The Christ Church Wednesday Bible Study Group is now studying the heroes of faith found in the Bible. In Hebrews 11, we find a remarkable chapter that introduces us to a cloud of witnesses, individuals who exemplified extraordinary faith. However our study will go beyond Hebrews 11 and include the lives of others that are examples of the blessings of having faith in God. We will also talk about other people that exhibited extraordinary faith, some of them are people we may know.
Hebrews 11:6 NIV And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Joshua 3:9-17 NIV [9] Joshua said to the Israelites, “Come here and li sten to the words of the Lord your God. [10] This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites. [11] See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. [12] Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. [13] And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord—the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap.” [14] So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. [15] Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water’s edge, [16] the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. [17] The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.
Faith in God is essential.
Faith isn't blind hope or wishful thinking. It's a confident expectation that God will fulfill His promises. Our assurance comes from knowing God's character and relying on His word.
God is Love:
1 John 4:8: "Whoever does not love has not known God, because God is love."
God is Merciful and extends Grace:
Exodus 34:6 NIV [6] And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness,
God is Holy:
Isaiah 6:3 NIV And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.”
God is Just and Righteous:
Psalm 89:14: "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne; steadfast love and faithfulness go before you."
God is Powerful and Sovereign:
We must believe that God is, that God is powerful, and that God acts. If He says it He will do it. All we have to do is believe it and go for it.
God is the source. Faith is something given to us by God.
Romans 12:3 ESV For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
Ephesians 2:8-10 ESV[8] For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, [9] not a result of works, so that no one may boast. [10] For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should
II. Faith is activated when God’s people follow His plan.
The plan for conquering Jericho was simple. The people were to march around Jericho once for six days. On the seventh day they were to march around Jericho seven times, blow a long trumpet blast, shout with a great shout, and the walls would fall.
God’s leader was Joshua.
First of all he was called by God
Joshua 1:5-6 ESV No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.
He was faithful, and positive,
Numbers 14:36-38 ESV And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation grumble against him by bringing up a bad report about the land— the men who brought up a bad report of the land—died by plague before the Lord . Of those men who went to spy out the land, only Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive.
And he was filled with God’s word
Joshua 1:7-8 ESV Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.
Israel followed God’s plan and God’s leader. We always have victory when we follow God’s plan for our lives.
Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
III. When you act in faith you do God’s will without question.
Once we are sure that God has given us specific directions we should follow them without question. This doesn’t mean that we can’t talk to God about our feelings about what’s going on but once we are sure it’s Him we should move forward. We talked about that last week.
Faith’s success is found in going forward when the Lord says move and going in confidence because the Lord’s fighting for you.
2 Chronicles 20:15 NIV [15] He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.
Six days God’s people were to walk around Jericho without speaking a word! On the seventh day, they were to walk around Jericho seven times without a word. No reason had been given for this silence. The entire plan for conquering Jericho had been explained to Joshua. He knew what God was doing.
Joshua 6:10 ESV But Joshua commanded the people, "You shall not shout or make your voice heard, neither shall any word go out of your mouth, until the day I tell you to shout. Then you shall shout."
The hardest thing for Israel to do was to be silent. The grim silence of the people must have been impressive.
How long could we do the Lord’s work in silence without questioning? Think about it.
#1 the walls of Jericho fell by faith #2 The walls of Jericho fell when God’s people followed his plan and his leader, #3 The walls of Jericho fell when God’s will was done without questioning, and #4
IV. When we act in faith God will get the glory.
When we have faith to follow the Lord and his plan and leaders, victory will come, and the glory will go to God.
Demonstration of Divine Power: The fall of Jericho was a miraculous event. The walls of the city, a formidable defense, crumbled without any conventional military assault. This supernatural act demonstrated God's immense power and sovereignty over all creation. It showed that He was the true source of victory, not human strength or strategy.
Highlighting Faith and Obedience: God instructed the Israelites to march around the city for seven days, blowing trumpets, and then shout on the seventh day. This unconventional approach required unwavering faith and obedience. When the Israelites followed God's instructions, even though it seemed illogical, they experienced His divine intervention. This emphasized the importance of trusting in God's plan and obeying His commands.
Acknowledging God's Role: After the walls fell, Joshua declared, "Shout, for the Lord has given you the city!"
Joshua 6:16 ESV And at the seventh time, when the priests had blown the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, “Shout, for the Lord has given you the city.
This statement clearly acknowledged that the victory belonged to God. It prevented the Israelites from taking credit for their own strength or attributing the success to their own military prowess.
By orchestrating the events at Jericho in this way, God demonstrated His power, emphasized the importance of faith and obedience, and ensured that He received all the glory for the victory.
