I have recently completed a 17 week series based upon the book of Hebrews. In the midst of this series was a sub-series about faith. The following five sermons should give the reader a great understanding of what faith really is.
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Hebrews 11: What is Faith?
Last week we came full circle. We went from …
Hebrews 10:26
“Dear friends, if we deliberately continue sinning after we have received a full knowledge of the truth, there is no other sacrifice that will cover these sins.”
All the way back to …
Hebrews 1:1-3
Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. 2 But now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he made the universe and everything in it. 3 The Son reflects God’s own glory, and everything about him represents God exactly. He sustains the universe by the mighty power of his command. After he died to cleanse us from the stain of sin, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God of heaven.
Jesus Christ is Lord, King, Messiah, High Priest, and the Son of God. Jesus is our Atonement, our Sacrifice, our Salvation, In Him we are Forgiven, we have Life, He is the Truth, Jesus Christ is God Who came in the flesh to save us from sin. There is no other way because this is the way God has made for us to come.
Now that we know Who Jesus is, we need to understand what faith is.
Hebrews 11:1 N.L.T.
What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see.
Hebrews 11:1 N.C.V.
Faith means being sure of the things we hope for and knowing that something is real even if we do not see it.
Hebrews 11:1 N.I.V.
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
Hebrews 11:1 N.K.J.V.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
Before we go too far we must get our Hebrew thinking on. We cannot think 21st century American and get the proper context of this passage.
First of all Faith is in something. We have discussed this before. Faith is something and it is based in a substance. Faith in faith is no faith at all.
I heard a football player speaking a couple years back about His new contract. He kept saying he had faith that the deal would work out. He had faith in the management and his agents to come to an agreement. He said, he just believed everything was going to go his way.
This player’s faith was based in a hope that the people who were in charge of the negotiations were going to agree in his favor. His belief was grounded in the substance of his hope. This faith and belief was realized when the contract was delivered and it was what he desired before he saw it with his own eyes.
This type of faith is a blind faith, hoping for things to happen that might not. What if the negotiations would have failed? This player’s faith in his agent and the management of the team would have been destroyed. His belief would have been shattered because his faith was placed in something or someone that is not reliable.
So what is faith?
Faith is being sure of the things we hope for and knowing that something is real even if we do not yet see it. The player didn’t have true Biblical faith because he didn’t know the contract was real until he saw it. The player had a blind hope of something that he was unsure of. This is not faith but desire.
Desire is at best a wanting wish. I want, wish, hope, or desire this to happen but I don’t know that it will happen.
Faith is based on what you know not on what you wish or want. If you wish something to happen and it happens that’s great. But don’t confuse your wishing with faith. Faith is based on facts not fantasy. Faith has a basis in the person of God not just a dreamed up idea that you hope will come true.
Faith is a concrete covenant with God that what you hope for, based on your knowledge of God, is going to happen, even though you do not see it before you right now. You can walk boldly in this type of faith knowing that your faith is secure in what God has promised.
What God promises will come true whether you believe it or not. So faith is not according to what you believe but according to what God says He will do. Faith is believing God and trusting that what God says will happen, will happen.
If the football player had heard a word from God that said his contract would be what it ended up being, the player could have boldly walked by faith knowing that what God said was going to happen, would happen. Through this type of faith he could trust God and it wouldn’t matter who was representing him at the negotiations. The player’s faith would have been in God and His Word. This is true Biblical faith. It has substance because it’s based on God’s Word not on a blind hope or wish for something that may not happen.
You may have faith but what is you faith based upon? I have assurance of salvation because I have placed my faith in what God’s Word says. I can come boldly to the throne of God because of what God’s Word says. Outside of my knowledge of what God’s Word says my faith is but a hope, desire or a wish. There is no substance behind my faith if God hasn’t set the foundation for my faith. I will never have any assurance if my faith is placed upon a wish or desire that I haven’t heard from God about.
Now that you understand what faith is and what faith is not, lets look at verse 2;
Hebrews 11:2
2 God gave his approval to people in days of old because of their faith.
In other words, God approved of those who believed in what He said!
If a person has faith in something other than God or in something that God did not say, God is not going to stamp His seal of approval on them or it. God only approves of those who believe in Him and what He says.
If you believe in what God says, you will obey, and the greatest form of worship is obedience. Obedience is nothing more than having faith in what God says and walking and living in it. This is what it means to live by faith.
The American philosophy has destroyed faith. In today’s world, faith is some supernatural hope. It is a power to make things happen outside of the will, ways, and word of God. Most of today’s faith is actually a form of witchcraft.
Witchcraft, in it’s simplest form, is a person in his/her own power manipulating things, stuff, and events so that the desired outcome is reached. Today’s faith is not in God and His Word but in what I can make to happen in my own power.
This is far different than the faith that is approved by God. God’s approved faith is taking what He says and standing firm in what He said as though it has already happened and not swaying away from God’s Word until it is seen with your own eyes.
So faith is based on the facts of God’s Word. Do you believe it! Are you walking in it? Are you living by it?
We are about to check out your faith and put it up against the faithful of days gone by.
Hebrews 11:3
3 By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.
This seems to be a testing statement. Do you believe in the creation? God’s Word explains the creation to us, since God said it, I, by faith, believe it and will stand on it and live in a manner that shows I believe it.
The world today has bought into the theory of evolution. It seems to be a testing standard that decides if a person is intelligent or not. The world thinks if a person believes in the creation they are some sort of backwards person that doesn’t understand the scientific revolution.
In all actuality, the person who holds to a standard that is not given by God is living outside of faith. Faith is, believing what God said and trusting in it until it is proven right by God Himself.
So let’s look at some of the Biblical claims to faith.
Hebrews 11:4
4 It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. God accepted Abel’s offering to show that he was a righteous man. And although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us because of his faith.
Just incase you were wondering what is going on here, the writer is taking us on a tour of Scripture. He started with the creation and is now at Cain and Able. We’ll see Noah’s ark, Abraham, Moses, Jacob, and others. What is happening is the writer is confirming Scripture to be true. He is also showing us the faith of those who trusted God and saw His mighty hand fulfill that which He said He would do.
Now let’s go back and see what makes Cain and Able different.
Genesis 4:7
7 You will be accepted if you respond in the right way. But if you refuse to respond correctly, then watch out! Sin is waiting to attack and destroy you, and you must subdue it.”
God’s approval is based on faith. We do not have a lot of details on exactly what God had told Adam and Eve or Cain and Able. We must, though, understand that God approved of those who placed their faith in Him and His way and His Word.
For God to have told Cain that he would have been accepted if he were to have responded in the right way, God must have told him how he should have responded to start with. Cain, for some reason, didn’t respond by faith. He responded by giving an offering but it was not an offering according to faith but an offering that was right with what he desired to give. Responding in faith is responding in the way God has said one should respond.
