InPerspective

Harry Reeder: Don't miss the first word. Therefore, since we have such a great cloud of witnesses. In other words, what is he telling you? These trophies of grace that have been enumerated.

Not exhaustively of all of them in the Old Testament, but specifically selected ones by the Spirit of God, the writer of Hebrews says, they were there for you, so you could learn from them. So you could understand what it means to walk by faith and not by sight.

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Harry Reeder: Putting life in biblical perspective with Dr. Harry L. Reeder. This is In Perspective, a radio and Internet ministry of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals.

We say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. But the Apostle Paul didn't have mere flattery in mind when he told the Corinthians, be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. The Bible gives us several honest biographies of great heroes of the Christian faith, and we would do well to imitate the godly characteristics, faith, and faithfulness of these noteworthy saints from Holy Scripture.

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Harry Reeder: Stay with us now as Dr. Reeder begins our new series, Biblical Biographies: Who, Why, How. Let's turn to Hebrews chapter 12 and verses 1 through 3 for today's teaching. Part one of the message, Let Us Also.

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Harry Reeder: I love this letter, Hebrews. Number one, it solves who makes the coffee in the morning? I really like that joke. I don't know why it doesn't work any better than it does.

Secondly, I get to tell you who I think wrote Hebrews. No, I don't think it was Paul, but there's some Paulinisms. So, I think it was someone close to Paul, and I think you get two choices, personally. Well, three choices. Somebody we have no idea under the direction of Paul, therefore apostolic authority.

Or, secondly, someone close to Paul, maybe someone like Apollos. Or thirdly, I believe it's the third volume of Luke's trilogy. I think it was Luke that actually wrote this. Under the direction of Paul for various reasons, but it's an interesting epistle, and I want you to go to it with me, simply to take a look at chapter 12 and verses 1 through 2.

Therefore, therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

You know, one of the things that I'd like to mention to you is I want to walk you through a study of biblical biographies. Tonight, I want to tell you, give you my rationale, answering three questions: Who will we study? What do you study when you look at biblical biographies? And thirdly, why? Why are biblical biographies worth studying, and why should we study them, and what should be our focus in it?

That's what I hope to do today. But I want to maybe substantiate why we're doing it from the text in front of you, Hebrews chapter 12. It's one of my favorite texts because of a family story. In my own family, a little story here. When our oldest was born, I was pretty aggressive on family devotions, and since I was taking Greek, I felt like she ought to learn Greek.

So, we started with Greek, and then we went to just skip the Children's Catechism, went to the Shorter Catechism, and all of the creeds and confessions, and of course the Apostles' Creed was one. And then memory verses. So, this was, these two verses was my oldest daughter's memory verse when I was at Covenant College. And then when we would have people in to eat with us and host people for an evening of either encouragement of believers or evangelism of lost people.

One of my bridges for evangelism at our little banquets, which weren't much of a banquet, but at our little banquets, was I would say, "Well, we're so glad to have you in our home. Now, one of the things we do at the dinner table is have family devotions." So, "Thank you for coming, and guess what, you get to participate, at least listen in."

And so, we would go through the reading of the scripture, and then I would turn, I didn't have the other two children yet, but I turned to the oldest, and I said to her, I said, "Jennifer, why don't you share with the people what you're learning?" Now, sometimes when you're a young child, a couple of years old, you're not being able to separate things that you're learning.

God has a way of humbling you when you've exalted yourself, or exalting you when you've humbled yourself, and so he has then humbled me that day. As I turned to my daughter and I said to her, "We've learned the Apostles' Creed, haven't we?" She said, "Yes." And I said, "And we've learned Hebrews 12, right?" She said, "Yes." And I said, "Why don't you share it with them?" So, I'll never forget this moment. I love this. Every time I come to this verse, I think of it.

So, she began, "Therefore, since we have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also run with endurance the race that is set before us, and let us also lay aside the sin that so easily entangles us. And fixing our eyes on Jesus, who for the cross that was set before him, endured its shame, and despising the shame, has sat down at the right hand of the Father. From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints."

So, I think I set my daughter up for my own humility that day. But I love this passage, this pivotal moment. Hebrews is unfolded the glories of the new Covenant that comes through the concealment of the new Covenant in the Old Covenant that's now revealed what the Old Covenant was all about in the new Covenant. You got Moses, but now we got one better than Moses. You got David, now we got one better than David.

You've got the Levitical priest, but now we've got the priest according to the order of Melchizedek. And here is the glory of the new Covenant. And then he says, "But these old covenant saints have so much to teach us." And then you have this great chapter in chapter 11 by faith.

And we see Noah, we see Enoch, we see Gideon, we see Samson, we see saint after saint like you on the other side anticipating Christ, saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, the promised one, by their believing the promises of God.

