Winners, Losers, Believers

calendar_today July 5, 2026

menu_book Hebrews 11:32-40 , Philippians 4:12-13 ,

person Rev. T. J. Campo

view_list What It Means to Live By Faith ,

This chapter maybe,more than any other part of the written sermon called the Book of Hebrews; Ch. 11 is there to prove that the basis of OT spirituality or religion is God giving grace to undeserving people and people receiving that grace BY FAITH or TRUST.

The writer demonstrates this by using like 15 specific examples (we’ve looked at all of them); he parades these towering figures, the B.C. heroes whom every Jewish child knew and admired: the superstars of the OT… The writer shows that they were not really all that heroic. In themselves they were a lot like we are (as in James 5.17). They became known as great doers but in reality, they were FIRST… great receivers.

God poured out His grace on them and they received. This act of “active passivity,” (Schaeffer), appropriating grace from God is what the Bible calls “faith”. They inhaled grace “by faith” (over 20x) and that grace from God saved them, changed them, blessed them, made their lives extraordinary.

And now the writer closes his argument with this final burst of rapid-fire list of (Judges, Kings and Prophets) atop the characters he’s already commemorated.

It’s important for us to see because, in our time, the words faith/believe mean various things to various people. It’s a Biblical word but often redefined or undefined. AND some Christians see faith as a one-time act and living “by faith” has little to do with the everyday spiritual life. So, let’s look at:
This chapter maybe more than any other part of the written sermon called the Book of Hebrews; Ch. 11 is there to prove that the basis of OT spirituality or religion is God giving grace to undeserving people and people receiving that grace BY FAITH