THE JOURNEY OF FAITH Hebrews 12:1-11
Pastor Dennis Bone
1-25-15
Hebrews chapter 11 illustrates for us the journey of faith that many of the Old Testament saints or believers traveled prior to the coming of Christ. And then at the end of chapter 11 the writer connects their faith to that of the New Testament or new covenant believers journey of faith. Hebrews chapter 12, which we began two weeks ago, calls us to specifically understand and focus on the key elements of this journey, so that we too as Christians will continue to persevere in this journey and end this journey of faith successfully as the people of God.
As we saw two weeks ago, our journey of faith starts with Christ. Jesus is the author of our faith; He gives us faith; He is the source of our faith; and He is perfecter of our faith. He is the one who leads us in this journey and brings us to its completion or finish. The theme of our passage for this morning is discipline, specifically the way in which God has designed discipline for His children – the sons and daughters in His family – and how this leads us to where He wants us to be. But in order to best understand this discipline we need to see it in the context of the entire journey, which is what verses 1 – 11 set forth for us. So we will begin this morning with verses 1 – 6:
Therefore since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.”
One of the most amazing things about this passage is that it teaches us that discipline is a reward for being in God’s family. Most people do not view discipline as a reward; do you? The writer is reminding us that discipline from God is positive, not negative; and as such we should be encouraged by it not discouraged. This argument or perspective may be hard for us to totally grasp but it comes out of the great truth that we have been adopted into the family of God. Thus the first point to consider is God’s adoption of us through Christ, specifically: the work of Christ produces adoption.
This is why we read in verse 2 that Jesus is the author of our faith. He is the author based upon the fact that He endured the cross – where He did His redemptive work – scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of God. This is the basis or reason for God’s adoption of us. The concise definition of adoption is: “The act of God’s grace choosing us to be His children through Christ.” We read in Ephesians 1: “In love God predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ . . . In Christ we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.” Our passage here in Hebrews 12 helps us understand the way that this happened.
First, Jesus chose the joy of obedience in order to lead us into the family of God. God adopts us into His family based upon Christ’s obedience, not our obedience. This is a part of His work for us. Hebrews tells us He did this with joy. It wasn’t out of obligation that Jesus brought us into the family of God, but it was because He wanted to endure the cross, so that through His actions we could be a part of His family.
Jesus chose the way of obedience in His life and in His death, so that He could be the author of our salvation. In chapter 5 of Hebrews we read: “As a son Jesus learned obedience (as a man) from what He suffered, and once made perfect (as a man) He became the source of eternal salvation for those who obey Him.” This leads us to the second point: Jesus is the champion of our faith and the focus of our son-ship. Again, verse 2: “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus.” As Christians we focus on Him, because He is the greatest witness to faith; He is the ultimate and matchless champion of the race or this journey of faith. Jesus not only went before us, and ran the race perfectly, but He is the one who puts us in the race, because He adopts us into the family of God.
And so it’s in this context that we consider the second point: the work of adoption produces discipline. Even in human adoption, the adopted child has to adjust to the rules and principles imposed by their new family for their good. This is the role of discipline; and we are told in our passage that this is a mark or a characteristic of our son-ship. In verse 5 we read: “Do not make light of the Lord’s discipline . . . because He disciplines those He loves.” How many times as a parent do you remember what your kids often said when you disciplined them? “You don’t love me.”
This is how many Christians respond to God when they experience suffering or hardship. But in reality the exact opposite is the case; which is why in verse 5 he says: “You have forgotten that word of encouragement;” and then quotes the Old Testament proverb about discipline and the importance of it. The first thing we should see, as we read the next section of Hebrews 12, is that discipline is necessary and positive. Listen to verses 7 – 11:
Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons.
So clearly this discipline is necessary; it’s essential to our adoption; we need it as children of God. Going on in the passage – verse 9: Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best (it wasn’t always positive); but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.” This is why it’s necessary and positive; it’s always for our good. Verse 11: “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who are trained by it.