If you are not willing to walk by faith you are walking in sin and sin is going to take its chance to rule over you. This happened with Cain. He was not walking by faith and ended up walking in sin to the extent of killing his own brother.
Walking outside of faith is a dangerous place to be and yet the majority of people live in sin because they have no knowledge and understanding of God. Many believe they know God but if they haven’t ever come to know His Word, His way, and His will.
Since people do not know God they cannot have the faith that He approves.
Hebrews 11:2
2 God gave his approval to people in days of old because of their faith.
Can a person please God today if they are not walking in faith?
Hebrews 11:5
5 It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying—“suddenly he disappeared because God took him.” But before he was taken up, he was approved as pleasing to God.
Genesis 5:21-24 N.L.T.
21 When Enoch was 65 years old, his son Methuselah was born. 22 After the birth of Methuselah, Enoch lived another 300 years in close fellowship with God, and he had other sons and daughters. 23 Enoch lived 365 years in all. 24 He enjoyed a close relationship with God throughout his life. Then suddenly, he disappeared because God took him.
Genesis 5:21-24 N.I.V.
22 And after he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters. 23 Altogether, Enoch lived 365 years. 24 Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.
Enoch was pleasing to God due to his faith. The Scripture teaches us that Enoch was in a close relationship with God, Enoch walked with God. If you are in a close relationship with someone you usually know them and their ways pretty well.
Enoch, being in a close relationship and walking with God, would have been like a friend to God. If you have a friend don’t you know more about them than you know about others? Do you know God well enough to be in a close relationship with Him?
Hebrews 11:6
6 So, you see, it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that there is a God and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.
Faith, being what you know about God, is essential if you are going to please God. How can you please someone you do not know anything about them?
Isn’t easier to please someone when you know what they are like and what they desire?
God is a personal being. God is a God that we can know. God has revealed Himself to us through His Word and now through the person of Jesus Christ. To have faith is to know God through His revealed Word.
Faith is not what we have come to think it is in our world today. Faith is, believing God and obeying God even at the cost of being criticized by the people of this world.
Hebrews 11:7
7 It was by faith that Noah built an ark to save his family from the flood. He obeyed God, who warned him about something that had never happened before. By his faith he condemned the rest of the world and was made right in God’s sight.
Noah trusted God enough that when God spoke to Him about building an ark he obeyed. Why would a person who lived on land build an ark when there wasn’t enough water around to float it? Noah believed God. God told Him to build the ark because He was going to send a flood.
God spoke. Noah, by faith, obeyed and built the ark. Because of Noah’s faith he and his family were saved. His faith condemned the rest of the world because they would not believe. Since they did not believe they perished. But Noah believed and due to his belief in God, or faith, he was made right in God’s sight.
It is impossible to please God or be right in God’s sight without FAITH! Faith comes by hearing the Word of God.
Romans 10:17
So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Jesus is the Word of God revealed to us in the flesh. Are we hearing the Word? Have we placed our faith in God’s Word? The Hebrew was having to decide if the Word of God really was revealed in the person of Jesus Christ. The writer of Hebrews believed He was and trying to get the message to the Hebrew reader.
By faith the writer was telling the reader the truth of the Word of God. His faith was grounded in Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 1:1-3
Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. 2 But now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he made the universe and everything in it. 3 The Son reflects God’s own glory, and everything about him represents God exactly. He sustains the universe by the mighty power of his command. After he died to cleanse us from the stain of sin, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God of heaven.
What you believe about God defines your faith. Your faith is what you know about God. Faith is not a wanting wish but it is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see.
Just because you want something to happen doesn’t mean that it will. The only things you can know for sure that will happen is that which God has said will happen. If God hasn’t said it it’s only a wish, desire or a hope. To put you faith in a wish, desire or hope leads to disappointment and a loss of true faith.
If God hasn’t said it your faith does not have any substance to hold it up. Your wish or desire might come true but don’t hope for things not yet seen unless you have a Word from God. That Word will be the substance that holds up your faith.
Let us pray.
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Hebrews 12: This is Faith!
Last Sunday we looked at the word faith. We came to an understanding of what faith is and what faith is not. We concluded that faith is based on God and His Word.
Hebrews 11:1 N.K.J.V.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
So this is faith. Faith has substance because it has a solid base in God’s word not on a blind hope or wish for something that may not happen. Faith is living out the promise God has made to you in His word.
Hebrews 11:2
2 God gave his approval to people in days of old because of their faith.
We looked at the faith of Able, Enoch and Noah last week. This week we will spend our morning looking at the father of faith, Abraham.
Last week we saw that faith was doing the will of and obeying the Word of God. Those we studied were approved by God because they, by faith, obeyed God. Faith is walking boldly in God’s Word. You may not see the promise before you but you know the Giver of the promise so you can walk in the promise just as though it has already been delivered. If God said it, who is going to stand in the way of Him fulfilling that which He said He would do?
God approved of those who walked and lived by faith. They knew God, they knew His word, they understood His ways, and they lived by it. God is God and they believed it and lived accordingly.
Hebrews 11:6
6 So, you see, it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that there is a God and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.
Let’s look at the life of Abraham.
Hebrews 11:8
8 It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going.
There are some key words in this passage. First there is faith. We have come to understand what faith is. Then there is obedience. You cannot obey God without engaging you faith. When you obey God you are doing that which you have come to know as right before the Lord. You know enough about God and His Word that you are willing to obey what He has said.
Your obedience to the Word of God is the action of Faith. Faith has substance because it has a foundation is active when you obey, do, follow, or adhere to the substance. Faith is the fuel that allows you to live according to the Word of God. Your soul, (mind, will, and emotions) controls your body which is the earthly container for your soul. Your soul is controlled by a natural spirit or a holy spirit. When your soul is directed by the Holy Spirit it is due to you submitting to the ways and will of God. You have by faith accepted the ways and promises of God and have decided to live by faith and not by sight. Sight is how the natural spirit works. The Holy Spirit obeys the Word of God even if the result is not yet seen.
Faith is the fuel that runs the bodily container in accordance with the will, ways, and Word of God. Without faith, you cannot live a Godly life and an ungodly or faithless life is not pleasing to the Lord.
Abraham heard the Word of God. Abraham engaged his faith and it fueled his obedience in the body. He began to live his life toward the promise of God even though he had not yet seen it realized before him.
Genesis 12:1-3
Then the LORD told Abram, “Leave your country, your relatives, and your father’s house, and go to the land that I will show you. 2 I will cause you to become the father of a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and I will make you a blessing to others. 3 I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you.”
Five times in this passage God says “I will”. Abraham believed God and it was accounted to Him as righteousness. What Abraham believed set into motion what was about to happen next.
