Hebrews 11

When we hear the word faith, we often think of mental agreement. We think of believing something is true. And that is part of it. But it is not all of it.

Matthew Bates argues that the Greek word pistis that is here translated as faith is often better understood as allegiance or loyalty, especially in the context of kings and kingdoms. It is not less than belief, but it is more than belief.

Amy Peeler says it really well: “All these stories were recorded by God in the Scriptures of Israel because of the faith these individuals demonstrated. They were not perfect, and some had more errors than successes, but at some moments in their lives they had faith.”

That is so important. These were not perfect people:

What makes them examples is not perfection. It is persevering faith.

• “By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain…”(Hebrews 11:4 NAS95)
• “By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death…”(Hebrews 11:5 NAS95)
• “By faith Noah… prepared an ark…”(Hebrews 11:7 NAS95)
• “By faith Abraham… obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.”(Hebrews 11:8 NAS95)
• “By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive… since she considered Him faithful who had promised.”(Hebrews 11:11 NAS95)

Faith does two things:

• It looks back at what God has done.
• It looks forward to what God has promised.

Faith is not proven only in visible victories. It is also proven in costly endurance.

Discussion Questions:

1. The outline reframes faith as “persevering allegiance” rather than mental agreement. Where in your own life is the difference between those two definitions most felt — and what would it look like practically for your faith to move from belief to allegiance?
2. Hebrews 11 is described as a family album, not a museum of heroes — people who were approved not because they were perfect, but because they kept going. Who in your own “family album” (spiritual mentors, parents, church community) modeled that kind of persevering faith, and how does their story shape how you face hard seasons?
3. The chapter makes a sharp turn from dramatic victories to torture, imprisonment, and death — and it calls both expressions of faith. How do you tend to measure whether faith is “working”? What needs to shift in how you define faithfulness when the outcome isn’t visible success?
4. The pastor of Hebrews closes by saying these saints “did not receive what was promised” — they lived in the present with their eyes on God’s future. What promise of God are you currently being asked to hold onto without seeing its fulfillment? What does it look like to “welcome it from a distance” rather than shrink back?​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​