Surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses So begins chapter 12 of Hebrews,

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1 Hebrews 12:1-8 Courage Surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses So begins chapter 12 of Hebrews, and a fitting scripture for All Saints Day. A day of remembering- and perhaps we might consider it a day that we are remembered: because this day is also a promise to us. We can be sure that we are cared for and watched over because of this affirmation: the cloud of witnesses. Our passage doesn t say that they are friends filling a stadium to see how our lives turn out; no, they bear witness to us, because we have seen how their lives turned out; they verify the promise that God watched and was present in their sufferings; and thus, we can be assured that God is close to us, now and always, and that God s Spirit is leading us onward. That is the meaning of Hebrews 11, with its cavalcade of faith all stars from the pages of the Bible. We can read about them and be encouraged, just as we are encouraged by the lives of those who lived among us and have gone on to their reward. All Saints Day is a day for remembering, and there will be sadness in recalling what was before, but there should be much rejoicing, too, because God was with those who lived before us, and that is proof God is with us still. Proof that even though they have left us, we are not left alone.

2 All these faith heroes in Hebrews 11, going back so far as Abel, son of Adam and Eve, and including the greatest names in scripture, like Noah and Abraham, Moses and David and Samuel: chapter 11 is the story of God s people moving forward with hope, becoming and being the people of God in every circumstance of their lives, in their suffering, in times of loss and failure and displacement. The history of God s people is the story of faithfulness- God s faithfulness, and the people striving to be faithful- amidst all the joys and hurts of life. And faithfulness is what the writer of Hebrews calls us to; and these great ones who lived long ago witness to us, their story still speaks to us. But here is what I really like about chapter 11, not the great names and the mighty men of old, but the last verses, where we read that some of them did such and such; and others went through particular agonizing situations; all of these, nameless, unknown, because they were unimportant in the world s history. And yet they are part of the story, they are among the witnesses proving God s faithfulness; the story continues through them, and down to the saints who have lived among us, and to today, to all of us who are gathered to worship and bear witness. Because we too, are part of the story; someday, they will speak of the faithful of this church, who have passed on good news and good works, who have

3 shown love to their neighbors, who have handed down to their descendants in the faith the meaning of living as God s people: living in hope, running the race, honoring God, following Jesus, sharing kindness, living righteously and working for justice, making peace. The greatest preacher I ever heard was Landon Saunders. I heard him say something once that, I realize now, must have been a lightning bolt of revelation to him. I didn t agree with him for the longest time- and even now, I m trying to figure out all that it means. He said that heroes are the everyday folk, not the mighty, invincible ones, not those in the Bible with names, not the fathers of nations, not medal winners. But the people just doing their lives, sharing their lives, getting up every day, working, paying bills, fighting through illness and disappointment, seeing the corruption of things but remaining true, and keeping on For Landon, that was real heroism- and he was right. That is the story of our saints who have lived and passed on; the unknown persons with whom we have shared life, and who even now bear witness that God is faithful, who today speak encouragement to us by the good life they lived. This means that we, too, are heroes. We are some of those nameless ones who simply carry on, in the middle of everything; who are brave in facing our

4 losses; who continue on as God s men and women no matter what comes. Because we know we are not alone. Our shared courage goes all the way back to the beginning, and all the way to right now, as we take strength and hope from one another. As we look back to Jesus the pioneer of our faith- as verse 2 has it- who leads us on in the wilderness of our hurts and fears; the perfecter of our faith- who shows us perfectly the way of loving God and loving our neighbors- even to the point of sacrifice for them. And so, we are little heroes, too, and part of the cloud of witnesses. That word means that our life is not for ourselves. It is for those around us, that they might discover the meaning of faith by our witness of giving and selfless loving. The concept of a life in Christ- of running the race, walking with God, spiritual maturity, communion with the Lord- the faithful life is defined by keeping on and standing up for the faith of others. That is our witness. What could be more meaningful for us, called the church, who gather to share what God has given, who meet together to proclaim with thankfulness the joy that is ours because God is with us.

5 Here is a famous name, though certainly not a hero Barney Fife. A man inadequate in every way. When you hear his name, what is the first thing you think of? Not courage, and yet When tested, he put himself on the line; he was willing to face the bullies and thugs- it took a little encouraging, or shaming, if you remember the episodes. My favorite Barney adventures were those when he stepped up and risked the danger, like the time an outlaw he had captured years earlier escaped and came for him. But he took part in the search, watching an abandoned building, all the while liking anything but a hero: shaking, sweating, nervously stuffing sticks of gum into his mouth, hoping the bad guy was somewhere else; but with Andy s secret help, he caught the criminal a second time. And as the town was congratulating him, Andy noticed his discomfort and asked, What s wrong, Barn? And Deputy Fife replied, I swallowed my gum. An unlikely hero. But that s the reason Barney is the measure of real courage, confronting his fear and continuing despite it. And he is the example for us of the hopefulness in courage, that he knew he wasn t alone. He knew he was part of something bigger than himself- he often looked to his badge and held on to the virtue and honor of justice and service, and knew he wasn t alone.

6 Well, we have a focal point as a fulcrum of hope- there may be several of them: the cross of Jesus, the empty tomb, the communion table, the words of scripture that encourage and enable us; these all prove we are not alone, that God is on our side as we build up a community with others who love and serve, and as we meet the demands and pains of this life, and keep on going. Let us be heroic, not by trying to be more than we are, but simply by loving one another, and holding on to hope.