Hebrews 11:13

Hebrews 11:13

Faith triumphant in Death.

I. The excellence of the faith which places its object beyond death may be seen in two respects. (1) First, as it is in itself greater and bolder, existing in spite of greater difficulties. It is this, because it is fixed on an unknown object; our objects in this life, however remote, are such as we know or can well conceive of; there are no kinds of human pleasure, of such pleasure, at least, as we ourselves are ever likely to desire, which are not in some degree familiar to our minds already. (2) But, further, the faith which stops short of death may be, and often is, a faith which looks to a good object to the accomplishment of some great work, to the enjoyment of honourable rest; an old age relieved from labour, respected and beloved. Good objects I would not say otherwise; yet surely not the best nor the highest. But the faith which looks beyond death is content with no less object than God Himself. The faith which is strong enough to look beyond the grave does not fix its view chiefly on any known pleasure to be again revived, upon any known love to be eternally continued, but upon One who is truly the great end of all being; upon the knowledge of and communion with God and Christ.

II. This faith which takes death within its prospects, and looks on boldly to something beyond, is at once the greatest elevation and the greatest blessing of humanity. It cannot be denied that in quiet times, and amid much worldly enjoyment, such faith is hard to be maintained, and is in many wholly wanting. But yet all the while we are in extreme insecurity, and the sense of this sooner or later must be forced upon us; for sooner or later death and its strangeness must come near to us, and something beyond the grave must be thought of, because the grave itself is close at hand. And if faith has not habitually lived in that region, no longer far off but near, fear will now be dwelling upon it continually. In proportion as any one draws near to God, and thinks of Him, and prays to Him constantly and earnestly, so does he become familiar with the life beyond the grave, and find it possible and natural to fix his faith there.

T. Arnold, Sermons,vol. v., p. 231.

References: Hebrews 11:13. Church of England Pulpit,vol. vii., p. 1.Hebrews 11:13; Hebrews 11:14. Spurgeon, Sermons,vol. xxxi., No. 1825; Ibid., Evening by Evening,p. 123; R. S. Candlish, Sermons,p. 235; Homilist,3rd series, vol. i., p. 73; A. Maclaren, Contemporary Pulpit,vol. i., p. 112.