Carmen Joy Imes was a little girl who loved the hall of famed biblical figures detailed in Hebrews 11. She not only found strength and inspiration in their stories, but she believed with all her heart that—even in a phase of life where few peers were cheering her on—those scriptural souls were encouraging her in godliness.

As she began to study the Old Testament, though, things got a little complicated. Many of the names listed in Hebrews 11 are not only flawed but, as Imes writes at CT, “certifiable shmucks.”

“I recently revisited this chapter with a new question:” writes Imes. “What if this passage is not about glorifying moral examples or all-star heroes?”

Instead, she proposes, the passage describes “beneficiaries of God’s grace by faith.”

In other words, Hebrews 11 isn’t a list of the all-star faithful followers who achieved near-perfection with grit and muscle. It’s a list that testifies to the profound mercy of God and the remarkable work of Christ.

As we aim to live lives that honor the Lord, may we remember that the proof of our faith is not in flawless behavior but in the redemptive work of Jesus.