Sermon #81 Hebrews Notes

Title: “Destitute, Afflicted Tormented”

Text: Hebrews 11:37-38

Readings: Lindsay Campbell—Larry Brown

Subject: Trials by Persecution

Date: Tuesday Evening – April 23, 2002

Tape # W-98a

Introduction:

It has always been the lot of God’s people in this world to suffer persecution at the hands of men, to suffer persecution at the hands of those who profess to be God’s people. The cause of this relentless persecution is the gospel of Christ, the offense of the cross.—“Persecuted for righteousness’ sake!” As Cain persecuted Abel and Ishmael Isaac, so it has been throughout the ages, and so it shall be until time shall be no more.

The words of Jeremiah describe the condition of God’s church in all ages and in all places in this world.—“Our necks are under persecution…We get our bread with the peril of our lives because of the sword of the wilderness…For this our heart is faint; for these things our eyes are dim” (Lam. 5:5, 10, 17). Persecution is the lot of faith in this world.

(Matthew 5:11-12) "Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. 12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."

(Romans 8:34-39) "Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. 38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

(Galatians 5:11) "And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased."

(Galatians 6:12) "As many as desire to make a fair show in the flesh, they constrain you to be circumcised; only lest they should suffer persecution for the cross of Christ."

(Philippians 3:18-19) "(For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)"

(2 Timothy 3:12) "Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution."

(Hebrews 11:37-38) "They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; 38 (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth."

The Persecutors

The persecutors of God’s people are not usually ignorant barbarians, but men and women who are highly educated, of great respectability in society, high rank, political power and religious influence. Magistrates, governors, princes, kings, queens, popes, prelates and priests have all dipped their hands in the blood of God’s saints. Such facts are so shocking that our historians and educators try as much as possible to explain them away, find excuse for them, and invent horror stories about God’s people that make such persecutions seem justifiable when they must be mentioned.

· The Puritan Monsters

· Cotton Mather

· The Salem Witch Hunts

Those who have thirsted for the blood of God’s saints have never been content merely to hurt, or punish, or even kill them. They have invented the most cruel, barbaric forms of torture imaginable, to inflict as much pain as possible before the objects of their hellish hatred died.

God’s Purpose

Why has God allowed such persecutions? What is his purpose? Unlike their persecutors, God’s saints know and understand that the Lord God is in absolute control of all things and all men. “Our God is in the heavens. He hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.” If he permits wicked men to violently abuse his people, he has good reasons for doing so. I cannot pry into the mind of the infinite Lord God. I know nothing about God’s secret will. But those things that are revealed are revealed for our learning. And these things he has revealed.

· All our trials come from God our heavenly Father, even when they come by the hands of wicked men. – “All things are of God.”

· Our trials are intended by God to strengthen our faith in Christ and make us grow in the grace and knowledge of our Savior. – “Tribulation worketh patience, and patience experience, and experience hope.”

(Romans 5:1-5) "Therefore being justified, by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: 2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope: 5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us."

· By our trials our heavenly Father teaches us sympathy with and compassion for one another.

· By temptations, trials and persecutions, we are taught to lean on our Savior, finding grace all-sufficient in him.

· Trials are designed of God to wean us from the world, set our hearts on heaven, and make Christ more precious.

· These trials, especially those offenses that come because of the gospel, separate the precious from the vile (Matt. 13:21; Luke 8:13; 1 Pet. 1:7).

(Matthew 13:21) "Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended."

(Luke 8:13) "They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away."

(1 Peter 1:7) "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:"

That faith which is "the gift of God" endures to the end. Only that faith which comes from God endures the testing of God. In the furnace gold and silver are made brighter. Dross is consumed. So it is in the furnace of affliction. True faith is made better. False faith is consumed.

Daniel 3

We are given a strikingly solemn example of this in Daniel 3:13-30.—The fires in that furnace in Babylon did not hurt Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. They only destroyed their bonds! But they consumed the Babylonians who threw them into the furnace!

· Then, when Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the burning and fiery furnace, the king promoted them.

· And far more importantly, God was honored as the result of their trial in the fiery furnace.

(Daniel 3:13-29) "Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Then they brought these men before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up? 15 Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? 16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. 17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. 18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.

