Monday 26 October 2026

Psalm 5:1-8

Background
The 11th chapter of Hebrews is a carefully crafted piece of rhetoric and we often hear or read it (or parts of it) in isolation from the rest of the epistle. Sometimes, though, it is important to remember that the chapter and verse divisions which are so familiar to us appeared in the Bible long after the books themselves were written and were intended not to divide the text but to make it easy to find a place. The opening of chapter 11 is the continuation of a train of thought that we found in chapter 10 when the writer encouraged the readers not to give up on the Church. Instead of drifting away, as some apparently were (and therefore letting go of their salvation), the writer and the readers are among those who have faith (and therefore are being saved).

Chapter 11 expands on what it means to have faith. The Greek word has a range of meanings which the writer explores, so the ideas overlap. Faith is belief that is far more than simply thinking that something is true: it has substance and it has conviction. Faith, therefore, shapes the way in which we understand the world and the way in which we think about the future. The rest of the chapter gives some examples from Israel’s history of people who acted as they did because they had faith.

Before moving onto that litany, the writer offers a fundamental example of what it means to have faith. Faith is belief in something that cannot be otherwise evidenced. None of us was there when God made the world: that God made the world is a statement of faith. Centuries of philosophical and scientific argument have not led to a rational proof of the assertion that the world was made by God, but for those who belong to the Church, then and now, it is a conviction that shapes all that we do.

To Ponder:

• In some church services, the congregation is invited join in saying the Creed which begins ‘I believe in God…’ What do you feel about that at that moment?
• Does it make a difference if the Creed begins ‘We believe…’ rather than ‘I believe…’?

Bible notes author: The Revd Dr Jonathan Hustler
Jonathan Hustler is a presbyter who currently serves as the Secretary of the Conference.