Daily Devotion for Saturday 20th July 2024
Hebrews 11:1-16 (from the NRSV (Anglicised), with OT quotes in italics)
1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 2 Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. 3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible.
4 By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain’s. Through this he received approval as righteous, God himself giving approval to his gifts; he died, but through his faith he still speaks. 5 By faith Enoch was taken so that he did not experience death; and ‘he was not found, because God had taken him.’ For it was attested before he was taken away that ‘he had pleased God.’ 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, for whoever would approach him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. 7 By faith Noah, warned by God about events as yet unseen, respected the warning and built an ark to save his household; by this he condemned the world and became an heir to the righteousness that is in accordance with faith.
8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. 9 By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11 By faith he received power of procreation, even though he was too old—and Sarah herself was barren—because he considered him faithful who had promised. 12 Therefore from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born, ‘as many as the stars of heaven and as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.’
13 All of these died in faith without having received the promises, but from a distance they saw and greeted them. They confessed that they were strangers and foreigners on the earth, 14 for people who speak in this way make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. 15 If they had been thinking of the land that they had left behind, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; indeed, he has prepared a city for them.
Reflection
Chapter eleven takes us on a long tour through the Hebrew scriptures. The writer, as our guide, traces the story of faith. In this context ‘faith’ is not just a person’s belief; it includes a practical commitment to live by that belief. Today’s verses cover the opening chapters of the Bible (vv.3-7), then lead into the story of Abraham (vv.8-16). Already several threads appear.
Hope: ‘faith is the assurance of things hoped for’ (v.1). Many times in this chapter we find faith reaching for the future, not limited by what is visible but looking beyond, convinced of the reality of ‘things not seen’ (v.1). Noah was warned of ‘events as yet unseen’ (v.7). Abraham ‘set out, not knowing where he was going’ (v.8). There is a repeated note of ‘promise’ (vv.9, 11, 13).
Journeying: chapters 3 and 4 reflected on faith as a journey, and now the theme of pilgrimage reappears. Yet here it is told in terms of exclusion too, of a rootless people without community bonds – ‘living in tents … strangers on earth’ (vv.9, 13). The readers of Hebrews, already tested by persecution, are being invited to see themselves as a people apart, no longer belonging in wider society as they had done once.
Destination: the journey will have an end. The faithful of the Old Testament were ‘seeking a homeland’ (v.14), aiming for promises on the far horizon (v.13), ‘looking forward to the city’ of God (vv.10, 16). A city means protection, security, welcome and community. We may think of the New Jerusalem in the last chapters of Revelation – a place of greenery, beauty, healing and worship. Yet even these brief references in Hebrews aim to assure and energise a tired and troubled church. God is leading them home.
Prayer
God of our wandering,
across the earth,
through the testing of the years,
amid our learning and changing as people:
help us not to drift but to aim,
for faithfulness,
for a true homecoming,
for the security and community
that are only fully found in you.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.