Genesis 12:4-7
4 So Abram departed as the LORD had instructed him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. 5 He took his wife, Sarai, his nephew Lot, and all his wealth—his livestock and all the people who had joined his household at Haran—and finally arrived in Canaan. 6 Traveling through Canaan, they came to a place near Shechem and set up camp beside the oak at Moreh. At that time, the area was inhabited by Canaanites.
7 Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, “I am going to give this land to your offspring.” And Abram built an altar there to commemorate the LORD’s visit.
I want you to see something spectacular in this passage. Not only did Abraham hear God’s word, Not only did Abraham believe that it was God, not only did Abraham engage His faith and obey, But God revealed Himself to Abraham and then told Abraham what He was going to do next.
Here’s some food for thought, If you do not engage your faith, take the first step, God will not show you the next step. A person who is not willing to, by faith, follow God’s instructions is not going to get page two of the instruction booklet.
You are being called to walk by faith and not by sight. If you don’t take the first step of faith you will not have the second step revealed to you. Abraham took the step and God appeared to Him. That’s a mighty step. By faith, Abraham walked into the presence of God.
Abraham built an altar and from that day forward he could come back to that altar and know that he could see and realize that which was not visible if he would listen to God and follow Him by faith.
Abraham had a lot of following to do. God was relating to His people in a new way. He started with Abraham and all those who were willing to follow in the future would be considered children of Abraham or children of the promise or the children of God. They are those who engage their faith.
Hebrews 11:9-10
9 And even when he reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith—for he was like a foreigner, living in a tent. And so did Isaac and Jacob, to whom God gave the same promise. 10 Abraham did this because he was confidently looking forward to a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God.
Abraham lived there by faith. So did Isaac and Jacob. They lived according to the promise that God had made to them. They lived looking forward to God’s city. God’s city was not realized in this world. They were living for what was not yet seen but they had a Word from God and they were living as though it was already realized.
Living by faith is living according to the Word of God. It is a life of obedience. It is not a life of perfection. It is a life heading in the direction of God. If you will walk by faith, God will direct your life. You will make some mistakes. You will do some things along the way that you shouldn’t. You will be tempted at times to walk outside your faith.
Abraham had a habit of returning to the altar to reset the foundation of his life. Could it be that prayer is our time of resetting the foundation of our life on the Word of God. We are communicating with God to get a clear picture of His will, ways, and Word so our “faith fuel” will be able to sustain our walk while waiting on the promise to be realized.
Hebrews 11:11-12
11 It was by faith that Sarah together with Abraham was able to have a child, even though they were too old and Sarah was barren. Abraham believed that God would keep his promise. 12 And so a whole nation came from this one man, Abraham, who was too old to have any children—a nation with so many people that, like the stars of the sky and the sand on the seashore, there is no way to count them.
It is one thing to think of the blood line of Abraham. How many people, since Isaac was born, do you think are related to Abraham? How many people do you think there are related to Abraham by faith.
Could it be that the number of people related to Abraham has nothing to do with the Jewish nation? We know that there is a nationality of people who are related to Abraham. Abraham though, was the father of faith. He was the father of the faithful. He was chosen by God to start something new.
Genesis 15:1-20
Afterward the LORD spoke to Abram in a vision and said to him, “Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great.”
2 But Abram replied, “O Sovereign LORD, what good are all your blessings when I don’t even have a son? Since I don’t have a son, Eliezer of Damascus, a servant in my household, will inherit all my wealth. 3 You have given me no children, so one of my servants will have to be my heir.”
4 Then the LORD said to him, “No, your servant will not be your heir, for you will have a son of your own to inherit everything I am giving you.” 5 Then the LORD brought Abram outside beneath the night sky and told him, “Look up into the heavens and count the stars if you can. Your descendants will be like that—too many to count!” 6 And Abram believed the LORD, and the LORD declared him righteous because of his faith. 7 Then the LORD told him, “I am the LORD who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land.”
8 But Abram replied, “O Sovereign LORD, how can I be sure that you will give it to me?”
9 Then the LORD told him, “Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” 10 Abram took all these and killed them. He cut each one down the middle and laid the halves side by side. He did not, however, divide the birds in half. 11 Some vultures came down to eat the carcasses, but Abram chased them away. 12 That evening, as the sun was going down, Abram fell into a deep sleep. He saw a terrifying vision of darkness and horror.
13 Then the LORD told Abram, “You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, and they will be oppressed as slaves for four hundred years. 14 But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and in the end they will come away with great wealth. 15 (But you will die in peace, at a ripe old age.) 16 After four generations your descendants will return here to this land, when the sin of the Amorites has run its course.”
17 As the sun went down and it became dark, Abram saw a smoking firepot and a flaming torch pass between the halves of the carcasses. 18 So the LORD made a covenant with Abram that day and said, “I have given this land to your descendants, all the way from the border of Egypt to the great Euphrates River—19 the land of the Kenites, Kenizzites, Kadmonites, 20 Hittites, Perizzites, Rephaites, 21 Amorites, Canaanites, Girgashites, and Jebusites.”
How can we today know that God’s word is faithful and true? He made a covenant and sealed it with the blood of His own Son. In that sacrifice we can place our faith and trust and walk in a manor worthy of God.
The promise has been given. The covenant has been made. Our righteousness before God is dependant upon our faith based in what God has said and done on our behalf.
We do not do anything to be saved. God did all the work. All we have to do is fuel up our system with the substance of faith and live according to that faith. God said it, God did it, all we have to do is believe it and live according to what we believe. That’s all Abraham did. He heard the Word. He lived according to what he had heard. This life was accounted to Him as righteousness. All Abraham had to do was believe and obey and he was right with God.
Belief is foundational while obedience is active. Faith is believing and acting upon what we have come to know about God. The more we know about God the greater or stronger our faith will become.
For some reason today we think obedience is work. We think that believing is work. We think that having to have faith is our work. How much work is involved in believing something?
I believe the New Orleans Saints are going to win a Super Bowl. They may and they may not but I am not going to have to do anything to make it happen. I believe it’s going to happen so I will make my decisions based on what I believe.
Now this example may not be the best because I don’t know that the Saints will win a Super Bowl. But let’s say God has revealed to me that the Saints are going to win. I would then be able to exercise my faith. I would do nothing any different than before except my belief would be based on a Word from God and not just a blind hope in the Saints. I would not be having to do any work that I wasn‘t doing before. I would still be believing, just as I did before, except now I could have faith based on God’s Word and not my shaky hope in a team that has never been a winner.
God said it. I believe it. The fuel for what I do next is based on my faith in what God has said. It is not something I have to do but something God is doing. I’m just believing He will bring to pass what He said He would do. There is no work involved on my part at all. God is responsible to make what He said would happen to happen. I just have to live by faith and wait to see it revealed. It won’t always be easy but if God said it you can have faith based upon the Word of God.
