Let's pray. God, we do draw near to you now, and we do so with great confidence because of those five bleeding wounds he bore. Father, we ask that you administer your word deep into our souls, that we would be transformed by the renewing of our minds. In Jesus' name, amen. Please be seated. And if you have a copy of God's Word, please take it out, turn with me to Hebrews chapter 11. If you don't have a copy, there are copies in the row in front of you, and we'd be delighted if you would get use out of that copy of God's Word. We'd be delighted for you to take it with you and use it as our gift to you. We've been studying Hebrews for just under a year now, and for about a third of that time, we've actually been in Hebrews chapter 11. Now, just a reminder, Hebrews was a book that was probably actually first delivered as a sermon. from a broken-hearted pastor to his fear-struck church. It was a congregation made up of people who had been raised Jewish and then came to saving faith in Jesus Christ. And for them, first century believers, following Christ thus far has been costly, probably in a way that would not cross many of our minds. By following Christ, all of them have put themselves at risk. Most have been persecuted to some degree. And even a few have gone to prison because they profess the name of Christ. Those are things that are not necessarily on our radar today, are they? But the danger has become so real to them that some of them have decided to leave Christianity rather than risk the cost of following Christ. Their faith hasn't held up. They have departed from the faith. The Bible calls that apostasy. It's a faith that once appeared to be real, but through trials and through difficulty, it was proven to be a false faith. And Hebrews, especially Hebrews 11, was written to embolden the remaining Christians to hold fast, to not drift away. the theme of chapter 11, the means by which we hold fast, is that we do so by faith. Listen to the reading of God's Word, Hebrews chapter 11, starting at verse 32. What more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, and Samuel, and the prophets who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight, women received back their dead by resurrection, Some were tortured, refusing to accept release so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with a sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated, of whom the world was not worthy, wandering about in deserts and mountains and in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised. Since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us, they should not be made perfect. The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. I want you to imagine with me, if our government were to outlaw biblical Christianity, and to establish a special forces unit whose job it was to strike fear and terror into the hearts of Christians so that many would abandon the faith. Imagine that team going week by week, Sunday after Sunday, to churches, busting through the doors, examining professing Christians for evidence of their allegiance to Christ. We've experienced, by God's grace, so much religious freedom in America that such a scenario seems far-fetched, and so it's hard for us to know how we would respond. Would we respond in faith, or would we flee in fear? But you know, to many of our brothers and sisters around the world this very day, that scenario is a reality. For example, for the last five years, it's been a daily reality for members of Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu, China. Beginning on December 9th, 2018 and still enduring even today, early rain has been experiencing significant and persistent government persecution. More than 200 members of early rain have been arrested. In the winter of 2019, Elder Keane Defu was sentenced to four years in criminal detention. Pastor Wang Yi was sentenced to nine years in criminal detention. In addition, church and personal property have been ceased and destroyed by the government. Many families have faced repeated eviction from their homes or deportation by the government of Chengdu to their hometowns and distant provinces where, in many cases, their own families will not receive them. And astonishingly, by the way, the church continues to grow and plant more churches in and around Chengdu. A little closer to home for us might be the story of Pastor James Coates in Edmonton, Canada. On February 16, 2021, Pastor Coates was arrested because he refused to close the doors of the church despite the lockdowns related to the COVID-19 pandemic. He spent 35 days in jail and was ordered to pay fines. or on an even more relatable level. Just this week, NHL hockey player James Reimer came under fire because he refused to wear an LGBTQ pride jersey because of a hockey game, explicitly because of his Christian faith. Now, why in the world hockey games need to express their moral values on a jersey is well beyond me, other than for virtue signaling purposes. But each of these folks could understand something of the daily life of the tiny church to whom this letter of the Hebrews was addressed. They were Hebrew expats. They were seen as traitors for being what we would call completed Jews. They've understand the fullness of what Judaism was teaching, which