Hebrews 11:28-31 From Passover To Promised Land: How Trust Transforms A People

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All right, Hebrews 1128. Um, all right, so we are talking about faith, the hall of faith, that faith is not just defined, but it's better demonstrated. Um faith is important to the Christian life. We realize there in verse, oh, verse five, I believe it is, that verse six, without faith it's impossible to please God. Uh so faith is just it's crucial to our lives as believers. And the author to the Hebrews here is writing to demonstrate that God's people have always lived by faith. That's good to remember that these folks this letter is written to were tempted to go back to a life lived by the law. And the author here again reminds them it's always been by faith. Faith is important that we just simply trust God. Now, this is a second study that we've done that includes the life of Moses. Um, but it's less about Moses and more about the people of God in general. Uh, today we'll go beyond the life of Moses, but that's where it starts. Uh let's uh read verse 28 there, and we'll read a couple to verse 31. By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them. By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians attempting to do so were drowned. By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days. By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace. So here in Hebrews chapter 11, we're seeing the deliverance of God's people and how God does that. It's their deliverance from slavery first, and we consider where they were. You remember, uh, the people were in Egypt, and there arose a king that did not know Joseph, and he oppressed God's people, was afraid that they would get too strong. He oppressed them, he commanded that all the baby boys be thrown into the river and and killed. And and yet Moses' parents, by faith, they preserved Moses, and God preserved Moses, and and yet the people were still uh in slavery. Now, Moses had it on his heart to deliver uh his people, but he did it in the flesh, right? That's kind of what we get as he rises up and he kills that Egyptian. Uh, he ends up having to leave because Pharaoh doesn't like it, he doesn't like what he's doing, and so he flees to Midian. For 40 years, he's in the wilderness taking care of sheep until God gets his uh attention. And there at the burning bush, uh God pronounces his planned deliverance of his people. This is Exodus 3:7. You don't have to turn there, but this is what God said. And the Lord said, I have surely seen the oppression of my people who are in Egypt, I have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them uh from that land to a good and large land. So God had seen the oppression of his people, the slavery, the oppression. Uh, and we we we we have an idea of slavery, but it's it's important that we just remember uh where they were. They were in bondage, they had no rights of their own, right? Pharaoh said, build, they built. You know, Pharaoh said, No more straw, and they built without straw. We know there in the book of Exodus. Every day they did exactly what Pharaoh wanted them to do: bondage. Now, there's a huge parallel in this to the to our lives before Christ comes to deliver us, right? It's bondage, it's not doing the things we want to do, but being in bondage to sin. And we can think about that along all different ways, whether it's you know, literal slavery and bondage to a taskmaster, or our bondage to sin and the power of sin. Um, that's a dark place, right? Meat. That's a dark place, and and that's where God's people were at. And God says there, um, I've got a plan to deliver them. I've seen their sorrows, I've seen their bondage, and I'm gonna bring them out. Um, now you remember how the story goes. Moses comes to Pharaoh uh with a lot of fear and trepidation, of course, but he comes with God's message, that proclamation, let my people go. And the Pharaoh is stubborn. I don't know who this God is. Why should I let you go? God sends plagues, you'll remember, various plagues of flies and frogs and boils and and darkness, and and and finally, there is ultimate judgment coming on all the firstborn males throughout all of Egypt. Turn to Exodus chapter 12. Let's get a little bit of sense of this where it comes from. Exodus chapter 12. And I think we will be in verse one. Well, we'll start around there. You can turn there. Exodus 12. Uh, God is saying it's all gonna change. This is gonna be your first month of the year to you. We're starting the calendar over as I am gonna deliver uh my people. Look at verse 12. For it will pass, for I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast, and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment. I am the Lord. So here's how God's gonna ultimately do it. He says, judgment on all the firstborn uh in all the land of Egypt. Now that notice he says they're man and beast. So firstborn of animals is gonna perish as well. And God says this is how it's gonna come down. Not only will Pharaoh let you go, he'll make you go. Um look at verse three here, though. God has a plan, because that would of course include the children of Israel, the firstborn in all of Israel. He has a plan to deliver them from this coming death and judgment. Speak to the congregation of Israel, saying, On the tenth of this month, every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. And if a household is too small for a lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take according to the number of that persons, according to each man's need, you shall take your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be noticed without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight, and shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts in the lentil of the houses where they eat. And they shall eat the flesh on that night, roasted in fire with unleavened bread, and with bitter herbs, they shall eat it. Do