By the way, don’t go betting on the Saints. God has not revealed to me that they are going to win. It’s still just a hope and a desire not an issue of faith.
Hebrews 11:13-19
13 All these faithful ones died without receiving what God had promised them, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed the promises of God. They agreed that they were no more than foreigners and nomads here on earth. 14 And obviously people who talk like that are looking forward to a country they can call their own. 15 If they had meant the country they came from, they would have found a way to go back. 16 But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a heavenly city for them.
17 It was by faith that Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him. Abraham, who had received God’s promises, was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, 18 though God had promised him, “Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.” 19 Abraham assumed that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. And in a sense, Abraham did receive his son back from the dead.
This is really very simple. We make faith hard because we have wants and desires. We want God to do our will. We want God to make everything right with our way. We want God to be the “go to guy” when things aren’t going the way we want them to.
God has set a plan into motion. God is working all things together for the good of those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose. Things weren’t easy for Abraham. He didn’t even realize, in His lifetime on earth, the total promise of God. But when He passed from this realm into the next all was revealed to him perfectly. Abraham could be satisfied that his faith delivered him into the presence of Almighty God.
Are you living by faith? Is your faith a Biblical Faith? Is your faith a faith that will be accounted as righteousness?
Far too many people today have a false form of faith that is based in a supernatural hope of earthly supply received upon prayerful demand. This is not faith, this is an American philosophy of believing that we deserve what we want and we’re willing to trust God to give it to us.
Are you trusting God to do that which He said He would do?
This is a righteous faith. Let us pray.
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Hebrews 13: This is Faith 2
Over the last two weeks we have been stretched pertaining to the issue of faith. We have come to see what faith is and what it is not.
Faith is a dependence and obedience to God and His word. Faith is not a supernatural power that if I have enough of it will make things happen the way I want them to.
Faith has substance, but it is not a device or tool for me to use as I see fit. The substance of faith is God’s word. My action of faith is to believe what God has said and live according to what He has said. Faith is, believing God unto obedience.
Last week we looked at the life of Abraham and came to understand that his faith was always a call from God, to obey the Word of God, until the promise of God, was delivered by God. This type of faith will not fail because it is based on God’s ability to fulfill His promises. We just obey and follow until the Word of God is realized.
Today we are going to spend our time looking at the life of Moses. Before we get to Moses we must see a few things in,
Hebrews 11:20-22
20 It was by faith that Isaac blessed his two sons, Jacob and Esau. He had confidence in what God was going to do in the future.
21 It was by faith that Jacob, when he was old and dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons and bowed in worship as he leaned on his staff.
22 And it was by faith that Joseph, when he was about to die, confidently spoke of God’s bringing the people of Israel out of Egypt. He was so sure of it that he commanded them to carry his bones with them when they left!
Verse 20 tells us that Isaac’s faith was confidence in what God was going to do. In verse 21, Jacob’s faith was based in his worship of God. You do not worship God if you don’t see His ability as greater than your own. In verse 22, Joseph was so sure of God’s promise that he did not even want his dead body to miss the promise. Biblical faith is based upon God’s ability to accomplish His will in our world. The people of the Bible who had faith believed God and it was accounted to them as righteousness.
Do you believe God? Are you walking in Biblical faith?
Hebrews 11:23
23 It was by faith that Moses’ parents hid him for three months. They saw that God had given them an unusual child, and they were not afraid of what the king might do.
The Hebrew reader knew the life and history of Moses. Moses was God’s deliverer. Moses brought the law to the people. Moses established the Tabernacle worship. Moses was the personal focus of the Hebrews and their religion. But as a young boy there was something different about him that allowed him to survive and become the deliverer of the Hebrews. Moses was God’s chosen instrument to fulfill God’s purpose according to God‘s plan.
During the time of Moses’ birth all male Hebrew children were to be killed at birth. Moses was born and spared. Not just was he spared but he was selected to be the child of Pharaoh’s daughter. When Moses’ mother, by faith, gave him up, she received Him back. Only God can work things out in this manor.
Hebrews 11:24-26
24 It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be treated as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He chose to share the oppression of God’s people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He thought it was better to suffer for the sake of the Messiah than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to the great reward that God would give him.
How did Moses know about the Messiah? As Moses was growing up in his own family’s home they led him to believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
What Moses had learned and come to know about God shaped His faith. By faith, what Moses knew about God, he was able to live as a Hebrew even though he had the rights of the royal family. Moses had come to know the difference between the sin of Egypt and the promise of God to the Hebrews.
Before we look at verses 27-29 I would like to go back to the call of Moses in the book of Exodus. In this call we are going to see a very important pattern of God’s work.
Exodus 3:-1-22
One day Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he went deep into the wilderness near Sinai, the mountain of God. 2 Suddenly, the angel of the LORD appeared to him as a blazing fire in a bush. Moses was amazed because the bush was engulfed in flames, but it didn’t burn up. 3 “Amazing!” Moses said to himself. “Why isn’t that bush burning up? I must go over to see this.”
4 When the LORD saw that he had caught Moses’ attention, God called to him from the bush, “Moses! Moses!”
“Here I am!” Moses replied.
5 “Do not come any closer,” God told him. “Take off your sandals, for you are standing on holy ground.” 6 Then he said, “I am the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” When Moses heard this, he hid his face in his hands because he was afraid to look at God.
7 Then the LORD told him, “You can be sure I have seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard their cries for deliverance from their harsh slave drivers. Yes, I am aware of their suffering. 8 So I have come to rescue them from the Egyptians and lead them out of Egypt into their own good and spacious land. It is a land flowing with milk and honey—the land where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites live. 9 The cries of the people of Israel have reached me, and I have seen how the Egyptians have oppressed them with heavy tasks. 10 Now go, for I am sending you to Pharaoh. You will lead my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.”
11 “But who am I to appear before Pharaoh?” Moses asked God. “How can you expect me to lead the Israelites out of Egypt?”
12 Then God told him, “I will be with you. And this will serve as proof that I have sent you: When you have brought the Israelites out of Egypt, you will return here to worship God at this very mountain.”
13 But Moses protested, “If I go to the people of Israel and tell them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they won’t believe me. They will ask, ‘Which god are you talking about? What is his name?’ Then what should I tell them?”
14 God replied, “I AM THE ONE WHO ALWAYS IS. Just tell them, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” 15 God also said, “Tell them, ‘The LORD, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.’ This will be my name forever; it has always been my name, and it will be used throughout all generations.
16 “Now go and call together all the leaders of Israel. Tell them, ‘The LORD, the God of your ancestors—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—appeared to me in a burning bush. He said, “You can be sure that I am watching over you and have seen what is happening to you in Egypt. 17 I promise to rescue you from the oppression of the Egyptians. I will lead you to the land now occupied by the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.” ’
18 “The leaders of the people of Israel will accept your message. Then all of you must go straight to the king of Egypt and tell him, ‘The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, has met with us. Let us go on a three-day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to the LORD our God.’