Of course all discipline is painful – whether you are a child, an athlete or disciple of Christ – but God’s discipline is always positive because He is always in charge of it. He administers it for our good. This then reminds us of the second point: Discipline is loving and purposeful. God’s motive for discipline is always love, even if it is a punishment or the consequences of our sinful behavior, or the suffering for Christ’s sake that comes from doing the right things. This is the context of Proverbs 3, which is quoted here in verses 5 & 6, which in the Hebrew says: “Don’t despise or resent the Lord’s discipline.” In other words, don’t get mad at God, as if He is out to get you. If you are His child He disciplines you because He loves you; but also this discipline is always purposeful. Suffering and hardship is not random or accidental for God’s people; it’s always something that God uses to bring spiritual growth or maturity.
As James tells us, it’s the discipline of all kinds of trials that refines our faith and develops perseverance; and it’s this perseverance that makes us mature and complete in Christ. You see this is the purpose of God’s discipline of His children; and it’s essential to our spiritual development. This brings us to the third point: the work of discipline produces sanctification.
The concise definition of sanctification is the process of becoming Christ-like. This is the reason for running the race; this is the central theme of the journey of faith. Discipline is not sanctification, it is one of the means of sanctification; it is one way that God uses to make us more like Jesus. This is why we should never despise or resent discipline; nor lose heart or give up, because God has designed it – as our Heavenly Father – to make us better children. The first point to consider about this is: the training in righteousness is what equals the fruit of the Christian life. We can go back again to the metaphor or image of the athlete who trains, and the training is all about discipline; and it’s this training that brings about results.
The results of the spiritual life are the fruit of the Spirit. It’s this fruit that we are called to be growing and cultivating and demonstrating in our journey of faith as God’s children. Jesus said, “You did not chose me but I chose you” – in other words, I’m the one who brings you into God’s family – “but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit; fruit that will last.” This is what we see in verse 11 of our passage: “Discipline, though painful, will in the future produce a harvest of righteousness.” In order to bear the fruit that Jesus chose us for, we have to be trained in righteousness. And as our passage makes very clear, this training comes from discipline.
And then second, we must persevere in our struggle with sin in the Christian life. We realize that the journey of faith includes the outward struggle of suffering and hardship because of our faith and the stand we take for Christ and His truth. God brings lots of difficult and challenging people and events into our lives that we didn’t directly cause by our actions. And He uses these kinds of trials or hardships to discipline us – to teach us, to train us, to refine us and to mature us. But our journey of faith also includes the inward struggle of temptation and discouragement and sin that requires God’s corrective discipline of us as well.
Both kinds of discipline are in view in our passage; and both produce in us sanctification, as we submit to our Father. In verse 9 we see the contrast between human discipline and divine discipline when he writes: “How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live!” Our heavenly Father always knows what we need; He has given us His Spirit and when we submit to Him we truly live. Our perfect example of submission to God as sons is the Son of God Jesus Christ, who submitted Himself to the Father, and persevered through temptation, hardship and suffering. Jesus modeled the journey of faith for us and He also showed us what happens at the end of the journey.
Thus we are reminded of a fourth and final point: the work of sanctification produces glorification. Glorification is where we are headed as Christians in this journey of faith; it is the process of finishing the Christian life. Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith. He has put us in the race; He is empowering us to run it; and He is waiting for us at the finish line. Paul says in Romans 8 that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that will be revealed in us. A few verses later he explains this process, beginning in verse 28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him and who are called according to His purpose.” Why is this true?
Because of the three points I just talked about this morning. Continuing in Romans: “For those God foreknew He also did predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son . . . and those he predestined, he called, and those who called he justified, and those he justified he glorified . . . If God is for us who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also along with him give us all things?” God is for us, and we have all of these things because of Jesus.
A part of these “all things” is the all things of verse 28 – which includes the suffering, the hardships, the persecution, and the discipline – which God works together for our good. It’s not just the things we think are “good” but it’s all things. The journey of the Christian faith is a package deal that has been secured for us by Jesus. This is why we look to Jesus, because Jesus received the joy of exaltation after enduring the opposition of sin. We are being called to take the same journey that Jesus took – verse 3 – Consider Jesus, who endured opposition but persevered, look to Him so you will not grow weary and lose heart. Instead continue to run; continue to train; continue to be disciplined, so that you will receive the crown of righteousness at the conclusion of the Christian life.
You see, it’s the training in righteousness that will get you to the crown of righteousness, because it’s Jesus and His righteousness that went before us; and that leads us and that is waiting for us at the end of the journey of faith.
©You’re welcome to recycle these resources for your church free of charge. However, if you find them useful, please consider making a donation to the ministry of GCC.