it was designed to lead us to Christ, but they've been seen as traitors by their own family and criminals by their own government. Soon what awaits them is the terrors of the Neronian persecutions. And some of them, in this first century church, have decided it's better to be in good standing with the world, even if it means turning their backs on Christ. That's what apostasy is, turning away from the faith. Now, those who did persevere in the faith did so because they counted the promises of God to be of greater worth than all earthly comforts and ease. You know, persecution has a tremendously purifying effect on the church, doesn't it? When people see the threat of not just persecution, but just unpopularity of being associated with a Bible-believing church, it often causes unbelievers to flee. God has at times done great service to the church. I can remember speaking one time to a gentleman who said to me, you know, I believe a lot of the, I agree with a lot of the things y'all teach as a church, but socially I can't afford to be associated with a church that preaches what you preach. Isn't that astounding? Now I appreciate his honesty and I appreciate the Lord's kindness in purifying the church and protecting us from such lukewarmness. But we have to understand, Hebrews chapter 11 wasn't written to be just an inspiring set of Sunday school lessons about saints from the good old days. It was life and death teaching and comfort for a church who desperately needed to be reminded to keep their eyes on heaven when everything on earth seemed to be falling apart, when all hell seemed to be breaking loose. You know, our experience, our daily experience is very different than that, but you know, the reality has been for 2,000 years, the normative Christian experience has been to be a persecuted minority in the world, to be thought strange, bigoted, narrow, archaic. In fact, the American experiment has been historically unique in that the church has largely remained in society's good graces as long as we mind our own business. But you know as well as I do, based on the current cultural trajectory that we see, to remain faithful to scripture in America is going to be increasingly marginalizing to you and me. You know, just think about the books being introduced into public schools right now to young children, teaching the next generation of Americans that a boy can become a girl, that a girl can have two mommies or two daddies. And this is normalizing it in the eyes of an entire generation. Just think for a moment about how much sexual ethics have changed in America in the last, let's say, 15 years. In 2008, Barack Obama was campaigning for president, and he said at that point in 2008, just 15 years ago, he said that he opposed same-sex marriage because of his religion. If a candidate were to say that today, they would be tarred and feathered. Just consider how much things have changed. Today, we have states discussing legislation that will make opposition to same-sex marriage be considered a hate crime. In our world today, everything goes except intolerance. You know, that's the ironic mantra of our culture, is that the one thing that we won't tolerate is intolerance. And Christians are seen in that light as public enemy number one. And those people, they will say, Christians, you need to see that God is love, and therefore you must love everyone no matter what. Yes, God is love, but God's definition of love is quite different than our world's definition of love. As believers, when we hold to scripture about issues of morality, issues about the sanctity of life, issues about marriage, we're not denying the love of Christ. Because while Jesus was a friend to sinners, he always called sinners to turn from their sins. Christ was and is intolerant of sin. That's the very reason he went to the cross, was his sheer hatred of sin. And he did that not so that people could continue to live their lives in sin, but turn from them. Do you realize that the greatest act of hatred you can commit against a person is to affirm them in their sin? The greatest act of love is to warn people of what their sin will do if they won't repent. But our culture has no idea about that. But you know what? As Christians, we don't take our cues from our ever-changing culture, but from the never-changing God. Amen? And we've got to quit bending the Word to suit our desires. It's our desires that must be bent to suit the Word. And that's why it's very possible that even in America, religious freedom may soon be a thing of the past. And the church that was so long pampered may one day become the church persecuted even here. What do we do if persecution comes one day? Well, the same thing we do even if persecution never comes in our lifetime. We learn to walk by faith and live in the great assurance of the promises of scripture. That's what we do regardless of whether persecution ever comes in our lifetime. And so this text is gonna teach us that whether we are victors or victims, whether we are pampered or persecuted, our eyes must be fixed on the reality of the world to come. We're gonna sit at the feet of this passage for a few minutes and learn how to do that. The first thing I want you to see is the grace of empowerment. Second, I want you to see the faith