“And it is impossible to please God without faith.
 Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists
and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.”
Hebrews 11:6

Ok, so God rewards us if we have faith. So what types of rewards are we talking about? Since some make a distinction between old testament and new, (even if I do not agree with this, let us consider it for argument sake), then what rewards should we expect in this age? In the age that Jesus sits on His throne in triumph with the church empowered by the Spirit, under the New Contract, what types of rewards are we to anticipate?

It is convenient that our verse in question is addressed to church age. It is directly for us.

Hebrews 11:3-35,

3 By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.

4 It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Abel’s offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man, and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith.

5 It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying—“he disappeared, because God took him.”[a] For before he was taken up, he was known as a person who pleased God. 6 And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.

7 It was by faith that Noah built a large boat to save his family from the flood. He obeyed God, who warned him about things that had never happened before. By his faith Noah condemned the rest of the world, and he received the righteousness that comes by faith.

8 It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going. 9 And even when he reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith—for he was like a foreigner, living in tents. And so did Isaac and Jacob, who inherited the same promise. 10 Abraham was confidently looking forward to a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God.

11 It was by faith that even Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and was too old. She believed that God would keep his promise. 12 And so a whole nation came from this one man who was as good as dead—a nation with so many people that, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore, there is no way to count them.

13 All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it. They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth. 14 Obviously people who say such things are looking forward to a country they can call their own. 15 If they had longed for the country they came from, they could have gone back. 16 But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

17 It was by faith that Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him. Abraham, who had received God’s promises, was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, 18 even though God had told him, “Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.” 19 Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. And in a sense, Abraham did receive his son back from the dead.

20 It was by faith that Isaac promised blessings for the future to his sons, Jacob and Esau.

21 It was by faith that Jacob, when he was old and dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons and bowed in worship as he leaned on his staff.

22 It was by faith that Joseph, when he was about to die, said confidently that the people of Israel would leave Egypt. He even commanded them to take his bones with them when they left.

23 It was by faith that Moses’ parents hid him for three months when he was born. They saw that God had given them an unusual child, and they were not afraid to disobey the king’s command.

24 It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He chose to share the oppression of God’s people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He thought it was better to suffer for the sake of Christ than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his great reward. 27 It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible. 28 It was by faith that Moses commanded the people of Israel to keep the Passover and to sprinkle blood on the doorposts so that the angel of death would not kill their firstborn sons.

29 It was by faith that the people of Israel went right through the Red Sea as though they were on dry ground. But when the Egyptians tried to follow, they were all drowned.

30 It was by faith that the people of Israel marched around Jericho for seven days, and the walls came crashing down.

31 It was by faith that Rahab the prostitute was not destroyed with the people in her city who refused to obey God. For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.

32 How much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets. 33 By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. 35 Women received their loved ones back again from death.

But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. 

Again, the context is about what we receive now, as a Reward from God, when we sincerely seek Him. Hebrews 11 mentions a long list of miracles in the Old Testament, as examples for the rewards we receive Today, when we have faith in God.  The list contains many lists of different types of miracles rewards.  There are miracles rewards of protection. Noah was delivered when the entire world was drowned and killed off by God’s anger. In the Passover, the Israelites were protected again from God’s wrath, as it past-over them on its way to destroyed Egypt. In the book of Daniel the 3 Israelite men were protected from the wrath of a human king, when he throw them into a blazing fire. King David was protected, time and time again from all sorts of evil men trying to hurt him. There are miracle rewards of healing and health. Sarah was very beautiful, even as an old woman. Moses was healthy and full of vitality even at 120. Caleb was as strong at 80 as he was at 40. Sarah’s dead womb was healed, or resurrected back to life so that she conceived Isaac. There are miracles of various feats of strength. Gideon, was a man hiding from the enemy when God called him a mighty man of valor. He believed God, and went on to be just that.  David had many impossible victories by faith. The wall of Jericho came down by faith and praise. Samson believe God would use him, when everyone else did not. Samson believed God would use him, according to God’s promise, even after he sinned. He was a man of glorious faith, that the world was not worthy to have known. Women also received the dead back. Thus, resurrection is a reward of faith, meant for today.

The passage says they had victory over entire Kingdoms or nations. Thus, part of the REWARD we can receive today by faith, (even one man by himself in faith) is victory over entire political systems and even their armies.

The passage summed these up as “received what God had promised them.” They received victory and triumph over impossible odds, as a reward for their faith. According this this passages v.6, this pleases God.

The other type of rewards is future rewards of a heavenly kingdom, so that, where there is direct persecution for the gospel’s sake (not unbelief’s sake), you can receive great rewards in the next life. Since most seem to accept this without hesitation, we will focus on what most of the passage addresses.

As a summary, God today, rewards faith with things such as, impossible protection, healing, strong life in old age, power and various feats of impossible strength, resurrection and even victory over entire kingdoms.

Verse 6 says, in order to “please God” you must believe God exists. This is good; yet, I am sure even the demons believe this much. However, this second part is something demons cannot do. They cannot believe God will reward them for faith. Only a child of God, to whom the promise of good reward is promised to, is able to do that. Thus, if you want proof you are able to do more than what a demons can to, then you must have faith that is able to expand and receive the things promised in this passage. If you want to “please God,” you cannot do so with believing God will reward you, in THIS LIFE, impossible protection, vitality in old age, impossible healings, strength to tear down gates of a city, to have your child resurrected, and to be victorious over entire kingdoms.

How can your faith be a faith that “pleases God,” if you do not believe and seek God for this? It cannot according to Hebrews 11 infallible definition of faith. You might please men with a weak faith or unbelief, but God will not be impressed. We are to seek God’s approval, not men’s. God will not go by a man made definition of faith. God will judge and reward us based on His definition of faith.

Cessationist do not possess a faith that raises above that of demons. They are a cult of demons and unbelief.

As for the rest. Now that you know the truth, how “rewarded” you will be if you put it into practice! If you admit you are wrong, then remember the prodigal son. If you are sincere in your acknowledgment of wrong, God will receive you. He will put His best robe on you, His sandals and put His ring on your finger.

When there is a promise there is a way. There are many promises to forgive and restore. But there are also many promises to protect, strengthen and empower. They are yours for the taking. Let us not seek the approval of men. Let us seek to please God, by seeking all the promises from the least to the greatest, both for the next life and for this life. When there is faith, every promise, even the greatest impossible promises are low hanging fruit ready to be plucked..