Pastor Dennis Bone
1-25-15
Hebrews chapter 11 illustrates for us the journey of faith that many of the Old Testament saints or believers traveled prior to the coming of Christ. And then at the end of chapter 11 the writer connects their faith to that of the New Testament or new covenant believers journey of faith. Hebrews chapter 12, which we began two weeks ago, calls us to specifically understand and focus on the key elements of this journey, so that we too as Christians will continue to persevere in this journey and end this journey of faith successfully as the people of God.
As we saw two weeks ago, our journey of faith starts with Christ. Jesus is the author of our faith; He gives us faith; He is the source of our faith; and He is perfecter of our faith. He is the one who leads us in this journey and brings us to its completion or finish. The theme of our passage for this morning is discipline, specifically the way in which God has designed discipline for His children – the sons and daughters in His family – and how this leads us to where He wants us to be. But in order to best understand this discipline we need to see it in the context of the entire journey, which is what verses 1 – 11 set forth for us. So we will begin this morning with verses 1 – 6:
Therefore since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.”
One of the most amazing things about this passage is that it teaches us that discipline is a reward for being in God’s family. Most people do not view discipline as a reward; do you? The writer is reminding us that discipline from God is positive, not negative; and as such we should be encouraged by it not discouraged. This argument or perspective may be hard for us to totally grasp but it comes out of the great truth that we have been adopted into the family of God. Thus the first point to consider is God’s adoption of us through Christ, specifically: the work of Christ produces adoption.
This is why we read in verse 2 that Jesus is the author of our faith. He is the author based upon the fact that He endured the cross – where He did His redemptive work – scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of God. This is the basis or reason for God’s adoption of us. The concise definition of adoption is: “The act of God’s grace choosing us to be His children through Christ.” We read in Ephesians 1: “In love God predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ . . . In Christ we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace.” Our passage here in Hebrews 12 helps us understand the way that this happened.
First, Jesus chose the joy of obedience in order to lead us into the family of God. God adopts us into His family based upon Christ’s obedience, not our obedience. This is a part of His work for us. Hebrews tells us He did this with joy. It wasn’t out of obligation that Jesus brought us into the family of God, but it was because He wanted to endure the cross, so that through His actions we could be a part of His family.
Jesus chose the way of obedience in His life and in His death, so that He could be the author of our salvation. In chapter 5 of Hebrews we read: “As a son Jesus learned obedience (as a man) from what He suffered, and once made perfect (as a man) He became the source of eternal salvation for those who obey Him.” This leads us to the second point: Jesus is the champion of our faith and the focus of our son-ship. Again, verse 2: “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus.” As Christians we focus on Him, because He is the greatest witness to faith; He is the ultimate and matchless champion of the race or this journey of faith. Jesus not only went before us, and ran the race perfectly, but He is the one who puts us in the race, because He adopts us into the family of God.
And so it’s in this context that we consider the second point: the work of adoption produces discipline. Even in human adoption, the adopted child has to adjust to the rules and principles imposed by their new family for their good. This is the role of discipline; and we are told in our passage that this is a mark or a characteristic of our son-ship. In verse 5 we read: “Do not make light of the Lord’s discipline . . . because He disciplines those He loves.” How many times as a parent do you remember what your kids often said when you disciplined them? “You don’t love me.”
This is how many Christians respond to God when they experience suffering or hardship. But in reality the exact opposite is the case; which is why in verse 5 he says: “You have forgotten that word of encouragement;” and then quotes the Old Testament proverb about discipline and the importance of it. The first thing we should see, as we read the next section of Hebrews 12, is that discipline is necessary and positive. Listen to verses 7 – 11:
Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons.
So clearly this discipline is necessary; it’s essential to our adoption; we need it as children of God. Going on in the passage – verse 9: Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best (it wasn’t always positive); but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.” This is why it’s necessary and positive; it’s always for our good. Verse 11: “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who are trained by it.
