sermon: Grace, Mercy, and Favor (Part Three): A Faithful Witness to God's Mercy

Mark Schindler
Given 20-Mar-21; Sermon #1588B; 45 minutes

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As I said on February 6th, when I began this series of messages with a focus on God's grace, mercy, and favor, I consider this a particularly important subject that we need to carefully consider as we go through Passover, the Days of Unleavened Bread, and the count to the Feast of Firstfruits. And as I hope we have seen to this point, although God does not need us, He is counting on us to do our job with an eye toward His grace, His mercy, and favor, constantly at work within each of us of the elected Jesus Christ to live in accord with Him in following His sterling example of self-sacrifice. And again, what I hope to accomplish with these messages is to help us appreciate just how special we are to God, and how much He is counting on His elect to be one united body in and through Jesus Christ, because the Word of God, the grace of God, literally resides in each one of us.

However, because our calling and election is so unique within God's purpose, and because we are still carnal it is easy to find ourselves trapped by our own foolish pride. It is for this reason that we began this series by devoting the initial split sermon to trying to help us recognize our need to follow the example of the repentant publican in Christ's parable of Luke 18, who beat his breast, and dared not even raise his eyes to God's presence. This needs to be our attitude, especially as we approach the Passover and more intensely consider the incredible sacrificial work that Jesus Christ alone did and continues to do. We must have this mindset in our God-given relationship with Him, rather than presenting ourselves as the virtually chest-pounding Pharisee who congratulated himself before God for his station in life that he had been given, which was above that publican behind him.

Today, as we approach the Passover next Friday evening, this will again be a vital part of this message, and our self-evaluation against the plumbline that is Jesus Christ, and the mercy of God that has not only been given, but we all must be declared by our own faithfulness and our faithful service to Him.

Please consider these words by John Ritenbaugh’s commentary on Luke 18, where he said, “The humble publican did not delude himself into thinking he was righteous. What made the difference? It was a true evaluation and recognition of the self in relation to God, and not to men.”

With this in mind, we will begin in II Corinthians with the reality of what God has made each of us to be right now, through Jesus Christ. As Paul puts it in II Corinthians 5:

II Corinthians 5:17-21 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

II Corinthians 6:1-2 We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says: "In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you." Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

II Corinthians 6:16-18 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people." Therefore "Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you." "I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty."

II Corinthians 7:1 Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Now considering these things we just read, I would like to follow up on something that I mentioned in the last message regarding mercy as it appeared in the days of Noah. I hope we will see a more complete picture of God's meticulous work from the beginning to the end, and how he mercifully brings mere men of faith right into it by His grace; to become part of the witness testimonial to all who follow; part of the growing testimonial of His righteous mercy that is making our entrance into the Family of God a distinct possibility.

Through faithful use of His grace dwelling in us, we become in line with Him as preachers of righteousness in word and deed, just as Noah was in a time that had become the absolute antithesis of the grace of God. We are going to see just how far God is going to make sure we understand the extent of His carefully executed work through His perfect mercy that is only truly complete and the ultimate sacrifice of God Himself and Jesus Christ. It is only by this perfect, merciful self-sacrifice that God is fulfilling His own intention: to bring men to repentance, salvation, and knowledge of the truth, as we read in II Peter 3.

II Peter 3:8-14 But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless.

I wanted to start here because it gives us a quick look at God's patience and diligent work, as well as what He expects from those who know these things by His grace.

I would also like you to hold on to the word peace. It appears in verse 14. “Be diligent that you may be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless.” The Amplified Bible translates this verse as,

II Peter 3:14 (AMP) So, beloved, since you are expecting these things, be eager to be found by Him [at His coming] without spot or blemish and at peace [in serene confidence, free from fears and agitating passions and moral conflicts].

At this point, I would like you to turn back one chapter.

II Peter 2:1-5 But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed. By covetousness they will exploit you with deceptive words; for a long time their judgment has not been idle, and their destruction does not slumber. For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly.