And then how they lived by faith. And then having given us this, as many preachers call it, in chapter 11, the Hall of Faith. He then goes to chapter 12. Don't miss the first word. Therefore, since we have such a great cloud of witnesses.

In other words, what is he telling you? These trophies of grace that have been enumerated. Not exhaustively of all of them in the Old Testament, but specifically selected ones by the Spirit of God, the writer of Hebrews says, they were there for you, so you could learn from them, so you could understand what it means to walk by faith and not by sight.

What you can understand, how you walk by faith, that's been secured as a gift from God's grace. And you even have a better position. You're on the other side of the fulfillment of the promises of God in the new Covenant. But learn from these in the Old Covenant, and he unfolds these great saints for us to learn. What do you learn from them? You want to know how to deal with entangling sin? Take a look at them.

You want to know how to shed everything that would keep you back from running the race to the glory of God to the best of your ability? Take a look at them. Take a look at them, warts, pimples, and beauty marks, all of it. Because I'll show it to you, and see what you can learn from them.

Brothers and sisters, if I had the opportunity to personally disciple every single one of you, I would introduce you to models of the faith. I would introduce you to mentors in the faith. I would introduce you to those who have gone before you that can motivate you in the faith.

God has recorded for us in his word biographies. They are there for our encouragement, for our edification, for our conviction, for our consolation. Here is the great cloud of witnesses all through the 66 books of your Bible.

So, pastor, who are you going to introduce us to? Now, let me confess, I want to get this off my heart. I'm doing this because this to me is one way that I can disciple from a distance, yet be very personal by introducing you to these biographical narratives.

I love history. I guess you know that. Probably there's no greater piece of history I love. In fact, if you go to my library to look through my history books, you'll find the majority of them are biographies. I think there's no better way to learn about history than to read about the people that were living it, making it, and that were enduring it, and that were shaping it.

That's why when people say to me, "You know, pastor, you need to rethink some of your theology, or you're going to be on the wrong side of history." That has no impact on me whatsoever, because the people that I read, who make history, never worry about being on the wrong side of history. That's why they make history.

While I'll never be able to untie the latches of their shoes, I do know this, those who make history not only are not worried about not being on the wrong side of history, their heart desire is to be on the right side of theology, and that's the right side of God. That's why I want to introduce you to these people.

I'm going to be honest with you. I'm going to show you the warts and pimples, as well as their beauty marks. I want to show you all of that because the Bible records it. The Bible records it for a reason.

Now, pastor, who are you going to introduce us to? I'm not going to take the easy way out. Joseph, Daniel, Job, Moses. It would be pretty easy to come up with a 46-minute sermon, 42 to 46-minute sermon on these guys, but I'm not going there. The best way I know to shape it is this.

Another thing that we would do as a family, if there was ever a movie worth seeing that we could see, we would go see it, and we would download it, we would debrief it, we would talk about it. I remember one of my children one time said to me, "Daddy, can't we just watch the movie?" "No, we can't, because that's what they want you to do is just sit there and watch it while they pour it into you what they're trying to communicate. You've got to filter it, you've got to take a look at it, you've got to understand it."

And that's when I said to her, I said, "If you understood that, you wouldn't have made that mistake in devotions back when you were two years old. You understand that, don't you?" Folks, here's the deal, is that everything that's being communicated to us comes through a world and life view. People have a perspective they're communicating. Whatever it is, there's something being communicated, visually, audio, as you're seeing it and hearing it, it's impacting you.

But here's what I began to understand, is that whenever I would look at the story and I would go to a movie in particular, I noticed something. The movies I was enjoying and learning from and that kept me, not only had good leading men and women, there were what the business calls character actors. Go try to find a John Wayne movie without Chill Wills. You won't even find one.

Go and take a look at a Clint Eastwood movie. I can tell you eight of the people that are going to be in the cast. Everybody paid for the leading man and the leading woman. But the people that made the story were the people you usually skip over, like Nathan. We love to go to David. But if you didn't have Nathan, you wouldn't have David as the man that he is.

What does the Bible say about Nathan? Where was the first revival that perhaps staved off to some degree the flood's application for another generation? Enoch walked with God and was no more. Take a look at Enoch. Gideon, Samson, Miriam, Deborah, Nathan, the non-descript preacher.

Here are all of these characters that have so much to say to us, and the Bible presents them to us with honesty. These are the people that fill in the blanks. We usually go to the quote-unquote leading men and women. And understandably so, and should. But don't miss these background characters that bring so much to us. And I want to introduce them to you.

So, that's who, but what are we going to study? Well, we've got plenty of material. Now, I didn't do this, Howard Hendricks did this, but I agree with him. I trust him. He says that there are 349 biographical studies in your Bible. 349. In other words, if I take every night, I could preach for over two years on this. 349 biographical sketches in your Bible.