19 “But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go except under heavy pressure. 20 So I will reach out and strike at the heart of Egypt with all kinds of miracles. Then at last he will let you go. 21 And I will see to it that the Egyptians treat you well. They will load you down with gifts so you will not leave empty-handed. 22 The Israelite women will ask for silver and gold jewelry and fine clothing from their Egyptian neighbors and their neighbors’ guests. With this clothing, you will dress your sons and daughters. In this way, you will plunder the Egyptians!”
I have given everyone a sheet of paper with a diagram and the seven realities of experiencing God on it. We are going to see these realities worked out in Moses’ life.
These realities show us the faith of Moses. Moses believed God. His belief allowed him to follow God obediently. His obedience led him to experience God in a very mighty and personal way. Through this experience Moses’ faith grew greater and greater as he walked with the Lord.
Reality number one proclaims that God is always at work around you. God is at work to complete His plan whether you are aware of it or not.
This was shown to Moses at the burning bush. Moses was not aware that God had a plan of deliverance set for the Israelites. God knew he was going to deliver the Hebrew nation and now was the time for His plan to become a reality to Moses.
Reality two is God pursuing a personal love relationship with His created people. This is shown to Moses when God called out his name at the burning bush. Moses was drawn to the bush and as he was approaching the bush God spoke to him personally.
Moses was the only one around to witness the burning bush. This is as personal as it gets. Nobody else could have been being called that day in that manor. Only Moses could have answered this very personal call of the Lord.
The third reality is an invitation to join God in His work. God told Moses I have come to rescue the Israelites… I am sending you… The invitation has been made.
The fourth reality is God speaking to reveal Himself, His purpose, and His ways. God showed Himself in a burning bush that didn’t burn up. His purpose was to rescue the Israelites. His way was to send Moses back to the Israelites to go before Pharaoh on their behalf.
The fifth reality is the crisis of belief. This takes part in the soul (mind, will and emotions) of the one being called. Is this really God speaking? Do I believe this is the work of God? Am I really the one God desires for this purpose? Can I do what has been asked of me? This crisis is a test of faith. God said it so I will believe it and then do it?
The sixth reality is the time of adjustment. Moses had to come to believe that it was God’s call. He had to be willing to go with God. Moses had to trust that God would accomplish His purpose through him. What adjustments, in Moses life, must be made for him to join God in His work?
Moses heard God speak. Moses crisis was accepting that he was chosen for the job. Moses adjustments were convincing those around him and then leaving his home to go and do the will of God.
The seventh reality was a mighty experience as Moses obeyed God and was able to see God accomplish His work through Moses’ obedience. This was not an easy experience. Everybody turned against Moses. Moses’ faith was the only strength he had. What he had come to know about God and what God had promised out weighed all the opposition. Moses engaged his faith and saw God deliver the Israelites in some of the mightiest work seen in the entire Bible.
As you can see Moses’ faith was not some power he was able to invoke over his circumstances. Moses’ faith was actually his personal weakness. When Moses was his weakest before the people of Israel and the Pharaoh, his faith was all he had to rely on.
Moses had heard the word of God. He believed the word of God. He adjusted his life to match up with God’s word. As he obeyed God’s word he saw some of God’s mightiest acts in history.
Hebrews 11:26
26 He thought it was better to suffer for the sake of the Messiah than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to the great reward that God would give him.
This is not the worldly faith so many proclaim today. Today’s faith is based on the desires of the here and now. Had Moses based his faith on what he was encountering in his presence he would have given up. But thankfully his faith was based on a word from God and not on the circumstances he was encountering.
Hebrews 11:27-29
27 It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt. He was not afraid of the king. Moses kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible. 28 It was by faith that Moses commanded the people of Israel to keep the Passover and to sprinkle blood on the doorposts so that the angel of death would not kill their firstborn sons.
29 It was by faith that the people of Israel went right through the Red Sea as though they were on dry ground. But when the Egyptians followed, they were all drowned.
Next time you hear someone say something about their faith, ask them where their faith is based. If it is not in a word from God, they will have no strength to stand when the going gets tough. But if their faith is based in God’s word they can stand firm on the promise no matter how difficult the situation may seem because God has the ability to make good on His word.
Are you ready to join God in His work and experience an obedient walk with the Lord?
Let us pray.
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Hebrews 14: This is Faith 3
Over the last three weeks we have been stretched pertaining to the issue of faith. We have come to see what faith is and what it is not.
Faith is a dependence on, and an obedience to God and His word. Faith is not a supernatural power that if I have enough of it will make things happen the way I want them to.
Faith has substance. The substance of faith is God’s word. The action of faith is to believe what God has said and live according to what He has said until what He has said has been realized. Faith is believing God unto obedience.
Two weeks ago we looked at the life of Abraham and came to understand that his faith was always a call from God, to obey the Word of God, until the promise of God, was delivered by God. This type of faith will not fail because it is based on God’s ability to fulfill His promises.
Last week we looked at the life of Moses and saw the seven realities of experiencing God. God is always at work around us. God pursues a personal relationship of love with us. God invites us to join Him in His work. God speaks by way of the Holy Spirit through the Bible, prayer, circumstances, and the church to reveal Himself, His purpose, and His ways. God’s invitation leads us to a crisis of belief. Through the crisis we must make adjustments to join God in His work. As we obey God we will experience God as He accomplishes His work through us.
As you can see everything starts with God, His word, His will, His purpose, and His way. He is the one who speaks, He invites, He reveals Himself and His plan. We are called, by faith, to obey and follow. Through our obedience, and adjustments, we will experience God.
Moses followed this pattern. Actually God revealed this pattern to us in the life of Moses.
So you can see that Abraham and Moses both received a call from God, to obey the Word of God, until the promise of God, was delivered by God. Through this type of faith they experienced God in some mighty ways.
They were not the only ones who experienced God in this manor.
Hebrews 11:30
30 It was by faith that the people of Israel marched around Jericho seven days, and the walls came crashing down.
The faith movement of today would lead you to believe that if you wanted the walls of Jericho to fall, all you would have to do is claim the victory over the wall in Jesus name, and then by your faith you will receive that which you have prayed for. Your faith becomes the mystical power that will make the walls fall. Your faith released will accomplish the task that you have asked God to do. This is a mighty perversion of God’s word.
Let’s look at the Biblical text to see how the walls of Jericho fell.
Joshua 5:13-6:5
13 As Joshua approached the city of Jericho, he looked up and saw a man facing him with sword in hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you friend or foe?”
14 “Neither one,” he replied. “I am commander of the LORD’s army.”
At this, Joshua fell with his face to the ground in reverence. “I am at your command,” Joshua said. “What do you want your servant to do?”
