HOW DOES GOD "DEFINE" FAITHFULNESS?
I purpose to say something later about "faith" as distinct from "faithful".
In the biblical witness, does "faithful" mean sinless?
Does "faithful" mean "sinlessly keeping God's commandments"?
If it does, then only one individual in the entire human history was "faithful—Jesus Christ!
It's true, in a sense, that only Jesus was faithful to the Holy One.
But we usually say something like, "Jesus is the only one completely faithful to God."
For several reasons this is good and useful speech. Among other things, it reminds us that we are sinners and often fail God while Jesus never ever failed him. He did "always the things that please Him."
Still, if we read in Scriptures that sinners have been "faithful" to God; if we hear them described as people of faith then we must accept that as true. And we do hear sinners described as men and women of faith in Hebrews 11 and many other places. If that's the case—and it is—then we should happily accept it, especially since we are all sinners. If people who sin can't be regarded as people of faith then we're all in trouble—yes?
So, great sinners are said to be men and women of faith! What's more, when they're described that way it isn't a begrudging remark. It isn't as though the scriptures said, "Well, I suppose they were faithful. I suppose we could call them that even though it's true that they were sinners and blundered a lot. Just the same, it makes you wonder."
No, that's not the tone at all!
Hebrews 11 lists and alludes to men and women—sinners, everyone—and sings their praise as people of faith. The Hebrew writer doesn't mutter or whisper or murmur their names; he doesn't sheepishly mention them in a tone of reluctance or half embarrassment—he brags on them! He sets them up as examples for the ages! He even tells us that God was proud of them; that God wasn't ashamed to be called their God [11:16]. He goes on to close out the list by saying of these sinners, "Of whom the world was not worthy!" [11:38].
He's saying that of Abraham who twice sent his wife to a harem to save his own neck? He's saying that of Jacob whose very name meant "cheater" [and he lived up to it]? He's saying that of the drunken Noah, Moses, who was excluded from the land for unbelief, the prostitute Rahab, the murderous and adulterous David, the bandit Jephthah, the uncontrolled Samson, and the rest? These are the faithful people, the people he wants his peers to admire and follow in faith?
They are!
He wasn't ignorant of their great sins and he wasn't calling his drifting bothers and sisters to follow in the sins of these men and women of faith. He was reminding his readers that what made the esteemed ancestors was their faith that God was faithful, that God would indeed fulfill his promises no matter what the present seemed to say [Hebrews 11:8-13, 39]. God had made promises and these men and women gave their word to the God they believed was faithful and they kept it! Others might walk off after other gods but they wouldn't. Life's conditions would change, new kings would come on the scene, new nations would gain power, new challenges would rush at them that left them wondering what God was doing [or not doing]. But for all that, they had come to stay and they stayed!
They were all weak—everyone without exception. Some were weaker than others, some were stronger in some areas and weaker in others. If we had kept a list of the number of wrongs and rights some would have been lower on the ladder of moral excellence than others. They were all different but they were all the same. They were all sinners and yet every one on of them was faithful!
It had nothing to do with quantity of sins committed and good deeds done! The Hebrew writer was no accountant! He didn't deal in numbers but in hearts. He looked back over the history of his ancestors, not looking for non-sinners but for the faith-filled! He didn't search for those who had the lowest numbers of sins committed or the greatest number of virtuous deeds carried out.
He wasn't looking for moral excellence or for who was "better" than others. He was looking for faith! And he found it in amazing people!
God called great sinners "faithful". How are we to explain that?
Well, before you attempt the explanation accept God's judgment on the matter! Don't debate it—believe it!
©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.
Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, the abiding word.com.