Then he makes an amazing statement, I'm going to take him at his word. 349 biographical sketches, but only 67 finished strong. Only 67 finished the course strong. Their last mile was their best mile.

What do we have to learn from those 67? What do we have to learn from the 200 plus that didn't finish strong? So, I want to take you to the biblical data, and there's more there than you think. And the Bible knows there's a lot there for you to take in. In fact, do you have your Bibles ready? Let me show you the passages that moved upon my heart to do this series.

Would you take your Bibles and go with me to First Thessalonians? And I'm just going to do this not with a linear logical thought, but just to kind of help out in terms of location in your Bible. Go with me to First Thessalonians. New Christians, here's the encouragement, all the teas are together. So, if you get to a Timothy or a Titus, you're close to Thessalonians.

First Thessalonians, let me help you again, it's right in front of Second Thessalonians. It's great. Every time you look, it'll be right there. Look with me in First Thessalonians, chapter 1. Take a look at verse 5, "Because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit with full conviction. You know what kind of men."

You saw our lives, the biography of our life to some degree while we were there. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake, and you became what? Imitators. You used us as models and mentors.

Slip over to chapter 2 of First Thessalonians, chapter 2 and go down with me to verse 13. "And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God which you heard from us," in other words, we mentored you, we modeled for you, "you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it, not as the word of men, but as for what it really is, the word of God which is at work in you believers. For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea." In other words, you not only learned from us, you learned from your brothers who were suffering for Christ in Judea. You grabbed a hold of some biographical messages.

Slip well over with me to the passage in Hebrews that I just read, chapter 12, then go over one more chapter with me. Go over to one more chapter with me. Hebrews chapter 13. Hebrews chapter 13, one of my favorite passages, verse 7. This actually was the foundation of the book I wrote, 3D Leadership was out of this verse. "Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God." Consider the outcome of their way of life. Look at their narrative. Look at their biography, your leaders, and then imitate their faith.

Learn from it. Learn how to embrace it. Learn how to embrace it for the Lord. Take your Bibles and go over to Third John. You do know you got four Johns in your Bible. Big John, three little Johns.

Go to Third John and chapter 1. There's a giveaway. Slip down if you would to verse 10. "So, if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us." In other words, he's going to identify the false teacher. "And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church. Beloved, do not imitate evil, but imitate good."

So, in other words, there are things you don't imitate and there are things you do. Can I say something? You're going to see things in the life of biographical studies that are good by God's grace, and you're also going to see things that aren't good. That's why when Paul tells Timothy to imitate him, he always qualifies it. "Imitate me as I imitate Christ." Don't imitate the sin that you see, and there are no perfect models except Jesus.

The Bible will be honest about this. So, we'll know what is right to imitate and what is wrong, and what is behind what we're imitating. In fact, would you go to just two more passages, but in one more letter? Go to First Corinthians, one that I just referred to. Go with me to First Corinthians and slip into chapter 4, chapter 4 of First Corinthians.

Go down to verse 14. "I do not write these things to make you ashamed, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel." "I urge you then, be imitators of me." "That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ as I teach them everywhere in every church." Now, listen, do you get what he just did?

He said this, "I want you to imitate me as I imitate Christ. And you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to send to you Timothy, who was discipled by me, who imitated me as I imitate Christ, because now not only do you have me, you have the man who learned of Christ from me, and you can imitate him. Now we got two generations, and we're about to have a third one, and that is the generation that learns of Timothy and Paul both."

Pastor, this imitation thing. Do you really believe? Yes, I believe that two things affect you in your Christian walk. One is instruction, and the other is imitation. I know you probably think, "Harry, you believe instruction's more important than imitation, right? You believe the mentoring is more important than the modeling, right?"

Well, yes and no. Let me explain that. I believe the modeling is important. I believe that 80% of what you learn in life you learn by imitation.

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Harry Reeder: The Bible gives us several honest biographies of great heroes of the Christian faith, and we would do well to imitate the godly characteristics of these noteworthy saints. You are listening to In Perspective, featuring the teaching of Dr. Harry L. Reeder. Our new sermon series, Biblical Biographies: Who, Why, How.

Parenting, it has never been easy, but in today's culture with numerous challenges, we need as much help as we can get. Parenting with Purpose and Promise is a significant part of Dr. Reeder's series, Seven Essentials for the Christian family. This series is our free gift to you when you call 1-800-488-1888 or when you visit inperspective.org. This series is our way of saying thanks for listening.

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Missionary martyr Jim Elliot said, "One life will soon be passed. Only what's done for Christ will last." Join us again next time as Dr. Reeder shows us the importance of models to imitate in the Christian life. That's next time as we turn back to the scriptures to put life in biblical perspective.

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