of endurance. And third, I want you to see the hope of expectation. So look with me first at the grace of empowerment. The writer of Hebrews begins this section by listing just name after name. He says, I don't have time to get into everybody, but here's six more names. And these were people from the Old Testament, from the Hebrew scriptures, who by God's grace were empowered to do great things for God. They were very different individuals spanning hundreds of years. They had very different personalities, very different scenarios, but the one thing they had in common is that each of them lived in a time of great difficulty and opposition. But God worked in them and through them to overcome and lead his people to victory. So, for example, Gideon. Gideon was called to lead God's people to victory over the Midianites. Gideon was a timid leader when he was called. He didn't immediately jump to the task, and God says, you know what I'm gonna do for you? I'm gonna take that army of 32,000 people, I'm gonna bring it down to 10,000. Actually, you know what I'm gonna do? I'm gonna bring it down to 300, Gideon, because I want you to be so acutely aware of your weakness that you cannot help but lean on me for strength. And then Barak, he too was a timid leader. He refused to enter into battle without Deborah at his side. He led a small army of Israelites to victory against Sisera's much greater army. Then you see Samson's name is there. If I was writing Hebrews 11, I don't think I would include Samson's name there. Most of us probably just think of Samson as nothing more than a dumb jock who was led astray by the lust of his eyes until his eyes were eventually gouged out by the Philistines. But once he was blinded, he gained the ability to walk by faith. He finally could see. And he avenged himself and God's people in Judges 16. Just as surprising a member of this list is Jephthah. Most of us probably don't know his name. Jephthah made a wicked, foolish vow to sacrifice his own daughter in Judges chapter 11. But God also empowered the same man to lead the army of Gilead to defeat the Ephraimites. Now there's lots of surprising names. The one that probably doesn't surprise us is King David, well known as a great warrior. But I think what the author of Hebrews has in mind here is not the warrior David, but the young man David who went into battle against Goliath. And he was severely outsized and out-armed against Goliath. Goliath wasn't just an enemy for David, but for all of God's people, because if Goliath were to win, God's people would become slaves. the philistines and then we see samuel samuel i think is one of israel's most underrated leaders one who spoke fearlessly to anyone including even king saul when we look at all six we see they all lived in a time where faith was was scarce the time of gideon and samson and jeff the And Barak, it was the time of the judges when everyone did what was right in their own eyes. And things weren't much better in the time of Samuel, of David, or of the prophets. Each stood not only against the world, but the lukewarmness of the people of God. They had enemies in both directions, in a sense. You can imagine that. And what an encouragement that would be to these Hebrew believers. these faithful few who remain, because they weren't only discouraged about what Nero is doing to them, they're discouraged that their brothers and sisters have abandoned them. Their brothers and sisters have walked away from the faith. You know that feeling, don't you? As Christianity becomes less and less culturally appealing, as it becomes less and less compatible with our world, You know people who perhaps two years ago or five years ago or 10 years ago ostensibly were believers, but they have wandered away from the faith. Maybe they've even been critical of biblical Christianity and urged you, beloved, to settle for a lukewarm counterfeit substitute of biblical Christianity. You know how difficult, how discouraging it can be to feel alone in the faith. And that was the story of each of these men. That was the story of the Hebrews Christians. That's the story for us in many ways. And the Hebrews are being reminded, you know, it's always been that way. Be encouraged by how these men, though they were a minority in their world, experienced great victory by God's hand. You know, there's another thing that they had in common, not just that they were, in a sense, a spiritual minority among lukewarm or opposing people, but they themselves all had very flawed faith. Gideon was fearful and resisted God's call until he could resist no longer. Jephthah was timid and resisted God's call until Deborah finally prodded him to go. Samson put himself and God's people in jeopardy because of the allurement of Delilah. Jephthah may have saved Israel, but he foolishly sacrificed his own daughter. David, the great king, was also an adulterer and murderer. And Samuel, as wonderful as he was as a national leader, was, best we can tell, a failure in leading his own home. Do you think that might have been encouraging to these Hebrew Christians? To see that they weren't the first believers in history to be discouraged or to be afraid? to find themselves in hopeless situations? They weren't the first, they certainly weren't the last either, were