Dearest e-votees-
For this week we will use the epistle text appointed for this Sunday. It is the tail end of chapter 11 of Hebrews and the first few verses of chapter 12. It calls us to continue to shrug of sin and run with focus and perseverance after Jesus.
Peace,
Karl
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29 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. 30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell after they had been encircled for seven days. 31 By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had received the spies in peace. 32 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— 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. 35 Women received their dead by resurrection. Others were tortured, refusing to accept release, in order to obtain a better resurrection. 36 Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37 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— 38 of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. 39 Yet all these, though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised, 40 since God had provided something better so that they would not, apart from us, be made perfect.
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.
There are three things that jump out from this passage and from the other scriptures which fill in some color commentary on this cloud of witnesses:
1. The great cloud of witnesses wasn’t always so great
2. The world doesn’t always treat faithful people so well
3. We are called into that great cloud of witnesses and to take up our crosses
If you want to read up on Jephthah you can in Judges 11-12. (There is one other passing reference in 1 Samuel 12:11). His lineage wasn’t so great. His mother was a prostitute and he was driven away by the children of his father and his father’s wife because of it. He made a rash promise to sacrifice the first thing that came to come out of his door to greet him upon his return if the Lord would give him victory in battle. Jephthah was victorious and upon coming home his only child, a nameless daughter, came out to greet him. He sacrificed her according to his vow. I tried to redeem that story in a sermon at seminary—it doesn’t redeem very easily.
Rahab wasn’t born of a prostitute—she was a prostitute! She gained some recognition when she helped spies sent by Joshua into Jericho. (see Joshua 2:1-15).
David wasn’t always on his best behavior—adultery and murder to cover up the adultery come to mind. Psalm 51 reveals the heart of one who knows he has sinned.
Despite these foibles and outright tragic flaws these people are included in the great cloud of witnesses.
All of us have foibles and tragic flaws of our own. We choose sin and turn our back on clear callings from God to repent and to do better. Nonetheless, we too are counted among the stars Abraham saw and the sands between his toes. We are among Peter and Paul, James and John, Mary and Martha, David and Rahab, Jephthah and Samson. God’s grace and calling trump our sin and rebelling.
The world doesn’t treat faithful people well all of the time. I’m not talking about the deserved judgment of hypocrites and self-righteous hucksters who pervert the gospel for their own sakes. The fact is that the intensity of the lives of those truly trying to live for Christ is off-putting and the world will snuff it out when it can. Peter and Paul were felled by Nero. Bonhoeffer perished at the end of a rope of the Nazis. Oscar Romero was gunned down while leading a worship service. The powers of this world are deeply unsettled by the kingdom of God coming to bear in this world. Martin Luther King spoke often of faith and vision and perished because of it. Countless others who stories we may never know have given their lives and their blood in similar fashion.
In our culture at this time we may not stare down the barrel of gun or face torture but there surely are many who suffer for their faith in these ways in our world. How many of us would refuse to accept release from torture or chains in order to obtain a better resurrection—whatever that means? We, too, are strongly influenced to put aside the deep and challenging calls of the faith and play by this world’s rules. When we resist we may find ourselves shunned and ostracized. When we live into our calling into the great cloud of witnesses we may find ourselves more and more to be sojourners in this world. Our final place is so much different and so much better than anything this world has to offer.
Jesus calls us to pick up our crosses and follow after him. Jesus disregarded the shame of the cross and endured it. Through that Jesus perfected our faith. Through his suffering he brought about glory. We are invited to follow in the ways he walked and lived. When we do we will see others who seem ill-suited and unworthy of that calling. They will see some of the same lackluster traits in us as well. We will find ourselves at odds with the world as we grow up into our faith in Jesus. We may be called upon to lay down our lives for Jesus physically not just metaphorically. There is one thing that is truly needful—keeping our eyes on Jesus who is the author and perfecter of our faith.
God, shape us into people who reflect You. Thank You for calling us into the great cloud of witnesses. Give us grace and mercy to see ourselves and others as you see us—beloved and redeemed children of You. Strengthen and bless those who suffer as prisoners of conscience and religious persecution. Take our lives and use them as You see fit—all to Your glory. Amen.
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