A few months ago I taught a summary of the book of Judges. It tells the story of Israel’s failure to be faithful to the covenant as the generation after Joshua seeks to complete the conquest of Canaan. If we’re honest, this is not one of our top ten favorite Bible books to read. It contains some of the darkest episodes in redemptive history. By the end of the book, it seems all of Israel is living in a state of moral chaos with one whole tribe at risk of being exterminated. Are there any faithful Israelites left? The moral character and actions of the last three major judges – Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson – go from sketchy to worse. But flip over to the New Testament and notice who is mentioned in Hebrews 11:32-34:

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 – who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, 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.

One of the mistakes we make in Bible reading is expecting every character to be a hero. I remember the time when I realized I was doing that. I had started reading through the Bible again and wasn’t too far along in Genesis before I sensed a real disappointment in the main characters. I had an expectation for them to behave much better than they were. It raised questions for me. Why did Abraham keep lying about Sarah being his sister? Why was Jacob such a schemer and deceiver? And don’t even mention the story of Judah and Tamar in Genesis 38. I read that quickly, trying to ignore my questions in order to get to the story of Joseph.

Judges contains a few stellar examples – Othniel, Achsah and Deborah – but many more that trouble us. Some try to dress up Gideon but he just won’t fit the mold of squeaky clean Bible hero as we get to the end of his life and read of his making an ephod that reminds us too much of the incident with the golden calf. Jephthah shows great courage and faith but makes a tragic vow, trying to manipulate God and as a result his daughter becomes the victim. Samson’s birth story gives us hope but very soon we read of his immoral behavior, his vow breaking, and his vengeance taking.

Back to Hebrews 11. Many have nicknamed this chapter “The Hall of Fame of Faith”. I would like to push back on that. We love famous people in America. We have many kinds of halls of fame; a quick search on Wikipedia blew my mind as to all the kinds that exist – everything from sports to accounting to military intelligence to radio. What do those halls of fame celebrate? They celebrate people and their accomplishments. I think too often we read Hebrews 11 as an honor roll of the people of God. Do you remember honor rolls in school? I do. I loved making the honor roll and even more I loved making the distinguished honor roll. Hebrews 11 may begin like the distinguished honor roll of God’s people. These are the people who were really great. Yes, we know of Abraham and Moses’ weaknesses, but these are pillars. It’s not until we get to Gideon, Jephthah and Samson that we may start asking questions.

These questions are good because, at least for me, they have uncovered another way I read the Bible incorrectly and another instance where I assume a merit based salvation. I want to see every Bible character grow consistently in their faith, maturing from one level to the next until they reach a certain pinnacle of godliness at the end of their lives. Wouldn’t that qualify them for the hall of fame of faith? Isn’t that what perseverance is supposed to look like?

Salvation and sanctification are not an unbroken upward trajectory. Faith is not a performance where we earn a report card. If I judge myself and others based on these mistaken assumptions I make a mockery of what Christ accomplished. He performed on my behalf, earning the righteousness that I never could. His merit is all sufficient.

Hebrews 11 is not the distinguished honor roll of faith. It’s not a hall of fame that exalts the accomplishments of God’s people. The point of Hebrews 11 is to exalt the enduring value of faith, for without it we cannot please God (v. 6). Faith may, and should, result in good deeds, but the essence of faith is not looking ourselves but Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith (see Hebrews 12:1-3). For at its root, faith doesn’t even originate with us, but is a gracious gift of God (see Ephesians 2:8-9).