19 Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: therefore he spake, and commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be heated. 20 And he commanded the most mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. 21 Then these men were bound in their coats, their hosen, and their hats, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. 22 Therefore because the king's commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. 24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king. 25 He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God. 26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire. 27 And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king's counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.

28 Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God. 29 Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and language, which speak any thing amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill: because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort."

More Precious Than Gold

True faith is more precious than gold and is only made better by the fire that tries it. But the Holy Spirit would have us understand that the "the trial of faith" (the trial itself) is more precious than perishing gold.

(1 Peter 1:7) "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:"

· Precious to us because it makes God’s promise sweet.

· Precious to our brethren because it strengthens them in faith.

· Precious to God because he is honored by that faith that endures the trial.

· Above all it will be found "precious" when the Lord Jesus in glory (2 Thess. 1:10).

(2 Thessalonians 1:10) "When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day."

Blessed be his name! Our great God has arranged to make “our light affliction, which is but for a moment work for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (2 Co. 4:18).

Now, watch this.—In Hebrews 11:33-38 the Holy Spirit shows us how that faith both performs the most remarkable deeds and suffers the most astonishing hardships, looking to Christ, believing Christ, seeking to honor Christ. Faith is ready to do either for the glory of God, at the will of God.

A. W. Pink wrote, “The performing of spectacular exploits and the enduring of terrible affliction, differ almost as much to the flesh as do Heaven and Hell, but they are one to faith when duty calls.”

· There is no task too great for our God, no task too great for one who believes God (vv. 33-34).

(Hebrews 11:33-34) "Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 34 Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens."

· There is no trial to great for any of us to endure, as we believe God (Heb. 11:35-38).

(Hebrews 11:35-38) "Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: 36 And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: 37 They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; 38 (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth."

(1 Corinthians 10:13) "There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it."

(Philippians 4:12-13) "I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. 13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

Faith’s Pinnacle

As the Holy Spirit directed Paul in giving us this great chapter on faith, all through these forty verses, he seems to be moving in an upward direction, showing us one great act of faith after another, each succeeding event a little greater than the one before it. When chapter 12 begins, we are immediately confronted with a great cloud of witnesses in heaven. But here, right at the end of chapter 11, the Apostle is describing faith’s pinnacle, faith’s highest point, faith’s greatest deeds. Here is the apex, the climax, the highest point of faith—“Destitute, Afflicted, Tormented!”

Why does the Holy Spirit set this before us as the very apex of faith? I’ll tell you why.—These men and women “of whom the world was not worthy,” “destitute, afflicted, tormented,” by enduring their great trials even unto death, displayed a faith that is completely subject to Christ, that bows submissively to whatever God is pleased to send, a faith so completely welded to Christ and one with him that imprisonment, torture and death are deliberately chosen and preferred to apostasy from him.

A "meek and quiet spirit" is of "great price" in the sight of God (1 Pet. 3:4). The meekness of faith is true meekness. It lies as willingly passive clay in the Potter’s hands.—It willingly accepts whatever lot our Father appoints. To be faithful unto death, to have unshakable confidence in our God, though he suffers us to be slain, to trust him though it appears that he has deserted us, is the highest exercise of all of faith.

Faith’s Strength

The strength of faith is not in us, but in God our Savior the Object of faith. Faith draws strength from him, believing his Word.

Faith recognizes that "the Lord God omnipotent reigneth" (Rev. 19:6). Our God sits on his throne, Sovereign over all the universe. "He doeth according to His will in the army of Heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay His hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?" (Dan. 4:35).

The believer understands that everything that enters our lives is ordered by him who is our heavenly Father. We know that our enemies can do nothing whatever against us without his direct permission.—Satan could not touch Job or sift Peter until he first first got permission from their Redeemer! Oh what a blessed, sure resting-place this is for the troubled and trembling heart. This is “a nail in a sure place!”

Believing God, we know all things work together for our good and his glory (Rom. 8:28). Satan roars fiercely. But God reigns supremely! His malicious designs are always overruled to accomplish God’s good designs (Ps. 76:10).

Faith causes and enables us to look beyond time to eternity. It anticipates the heavenly glory with confident assurance that "the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Rom. 8:18).

