Walking with God is the greatest pleasure. He created the things that are from things which are not. Humans might fabricate things out of the dirt or use material from creation for their buildings, but not God. Hebrews 11:17-40. By exercising this kind of faith the ancients gained the warm commendation of God. 4:4). By love, I mean, seeking the highest good of the other person. The highest good for every person is to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. Faith proves to us the fact that the things we presently cannot seeGod, angels, demons, heaven, hellare very much true and real. In other words, faith applies the reality of Gods promises and the unseen world to life in the present, visible world. Two seemingly paradoxical things are true of faith: On the one hand, it is our responsibility to believe the gospel, because God commands us to believe (Mark 1:15). It understands the origins of all that is. We must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ (2 Cor 5:9). The text says it is the substance of things hoped for. 2335 Presidential Drive, Suite 114 . As long as there remain certain natural prospects, faith does not get on even as easily (if I may say so), as when all natural prospects fail. God is the reward of those who seek Him. Faith or trust in God is at the foundation of a relationship with Him. According to Hebrew 11:6 he firmly believed that God is a rewarder. When He sends difficult trials into our lives, whether persecution, the loss of our health, or the loss of a loved one, we have to trust Him, believing that He is acting in love to form Christ in us. Hebrews, Chapter 11, and Verse 1. Our calling is to seek Him. If you do not trust someone, you will not allow yourself to get close to that person. To walk with God does not mean that you are perfect, but if you are walking you are making progress. Such faith takes the future promises of God and makes them real in the present. God is the great peace-maker: when we make peace we are walking with Him. Subscribe to get weekly sermon content delivered to your feed.Follow us:Instagram: instagr. Hebrews 11:1-7 20210425 Hebrews 11a Watch on Sermon taped on Friday, April 23, 2021 at Mayberry Church Introduction to worship As I mentioned last week, the Session of both churches have spent time planning the future as we, God willing, come out of the COVID pandemic. This was Gods provision for multiplying the human population in its earliest generations. Why? So, faith believes what God has revealed and trusts what God has promised. We read here about Adam, Seth, Enosh, Kenan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch, Methuselah, Lamech, Noah. Listen as Old Testament giants of faith still speak to us through their lives. By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him (Heb 11:5). This runs through the whole chapter with one exception. Nine generations were all living at the same time! I need a pure heart. Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV) But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Hebrews chapter 11 has the answer we are looking for. The reason that faith in God as creator comes first is not by accident. It is the doorway through which we enter the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. When Noah and Mrs. Noah entered the ark, their boys went with them. God had revealed the acceptable sacrifice and faith listens to what God has revealed. And only God can give me what I need. The French philosopher Pascal said that there is a "God-shaped vacuum" inside every human heart. 48:51. Cain brought an offering from his crops while Abel brought a sacrifice of the best of his herd. July 29, 2012. (2) Faith enabled people in the past to overcome. A. W. Pink (An Exposition of Hebrews [Ephesians 4 Group], p. 652) uses the analogy of two men standing on the deck of a ship, looking in the same direction. Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16 Put Your Hand in the Hand of God The Rev. "Without faith it is impossible to please God." Hebrews 11:6. He graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary (Th.M., 1976 in Bible exposition) and Califo More, The Net Pastors Journal, Eng. Ecclesiastes 3:11 says that God has put eternity inside every human heart. If you would like to download two encouraging, FREE full-length MP3s of Tony's popular sermons: "The Sovereignty of God" and "How to Handle a Crisis," you ca. If you feed your flesh and your doubts, they will grow. So it is. One sees nothing, but the other man sees a distant steamer. Colin Smith; Our History & Mission; Our Team; Statement of Faith; Media & Radio Inquiries; Hebrews 11:13 By Faith. Suddenly they realize the heavy weight of responsibility that is upon them. Hebrews 11:6 "And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him" (NIV). But what does that have to do with us? He feels it in a way that he did not before. So a life of faith means a life in which we base our whole hopes on Him and on His promises. We must walk with God by faith so that we are ready to meet him by sight. Greear. You are currently impersonating {{userSessionData.email}}. Any exceptions to the above must be approved by Unlocking the Bible, 1-866-865-6253. Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. 1:18-22), sinful men suppress the truth in unrighteousness. Yes, it is. Here, at any rate, he is facile princeps (easily foremost) among the divines of the Puritan schoolManton's Worksoffer real literary gold to the reading public.'- J.C. RYLEThe outstanding preaching ministry of Thomas Manton . Their faith needed to be strengthened to meet this challenge. Your family. Take that faith away and we have nothing left. God never intended for Abraham to sacrifice Isaac - Genesis 22:1-2 B. By their choice, sin and the sinful nature entered the human race. those who were Gentiles would have been taught these stories also as the Church made Scripture central to the faith. Those who kept their faith in the LORD in these awful times would live. We need to recognize that faith is not a meritorious work that we do to gain rewards from God. Seen through the eyes of a public that gasped at the enormity of their tragedy, Scott and Janet Willis faced unendurable grief. Why did one choose to be a farmer and the other a shepherd? If this is the best God can do, I am not impressed. And it is Gods approval that counts, since He is the judge of the living and the dead! 3By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not seen." (Hebrews 11:1-3) I'm focusing today's sermon on our . Most scholars take the second instance (Heb. For them it was all about the faith. Such faith, as we will see in the numerous examples of Hebrews 11, is down to earth and practical. You are the church, and Lifeway is here to