Faith Assured

Hebrews 11.

In Hebrews 11, we see the great hall of faith, where God’s old covenant people are celebrated for their extraordinary trust by believing in the unseen promises of God. Abraham left his home, not knowing where he was going;

Moses led the Israelites through the wilderness with faith in God’s promises, demonstrating that faith is a divine gift, drawing us toward Him, teaching us to trust even when the path isn't clear.

A few weeks ago, at the Deep South Men’s Conference- We were blessed with four Pastors that expounded on Hebrews 11 in four sessions over two days.

I’m not going to rehash what they taught, but it did remind me of what a great passage of scripture it really is.

“The Faith Chapter”, as it is known reminds us that faith is not an idea or concept of any mans imagination.

We will examine Noah, Abraham, Moses and others- All relying on Gods divine gift of faith to, not only see beyond their present realities-

But to believe in the seemingly impossible- Because they believed what God had promised them.

The purpose of the writer of Hebrews, in this section was to encourage his audience, and, by extension, all believers today...

To be encouraged by those Heroes of the Faith listed and to do the best we cant to follow their example...

To be willing to step out when called by God

To be willing to not be sidelined or distracted by what may seem to be impossible odds.

To be able to believe in the Heavenly promise- Simply because God said He would make it so.

Thats what Faith is all about.

So we start at;

1- FOUNDATIONS

Hebrews 11:1–3 ESV

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the people of old received their commendation. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.

Laying the groundwork for the rest of the passage- We see the building blocks of Faith that form the Foundation of the Christian Faith.

The assurance of things hoped for- The assurance is in the fact that promise comes from God and He cannot lie and has never failed.

The conviction of things not seen- It will come up later, but none of the people mentioned in the text ever saw their promise come to fruition- in their lifetime.

And because of that:

These people of old- The Patriarchs of the OT- Were counted as Righteous before God- Because of their Faith.

Creation, itself, being established by the Word of God:

“In the Beginning, God Created...” That’s Genesis 1:1.

Creation, itself is a model for faith. God commanded it to exist and it came forth- Out of nothing.

As Christians, we believe in the literal description of the Creation of the Universe account in Genesis- By Faith.

From the creation we can see, partially and know, in part of Gods Power and Authority over all things, since He is the Creator of all things.

But, honestly, there isnt a human thats ever been able to totally explain or understand the DEPTH of Gods Creative Power- God SPOKE IT- And it existed. Let that settle in your soul for a moment...

Now lets look at John 1:1-3

John 1:1–3 ESV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

In the proper time, The Word became man- Jesus Christ, our Messiah- Our Saviour, Redeemer- King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

And promised of God through the faith and belief of the folks in this chapter- Starting with… Abel

2-TRUST BEYOND SIGHT

Hebrews 11:4–12 ESV

By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.

Abel, Enoch, Noah and Moses. Notice how they are listed based on their appearance in Genesis- This is the Human Timeline of Faith.

This recently changed my perspective, for the better...

Raised in church, I was always taught that Abraham was the father of all believers- His Faith was accounted to him as Righteousness by God.

But, really, it didn’t start with Abraham- It started with Abel.

“By FAITH, Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain- Through which he was commended as righteous...”

Why was Abel’s sacrifice more acceptable than Cains?

Abel acted by Faith in God, believing that his sacrifice was acceptable.

The was all pre-flood history- There wasn’t the Mosaic Covalent- That wouldn’t exist till generations, later.

Cain and Abel were Adam and Eve’s first kids- The first teenagers on earth...

Imagine the stories they could tell.

Somehow the story of the parents- One generation removed- Stuck with Abel and fell on deaf ears with Cain.

BY Faith Abel believed that his sacrifice would be accepted by God.

That unwavering steady grip on the Reality of God-

And the undeniable Nature and Character of God.

With that same faith- His righteousness was secured.

Abel believed without seeing- and still believed in the Promise of God.

The faith of Abel, though long dead in the physical sense- Abel still speaks to all of us.

That thread of Faith started with Abel- Running through Enoch, Abraham and Moses-

And it continues to run through each of us- By Faith.

Enoch, walked with God in a time of great evil and wickedness on earth- Yet Enoch, So pleased the Lord that his faith was accounted him as righteousness- Then Enoch was not to be found- For God took him to Heaven.

Noah was told by God to build the biggest cruise ship ever.

Because God was fed up with humanity and was going to wash it all clean.

IN a land where it had never rained before- Noah built the biggest boat ever made.

BY FAITH.

Abraham was told He would be the father of ALL nations. Even at 100 yrs old, with a wife also beyond child bearing age… Abraham had Faith and it was accounted to him as Righteousness.

When you're out in public, you might feel pressured to conform to social norms that conflict with your faith.

Abraham was, by no means perfect- He mislead other Kings- Twice.

Trying to pass off his wife Sarah as his sister- Not out of concern for her, but because she was beautiful, he was concerned that they would kill him and take Sarah for themselves.

He lied to save his own skin- Twice. Caved in to peer pressure.

The next time you're faced with such a situation, speak openly about your beliefs in grace, perhaps during a conversation about moral dilemmas or community values. Without condemnation of others.

By sharing how your faith guides your actions, you can open the door for others to reflect on their beliefs and create a dialogue about faith in public life.

Four people of diverse circumstances- All believed in one thing-

That what God told them was true and would come to pass.

Not because they had such great faith- But because they BELIEVED what GOD said to them was truth.

They also believed that GOD was big enough to make His promises come to pass.

Four people of diverse circumstances-

Yet each, an example of how God can work the impossible, when they, and we, believe in Him and act on His promises to us.

Their actions would suggest that this kind of faith is not a static thing.

Abel had to bring an offering of sacrifice

Enoch lived a life of Faith that stood out from society so much that:

1- It got God’s attention

2- It touched God so deeply, that God removed Enoch from the evil around him- Without Enoch feeling death.

Noah built a boat- And it took 100 years to complete it.

This wasnt just a weekend, backyard do-it-yourself project.

100 years.

And all the ridicule and criticism that went with it.

No, their Statement of Faith wasnt just a document written on scrolls of papyrus

It was active and moved them to action- Each one stepping out in boldness.

All the while- Trusting God and His Faithfulness to keep His promise.