not eat it raw nor boiled at all with water, but roasted in fire, its head with its legs and its entrails. You shall let none of it remain until morning, and it shall, if it remains uh of it until morning, you shall burn with fire. Thus you shall eat it with a belt on your waist, sandals on your feet, staff in your hand, and you shall eat it in haste, for it is the Lord's Passover. So here's here's the prescription. Um, every household needs to take a lamb, perfect, notice that, without blemish. And you're going to, at certain point, uh, after you keep it in the house for four days, notice that's interesting, keep it in your house for four days, get to know that lamb. Um, then at sunset on a certain day, you're to take that lamb and kill it. Vivid, right? That lamb is gonna take your place in a sense. That's what he's saying. Um, but you need to put the blood on the door of your house. We know this part, right? They took the blood and they put it on the sides of the door, on the lintel, on the top of the door, right? And and anywhere, God says, anywhere where I see this blood, verse 13. Now the blood shall be assigned to you on the house where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. The plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. So this is the plan. It's a sacrifice and it's a feast, right? But but it's also preservation as death is gonna go through the land. Wherever I see the blood on the door of the house, I'll pass over. Um, and this is the key to God's deliverance, this sacrifice. Um now the people couldn't break Pharaoh, Moses couldn't break Pharaoh, but God in this one act would break Pharaoh's power over the people. And you know the story, that's exactly what happened. The people did it, and at midnight it happened. Death to the firstborn in all of Egypt. Wherever the blood was, though, there was no death. And Pharaoh, just like God said, not only said they could leave, he said, Get out, and I don't ever want to see you again. Now, imagine that change as God took a people that was in bondage and delivered them all in one night. Now, the people would see that and realize that it's God who delivered us. Um, stay here, and and I'll read what we come to next in Hebrews verse 29, unless you want to turn over to it. By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians attempting to do so were drowned. So God leads them out. You know the story. They're loaded with stuff, right? The Egyptians uh send them away with gifts, um, and they they go out of there and they begin to travel to a new land, a promised land that God had promised Abraham so many hundreds of years before. Um, now let's read about this just a few chapters over in Exodus chapter 14. Exodus chapter 14, verse 1. Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel uh that they turn and camp before Pia Hieroth, between Migdal and the sea, opposite Baal Zephon. Uh, you shall camp before it by the sea, by the Red Sea there. For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, they are bewildered by the land, the wilderness has closed them in. Then I will harden Pharaoh's heart's heart, so that he will pursue them, and I will gain honor over Pharaoh and over all his army, that the Egyptians may know that I am the Lord. And they did so. Now it was told the king that the people had uh fled, and the heart of Pharaoh and his servants was turned against the people, and they said, Why have we done this? Why have we let Israel go from serving us? So he made ready his chariot and took his people with him. He took six hundred choice chariots and all the chariots of Egypt, with captains over each one of them. And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and he pursued the children of Israel, and the children of Israel went out with boldness. So uh Pharaoh does regret this, and he says, Why'd I let him go? All my help is gone. And he begins to pursue them. God hardens Pharaoh's heart. And notice, if you read on, the people are afraid, right? In verse 10 through 12, the people are afraid, and they say to Moses, Why did you bring us out here? As they see Pharaoh coming up behind him, why did you bring us out here to die? Weren't there enough graves in Egypt? We could have just died there. Why did you bring us out? The people are afraid, and they're really faithless. But notice in verse 13, and Moses said to the people, Do not be afraid, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, uh, which he will accomplish uh for you today, for the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace. And the Lord said to Moses, Why do you cry to me? Tell them the children of Israel to move forward. Uh, but lift up your rod and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, and the children of Israel shall go on dry ground through the midst of the sea, and I indeed will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them. So I will gain honor over Pharaoh, over all his army, his chariots, and his horsemen. And the Egyptian Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gained honor for myself over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen. Look at verse 21. Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. You know the story, and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea into dry land, and the waters were divided. So the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. And the Egyptians pursued and went after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. So you've seen it, right? The sea divided in front of them. Now that's real easy for us in our CGI world to imagine, right? We can we can take the Ten Commandments, not even CGI, and it's it's decent, right? They cross through on dry ground and we go, wow, that happened. But imagine God's people standing there as there's walls of water on each side of them. Well, they're going through. God has actually blocked Pharaoh off for a time with a cloud, a pillar of cloud, and a pillar of fire at night. And all at once the Egyptians are let go. And here we see what hard heart means. And this is interesting, right? Because we read all the way through Exodus that Pharaoh's heart was hard. Pharaoh hardened his heart. God hardened Pharaoh's heart. What is a hard heart? A hard heart is when the Red Sea is split in front of you and you decide to go in, right? I mean, reason would say, well, they're gone. Let them go. But Pharaoh, his heart is so hard that regardless of the consequence, this is where we see a hard heart in our own life. Regardless of the consequence and the warnings from God, don't do it. We say, you know what? I'm gonna do it. Regardless of what it means for me, I'm gonna do it. And that's Pharaoh's heart in all of this, stubborn and hard. We don't want to be that way. Now, verse 26, as the Egyptians flee in there, there's confusion, their wheels fall off. And the Lord said to Moses, Stretch out your hand over the sea, and the waters may come back over the Egyptians on their chariots and their horsemen. And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. And when the morning uh appeared, the sea turned to its full depth, while the Egyptians were fleeing into it. So the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea, and the waters returned and covered the chariots, the horsemen and all the army of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them. Not so much of one of them uh remained. And the children of Israel walked through on dry ground. So there it is, the story of God's deliverance, right? The account of God's uh deliverance, the entire Egyptian army is just shattered, done for, and God did it. Now, things to notice here, what you know, there's a huge parallel. Uh, God's deliverance on that Passover night. Take a lamb, a spotless lamb, and offer it for a sacrifice. That blood on the door would mean that death would pass over. And of course, we hear John the Baptist uh yelling out as he sees Jesus coming to him to be baptized. Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. And you don't have to look far, you realize Jesus, our Passover Lamb, right? Not only that, he was crucified on Passover. So God lines it up and says, This is your deliverance, what I do for you on the cross. Uh, an amazing picture. There's also a picture in the Red Sea. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 10, verse 2, that the Red Sea is a picture of baptism, uh, forsaking the old life, who we were, slave to the flesh and to sin, and embracing the new life. Um, and they're crossing over into uh a new and a fresh chapter. Let's look back to Hebrews chapter 11 and we'll move on. Verse 30. By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days. So here's another opportunity for faith and trust in God. It happens in the book of Joshua, Joshua chapter six. Now, you can read about this in your own time, Joshua chapter six, but you know the story. Joshua now leads the people into the promised land. They cross the Jordan River, and that in itself is a miracle, right? As the waters are kind of stood up way down upstream, and the people cross over on dry ground again. But in chapter six, verse one through five, we see the plan that God has for taking the city of Jericho, and you know it, right? You know this because you've acted it out when you were in Sunday school as a kid, right? Um, you are to march around the city, God says, for six days. One time a day, six days. Now, the plan is nobody talks. I think that would be a miracle in itself, right? To get a whole nation of people and nobody talks for six days. Uh walking around that city one time during that time, you know. On the seventh day, they're to march around the city seven times and then shout and blow the horns, you know. And the walls of Jericho will fall down. Now, we have to point out that's a ridiculous plan, right? That is not how you win a war. Marching around a city quietly, and then on the seventh day, shout and blow the horns, right? That is just not how it works. That takes a huge amount of faith, right? To believe. Now, sort of, right? Because they're trusting God who can do anything, but that takes faith. So by faith, they heard it and believed, they obeyed, and it worked. And there's victory in a new land. Now it matters because of what comes in verse 31. By faith, the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe when she had received the spies in peace. So there's another person in this time period, Hall of Faith. It's Rahab. And you can read the story there in Genesis chapter 2. Uh, Joshua sends in two spies to scout out the city. You'll remember. They come into the city of Jericho, and providentially they stay in the house of a prostitute here named Rahab. Now, we're told in Hebrews 11:31 here that by faith she received the spies and she hid them, and God preserved her and her family through that miraculous attack on Jericho. Now, why is faith important in all this? Well, I want to point to something we don't read. We don't read verse 29b. We'll just call it that, right? Look in in your Bibles, Hebrews chapter 11, verse 29. Look at the space between verse 29 and verse 30. You know a lot went down in between the space of verse 29 and verse 30. In between the people going through the Red Sea on dry ground and the people going in to claim the land, there's 40 years in that in that space in our Bibles. 