Faithbook: Faith of the Heroes

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Philistines… Ammonites… Midianites… Bring it on!

Samson5 hrs

Philistines! We don’t need no stinkin’ Philistines!

David4 hrs

The Philistines helped me count to 200!

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Samson & David

Doing Exploits for God

Hebrews 11:32-38

HeroesEdit Profile

Heroes

Doing Exploits for God

Doing Exploits for God Heroes

Hebrews 1132 And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—


Hebrews 1133 who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,


Hebrews 1134 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.


Hebrews 1135 Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. 36 Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.


Hebrews 1137 They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated—


Hebrews 1138 of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.


God’s Heroes of Faith were not born with faith and courage.

Doing Exploits for God HeroesGideon struggled with

courage and

faith.

Comment


Gideon – Hiding Judges 6

11 Now the angel of the LORD came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites.


Gideon – HidingJudges 6

12 And the angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, “The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor.” (Judges 6


Gideon – Self-DoubtingJudges 6

15 … “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house.”


Gideon – AfraidJudges 6

27 So Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as theLORD had told him. But because he was too afraid of his family and the men of the town to do it by day, he did it by night.



9 That same night the LORD said to him, “Arise, go down against the camp, for I have given it into your hand. 10 But if you are afraid to go down, go down to the camp with Purah your servant.



11 And you shall hear what they say, and afterward your hands shall be strengthened to go down against the camp.” Then he went down with Purah his servant to the outposts of the armed men who were in the camp.


Gideon’s Struggle with Faith•When called by God, he asks for a miraculous sign:

“If now I have found favor in your eyes, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me.” (Judges 6:17)


Gideon’s Struggle with FaithWhen called by God into battle, he asks for another miraculous sign!


36 Then Gideon said to God, “If you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said, 37 behold, I am laying a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece alone, and it is dry on all the ground, then I shall know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you have said.”


38 And it was so. When he rose early next morning and squeezed the fleece, he wrung enough dew from the fleece to fill a bowl with water. (Judges 6)


Gideon’s Struggle with FaithAfter receiving another miraculous sign, he asks God to reverse the miracle!


39 Then Gideon said to God, “Let not your anger burn against me; let me speak just once more. Please let me test just once more with the fleece. Please let it be dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground let there be dew.”


40 And God did so that night; and it was dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground there was dew. (Judges 6)


God’s remedy for Gideon’s lack of faith and courage was an impossible task!

2 The LORD said to Gideon, “The people with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel boast over me, saying, ‘My own hand has saved me.’ (Judges 7)


22,000 10,000300 •Gideon’s great exploit for God was to defeat the greatly superior Midianite army with an army that God whittled down to 300 men!


Gideon’s character is shown after his great victory22 The Israelites said to Gideon, “Rule over us—you, your son and your grandson—because you have saved us out of the hand of Midian.”


Gideon’s character is shown after his great victory23 But Gideon told them, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The LORD will rule over you.” (Judges 8)

Doing Exploits for God HeroesBarakstruggled with

courage and

faith.

Comment


Judges 47… I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to meet you by the river Kishon with his chariots and his troops, and I will give him into your hand’?”


Judges 48 Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, I will go, but if you will not go with me, I will not go.”


Judges 49 And she said, “I will surely go with you. Nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.”


“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear—not absence of

fear.” Mark Twain


“Courage is being scared to death but saddling up

anyway.” John Wayne


God’s Heroes of Faith had their lapses of faith.

Doing Exploits for God HeroesSamson had

serious “lapses” of faith

and character.

Comment


Judges 141 Samson went down to Timnah, and at Timnah he saw one of the daughters of the Philistines. 2 Then he came up and told his father and mother, “I saw one of the daughters of the Philistines at Timnah. Now get her for me as my wife.”


Judges 143 But his father and mother said to him, “Is there not a woman among the daughters of your relatives, or among all our people, that you must go to take a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?” But Samson said to his father, “Get her for me, for she is right in my eyes.”


Judges 16:1Samson went to Gaza, and there he saw a prostitute, and he went in to her.


Judges 16:4After this he loved a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.

Doing Exploits for God HeroesJephthah had

serious “lapses” of faith

and character.

Comment


Judges 11 (NIV)23 “Now since the LORD, the God of Israel, has driven the Amorites out before his people Israel, what right have you to take it over?


Judges 11 (NIV)24 Will you not take what your god Chemosh gives you? Likewise, whatever the LORD our God has given us, we will possess.


Judges 1130 And Jephthah made a vow to the LORD and said, “If you will give the Ammonites into my hand, 31 then whatever

comes out from the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the Ammonites shall be the LORD's, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.”


Judges 1134 Then Jephthah came to his home at Mizpah. And behold, his daughter came out to meet him with tambourines and with dances. She was his only child; besides her he had neither son nor daughter.


Judges 11 35 And as soon as he saw her, he tore his clothes and said, “Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low, and you have become the cause of great trouble to me. For I have opened my mouth to the LORD, and I cannot take back my vow.”


David had serious

“lapses” of faith

and character.

Comment



The most important matter is not where you digress to during your journey of

faith, but rather, where you finish.


Despite questionable beginnings and weak middles, God’s Heroes of the Faith are remembered most for how they ended the race.


More Heroes•Shut the mouth of lions - Daniel also Samson, David and Benaiah (one of David’s mighty men)•Quenched the fury of the flames – Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego


More Heroes•Women received back their dead – Elijah and the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17)

Elisha and the Shunammite Woman (2 Kings 4).


More Heroes•Stoned – Zechariah the son of Jehoiada (2 Chronicles 24:21)

Jeremiah? Tradition states that Jeremiah was stoned by his fellow Jews.


More Heroes•Sawn in two –

Isaiah? This is a reference to a tradition that Isaiah was martyred in this way.


Ivan Vasilevich“Vanya”


The most important matter…• is not where you start your journey of faith.• is not where you digress during your journey of faith.• is where you finish your journey of faith!


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Faithbook: Faith of the Heroes