I have a number of study Bibles I use to prepare sermons and Bible studies and the like. But my go-to Bible for nearly 25 years has been Concordia Publishing House's "Today's Light" Bible," edited by Jane Fryer. After each daily Bible reading (can you read through the Scriptures in about two years following their program), Fryer offers a rich devotional thought. She gets Law & Gospel and doesn't confuse the two. I have been reading through Hebrews and I was taken by Fryer's comments on chapter 11, which I call "The Hall of Faith."
Suppose God kept a family photo album. What snapshots might He include? Hebrews 11 gives us some broad hints:
God "spoke well" of Abel's offerings (vs. 4)
Enoch "pleased" God (vs. 5)
Noah became an "heir of righteousness that comes by faith" (vs. 7)
Abraham "obeyed" (verse 8)
Jacob "worshipped" (verse 21)
But we know these "children" - and there's more to the story. Where are photos of Noah's drunkenness or Abraham's lies? Where are the news clippings that detail Jacob's cowardice? If all the facts were in, this chapter would be a "hall of shame."
But all the facts are in. Jesus' death on the cross destroyed sin's power to accuse those who belong to God by faith. You see, God did not just sweep human guilt under the rug. He atoned for it at the cross. Noah's sins are forgiven! Abraham's sins are forgiven! Your sins and my sins are forgiven! Hebrews 11 is an accurate record of the lives lived by these people made perfect by faith (Hebrews 10:4).
