These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.  For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland.  If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return.  But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.

Hebrews 11: 13-16

This phrase caught my attention. God not being ashamed is another way of talking about honoring God or glorifying God with our lives, but phrasing this in the negative has a different impact. It focuses on the idea that people who claim to follow God, or be His people, can make God look bad. In Romans, Paul accuses some of his readers of this, You who boast in the law dishonor God by breaking the law.  For, as it is written, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” (Rom 2:23-24)

One of the OT references for Paul’s accusation is in Ezekiel 36:16-23. God has punished Israel for violating the covenant, and His people have been conquered and exiled to Gentile nations. The punishment is well deserved, and necessary as an expression of God’s holiness in response to their behavior. But a result of the punishment is that Israel, as God’s people, appears weak to the Gentile nations and this reflects poorly on God as it makes Him look weak as their god. The Gentile nations interpret their ability to conquer Israel as an indication that their gods are stronger than Israel’s god. God declares that He will restore Israel for the sake of His name. “Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came.  And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Lord GOD, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes. (Ezek 36:22-23). This vindication will come as a restoring of Israel to a place of glory and God’s judgment against the nations that triumphed over Israel.

It strikes me that the situation with Israel in Ezekiel is significantly different from the situation with those who have died in the faith who God is not ashamed to be called their God. It was the weakness of Israel in the face of their enemies that was profaning God’s name. In Hebrews 11, many of the heroes are similarly weak in the face of their enemies (Heb 11:35b-38), yet God is not ashamed to be called their God. I wonder if that is why the phrase “not ashamed” is used here. To emphasize that God is not ashamed to be called the God of people who appear weak and vulnerable at times.

We would like to believe that God is properly honored when His people are strong and triumphant, but that is a false understanding. The cross is the clearest example of God at work through the thorough dishonoring of His beloved son. Ironically, while the Jewish leaders interpret Jesus’ weakness on the cross as proof that he was not from God, it is a Roman centurion who recognizes who Jesus is at the cross. And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” (Mark 16;39)

How might God be honored when we are weak or ineffective in our efforts to work according to the kingdom of God? One answer might be that when we continue to put in effort that is not met with success, we emphasize the importance and value of the goal. Effort that does lead to success offers a reward that makes sense to not yet believers who are seeking to live fulfilling lives. But effort that does not lead to success only makes sense if there is another life that we are living for. It is a testimony to our faith in the reality of that future life and challenges not yet believers to consider that reality.

I would love to connect with you about these posts if they have stirred any thoughts or questions. Take a minute, shoot me an email at bo@leavenedlives.org, and let’s see where that takes us.