serve you with biblical resources for everything life brings your way. How does a person who struggles with doubts get faith and grow strong in faith? He will establish the truth, right every wrong, and bring the whole world to justice. The hoped for things we are sure of, are things God has promised. They refused to bow down to Nebuchadnezzars idol, which caused the offended king to threaten to throw them into the blazing furnace. Ha! It is important to define or give substance to such an abstract noun as faith. God rewards those who seek Him (Heb 11:6). These verses are not so much a definition of faith but they show us the attributes of faith. [2] For by it the people of old received their commendation. Sermon: Living By Faith in God - Hebrews 11. Scot and Janet escaped the blaze with burns, but they couldn't save their children: Ben, 13, Joe, 11, Sam, 9, Hank, 6, Elizabeth, 3, and Peter, six weeks old. Good works flow from saving faith as their source and give proof of genuine faith (Eph. The KJV and NKJV translate these words as substance and evidence. The NASB and NIV understand the words as subjective, whereas the KJV and NKJV take them as objective. How can you live in a constant, conscious enjoyment of the presence of God? In this sense, the phrase is parallel to our confession (ctive sense in 11:1: faith is the reality of the goods hoped for. Faith is the reality of what is hoped for in exactly the sense in which Jesus is called the [exact representation] of the reality of the transcendent God in 1:3 (ibid.). How do I know that? Faith believes God regardless of the circumstances. But here's what I wonder. All we need is the courage to do what Noah did and to believe what God has said. I suspect that Adam had explained that God required a sacrifice. Maybe you did too. He wanted to prove to the world that there is reality in dealing with the living God. For 65 years he lived for himself, but when his son Methuselah was born, he began to walk with God. It has to make a difference. Most Popular. To ensure you receive the best experience on Lifeway.com, we use cookies to process information about your visit. Creation is dependent upon the Son for its maintenance. Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon (Isa 55:6, 7). That is exactly what happened. Pew Forum director Luis Lugo says, "You no longer have an alignment of affiliation, belief and behavior. There is more to life than that. Hebrews 11:1-6. . Since nature abhors a vacuum, if we don't fill it with God, we will fill it with something else. Abel found the righteousness that comes by faith. And all our striving after career goals, worldly success, financial independence, and even our jumping from one relationship to another, those things are but symptoms of our deeper need to find our place in the universe. God, who is Spirit, is eternal. All of us know about the great flood, the massive ark, and the gathering of the animals. But you have not said it to build the other person in Christ, and so it is not loving. This is the power of a godly example. It is important to define or give substance to such an abstract noun as faith. The Roman Catholic Church promised Jan Hus, the brave Czech martyr, safe passage to a hearing. They believed because he believed. Whoever would draw near to God must believe that He is! Fortunately, Karl experienced real faith before he went home to be with Jesus. Faith, indeed, has a way of making the future present and the unseen visible. Because he believes that God has called him to do it! But God is full of grace and mercy and soon after the death of Adam, God gave a wonderful sign that deaths power would be broken. People who spoke against God. Chapters 11 and 12the final major portion of the epistleestablishes a call to respond in the only appropriate way, namely, by faith, to the realities the writer has discussed. For example, God confronts our unbelief and sin. But over time Adam became weaker. Pink)! It is like the sound of a train on the tracks when it gets up to speed, and he died, and he died, and he died.. You will not believe the personal information that the person shares with you, because you think, I dont trust this guy!. And if you add up all the numbers, you find that Enoch was taken up to heaven after 987 years. And we know how Noah saved his family while the world around him perished. God has made Himself known in the Scriptures, and If you want to walk with Him, you must believe what He says about Himself. Enoch was surrounded by people who had no place for God. He believed so deeply and obeyed so completely and walked so intimately with God that it was natural for his entire family to do what he did. " It is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom ." Faith recognizes that God sometimes tests us (17a) A. The Popular Commentary by Paul E. Kretzmann - Hebrews 11:23-29. God had brought them through these hard times which included the loss of their property and being made homeless. i. Every time the boy became sick you would think This is it. What is the faith that pleases God. If you sense that the person is a hypocrite, conveying that he is something that he really is not, you will keep your distance. 1. The reward of seeking God is finding Him. Enoch walked with God and went straight to heaven. If you do not come to Him in faith as your Savior, you will stand before Him in terror as your Judge! It is the relationship you have with Jesus. Pink says that the name Methuselah can mean, When he is dead, it shall be sent. He suggests that perhaps Enoch gave his son this unusual name, because God had revealed to him that when Methuselah died, the flood would come. God will do whatever it takes to get us back. Cain farmed the soil while Abel raised livestock. This sermon is yet another feeble attempt to do so. We read this story and we wonder, How can this be? His faith proved the reality of the unseen God as greater than the reality of the flames that burned him to death. Today we look at the 11th chapter of Hebrews which is often known as the faith chapter. In it are many examples of people who remained faithful to the LORD under the most difficult and impossible of situations. You can be godly in a very ungodly world. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the Word of God, so that things which are seen were not made out of things which do appear. She writes that they prayed "sometimes with bitter disappointment, sometimes with a confidence that seemed infallible, and sometimes with frustration and a hurt so deep it ached." Lisa finally conceived, and 4-year-old Peter now brightens their lives. Up to heaven after 987 years the image of Jesus Christ nine generations were all living at the time... 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