There was one resident and family that was spared when Jericho fell; that person was a prostitute named Rahab. She is listed among the heroes in Hebrews 11 and we will look at her next week.
Hebrews 11:31 ESV By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.
We are not going to read the whole story here today but I urge you to read it for yourself in Joshua chapter 2
To summerize
The Story of Rahab (Joshua 2):
Two Israelite spies were sent to Jericho to gather intelligence.
Joshua 2:1 NIV Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.
Rahab, despite the risk to herself, sheltered the spies and helped them escape detection.
Joshua 2:2-7 NIV [2] The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” [3] So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.” [4] But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. [5] At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don’t know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.” [6] (But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.) [7] So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.
In return, she asked for protection for herself and her family during the impending Israelite attack.
Joshua 2:8-13 NIV [8] Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof [9] and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. [10] We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. [11] When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. [12] “Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign [13] that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.”
Key Observations
Unexpected Faith: Rahab, an outsider to the Israelite faith, demonstrated remarkable faith in the God of Israel.
Joshua 2:8-9 NIV [8] Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof [9] and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you.
Faith in Action: Rahab's faith was not merely intellectual assent; it was expressed through concrete actions – she risked her life to protect the spies.
God's Grace Extends to All: Rahab's story demonstrates that God's grace and mercy extend to all people, regardless of their social status or past.
Joshua 6:22-25 NIV [22] Joshua said to the two men who had spied out the land, “Go into the prostitute’s house and bring her out and all who belong to her, in accordance with your oath to her.” [23] So the young men who had done the spying went in and brought out Rahab, her father and mother, her brothers and sisters and all who belonged to her. They brought out her entire family and put them in a place outside the camp of Israel. [24] Then they burned the whole city and everything in it, but they put the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the Lord’s house. [25] But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, with her family and all who belonged to her, because she hid the men Joshua had sent as spies There is Power of Choosing Faith over Fear: Rahab made a conscious choice to trust in the God of Israel, even though it went against the prevailing beliefs and expectations of her society.
Application to Our Lives
How can we translate our faith into concrete actions in our daily lives.
Serving Others:
Volunteering
Acts of Kindness: Perform small acts of kindness for those around you, such as helping a neighbor with groceries, offering a listening ear, or simply offering a smile and a friendly greeting.
Mentorship: Offer guidance and support to young people, whether it's through a formal mentorship program or simply by being a positive role model.
Seeking Justice:
Advocacy: Advocate for social justice issues that are important to you, such as poverty, environmental protection, or human rights.
Speaking Out Against Injustice: Use your voice to speak out against injustice and discrimination in your community and the world.
Loving Our Neighbors:
Forgiveness: Cultivate a spirit of forgiveness, letting go of anger and resentment towards those who have wronged you.
Reconciliation: Seek to mend broken relationships, striving for understanding and forgiveness.
Living with Integrity:
Honesty and Truthfulness: Strive for honesty and integrity in all your dealings.
Compassion and Empathy: Cultivate compassion and empathy for others, seeking to understand their perspectives and experiences.
Stewardship: Be a good steward of the earth and its resources, living sustainably and minimizing your
Overcoming Social Barriers:
Honestly examine your own beliefs and assumptions about different groups of people. Are there any unconscious biases that may be influencing your perceptions or actions?
We have to choose faith over fear when we are called to stand up for what is right:
In the face of Fear of losing friends, facing opposition, or experiencing social isolation, the pressure to go along with the crowd, even when you know something is wrong. Choosing to speak out against injustice, even when it is difficult or unpopular.
We have to choose faith over fear when we are called when it comes to forgiving those who have wronged you:
Fear: Fear of being hurt again, fear of appearing weak, or fear of letting go of anger.
Conformity: The expectation that you should hold onto resentment and seek revenge.
Faith: Choosing to forgive, even when it's incredibly difficult, reflecting the forgiveness that God has shown us.
We have to choose faith over fear when Pursuing your God-given calling:
Fear: Fear of failure, fear of rejection, fear of the unknown.
Conformity: The pressure to follow a more traditional or "safe" career path.
Faith: Choosing to pursue your passions and dreams, trusting that God will guide your steps and provide for your needs.
We have to choose faith over fear when it comes to Living a life of simplicity and generosity:
Fear: Fear of financial insecurity, fear of missing out on material possessions.
Conformity: The pressure to keep up with the Joneses, to accumulate wealth and status.
Faith: Choosing to live a life of simplicity, contentment, and generosity, trusting in God's provision.
Prayer Points
Pray for the courage to live out our faith authentically, regardless of the cost.
Pray for the grace to overcome our own prejudices and extend compassion to all people.
Pray that we may be a light to the world, reflecting God's love and mercy to all whom we encounter.