In a few minutes we are going to go back to Genesis 6 and the days of Noah. But I wanted us to make sure that we realize that what we will see there was not unique from the beginning to the end of our battle with Satan. But we will see God's perfect mercy is always going to be involved, and will be reflected in those who are called and use the God-given gifts to the best of their ability and faith.

Before we turn there, please turn with me to Hebrews 10.

Hebrews 10:36-39 For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise: "For yet a little while, and He who is coming will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; but if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him." But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul.

Hebrews 11:1-7 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, "and was not found, because God had taken him"; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

It is impossible for us to please God unless we become part of this great cloud of witnesses patiently trusting God, carrying out our responsibilities with the same self-sacrifice as those who have gone before us, and especially Jesus Christ.

It says there by faith Abel offered. Brethren, I am afraid that we do not spend as much time thinking about what Abel did as we do about what Cain did to him. But God shows us that a faithful servant using his God-given gifts becomes part of God's declaration of His perfect judgment tempered by His mercy for everyone else down the road, he becomes a preacher of righteousness.

Please turn with me back to Genesis 4.

Genesis 4:1-10 Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, and said, "I have acquired a man from the LORD." Then she bore again, this time his brother Abel. Now Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the LORD. Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the LORD respected Abel and his offering, but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. So the LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it." Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him. Then the LORD said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother?" He said, "I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper?" And He said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground.”

I think it would be safe to assume that both Cain and Abel had been taught by Adam from Adam's eyewitness account about Satan's lies and what sin did to their relationship with God.

But just as surely, Adam taught them about God's promised salvation by His mercy through the Seed of men as recorded in Genesis 3:15 who was the only hope for all men, but only Abel took the future sacrificial offering of Jesus Christ seriously enough and followed the very pattern God Himself had set in Genesis 3:21 and faithfully offered the best animal he could in faithful anticipation of what that animal sacrifice truly represented. Although probably unsure just how this would come to pass, he nonetheless stepped out in faithful obedience to God.

However, it is good for us to keep in mind that in a world that is enmity against God, God allowed Abel's faithful obedience to cost him his life. He became the first named witness of God and the cost of faithful obedience in a world driven by carnal nature was ultimately death.

Brethren, Cain allowed sin in by his own faithlessness; Satan makes his second recorded attempt to destroy God's plan as he inspires a vengeance-filled Cain to kill his brother. Abel’s self-sacrifice becomes another part of God's permanent record, and ultimately points to what sin always will do, as well as God's mercy tempered judgment, and the cost involved in sacrificial service.

The next one mentioned back in Hebrews is Enoch of whom we know very little except for two very important points. The first is within the days prior to the Flood, only he and Noah are referred to as walking with God. God makes sure that we know both had the same intimate relationship with Him. The other point is that Enoch was taken by God and moved someplace else. And I think it would be not out of line to consider that this was done to keep him from suffering the same fate as Abel in a time that was getting slowly but surely overwhelmed by the fury of Satan. God had something else in mind for this righteous man, and his faithful work within another part of God's carefully planned and executed purpose. Enoch undoubtedly had a bull's eye on his back, so to speak. And God took him out of the firing range.

We cannot be sure what God's reason was, but I would like to propose my thoughts to you concerning this because I think it may be another interesting facet of God's long and patient strategy of tempering His judgment with mercy. As I said, this is pure speculation on my part. But I hope it may be some food for thought as we consider with great anticipation, God's long-range work and His merciful intent to patiently bring all men eventually to repentance. It also shows how much He expects from those He calls along the way to use the gifts He gives.

As each generation passed, men were moving farther and farther away from God, so that by the time of Noah and a bit more than 120 years before the Flood, Genesis 6:5 records that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continuously. It was so bad that God determined to bring a judgment down on billions existing in those days where every imagination of their thoughts of men were evil continuously. With an eye to continue moving His plan forward, He gave Noah the tools he needed by His grace to build the ark as God patiently continued to move His plan forward toward the promise of the merciful redemption He had given in the Garden.

