May 24, 2020
Morning Service

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

 

Hebrews 11:6 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.

            Last week we began to show the importance of faith as a foundational truth in our walk with the Lord.  We defined it first, saw the examples of Abel and Enoch, and finally the writer tells us that without faith it is impossible to be able to please God.  To truly love and serve our Lord we must “believe that He is, and He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”  We were challenged to take a deep, honest look into our own spiritual mirror and ponder this question; “do I really believe He exists and He cares about me?”  Faith begins right there; we must believe that He is who He says He is and that He will keep His promises to us and then we act upon it.  Through this time of the pandemic, all of us have had to come to grips with the realization that God is the One in control.  At times, we have been forced to face one day at a time not knowing what tomorrow may bring our way.  I hope through that, you drew closer to Him; trusting Him in these times of confusion and concern.  Faith, truly believing God at His Word, will be followed by a change in our lives.  True faith is a surrendering of our heart, mind, soul and will to God.  Our love and trust for Him become the reason why we do what we do.  We become a willing yielded vessel to be used by Him; a tool in His hand.  This is motivated by our love and our faith in Him.  We trust Him to guide us down the road that is best for us, and for His kingdom.  Today we will look at some examples of true faith on display beginning with the familiar story of Noah.

 

Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

            From Genesis 6 we learn that the men God had created were headed the opposite direction of faith as “every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”  This made the Lord sorry that He had created man and He decided to destroy them all.  “BUT Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord; being a just man, perfect in his generation.  Noah walked with God.”  Noah had surrendered his heart to God and enjoyed a very close and personal love relationship with God.  He had diligently sought God and now he was about to be rewarded for it.  God revealed His plan to Noah and asked him to build the ark to very specific design because a huge flood was coming.  The problem with that for Noah must have been that it had never even rained yet!  Faith is believing God’s Word and acting on it even when we don’t understand or even feel like it.  “This Noah did according to all that God commanded, so he did.”  It took Noah 120 years to complete this project in the midst of those who were daily full of unbelief and ridicule for him.  He was faithful to build the ark as well as to testify of what God was doing.  Noah’s life was faith on display.

            What can we learn from his example?  First, we see faith in action even without understanding.  Can you imagine Noah telling his wife and children what they were about to do?  Noah believed God at His Word and then acted upon it.  God said it, Noah believed it and that settles it.  What part of God’s Word do you struggle with?  What part of your life do you need to act more by faith rather than sight?  Is it your finances, your integrity, your faithfulness, or your commitment to put Him first?  Trust God in them all because “He is a rewarder to those who diligently seek Him.”  Do you believe that? Then act upon it in that area of your life and watch God go to work.  When we let go and let God things happen!  Secondly, we see in Noah that our life of following Jesus is not a sprint but a marathon.  We are in it to win it no matter how long it takes.  Our journey will include times of needed persistence, patience and long suffering; it will not be easy but there is never a place to quit.  Noah worked for 120 years by faith building an ark with no water; surely we can do our best in the short time we have.  Finally, we realize through Noah that faith does not make us perfect.  After the flood Noah became drunk and embarrassed his sons.  Even with great faith, we all still must deal with our sinful nature that we all will struggle with our entire lives.  Never feel that you are above falling to the temptation of sin; it is just one bad choice away.  Our next example of faith on display is Abraham.

 

Hebrews 11:8-10 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.  (9)  By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; (10) for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God has prepared a city for them.

            Abraham is known as the “father of the Jewish nation.”  He was the one God chose to begin a special people that He could call His own.  They are the lineage of our Lord Jesus.  God offered Abraham a command with a promise attached.

 

Gen 12:1-3 Now the LORD had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, from your family and from your father's house, to a land that I will show you.  (2)  I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; And you shall be a blessing.  (3)  I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."

            Abraham was asked to leave the life that he knew and was comfortable in to go to a country he did not even know existed.  He did not have “Google Earth” to check it out before he left; it truly was a journey into the unknown a journey of faith.  God said it, Abraham believed it and that settled it.  He set out at the age of 75 years old to a place he had never heard of to become the father of a great nation despite being childless at the time.  I love how the Roman writer sums up Abrahams faith.

 

  Rom 4:1-5 What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh?  (2)  For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.  (3)  For what does the Scripture say? "ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS ACCOUNTED TO HIM FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS."  (4)  Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.  (5)  But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,

            It was not the “what” Abraham did that mattered, but it was the “why.”  He acted upon faith believing God at His word and it was his faith that justified him not the works that followed; the why not the what.  He believed God and then acted upon it.  That should ring loudly in our ears along our journey of life with our Lord; surrender your heart (the why) and the works (the what) will follow.

            Over this time of the pandemic, the messages we have shared have focused on having the faith and trust in God to lead us through this time.  We too are in a country that we don’t know much about.  We, like Abraham, have been called out of a life we were all comfortable with into a “new normal.”  There is no “Pandemic Handbook” for us to follow; we are walking by faith every day. Tomorrow brings uncertainty and concern; which sounds like the same journey or we could we call it adventure Abraham faced as well.  He left his life of comfort knowing that the Lord promised to go with him.  Let’s follow his display of faith and “believe God and have it accounted to us for righteousness.”  If you struggle with this, go back to the messages in April on the web site and review the scriptures that are referenced to Jesus being our “Good Shepherd.”  The future is an unknown country, but we have the privilege of knowing the One who leads us there.  Have faith and trust Him putting your faith on display for this world to see.  God said it, we believe it, and that settles it.

 

Heavenly Father, stir our hearts to diligently seek You, to know You, to serve You, and to love You.