they? You know, we all have excuses, don't we? We have excuses for why we are not bolder and braver for God. Oftentimes, it's our own checkered past, our own failures, our own sense of weakness, and it makes us feel like second-rate Christians. Doesn't it? Not the kind God could really use. That's what we tell ourselves. Even though we've repented, even though we've trusted in Christ, we still think we sort of have to put ourselves in the penalty box for a little while. before we can really become useful to God. And so we're silent when we should speak, we shrink back when we should lead, we make excuses when we should be laboring hard for the sake of the kingdom. We just don't feel like we're up to par with other believers. Well, what we see when we study these men of Hebrews 11 is that the best of men are men at best. You know, the gospel tells us a far better story than what we tell ourselves, doesn't it? The gospel tells us that through the death of Christ upon the cross, the sins of believers have been completely taken away from us, separated as far from us as the east is from the west. They've been blotted out, they've been canceled, they're remembered no more. Hebrews 11 portrays this beautifully because you have all these sinners in Hebrews 11 and there is not one mention of their sin. It's been left behind, and if you belong to Christ, then the same is true of you. You are not defined by your past. You're not defined by struggles and weaknesses. You are defined by the finished work of the Lord Jesus. These six remind us that the best of men are men at best, and we need to understand this biblically. When we talk about these six that did great things for God, or the 16 in this chapter, and we call them the hall of faith, it really isn't a hall of faith. It's not a hall of fame. It's weak, pitiful men that God used in a mighty way. God does great things through weak, pitiful people. What happens for the Christian is that when we see our weakness, we don't flee from God like Adam did, we flee to Him. We come to Him for grace and we come to Him for strength. Our sense of weakness is intended to drive us to God. Have you heard people say before that, you know, the Bible says God won't give us more than we can handle. You know, the Bible never says that. It says He won't let us be tempted beyond what we can bear, but the Bible never says God will not give you more than you can handle. God often gives you more than you can handle so that it will cause you to run to Him, to trust in the power of His might. And as you sense your own weakness, you realize that your lives hang in the balance of a God who takes unmanageable and hopeless situations and he transforms them for the well-being of his people and the glory of his name. That's what we see here with these six These weak are made strong, not in themselves, but in the grace of His power. Not in pride, but in abiding with Christ. They didn't just pick themselves up by their bootstraps, but they fell on their faces before God, pleading for help. You know, Christians tend to be at our best when things are at their worst. Because it's then that we cry out for the power of God. It's been that way through history. John Knox lived in an age very similar to that of the first century Christians. Knox was born in 1514 in Scotland. The Reformation would begin really in Germany in force three years later in 1517. It didn't come to Scotland for many years. Scotland actually was much darker as a pagan land in the 1500s compared to even the rest of Europe. Knox began to follow Christ. In 1546, despite his own protests against it, God drew him into pastoral ministry. Within a year, he was arrested and taken captive as a slave, where he served for 19 months before he was released and went again to preach the gospel. Mary Tudor, affectionately known as Bloody Mary, ascended to the throne. Knox, in fear, fled to Geneva, where he was discipled by John Calvin. He would stay there for close to a decade. In 1555, he returned, where he preached the gospel in Scotland, and Scotland was converted almost overnight. But Knox spent the entirety of his ministry under the watchful and hateful eye of Bloody Mary. He wrote and he spoke boldly against her. It didn't faze Mary, but what terrified Mary were Knox's prayers. Knox knew he was a weak man in the hand of a mighty God. Mary said, I fear John Knox's prayers more than all the assembled armies of Europe. What made Knox great wasn't his personal skill or his courage, but rather his utter dependence upon God. You see, in this light, God alone can do great things for the kingdom, and what he does is he looks upon the earth and finding the weakest vessels he can, He picks them up, cleans them up, and uses them for His glory. Why? To show His power through weak vessels. That's what these six show us, six weak, pitiful men used greatly by God, leading God's people into victory in the face of overwhelming odds. And then the author then goes through various things that these faithful throughout the years have faced. There's three categories. The first, starting in verse 33, shows how God wrought victory through them, who through faith conquered kingdoms and forced justice and obtained promises. And then the next category, we see ways that God preserved