Hopefully we are going to appreciate more during this Passover season just how much God's mercy is a part of His plan and purpose to patiently bring all men to repentance, salvation, and knowledge of the truth through Jesus Christ. God is driving home the point through all the generations of men, just how vile sin is, and just what it costs when we allow Satan to gain a foothold because we drift away from Him.

With this in mind, let us look at Enoch and a few circumstantial, but perhaps key facts we can glean from what God's Word tells us.

The first is that if we do the math, we know the Flood took place about 1,656 years after Adam was created. By and large we see that 900-plus years was a common lifespan, even though Noah's father Lamech was the only one notable exception besides Enoch. Lamech’s lifespan was only 777 years. We can also surmise a few other notable relevant pieces here. Well in advance of the Flood, God could apparently see hardly any evidence in the hearts of men of anything but evil thinking continuously. So the question is: How was Noah given the tools he needed to keep his head on straight when Satan was on a rampage trying to destroy God's plan infecting men with his own contemptuous spirit? Men had drifted so far from God that Satan and his demons were embedded in the minds of men and wickedness was everywhere you looked.

Noah's grandfather Methuselah, whose name means “javelin,” an instrument of war, was very likely no help in teaching his grandson to walk with God. One dictionary of biblical names I have read, even said his name actually means, “He has sent his death.” Methuselah, the oldest man in the Bible, died the year of the Flood and perhaps even in the Flood.

Although Noah's father Lamech is considered by a number of commentators to be a religious man who gave Noah the background he needed, Lamech’s name also indicates a possible nefarious connection. One dictionary wrote his name meant “overthrower.” And another, “he made low.” Lamech died five years before the Flood, and obviously, he had not influenced any of Noah's siblings to righteousness. We know they, too, all died either prior to, or in the Flood, because all life was wiped out, except those on the ark.

But brethren, somebody was there who could teach Noah what he had learned directly from Adam about sin and its consequences, as well as the promise of salvation through the seed of men. There was somebody there who could know of faithful Abel, and what he had done in faith. It is evident that God gave Noah directions that He expected to be faithfully executed just as Noah did. But who was there that God had put in place to use the gifts that he had been given in order to help Noah stay focused so he would be ready to carry out his own faithful service before God as God preserved the line of men in spite of ourselves?

Please hold your finger there in Genesis and turn with me back to Jude right there before Revelation.

Jude 1-4 Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ: Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you. Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

Although Jude was addressing a current circumstance of his day, this is something that would be happening to some degree at all times because of Satan's spirit and the contempt for God's plan.

Jude 11-15 Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots; raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever. Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, "Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him."

Now please turn with me back to the book of Acts, chapter 3, verse 18.

Acts 3:18-21 But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.

Brethren, this irrevocable truth of Jesus Christ's sacrificial offering as the Promised Seed of men had been taught by His prophets to God's people from the beginning. This is what Enoch taught in word and deed, just as Abel faithfully proclaimed in his sacrificial offering and his death that bears witness to us to this day.

God calls things what they are. Both Noah's father and grandfather seem to be part of the problem rather than part of the solution. On the other hand, God made sure that we see Noah and Enoch faithfully did their respective jobs by the grace of God and pointed to the solution.

Remember what I asked you earlier to keep that word peace from II Peter 3:14 in mind, where it said as we read in the reading the Amplified Version,

II Peter 3:14 (AMP) So, beloved, since you are expecting these things, be eager to be found by Him [at His coming] without spot or blemish and at peace [in serene confidence, free from fears and agitating passions and moral conflicts].