15 The commander of the LORD’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for this is holy ground.” And Joshua did as he was told.
6 Now the gates of Jericho were tightly shut because the people were afraid of the Israelites. No one was allowed to go in or out. 2 But the LORD said to Joshua, “I have given you Jericho, its king, and all its mighty warriors. 3 Your entire army is to march around the city once a day for six days. 4 Seven priests will walk ahead of the Ark, each carrying a ram’s horn. On the seventh day you are to march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the horns. 5 When you hear the priests give one long blast on the horns, have all the people give a mighty shout. Then the walls of the city will collapse, and the people can charge straight into the city.”
Joshua is now standing at a crisis of belief. This commander of the Lord’s army received worship from Joshua. Angels were always quick to tell people to worship the Lord not them. This Commander was the Lord Himself appearing to Joshua.
As the Lord spoke the battle plan to Joshua, he had to believe that it was the Lord, and that the plan was the Lord’s plan. Joshua got up and took the plan to the Israelites.
Hebrews 11:30
30 It was by faith that the people of Israel marched around Jericho seven days, and the walls came crashing down.
Their faith was not some sort of supernatural power that they had over the wall. Their faith was based in a call from God, to obey the Word of God, until the promise of God, was delivered by God. If the Israelites would obey God’s word they would experience God in a mighty way. The crisis was in the soul (mind, will and emotions). The adjustment was to believe and willfully do. Their obedience led to a mighty victory.
The faith of the Israelites did not make the walls fall. God made the walls fall. Their faith led them to obey what God had called them to do. Without their obedience to the Word of God they would not have experienced the promise of God. God didn’t have to make the walls fall. God said, you do this and this will happen. They obeyed and the Lord brought the walls to the ground.
Faith is a dependence on, and an obedience to, God and His word. Faith has substance. The substance of faith is God’s word. The action of faith is to believe what God has said and do according to what He has said until what He has said has been realized. Faith is believing God unto obedience.
Hebrews 11:31
31 It was by faith that Rahab the prostitute did not die with all the others in her city who refused to obey God. For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.
Did you know that a prostitute could have faith? She may not have been living entirely by faith but she had enough faith to be saved and I believe her salvation probably changed her life and her way of earning a living.
What was it that established Rahab’s faith?
Joshua 2:8-14
8 Before the spies went to sleep that night, Rahab went up on the roof to talk with them. 9 “I know the LORD has given you this land,” she told them. “We are all afraid of you. Everyone is living in terror. 10 For we have heard how the LORD made a dry path for you through the Red Sea when you left Egypt. And we know what you did to Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings east of the Jordan River, whose people you completely destroyed. 11 No wonder our hearts have melted in fear! No one has the courage to fight after hearing such things. For the LORD your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below. 12 Now swear to me by the LORD that you will be kind to me and my family since I have helped you. Give me some guarantee that 13 when Jericho is conquered, you will let me live, along with my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all their families.”
14 “We offer our own lives as a guarantee for your safety,” the men agreed. “If you don’t betray us, we will keep our promise when the LORD gives us the land.”
Rahab’s faith was established on what she knew about God. She believed what she had heard about God. She was willing to trust God enough to make adjustments in her life to help and then obey the men of God.
I want to show you some great faith. I want to show you how true faith is rewarded.
Joshua 2:15a
15 Then, since Rahab’s house was built into the city wall,
What was God going to destroy? The wall! Rahab’s house was in the wall. If the wall is destroyed how is this family going to be saved? By faith! Their faith was in God to save and deliver them even if the city wall was destroyed.
Joshua 2:17-18
17 Before they left, the men told her, “We can guarantee your safety 18 only if you leave this scarlet rope hanging from the window. And all your family members—your father, mother, brothers, and all your relatives—must be here inside the house.
God passed over destroying Rahab’s house due to her faith. God spared and rescued Rahab’s family because she was willing to obey by faith what the men had told her to do. Her faith was in God. Her obedience was to God. She was spared by God.
Joshua 6:22-23
22 Then Joshua said to the two spies, “Keep your promise. Go to the prostitute’s house and bring her out, along with all her family.”
23 The young men went in and brought out Rahab, her father, mother, brothers, and all the other relatives who were with her. They moved her whole family to a safe place near the camp of Israel.
Hebrews 11:31
31 It was by faith that Rahab the prostitute did not die with all the others in her city who refused to obey God. For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.
Rahab did not have a faith-power. Rahab did not have some supernatural secret that allowed her to have power over her circumstance. What Rahab had was a faith, trust, reliance, dependence, and belief that God would save her and her family. Her faith was actually her weakness. She had to rely upon God when everything else pointed her in different direction.
Hebrews 11:32-35
32 Well, how much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets. 33 By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. 35 Women received their loved ones back again from death.
I wanted to look at two more names included in this list. Gideon and David.
Judges 6:11-16
11 Then the angel of the LORD came and sat beneath the oak tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash of the clan of Abiezer. Gideon son of Joash had been threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites. 12 The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the LORD is with you!”
13 “Sir,” Gideon replied, “if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The LORD brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the LORD has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.”
14 Then the LORD turned to him and said, “Go with the strength you have and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!”
15 “But Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!”
16 The LORD said to him, “I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man.”
Gideon had a real struggle with his crisis of belief. He was hiding and his family was weak. He had heard about the mighty God who did miracles and delivered the Israelites but his question was one of unbelief. If the Lord is with us, why has this happened?
Have you ever been in Gideon’s place? Weak, confused and wondering. Gideon was about to go forth in the only strength he had, a Word from the Lord. You may think that would be a mighty place to be. Gideon had to make adjustments and obey before he would experience God’s power in deliverance.
The writer of Hebrews used the people he chose, to display to us, that it is not by might nor by power but by the Spirit of the Lord that these mighty events happened.
1 Samuel 16:1
Finally, the LORD said to Samuel, “You have mourned long enough for Saul. I have rejected him as king of Israel. Now fill your horn with olive oil and go to Bethlehem. Find a man named Jesse who lives there, for I have selected one of his sons to be my new king.”
1 Samuel 16:10-13
10 In the same way all seven of Jesse’s sons were presented to Samuel. But Samuel said to Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen any of these.” 11 Then Samuel asked, “Are these all the sons you have?”
“There is still the youngest,” Jesse replied. “But he’s out in the fields watching the sheep.”
“Send for him at once,” Samuel said. “We will not sit down to eat until he arrives.”
12 So Jesse sent for him. He was ruddy and handsome, with pleasant eyes. And the LORD said, “This is the one; anoint him.”
13 So as David stood there among his brothers, Samuel took the olive oil he had brought and poured it on David’s head. And the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah.