them. In the midst of all that, he stopped the mouths of lions, certainly we think about Daniel there. quenched the power of fire, think of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and escaped the edge of the sword. We have countless stories of prophets whose lives were in danger and they escaped, not just in scripture, but in history. Believers being spared the edge of the sword. This was a great encouragement to the Hebrew believers on the face, on the edge of the Neronian persecution. God has delighted to do mighty things and give great empowerment to people of faith. God can deliver at any time in any way that he pleases. The Bible is filled with stories of that. But you know, there's also a simultaneous reality. that we need to keep in mind. That's what the next category, the next section reminds us of, which is that God doesn't always deliver, at least in earthly terms. God doesn't always enable believers to overcome the opposition that stands before them. He hasn't promised complete deliverance for all his people in every situation in this life. He doesn't always rescue us from lions. He doesn't always quench the fire. He doesn't always raise the dead. And so you come to verse 35 and the emphasis shifts. It shifts from victor to victim. Look at verse 35. We're gonna see the faith of endurance here. It's our second point. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release so that they might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging and even chains and imprisonment. Y'all, these are not just stories. These are your brothers and sisters. They were stoned. They were sawn in two. They were killed with a sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated, of whom the world was not worthy, wandering about in deserts and mountains and in dens and caves of the earth. You know what's astounding about this? It's not that Christians should suffer. It's really not that surprising. You know what's astounding about it? That Christ suffered for us. You know, you think about where it says, others suffered mocking and flogging. That was our Lord's story. The King of glory is being mocked and spat upon and whipped and beaten by sinful men. You know, we avoid suffering at all costs. We're so comfortable. And so we avoid suffering, but don't you see that when we suffer for the sake of the gospel, we are sharing in a unique form of fellowship with the Lord Jesus. You know, in Acts chapter five, the apostles have been arrested. They're set free, eventually, after much difficulty. And what are we told? They rejoiced to be counted worthy to suffer for the name. Or look at Philippians 3 for a moment. The apostle Paul went through almost every form of earthly suffering and torture that's imaginable. Philippians 3, he talks about, of all things, the joy of knowing Christ in the face of all that he endured. Philippians 3, verse 10, he talks about his ambition, that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and may share in his sufferings, becoming like him in death. You know, suffering for the gospel is one of the most Christ-like experiences we can have, this side of glory. Because Christ doesn't abandon us in our sufferings. He draws near to us. You just think of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and that fourth person, that mysterious fourth person that was with them in the fire. It was Christ's way of saying, when you suffer for the sake of the gospel, I draw near to you. I don't abandon you. Untold others, he says, could be mentioned here. I don't want to belabor the point. There's one way to endure the face of persecution and suffering, and it is by faith. Because no one naturally does this. It's the supernatural work of God in the human heart that we should have faith that even to suffer for Christ is better than to have all the kings and crowns of this world. You know, do you realize this? This is easy to forget, brothers and sisters. God does not consider the threat of persecution a valid reason to turn away from the faith. God does not consider the threat of persecution a valid reason to shrink back. God does not consider the threat of persecution a reason to be silent. Actually, it's just the opposite that's true. That is when faith's existence is validated. In each case, all 16 of the characters that we meet in Hebrews 11, their faith is evidenced by their obedience in the face of opposition. And so what it means is if somebody falls away in the face of persecution, they don't want to be persecuted, they don't want to be thought strange in the face of the world, and they fall away, what it means is that they never had genuine faith at all. I'm not talking about somebody that that falls away in fear for a moment. We have those but if somebody finally and fully turns away Becomes apostate it's evidence that they never had true and saving faith They had all the outward trappings of it, but never the inward reality of it Hebrews what he's doing here. The author is urging his beloved flock just as I am right now. He's he's urging them to that the only way to prevail in the midst of affliction and difficulty is by faith. The only way is to hold fast to Christ. You know, we're already told that at the beginning of chapter 11. Without faith, it's impossible to please