Hebrews 11:37-38—"They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; Of whom the world was not worthy: they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth."

These two verses describe some of the persecutions to which many of God’s saints in the Old Testament were subjected.

I. "They were stoned.—Counted as a people who were harmful, corrupting, destructive to society.

Stoning was form of capital punishment appointed by God to protect society as a whole from those who would destroy it by murder, rape, moral decadence and idolatry (Lev. 20:2, Joshua 7:24, 25). But that which God ordained for good Satan perverted for evil.

· "The devil is never more a devil nor more outrageous, than when he gets a pretense of God’s weapons into his own hands" (John Owen).

· Stephen was stoned to death.

· Paul, the one who penned these words "consented" to the stoning of Stephen (Acts 8:1).

· Later he himself was stoned at Lystra.

II. "They were sawn asunder."— As beasts who enraged men.

There is no record in Scripture of anyone being put to death this way, though tradition tells us that God’s prophet Isaiah was slaughtered by this barbaric method of execution.

I cannot tell you how rebuking this is to me. I pray that the Lord my God will, give me patience, make me faithful, and teach me contentment.

III. "Were tempted."

· They were tempted by their persecutors to repudiate their faith by the bait of life, impunity and deliverance.

· No doubt they were tempted of Satan to doubt the goodness and grace, power and faithfulness, mercy and love, promises and tender mercies of God.

IV. "Were slain with the sword."—For siding with Christ.

Those words would be more accurately translated, "they died in the slaughter of the sword."

· As Saul slaughtered those priests of God who were faithful to the Lord (1 Sam. 22:18-21).

· As Israel slaughtered God’s prophets under the reign of Ahab and Jezebel (1 Kings 19:10).

· Papists have exceeded all others, in their insatiable thirst for the blood of God’s saints.

· The Holy Spirit represents the whore Babylon as being "drunk with the blood of the saints" (Rev. 17:6).

V. "They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins."—As people unfit for society.

They were driven out of their homes and forced to live like animals, reduced to wearing the skins of wild beasts, instead of clothes woven by man. Any day, any one of these wanderers could have rejoined their families and former friends, enjoyed their society, and shared their comforts. But they preferred to live as wandering beasts than to deny Christ.—They loved not the world!—They loved not themselves.—They loved the Savior!

VI. "Being destitute, afflicted, tormented."

· "Destitute" means they were deprived of the ordinary necessities of life. Neither relative nor friend would intervene for these banished ones.

· "Afflicted" has reference to their state of mind. They were not stoics without emotion. They felt the pain of these hardships as acutely anyone else would.—There may be a reference here to Satan’s harassing torments because of their inward struggles with horrid unbelief.

· "Tormented" by the taunting jeers of men, the assaults of Satan, and the lusts of the flesh with which they had to contend.

VII. "Of whom the world was not worthy."

Here we see the difference between God’s estimate of his people and the world’s. God regards his people as "the excellent" of the earth in whom is his "delight" (Ps. 16:3).

The people of this world are altogether ignorant of it, but the fact is, all the blessings and benefits of providence they enjoy they enjoy because God’s saints yet dwell among them in this world. God’s people really are "the salt of the earth.”

· Their presence stays the hand of Divine judgment (Gen. 19:22) and brings down blessing (Gen. 30:27).

· Their prayers secure Divine healing (Gen. 20:17).

· Their presence brings both sunshine and rain upon their neighbors.

If your neighbors knew how much they benefit from you, rather than trying to run you out of town, they’d be making your house payments for you.

VIII. "They wandered in deserts, and in mountains, in dens and caves of the earth."

The word "wandered" suggests a wandering about as a stranger in an unknown place. It is the term used in reference Abraham in verse 8, and Hagar in Genesis 21:14. It is used in reference to wandering sheep in Matthew 18:12.—Now hear me, my brother. Hear me, my sister.

· So long as we are in this world we are wanderers and strangers. The world makes us wanderers and strangers. Let us make ourselves wanderers and strangers.

· This world can never provide a home, a resting place, or an inheritance for our souls.—It provides nothing for us but empty deserts, mountainous obstacles of trouble, and cold, damp, dark dens.

· But that’s all right. That’s just fine!

(Romans 8:18) "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us."