IT WAS BY FAITH

IT WAS BY FAITH
Hebrews 11:1-40 – The Best of the Bible- 365 Most Read Passages – Tyndale House, 1996 – 17th Dec.

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. God gave his approval to people in days of old because of their faith. 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.

•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.

•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. 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.

•It was by faith that Noah built an ark to save his family from the flood.

•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. Went without knowing where he was to go.

•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. 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 was by faith that Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him.

•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.

•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.

•It was by faith that Joseph, when he was about to die, confidentially spoke of God’s bringing the people of Israel out of Egypt.

•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.

•It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be treated as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to share the oppression of God’s…

•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 drowned.

How deep is your commitment to Christ: Two words describe our faith: confidence and certainty… The beginning point of faith is believing in God’s character – he is who he says. The end point is believing in God promises – he will do what he says. We believe that will fulfill his promises even though we don’t see those promises materializing now – this is true faith.

George H. Kubeck – Sunday, December 18, 2011 – www.cinopsbegone.com