Noah's name means rest. And I think we can be assured that God made certain that Noah had been given the gifts necessary to have a mind and a heart unblemished by Satan's violent, agitating passions and conflicts of the day, serenely confident in God's promise to continue his salvation, the salvation process, even as Satan's violent attempts to destroy it raged all around him. And I believe it was Enoch, whose name means teacher, who helped Noah along the way. Adam died at 930 years old. And Enoch was born when Adam was 622 years old and then taken away by God only 365 years later. Then, 57 years after Adam died, Enoch was taken away. So, 248 of those 365 years were lived while Adam was still there as a living eyewitness, who could describe Satan's modus operandi, as well as what sin destroyed. But more importantly, Adam was the only human living witness of the sure promise God had made directly in his presence.

Through faith in what he had been given from Adam and by God's grace, Enoch walked with God. But you can imagine how quickly the world Enoch lived in deteriorated, once the only eyewitness to Satan's deceit and God's promise of salvation through a descendant of man was out of the picture because he died. Fifty-seven years is not too short a time for Satan to eat away at the truth and suck men into the same evil way Jude described back there in Jude 4.

Jude 4 For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

It was not too short a period of time for Satan to drive men to the acts of violent behavior against those who were trying to faithfully hold on to the truth, and the salvation for all men that would come through Jesus Christ. Some of those people may die like Abel, while others are pulled out of harm's way so they can use their gifts to fulfill God's plan, and purpose for them as they continue to walk by faith.

By the grace of God, and if we ascribe the typical 900-plus years of life, Enoch could very well have been that bridge of vital information from Adam to Noah. As a matter of fact, he could have been one of the only ones who would faithfully encourage Noah when God gave him instructions for building the ark. Enoch's long span of life was a distinct possibility, when you stop to consider the longevity of Enoch's father Jared at 962 years, and his son Methuselah at 989 years. It is not unusual to say that Enoch could have very well been alive shortly before Noah began the work on the ark.

As I said, this is all my speculation, but I think it fits God's pattern of working through those He has gifted to use those gifts and prepare others in the next part of His carefully designed plan as God continues to patiently work in judgment, tempered by His mercy.

Brethren, God is making sure we know and know that we know what sin does, what His solution is, and the incredible expense involved, especially (and keep this in mind), to the Father and the Word, who gave up all His rights and privileges to become the ultimate and priceless sacrifice for our sins.

He is also making sure that we see an example in these men of faith regarding what He expects from all whom He has given responsibilities throughout His patient work to accomplish His purpose, to bring all men to become holy as He is holy by His patient judgment, tempered by His mercy that never fails.

As we read in Psalm 100:

Psalm 100:4-5 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations.

Please consider how God looked at Noah with favor because he did what he had been prepared to do in faith, as we read in a correct translation of Genesis 6:8-9 from the Amplified Bible. Many have said this sets Noah apart perfect in his generations, but I think the Amplified has a pretty good here:

Genesis 6:8-9 (AMP) But Noah found grace (favor) in the eyes of the Lord. This is the history of the generations of Noah: Noah was a just and righteous man, blameless in his [evil] generation; Noah walked [in habitual fellowship] with God.

By faithfully living and learning God's way of life in whatever way God gives, we too become part of God's living witness of faith in the hope that is before us through the merciful and complete work of Jesus Christ.

However, within this we need to understand God is driving home a point as only He can do. What happened before will happen again. Satan is on a furious rampage to stop what is in truth unstoppable, because God will accomplish what He has set out to do.

I would like us to read Genesis 6.

Genesis 6:1-5 Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose. And the LORD said, "My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years." There were giants [Nephilim] on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown. Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

This section of Genesis 6 has been the subject of much speculation over the years. But as Jesus Christ's own words tell us, angels were not created to have sexual relationships with men, even though we can see that it certainly seems to be clear from the biblical reference to angels that we see also in Job 1:6, 2:1, and 38:7 that these probably were angels, referred to as the sons of God.

But keep this in mind, God creates kind after kind. Angels cannot cross over that line even in disobedience to God. However, as men take themselves out from under God's protection by blatantly disobeying His laws, they put themselves at risk of demonic influence, even in some cases, demonic possession as we clearly see in the Gospels.

