ICS Daily Devotions
Great Men in the Hall of Faith
Hebrews 11:32-34 (NKJV) And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets: who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked 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, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.
Every character that is mentioned in the Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11 had gone through tremendous stress and tribulation. The good news is that they had experienced God during the entire process. They would not have seen the deliverance of the Lord had they not had their faith in God and responded by walking in faith.
Gideon would not have seen the deliverance of the Lord if he had not responded to God’s call when He called him a mighty man of valor. He trusted God to lead the 300 unarmed soldiers. They shouted, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon” Judges 7:20 (NKJV) on every side of the Midianite camp which led the enemies to flee in terror.
Jephthah would not have experienced the deliverance of the Lord to subdue the Ammonites and conquer 20 cities if he had not sought the face of God. He had to deal with his rejection issue as a banished illegitimate son and forgive those who had hurt him. He had to trust God’s wisdom to be not just a military commander, but also a judge of Israel.
There are many recordings of the life of David in the Old Testament regarding all the great exploits that he had done for the Lord. In Daniel 11:32 (NKJV) it says that those “who know their God shall be strong, and carry out great exploits.” David is a true personification of that verse. Therefore, we should model a lifestyle of faith to our children because David was a young lad who had faith in God that put the armies of Israel to shame.
Likewise, we will have our own battles to fight. Therefore, if we do not anchor our faith in God then we will not be able to witness the faithfulness of God in our struggles in the midst of the tribulation. In fact, Jesus reminded us that we will have tribulations in this world, but we are to have good cheer because He has overcome the world. The parable of the sower taught us that tribulations are thrown into our lives to steal the Word from us or to make us disappointed or disillusioned in God. It is how we deal with the tribulation, having faith in God in the deliverance and developing our character during the whole process that are important. The Scriptures tell us that the saints of old are cheering us on in our walk of faith with God.
Sermon Series : You Are in the Hall of Faith (Part 3)