Of course all discipline is painful – whether you are a child, an athlete or disciple of Christ – but God’s discipline is always positive because He is always in charge of it. He administers it for our good. This then reminds us of the second point: Discipline is loving and purposeful. God’s motive for discipline is always love, even if it is a punishment or the consequences of our sinful behavior, or the suffering for Christ’s sake that comes from doing the right things. This is the context of Proverbs 3, which is quoted here in verses 5 & 6, which in the Hebrew says: “Don’t despise or resent the Lord’s discipline.” In other words, don’t get mad at God, as if He is out to get you. If you are His child He disciplines you because He loves you; but also this discipline is always purposeful. Suffering and hardship is not random or accidental for God’s people; it’s always something that God uses to bring spiritual growth or maturity.
As James tells us, it’s the discipline of all kinds of trials that refines our faith and develops perseverance; and it’s this perseverance that makes us mature and complete in Christ. You see this is the purpose of God’s discipline of His children; and it’s essential to our spiritual development. This brings us to the third point: the work of discipline produces sanctification.
The concise definition of sanctification is the process of becoming Christ-like. This is the reason for running the race; this is the central theme of the journey of faith. Discipline is not sanctification, it is one of the means of sanctification; it is one way that God uses to make us more like Jesus. This is why we should never despise or resent discipline; nor lose heart or give up, because God has designed it – as our Heavenly Father – to make us better children. The first point to consider about this is: the training in righteousness is what equals the fruit of the Christian life. We can go back again to the metaphor or image of the athlete who trains, and the training is all about discipline; and it’s this training that brings about results.
The results of the spiritual life are the fruit of the Spirit. It’s this fruit that we are called to be growing and cultivating and demonstrating in our journey of faith as God’s children. Jesus said, “You did not chose me but I chose you” – in other words, I’m the one who brings you into God’s family – “but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit; fruit that will last.” This is what we see in verse 11 of our passage: “Discipline, though painful, will in the future produce a harvest of righteousness.” In order to bear the fruit that Jesus chose us for, we have to be trained in righteousness. And as our passage makes very clear, this training comes from discipline.
And then second, we must persevere in our struggle with sin in the Christian life. We realize that the journey of faith includes the outward struggle of suffering and hardship because of our faith and the stand we take for Christ and His truth. God brings lots of difficult and challenging people and events into our lives that we didn’t directly cause by our actions. And He uses these kinds of trials or hardships to discipline us – to teach us, to train us, to refine us and to mature us. But our journey of faith also includes the inward struggle of temptation and discouragement and sin that requires God’s corrective discipline of us as well.
Both kinds of discipline are in view in our passage; and both produce in us sanctification, as we submit to our Father. In verse 9 we see the contrast between human discipline and divine discipline when he writes: “How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live!” Our heavenly Father always knows what we need; He has given us His Spirit and when we submit to Him we truly live. Our perfect example of submission to God as sons is the Son of God Jesus Christ, who submitted Himself to the Father, and persevered through temptation, hardship and suffering. Jesus modeled the journey of faith for us and He also showed us what happens at the end of the journey.
Thus we are reminded of a fourth and final point: the work of sanctification produces glorification. Glorification is where we are headed as Christians in this journey of faith; it is the process of finishing the Christian life. Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith. He has put us in the race; He is empowering us to run it; and He is waiting for us at the finish line. Paul says in Romans 8 that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that will be revealed in us. A few verses later he explains this process, beginning in verse 28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him and who are called according to His purpose.” Why is this true?
Because of the three points I just talked about this morning. Continuing in Romans: “For those God foreknew He also did predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son . . . and those he predestined, he called, and those who called he justified, and those he justified he glorified . . . If God is for us who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also along with him give us all things?” God is for us, and we have all of these things because of Jesus.
A part of these “all things” is the all things of verse 28 – which includes the suffering, the hardships, the persecution, and the discipline – which God works together for our good. It’s not just the things we think are “good” but it’s all things. The journey of the Christian faith is a package deal that has been secured for us by Jesus. This is why we look to Jesus, because Jesus received the joy of exaltation after enduring the opposition of sin. We are being called to take the same journey that Jesus took – verse 3 – Consider Jesus, who endured opposition but persevered, look to Him so you will not grow weary and lose heart. Instead continue to run; continue to train; continue to be disciplined, so that you will receive the crown of righteousness at the conclusion of the Christian life.
You see, it’s the training in righteousness that will get you to the crown of righteousness, because it’s Jesus and His righteousness that went before us; and that leads us and that is waiting for us at the end of the journey of faith.
©You’re welcome to recycle these resources for your church free of charge. However, if you find them useful, please consider making a donation to the ministry of GCC.