2 Samuel 5:1-3
Then all the tribes of Israel went to David at Hebron and told him, “We are all members of your family. 2 For a long time, even while Saul was our king, you were the one who really led Israel. And the LORD has told you, ‘You will be the shepherd of my people Israel. You will be their leader.’ ” 3 So there at Hebron, David made a covenant with the leaders of Israel before the LORD. And they anointed him king of Israel.
Twenty-two years have passed between Samuel anointing a 15 year old shepherd boy until he is then anointed and accepted by all of Israel.
In our microwave world today waiting 22 years for the promise to be realized is not an option. We want it all and we want it now. The faith movement plays on people who desire the power now.
David was anointed by God’s prophet Samuel. God had declared David to be His king. David was to take the throne from Saul. By faith, what God had said, David knew he was king. By faith, David waited to receive the promise which was granted to him.
Receiving a word or promise from God is not always like receiving a free ticket to sit in the front row of a special event. The promise of God comes with a great deal of crisis and adjustment. Sometimes it comes with pain and suffering. The promise of God has to be worked out in our world.
God works all things together for the good of those who love Him and for those called according to His purpose. But God’s work sometimes takes much time to be realized in our world.
God said it so it has become a reality in the realm of God. But for God to deliver His word into an unbelieving world takes time. God works to get everything into the right place for His word to be realized according to His plan. God works with us on a personal level. He works to bring His plan into our lives. He could do it in a snap but the whole world is not ready to receive His complete plan.
God works through those who are seeking and searching for Him. He invites us to join Him in His work and after we adjust ourselves to His way we can obey and experience God at work.
It’s not always easy. Sometimes it doesn’t work out the way we think it should. Sometimes it could be tragic to our earthly lives to follow the plan of God.
Hebrews 11:35-40
But others trusted God and were tortured, preferring to die rather than turn from God and be free. They placed their hope in the resurrection to a better life. 36 Some were mocked, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in dungeons. 37 Some died by stoning, and some were sawed in half; others were killed with the sword. Some went about in skins of sheep and goats, hungry and oppressed and mistreated. 38 They were too good for this world. They wandered over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground.
39 All of these people we have mentioned received God’s approval because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. 40 For God had far better things in mind for us that would also benefit them, for they can’t receive the prize at the end of the race until we finish the race.
Dad, Are We There Yet? No son, not yet, But if you’ll trust me, I’ll deliver you right on time.
Are you, BY FAITH, trusting God? Don’t look around at others. Don’t look at your circumstances. God said if you would trust in what He has done for you, you would be saved. Are you living by faith? God’s approval is according to faith not circumstances.
Sometimes the circumstances worsened when the person of faith chose to obey. Just because it looks bad according to our sight, doesn’t mean that God is not at work. Remember God is working through a world of unbelief to make that which He declares to happen. We must then engage our faith trusting what the Lord has promised. Blind faith is dangerous. Faith that can see God fulfilling what He said He would do is true Biblical faith that has the power to save and deliver. Let us Pray.
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Hebrews 15: Living By Faith
Over the last four weeks we have looked at the Bible’s Faith based hall of fame.
We have looked at the people of the Bible who have placed their faith in God. Those who have trusted God, by faith, have witnessed many mighty events that were proclaimed by and then completed by God Himself.
Biblical Faith always begins with a call from God, to obey the Word of God, until the promise of God, is delivered by God. This is the pattern of faith that God has shown to us in the Bible through the lives of those who have trusted in Him by faith.
The substance of faith is the Word of God. The evidence of faith is how the faithful live out their lives while waiting on the substance, or Word of God, to be seen or realized in their lives.
Faith can only be lived in the present. We have studied the stories of past faith where people received a call, obeyed the Word, went and did while trusting the Lord, and then they saw the promises delivered. So as you can see, faith can not be active in the past it can only be testified to.
Faith cannot be used in the future because we are not there yet. The future is where faith is realized. Our journey to the future is where we live by faith. We live by faith in the present looking forward to the realization of that which we hope for which is the finished work of God in our lives.
This is why we ended last Sunday with Hebrews 11:39. It’s a hard fact to grasp but it is truth. “All of these people we have mentioned received God’s approval because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised.”
What we have been promised by God cannot be totally realized in this world. Living by faith is completing this life and still looking forward to the promise of God. Even in our bodily death the soul is still living by faith.
Faith is what we know about God. What we have all come to know since the beginning of this year about God and His Word to us, should assure us that we are not going to die but our souls will be separated from our bodies and live on eternally with the Lord. This new experience will only come by faith. Faith does not end in death.
Hebrews 12:1
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us.
Did you know that we were surrounded by a huge crowd of witnesses? The Bible alone listed quite a few. In the last 2000 years many more of joined their ranks.
I don’t want you to think that all these people are starring down at you. I don’t believe those that have gone before us know what is still happening here.
The huge crowd of witnesses have departed from this earth but they have left their testimony behind. We know of many who lived lives of faith holding to the promise of God. We know many who have stayed away from the sins of this world due to their focus upon the reward ahead. We know many who did not want their progress toward the promise land to be hindered by the sin that so easily entangles lives. So Let us strip off the sin and run the race by faith also.
The life of faith is compared here to an endurance race. When I think about races of endurance I think of marathons, triathlons, and because of my personal interest, I think especially about bad rounds of golf.
I want to share with you some of the difficulties of a bad round of golf that can be compared to living the life of faith.
When a player starts a round of golf he always begins with an expectation and a hope. The expectation is generally higher than what is about to be realized. So from the start of a round of golf you have pressure to perform. This pressure is self inflicted. If a player has started with a desire and a want that may not be realized and the round begins to turn sour the player is going to have great difficulty finishing strong.
As a players score goes up he will try many different things that will generally make the score worse instead of better. As the score gets worse the player becomes angry and at this point wants to give up but his round has not yet been completed.
I have said many times that the definition of anger is expectations not being met. If you begin anything with expectations that are too high, you will not be able to finish strong. Finishing strong depends greatly upon your personal energy. Your anger will eat up all of your energy and leave you exhausted an incomplete.
You do though need expectations. Without expectations you will not start the race. Without a goal you cannot achieve anything. That’s why the Scriptures teach us that without a vision people perish.
So what is the goal?
In life our goal is the prize at the end of the race. What is the prize? It is at this point where so many people can get totally lost in a world that has so much to offer. If the prize at the end of life is an eternal home with the Lord, we must set the vision and begin to live in a way that will allow us to realize the goal.
Let’s say your goal is a better golf score. There are some things that you will need to do if you are going to attain your goal.
To attain a better golf score you must learn about the principals and laws of ball flight. You must practice them so you can make the ball fly better and more accurately. You will need to understand the rules of the game. The rules are not just to penalize a player but if you know the rules they can help you to score better. You will need to take the tips and the teaching you receive from scoring leaders to the course and practice them so you will know when and how to use them for your benefit. But the number one thing that will help a person play better is to play the game.