With this in mind here is a very clear and important warning we can glean from the scripture to be cautiously applied for us living in these last days. It is from Richard Ritenbaugh’s sermon, “The Days of Noah.” Although given back in 2008, it is a look into today and what lies immediately ahead, because God is continuing to make sure that all men will ultimately understand that everything depends on Jesus Christ.

Richard said:

[Satan's] plan was never on the physical level. It was always on the spiritual level. The corruption was always spiritual. He would corrupt all the humanity, however many billions of them there were by taking control of their families. The easiest way that I can explain [Richard continues] how this happened would be to use the terms demon possession, or heavy demonic influence. The idea is that Satan sent his minions to possess, or at least control, the men and live through them. [The demons] became the heads of the households through the men. [The possessed men] would take women and would have children by these women, however many they wanted. However, these men had the minds of Satan the Devil, or his demons, and they began to change the values of people. They corrupted every good value and instilled wicked self-centered ones instead. They tore down traditional values and instilled progressive and liberating ones in their place. They taught their children that they could do whatever they chose to do so that the next generation of children came to be known as Nephilim—the fallen ones or the mighty ones.

The one term describes their fallen values; the other one describes their strength. They were as much the sons of demons in their attitudes and methods as any human beings could be. Remember, to be the son or a child of something means to have the same characteristic of that something. Who knows [Richard concludes], this may be the inspiration and beginning of the term sons of Belial. I do not know.

Brethren, it was Satan's demonic attitudes and methods that were driving men who had removed themselves far from God, that they left themselves wide open to having every thought they had to be evil continuously. It was the same demonic spirit that would eventually drive those Jesus Christ spoke to as recorded in John 8:43-47, to crucify Him, because they loved not the truth, to live it. Jesus Christ said:

John 8:43-47 “Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me. Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."

It is the same demonic influence that will produce the end time Nephilim and society as in the days of Noah, so driven by the spirit of Satan and his demons that every imagination from the heart of men will be evil continuously. The only exception will be those who are faithfully learning and living the Word of God through Jesus Christ.

Brethren, this is why we need to take God's warning to us through the apostle Paul in Ephesians 6:10-19 very seriously. And continue to be as faithfully moving forward as Abel, Enoch, Noah, and all the rest who have used God's gift to do their work, trusting completely in His perfect judgment, tempered by His mercy through Jesus Christ in a world where we are at war with Satan and his demons. Satan and his demons influences are very real, and there is a war going on that we can only win by staying as close to Christ as possible. Demons may not be able to procreate with men but they can still be a driving force to evil continuously if we fail to stay on the path right behind Christ, trusting the only perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

As we conclude today, one week before we renew our covenant agreement to faithfully stay the course within the sacrificial work of Jesus Christ, I would like to read Hebrews 11:39 through 12:2 as it is written in the Philips translation.

Hebrews 11:39-40 (J. B. Phillips) All these won a glowing testimony to their faith, but they did not then and there receive the fulfillment of the promise. God had something better planned for our day, and it was not his plan that they should reach perfection without us.

Hebrews 12:1-3 (J. B. Phillips) Surrounded then as we are by these serried ranks of witnesses, let us strip off everything that hinders us, as well as the sin which dogs our feet, and let us run the race that we have to run with patience, our eyes fixed on Jesus the source and the goal of our faith. For he himself endured a cross and thought nothing of its shame because of the joy he knew would follow his suffering; and he is now seated at the right hand of God’s throne. Think constantly of him enduring all that sinful men could say against him and you will not lose your purpose or your courage.

Brethren, all the faithful witnesses, preachers of righteousness of God in His judgment, tempered by His mercy, and the ultimate sacrificial service of Jesus Christ are there. We, too, are then part of that beacon of peace, rest, and hope, pointing to God's mercy through Jesus Christ if—and this is a big if—we use the gifts God has given to faithfully do our jobs so that God's mercy and glory is always before those yet to come under the singular sacrificial offering of Jesus Christ.