing to God is truly living! (If
you joined this study from the topical
studies page, click this link to return. You're certainly
welcome to continue our study of Biblical Belief, if you wish.) 
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