40 years. Well, why are there 40 years? You'll remember Numbers chapter 14. God brought them to the promised land. And God said to the people, Go in, I'm giving you this land. They sent in 12 spies and they came back with a great report. It's a wonderful land. But 10 spies came back and said, But we'll never be able to take it. They're giants, we're nothing compared to them. And their faith disappeared, right? You remember they took up stones and wanted to kill Caleb and Joshua, the only two that gave a good report that God was going to do it. They wanted to kill Moses and they refused to go in. Now you remember the story there in Numbers chapter 14. God said, Fine, you won't go in. No matter what. You won't go into the promised land, but your kids will. And everyone under the age of 20 would wander around in the wilderness for 40 years until that entire generation was dead. A 40-year death march. Why? Because they didn't have faith. No faith. So that's like the hall of the faith list, right? Is these people. Now notice how much they had going for them. They had seen God's deliverance the night of Passover. They had seen the Red Sea. They were there. They walked through on dry ground. They saw Pharaoh shattered by the waves, and they didn't believe. They saw it, they didn't believe it, and they didn't obey. And we see that it's so important that we have faith because faithlessness, it just leads to death, right? That's the what we really see here. And the author addresses this earlier in chapter 3, verse 17, Hebrews 3, 17. Now with whom was God angry for 40 years? Was it not those who sinned whose corpses fell in the wilderness? Wow. And whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but those who did not obey. So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. If you caught that. Unbelief kept them out, and they did not enter into God's rest. And the goodness that he had for him, the result was death. Now, those people, that generation, missed out because of unbelief. Who else, though, might have missed out? Rahab, right? I mean, we see Rahab in here, but it's because she's already heard. She's heard about the Red Sea, she's heard about their deliverance from Egypt, and she believed. She knew that what God said was going to happen, that He was going to give them the land was true. And she had faith. Now we could go through the details of Rahab's life. She was a Gentile. That means she was an absolute outsider, known there as the nations. Everyone else. God's wrath was on the Gentiles. She was a Gentile. Um, she was seen as really just fire for, I mean, fuel for the fire of hell. Um, but yet here she heard. She didn't see, she heard, and she tells the spies, as soon as we heard you were coming, they're in Joshua 2, verse 11. Uh, our hearts melted, neither did there remain any more courage in anyone because of you. For the Lord your God, he is God of heaven above and earth beneath. And she heard and she believed. Um, this is an important part of everything that goes down. Uh turn, just to see how important it is, turn to Matthew chapter one. And that's where we'll we'll end today is Matthew chapter one. And you'll think, Matthew chapter one, is that a is that a genealogy? Yeah, it's a genealogy. It's the kind of stuff we sometimes skip, you know. Uh Malachi. Sorry, my bad. Matthew chapter one. Verse four we can start. Some names, some great names. Ram begot Aminadab. Aminadab begot Nashon. Nashan begot Sammon. Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab. Boaz begot Obed by Ruth. Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king. So how important is it that Rahab saw faith and had faith? Hugely important to us. Because time goes on and Rahab assimilates things to the people of Israel, and she settles down with a man named uh Salmon. Salmon. And sounds fishy. Anyways, I didn't even plan on that one. It was just right there. Um, but but notice you see it here. This is Jesus' family tree. This is David's family tree. This is ultimately Jesus' family tree, and and it goes through the book of Ruth, which is a great read for some faith too. See the book of Ruth. But she's there for a very distinct purpose to be some of the DNA of Jesus. And it's important that we see what faith does, right? The faithlessness of some just kept them out of the promised land 40 years wandering around in the wilderness. But the faith of Rahab is how we got the DNA of Jesus, right? She's in the family tree. And God uses a life of simple faith beyond our own lives to create some of the best things. And I think that's where we come for our week again today is faith is experienced in huge ways for sure, right? Those forks in the road where you decide, you know, what are you going to do? Where are you going to go? How are you going to act in your life? Salvation, that's huge, right? Saving faith is huge. But there's little acts of faith. And we look and go, well, what difference does it make if I live by faith or I live by the facts? You know, I want to figure this out. Or do you do what God tells you to do? Do you just walk and trust Him? Maybe do something that's a little beyond reason, you know, with your money. Uh, maybe a little beyond reason with your occupation and what you end up doing. Um, whatever it is, uh, you walk by faith and it can change so much. Our faith isn't just for us, it's for the crowd that comes after us, for our kids, our grandkids, our neighbors, people we work with and have opportunity to be in their life. It's a simple message. Faith really does matter. And in Hebrews chapter 11 shows us again and again, it's altogether possible as a normal human being to live by faith. And it's altogether worth it to live by faith in all the different aspects of our life, to trust God and seek Him with everything. So, God, we don't want to just hear Bible stories and get them down, but God, we want to trust you like these folks trusted you. God, we want to be warned that unbelief can lead to hurt. But trusting you is the best thing we could ever do for us and for those that go after us. We affect their life as we live the life that you've given us. God help us to trust you. I know it's easier said than done so many times. It's it's easy to say we trust you, but then when it's the finances or our kids, our future, God, we we want to take matters into our own hands, but God help us to seek you first, and all these other things will be added unto us. God help us to be the reality of our life. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.