A life of faith is also played better by those who are playing and practicing at it. Faith, being what you know about God, will help you to live a better life by faith. The more you know about God and the more you put into practice the better you will become at the faith race.
Beware, there are going to be some difficulties along the way. If you get angry in the midst of your difficulties, realizing that anger is expectations not being met, your energy to finish strong will be consumed by the circumstances and situations that have made you angry. You will become exhausted and want to give up and yet your race has not yet been completed.
See, the problem is not the difficulties, the struggles, the trials, the tribulations, or the disasters. We have been told that they are a part of the course of life. The trouble is out there. We need to know how to take the steps of faith that will help us to avoid the trouble.
Golf courses have trouble. They also have an area called the fairway. The fairway is straight and narrow. You must take dead aim and put that ball right down the fairway if you are going to avoid the trouble. The fairway is the best place to be but there are no guarantees that being in the fairway will create a good golf score. A good golf score is based upon an accumulation of shots not just one into the fairway.
Living the life of faith is the best place to be but there are no guarantees that everything will go exactly as you hoped and expected. Every step must be by faith. You also have an enemy that is doing everything he can to disrupt, distract, detour, and even destroy your journey. So beware, this journey we call a race is filled with danger.
Hebrews 12:2a
2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from start to finish.
Our eyes are on the prize. We have taken dead aim at the straight and narrow path. We are putting into practice all that we have come to know about God. We are living the life of faith. And yet before us, we see that there is a cross to be taken up daily. There is still difficulty and trouble to be navigated. There is nothing easy about the way of faith.
Are we going to give up? Are we going to get angry and allow the anger to steal our energy? Are we going to head for the locker room and cry because life is hard? I know that all these emotions come into play. The world, in which we are called to live by faith in, is a very hard course. If you haven’t seen any of the trouble on the course yet, beware, your next step of faith could land you in a very hard place.
Hebrews 12:2b-4
He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy he knew would be his afterward. Now he is seated in the place of highest honor beside God’s throne in heaven. 3 Think about all he endured when sinful people did such terrible things to him, so that you don’t become weary and give up. 4 After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin.
The game we are playing has finally been identified. We are living by faith because we are in a struggle against sin. Sin is trying to kill us. And yet sin cannot win the victory if we have already overcome death by faith. Now all we have to do is endure till the end. We are called to finish strong and the Lord is going to help us along the way.
Hebrews 12:5-6
5 And have you entirely forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to you, his children? He said,
“My child, don’t ignore it when the Lord disciplines you,
and don’t be discouraged when he corrects you.
6 For the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes those he accepts as his children.”
Practicing the game of golf is not easy. But my desire to be better than I am, at the present time, drives me to practice. I know the game of golf, but perfect at the game I am not. I desire to perform good every time out but that is an expectation that leads to anger because I will not always play as well as I can. This is the reality of the game.
The difficulty with the life of faith is most of us struggle understanding the life of faith as well as we should. So, we don’t know exactly what to expect, and when what we expect, is not being realized, we get lost in our emotions. This leads to all kinds of confusion, especially when the voices of the world are trying to steal, kill, and destroy your soul. The world wants you so focused on things such as golf that you will miss the life of faith. Being confused and unknowledgeable about the things of God in this world is suicidal.
God does though have His ways of bringing people back to Himself. God wants us to be in a relationship with Him. God will do what it takes to be first in our lives. If we have gotten off track He will discipline us back onto the right track. When difficulties, trials, struggles, problems, and even tribulation come our way, we need to identify them. Is this God’s discipline to make me better and stronger or has some of the trouble I am encountering been the consequences of my sin that needs to be turned from. How do I know the difference if I do not know God’s word, God‘s way or God‘s purpose?
As you can tell people living outside of faith would be like a person trying to play golf without knowing the rules or the ball flight laws. They would be lost in need of being saved from their situation. Without the knowledge of the truth you cannot run the race in a rightful manor.
Hebrews 12:7-11
7 As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is treating you as his own children. Whoever heard of a child who was never disciplined? 8 If God doesn’t discipline you as he does all of his children, it means that you are illegitimate and are not really his children after all. 9 Since we respect our earthly fathers who disciplined us, should we not all the more cheerfully submit to the discipline of our heavenly Father and live forever?
10 For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always right and good for us because it means we will share in his holiness. 11 No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening—it is painful! But afterward there will be a quiet harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.
Are you starting to see how important it is to have a Biblical faith that will allow you to know and understand the way God is dealing with and working in this world?
When you see a disaster you wonder what it’s all about. You wonder why it had to happen. The world has been judged and a curse has been placed on it. The Bible tells us that the troubles we see in this world will escalate until the end. There will be terrible times ahead but for those who are living the true life of faith in relationship with God, they will be able to trust that all things are working together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose.
I know this is difficult but it is true to Scripture. Sometimes the truth is hard to deal with. But when we work through our crisis of belief and make the proper adjustments in our life, we will be able to obey and experience God on His terms and there is no other way.
Hebrews 12:12-13
12 So take a new grip with your tired hands and stand firm on your shaky legs. 13 Mark out a straight path for your feet. Then those who follow you, though they are weak and lame, will not stumble and fall but will become strong.
I call this my golf lesson passage. Whenever you start talking about grips and stances, and straight paths, I find it hard not to relate it to golf. But let’s look at what is really being said here.
Discipline is tiring. Finishing anything is hard work. To go through life undisciplined is a life of quitting when the going gets tough. It’s a life of giving up when things don’t go your way. An undisciplined life is a life lived without focus. It’s a life lived without purpose.
The disciplined will strive in the difficult situation. The disciplined will overcome adversity. The disciplined are the strong and focused leaders that persevere through trials and tribulations. The disciplined finish the race. The disciplined may not win every race but their discipline is acquired in the defeats along the way.
If you can’t stand to lose a few races along the way you will never be disciplined enough to finish the life lived by faith. The life of faith is not a life of winning every battle. The life of faith is learning and growing closer to God in every circumstance and situation that enters into your life.
Hebrews 12:1
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily hinders our progress. And let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us.
If something has entered your life that is keeping you from running the race God has set before you, strip it off, it’s extra weight that is slowing you down.
It may be an emotional struggle. It may be a physical difficulty. It may be some sort of sin that is hindering your progress. It could just be the troubles of this world. True discipline overcomes the world.
Hebrews 12:2b-4
He was willing to die a shameful death on the cross because of the joy he knew would be his afterward. Now he is seated in the place of highest honor beside God’s throne in heaven. 3 Think about all he endured when sinful people did such terrible things to him, so that you don’t become weary and give up. 4 After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin.
To me this means we are still in the race so let’s keep running for the day of our redemption is drawing near.
Let us pray.
