Faith in Times of Uncertainty
Sometimes life can be so uncertain. Whether it be your finances, relationships, career, health, the economy, or global conflicts, much of what lies ahead is uncertain.
We don’t like uncertainty. We crave security. We long to be safe and secure, and have a sense of control over our lives and our well-being.
Fear and uncertainty can leave us anxious, stressed, and emotionally drained. We may even get caught up in dwelling on an endless number of “what-ifs” and worst-case scenarios for our future.
How do we live during times of uncertainty?
The author of Hebrews gives us the answer in Hebrews 11.
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
(Hebrews 11:1)
FAITH
How do we live in times of uncertainty?
Faith.
We live by faith, and we trust that God is working behind the scenes even when there is confusion, chaos, and hardship.
We live by faith and trust that our hope of a better day with Jesus is certain.
In uncertain times, we live by faith, being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
Right after making this statement in Hebrews 11, the author begins to go through a list of several people we can look to in the Old Testament who lived by that kind of faith.
They weren’t perfect, but they looked forward to the hope that God’s Messiah would bring. They were certain that God was working to fulfill the promises He had made.
And God did fulfill the promise of sending the Messiah, and we have the privilege of living on the other side of His finished work on the cross.
We get to live in the security of an eternal union with Him, safe and secure in His arms, certain that we are not alone and that He is working for our good and His glory in some way.
In times of uncertainty, we live by faith in Christ and all that we have in Him. Situations all around us may be uncertain, but what we have in Jesus is certain.
LIFE IS A MARATHON, NOT A SPRINT
After listing all of the Old Testament saints who lived by faith in uncertain times, the author of Hebrews writes these encouraging words in Hebrews 12:1-3:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
(Hebrews 12:1-3)
The early church dealt with intense persecution and suffering for being Christians. Talk about living in uncertain times. They lived in a time of chaos, confusion, and hardship. I’m sure some were wondering if they had made a mistake and should just give up and throw in the towel.
But the author of Hebrews reminds them that the Christian life is more like a marathon than it is a sprint. He tells them to hang in there in times of uncertainty, chaos, confusion, and hardship. He says to run the race with perseverance.
The image the writer of Hebrews is giving here is the difference between running a marathon and running a sprint. Mentally, you approach those two kinds of races very differently. One is over in a matter of seconds and the other goes on for hours and requires perseverance.
How do we run with that kind of perseverance? Well, the author of Hebrews gives us the answer.
THROW OFF EVERYTHING THAT HINDERS
If you are going to run a marathon then you can’t wear a ton of layers. It’s 26.2 miles, and layers of clothes will hinder your progress!
I think it’s wise to stay up to date with what is going on in the world, but the more you focus on all of the uncertainty in our world and your life, the more it hinders your progress in the race.
Every time you check the news, or social media, or dwell on the uncertainty around you, the more it’s like you are adding layers of clothes to wear for your marathon. At some point, you end up looking like little Ralphie’s brother in The Christmas Story! You can’t run a marathon like that!
If you focus on nothing but the situation and circumstances you are in, you will find yourself weighed down by it all, beaten down by it all, and you will grow weary and lose heart.
THROW OFF SIN THAT SO EASILY ENTANGLES
In Hebrews 12:2, the author says to not only throw off everything that hinders but also the sin that so easily entangles.
It can be so easy in times of uncertainty to turn to sin to cope with what is going on in us and around us.
We think that alcohol, prescription or illegal drugs, pornography, etc. can give us an escape for a little while. They can drown out our problems or give us a momentary high during a time when we are feeling low or depressed.
Or if it’s not one of these things, we may find ourselves lashing out in fits of rage and anger because of a loss of the control we thought we had, checking out as a spouse or a parent, or trying to manipulate our situations and circumstances in a number of other unhealthy ways.
But the author of Hebrews reminds us that each time we turn to sin for what we feel like we are missing in our lives, we are not going to find freedom but enslavement. We will be entangled by it.
It never satisfies. It never fixes the uncertainty. It simply adds to the anxiety, stress, and fear.
FIX YOUR EYES ON JESUS
The author of Hebrews doesn’t just tell us to throw off things that hinder and that entangle us, He tells us what to replace those things with. We run the race by fixing our eyes on Jesus because He is the pioneer and perfecter of faith.
Jesus is the first and only one ever to live a perfect life of trust and dependence on God the Father. Jesus was both fully God and fully man and as a man, he lived a perfect life of dependence and faith in God the Father.
And because of that, He was able to go to the cross and take all of the sins of the world onto Himself and pay the penalty for them, which was of course, death. And do you remember what Jesus said when He took His last breath? “It is finished!” All of the work necessary to bring you forgiveness was complete…it was finished.
And so He was the pioneer or author of faith. He is the source of where it comes in the first place. So if we are going to run a race of faith and trust in uncertain times, we can only do that if we fix our eyes on Him.
But that is not the only reason we fix our eyes on Jesus.
We fix our eyes on Him in times of suffering and hardship because He endured victoriously through suffering and hardship Himself (Hebrews 12:2).
The cross was a means of punishment that was horrific and meant for the worst of the worst criminals in the Roman Empire. It was meant to hurt and make you suffer for a prolonged period of time. Not only that, it was a source of shame.
But Jesus scorned its shame. He disregarded it and endured the humiliation and suffering, and do you know why He did it? For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross. (Hebrews 12:2)
What was the joy set before Him? You!
Jesus endured the suffering and hardship of the cross so that you could be forgiven and through faith receive Him into your life where you could live in a relationship with Him now and forever because you were the joy set before Him as He faced that suffering and hardship on the cross!
So if you ever start to doubt God’s goodness for you in times of uncertainty, remember this: Jesus endured suffering so that He could be with you forever!
There’s one more reason we fix our eyes on Jesus according to Hebrews 12:2, and that is because of His position.
For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
(Hebrews 12:2)
After enduring the cross and dying for your sin, Jesus was raised from the dead three days later and eventually ascended back to heaven to sit down in a place of authority and power at the right hand of the throne of God.
So we fix our eyes on Jesus as we run this marathon race because He our source of strength and power to make it through!
DON’T LOSE HEART
Because Jesus is the pioneer and perfecter of faith, endured the cross on our behalf, and sits in a position of power and authority, we are told to consider him so that we will not grow weary and lose heart (Hebrews 12:3)
If you fix your eyes on Jesus and place thoughts of trust and dependence on him during times of uncertainty, you will not grow weary and lose heart!
Faith in times of uncertainty is not about you mustering up resolve and strength, it’s about the object of your faith.
Jesus is the object of your faith, and as you fix your eyes on Him and gaze on Him intently, the faith will come. And as the faith comes in times of uncertainty, you will start to become sure of what you hope for and certain of what you do not see.
