Hebrews 11 8-16 2004
Pentecost 12
Hebrews 11: 1-3, 8-16
August 22, 2004
“Heroes”
Introduction: We all have heroes -- people that we respect and look up to for their part in some remarkable event. As a child my heroes were Superman and Spiderman. My children might say that their heroes are the Power Rangers or the Power Puff Girls. As we grow up we see the world around us differently. And our heroes change. There are heroes in all facets of life. In the field of medicine we might look to Alexander Fleming, a British bacteriologist, who in 1928 noticed that mold, was able to destroy bacteria. This of course led to the discovery of antibiotics. We might consider the Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur for their work in aviation and the first motorized airplane flight at Kitty Hawk in 1903 that has led to our walking on the moon, going to mars and the farthest reaches of our solar system. When we think of heroes some of us might think of the Olympics, Carey Patterson, Michael Phelps or Wisconsin’s own Paul Hamm who fought the agony of defeat, falling in front of the judges and then arose victorious with Olympic gold. When we think of heroes, most of us would think about our soldiers, like the ones that stormed Normandy beach in France, fought in Korea, Vietnam and now in Iran and Iraq. Bombarded by motors, machinegun fire and snipers, relentlessly our soldiers have fought the enemy and continued on a course that would free some of the world from tyranny. There are many types of heroes and there are even heroes of faith.
In the book of Hebrews the 11th chapter is often titled the heroes of the faith. It mentions faithful people and their faithful actions. These people are written about for our benefit. They encourage us, by faith, to look beyond our life in this world, our temporary home, and look ahead by faith to our eternal home promised by our faithful God. They inspire us to be certain of what we do not see, our heavenly inheritance. One of the heroes of the faith is Abraham. His faithfulness and trust in God is recorded for us not only in Genesis but also throught the Bible, and as is recorded for us in our Epistle lesson. Abraham is known as the father of the Faith. Those who believe in the true God are known as the Children of Abraham. He is one of the Heroes of Faith.
I. Abraham - Hero of the Faith
A. God called and chose Abraham. The Lord called Abraham to leave his homeland of Ur of the Chaldeans. Today we call it Iraq. God said, “Leave your country and your relatives and go to the land that I will show you. Abraham obeyed God and he went the land of Canaan, the land that the Lord promised to give him. There God established His covenant with Abraham. The Lord said that He would make Abraham’s descendants to number more than the stars of the sky. The Lord said to Abraham, “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you. I will make your name great and you will be a blessing...and all the peoples of the earth will be blessed through you.” What a wonderful blessing it was for Abraham and for the world.
It makes one think -- who was Abraham, that God should make such a pronouncement of blessing to him? It would seem that he must have been someone special. He must have done something great for the Lord to treat him so favorably. There is no indication that this was the case though. It would seem that the very opposite was true of Abraham. What would you say about a man who tells lies? What would you think of a man who would put his wife at risk of being taken sexually by another man. This is exactly what Abraham did to Sarah his wife, not once but twice. He lied to Pharaoh and then to Abimelech, both who liked Sarah, telling them that she was his sister. Both times she was taken to be their wife. God protected her. Both times Abraham did these things to save his own skin. So I guess we could call him a coward too. What would you think about a man who slept with his wife's maid and then had a child by her? Abraham did this too. Abraham was trying to force God’s hand in giving him an heir. There is no doubt about it. Abraham was a sinner. The blessing that he received was totally undeserved. God’s favor towards Abraham was totally by grace. In spite of all this Abraham is still a hero of the faith, a hero by God’s grace.
B. Abraham received God’s promises and blessing, and they were real to him, through faith alone. This is what sets Abraham apart as an example to encourage us to remain faithful. God spoke, and Abraham believed. He believed that God would give him everything that He promised. God promised him that he would possess the land in which he was living. He promised him a son. He promised him that through him a great nation would come. God promised him that through him all the people of the world would be blessed. But in his life time, few of the promises that God had made came to pass. He lived in tents, wandering as an alien and a stranger in the land that was promised to him. In the end the only ground he owned was a grave. The descendants that were supposed to number more than the stars in the sky were only two, Isaac and Ishmael. And the people of the world remained unblessed. Still he believed. Abraham was a hero of faith.