God. All the faithful listed here and the millions who are unknown in the eyes of the world, but well known in the eyes of God, endured by faith. And God does not forget the deeds of faith by any man, woman, or child who serve Him in the face of opposition. And it is His pleasure, it is God's joy to commend them for their faith, because it is His handiwork in the first place. Before we move on, let me just ask you first, Scots, who do you wanna please? You can please the world, at least for a moment, by conforming to their patterns. Now, they're gonna change tomorrow, so you're gonna have to read the news or go on social media to figure out what the current spirit of the age is. But if you want to please the world, do that. Seek to live your best life now. Seek instant gratification. Forget about eternity. That's one option. The other option is you can deny yourself the comforts and ease of this world and the approval of this world in order to enjoy greater pleasures that await you in Mount Zion. You know, just think of Joshua saying, you know, stop limping between two opinions. If you're gonna serve the world, go and serve the world, but as for me and my house, we will serve God. What's it gonna be for Scots? The faith of endurance or shrinking back in the face of fear? Well third, I want you to see the hope of expectation. All 16 of the characters listed and many others that are alluded to here in this text, they persevered in the faith because they had the hope of expectation. They hoped of something better to come. Faith looks forward to what is promised. Look at verse 35. Speaking of those who all they had to do was compromise and they could return to good standing with the world. It says they endured torture and suffering. Why? So that they might rise again to a better life. They had the promises of God that they hoped in. And verse 39 makes clear that sometimes those promises weren't fulfilled in their lifetimes. But you better believe they were fulfilled in the world to come a million times better than anything this world could have offered. Not one of God's promises has ever or will ever fall to the ground. You know, I think particularly when the author talks about in verse 39, not receiving what was promised. I think he had in mind Abraham. Abraham was promised the land of Canaan, the promised land, and yet by the end of his life, what had Abraham received? Barely enough land to have a burial plot. He never received it all and yet received something infinitely better. The issue of Old Testament fulfillment of the land promises, it's a significant theological question because some brothers and sisters believe that God will, in keeping his promise to Abraham, will establish a temporal, an earthly kingdom for Israel. on that physical slice of land in Palestine, but look at what Hebrews is saying here. Abraham didn't get shortchanged on the promise, but he received something exponentially greater. It's the new heavens and the new earth. Look with me at 1 Peter 1 for a moment. Peter would have known those promises, the promises to Abraham. He would have known all of those Old Testament promises, but look at 1 Peter 1, verses three to five. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to his great mercy, he's caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance. That's that promise. inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you. That's the fulfillment of the promise. All the Old Testament promises are fulfilled in Christ. And what do we receive as our inheritance? The new heavens and the new earth. Do you think that when Abraham sees the new heavens and the new earth in all its glory, he's gonna complain that he didn't get that slice of land in Palestine? Not at all. You know, that would be like somebody promising you $100, and then they give you $10 billion. You're not gonna say to him, yeah, but what about the 100 you promised me? Abraham's not gonna say, what about that slice of land back there? God says, I've given you the new heavens and the new earth. All the characters in this chapter endured in the hope of expectation of what was to come. Others lost so much, but they did so by faith that God would restore to them exponentially more than anything they had given up in this life. What could be better? Beloved, hear me on this, because there may be a day where your 401k or your job or your family or your home could be taken away from you. What could be so worthy that you could say in the face of all of that, you can have it? Just give me Jesus. It's that day when we'll stand in the new heavens and the new earth and be face to face with Jesus Christ in all his glory. Oh, everything you gave up in this world will be as nothing in that day. You know, the Old Testament saints knew a whole lot less about Christ than we do. You are a PhD in Jesus Christ compared to them. They didn't know much, but they knew he would come to save them from their sins, and they endured by faith in the hope of expectation. If they could do that without the New Testament, without knowing what Jesus came to do, or how he would do it, how much more ought you and me be able to walk by faith with sure and certain hope of future realities? things that we cannot see, but by faith we hope in. But brothers and sisters, do