Abraham's faith was expressed in his obedience to God’s word. When told to go to a new country he went. When he was told to offer his son, Isaac, as a sacrifice on an altar, believing that God could resurrect him, he did as he was told. We are told that he believed in the Lord and His word, and the Lord accounted it to him for righteousness. through faith. We remember him for these remarkable acts of faith.
C. Abraham found his righteousness, his rightness with God. He found it though faith, trusting in God and in His promise of the Messiah. Abraham looked forward by faith to the time when God would sacrifice His own Son on the altar of the cross to save him from his sins. Through Christ’s death he looked forward to the blessing of all the nations of the earth, through his descendant, in the forgiveness of sins. He looked forward to the time when his descendants, people of faith in Christ, would number more than the stars. Knowing the promise he saw himself as a stranger here on earth. He knew that he had another home. Through God’s son, Jesus, God was going to make a heavenly city, a heavenly home. God was preparing a better country than the one he came from or the one promised to him. This country would be home for all who believed in the Son of God. Abraham believed. Abraham was a hero of faith.
II. You - Hero of the Faith
A. God choose Abraham and God has called and chosen you also. You may not have come from Ur, but God has called you out of many countries. You have come from many homelands and many homes. God called you through His Word and by the Holy Spirit creating faith in your hearts. He has blessed you in baptism where you received forgiveness of sins and the inheritance of an eternal home. He gave you the gift of faith which trusts in Him and embraces Jesus as your Lord and Savior. He has given you a faith that trusts in His word of forgiveness given completely to you for the sake of His Son’s suffering and death.
B. God has poured out His grace on you not because of who you are or what you have done. Like Abraham you did not deserve it. You are sinners. But for Jesus sake, and the sake of your faith in Him, God sees you as righteous, just as He saw Abraham.
C. Like Abraham, your faith has been expressed with action. I have seen it in your many acts of love. I have seen your faith as wives have cared for husbands and husbands have cared for their wives. I have seen it in a fathers love for his children, in children’s devotion to mothers and fathers. I have seen it in your caring, compassion, and concern you have for each other. Your faith is expressed in acts of charity and mission. It is even expressed in sweat, with hammer and nails and the hard work that supports our church and school. We see it in the participation of groups like our LWML and Lutheran Laymen’s League, Evangelism and Stewardship, the Elder’s and the Council. I have seen your faith as you come to worship here to be renewed in the grace of God, and like Abraham, listening to God’s promises spoken to you. The Lord has blessed you with many years and many opportunities to share your faith in Jesus with your families, friends. The people around you see your persistence in the faith and your unwavering trust in Jesus in the midst of adversity. You are living examples of faith in action. People can read about Abraham, but they can touch and see you. Your lives and faith have touched many people. God continues to bless the world through you. You, like Abraham, are heroes of faith. And when I think of heroes of the faith I think of you. Your faithfulness encourages me in my faith.
III. Looking to Jesus who is the Hero of Faith
With Abraham, together we look to the author and finisher of our faith. Jesus, Jesus, who is our true hero of faith. Abraham looked ahead to the promise of God to be fulfilled. We look back and see that God indeed fulfills his promises. When God was ready He sent His son. Jesus was born and lived a life of faith that was perfect. He was completely obedient to His Father, obedient even to death on the cross. The life of faith He lived he lived for us. The death He died, He died for us. In Him and through Him we have our very existence. He wants us to continue to believe, enduring in faith trusting in the unseen promises of God -- the healing of body and soul, freedom from sin and death and finally an eternal home.
Conclusion: In our gospel lesson Jesus says, “Have no fear little flock, for it is your Fathers good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Your hearts of faith are focused on Jesus and your eternal home, the promise land of heaven. Like Abraham you know that you are aliens and strangers even in this wonderful place. Even as strangers, as God’s little flock, He hasn’t left you to wander alone. He has given us the promise through His Word, in baptism and the Lord’s Supper. He has given us each other. Together we are heroes for each other. Together we walk in faith to glory and the New Jerusalem - the city of God whose foundation is Jesus Christ. Though we may suffer the agony of defeat for awhile in this life, like Paul Hamm, we too shall emerge victorious with eternal gold through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.