not waver at whatever may come our way, because there will be a day in eternity in which all your earthly losses are completely offset by unimaginable eternal gains. And Jesus Christ himself will wipe away every tear from every eye. And so every time you are insulted for the sake of Christ, every time you've been excluded, every time you've lost something for the sake of the Lord Jesus, it will be gone from your memory and you will enjoy rewards that exponentially outnumber anything that it may have cost you in this life. You know, affliction is lasting, but it is not everlasting. And so we look forward alongside these saints, this great cloud of witnesses who were persecuted and mistreated. You know, they were viewed as so worthless that their lives were taken from them in many cases. People looked at them, even the religious leaders looked at them and said, you are not worthy of this world. But look what Hebrews says. The world was not worthy of them. And so for you and me, whether we live in an age of pampering or persecution, whether we are victors or victims, we must be a people whose minds and hearts are resolutely set upon heaven. That the world to come would be what ultimately matters, and we must train ourselves to do this now because, beloved, we cannot delude ourselves into thinking that fair sunshine will continue to shine on America forever. How ignorant of history would we have to be to think that we are persecution proof? How arrogant must we think, must we be to think we can profess the name of Christ but not have to suffer as he did? The saints of old understood what it would cost them, and they gladly turned their backs on the world and followed Christ. With less knowledge of the gospel, they persevered all the more. How much more should we, who according to Hebrews have a better salvation, a better hope, a better covenant, better promises, and a better and lasting profession, how much more should we persevere in the faith? How do we apply this text? First, We've talked a lot about apostasy. I wanna talk about a different side of it, which is, please, beloved, never give up on someone who appears to have abandoned the faith, whether it's your child or somebody that used to sit next to you in the pew. As long as there is breath in their lungs and Jesus is on his throne, then there is hope. Pray for them, challenge them, remind them of the gospel that Christ can forgive even their wavering and their drifting, but they must return. History tells the story of so many saints who wandered away only to one day be gloriously returned. And a word to those of you who may be on the edge of wandering right now. Yes, you may be in church, but your heart may be sitting there lusting after the world. I plead with you now to return to Christ. Don't say you will tomorrow. Satan loves for you to procrastinate. Many sheep have wandered into ditches. but it's the swine that wallows in it. Return to Christ now. Lift your eyes to Christ now. He will receive you back, O wandering sheep. But do it now before your heart grows any harder. Second, consider how God uses suffering in the Christian life. I know I want to insulate myself from suffering, and you do too. And we've trained ourselves to avoid it at all costs. But you know, there are certain aspects of sanctification that only come through suffering, aren't there? Just think of some of those that scripture tells us about. Suffering strengthens our faith. Suffering builds steadfastness. Suffering shapes our character. And suffering prepares us for an eternal weight of glory. Many follow Christ in hopes of an easy life, but the Bible never offers it. It is through suffering that oftentimes we are most sanctified. Finally, brothers and sisters, I'm not being dramatic, but gird up your loins. Early Christians were willing to be fed to lions or used as human torches because of their love for Christ. For 2000 years, the light of the gospel has shone most brilliantly through believers who are willing to suffer for the gospel. You and I, that's not even on our radar, but how often are we afraid of the world's disapproval? How often are we afraid of what family members and friends and neighbors might say to us? What are people gonna say if you speak against abortion? What are people gonna say if you speak for biblical marriage? What are they gonna say if you refuse to call a she a him? Gird up your loins, for what matters isn't what people say if you do those things, but what we are saying to God if we are not willing to say them. Let's pray together. Lord our God, we thank you for your word. We thank you for the hope we have that rests solely upon your promises. Lord, we do not know what the future may hold, and you, by your grace, may preserve us from persecution, but it also may be that you choose to strengthen your church by allowing it to come. by lifting your hand of restraint that has so protected the church in America for so long that we have become fat and comfortable. And it may be that exactly what we need is for you to remove that restraint so that we would have to count the cost, just as our brothers and sisters throughout history have done. Lord, we confess that our eyes are all too fixed on this world and not nearly enough on the world to come. Help us to lift them.