FAITH THAT SHAMES NOT GOD
Hebrews 11:13-16
My brothers and sisters as we the Church of Christ is on the brink of a much needed break through, we first need as I had referenced to during Watch Night Service a major faith lift. I am inclined to believe that many in the church, have talked about, wrote about and exhibited so much faith, that many in the church physical, appear to be tapped out, while still there remains a remnant in the church spiritual that is still holding on to the promises of God. It is no longer a question of believing in God, but for many in the church, it has become a question of believing God. This is why both pastor and congregation here at Salem, are having a spiritual faith lift coming from the master surgeon Himself, that we will not at anytime embarrass our God with a lack of faith.
The last time we visited this 11th chapter of Hebrews we were studying verse eleven through twelve, there we talked about Sarah and her faith. It was a faith that conquered the impossible. There we learned how Sarah, a woman passed her bearing year embraced the promise of the Lord and produced the son that the Lord said she would have. One of the key points was that she had to shift her faith from what she could do to what God promised to do. From her faith lift she conceived with Abraham who as verse twelve indicated that he was as good as dead. Together they birthed a nation for God that would be as many as the stars of the sky, and as many as the sand on the seashore. I tell you when we place our faith in the One who is able to divide the Red Sea, the One who made the sun stand still, the One who cooled of the fire for the Hebrew boys, the One who fed five thousand with two fish and five barley loaves, the One who was able to save us from us, then we can place ourselves in line for the best that God has to offer.
This text speaks about those who died in the faith. Although they believed God and His word, they did not receive the promises but they saw them from a distance, and many of them died believing. We will witness how this new generation of Israelites who knew not their father’s homeland, settled for the promises that God had given to their forefathers, and they had faith enough to believe that if they did not make it to the promised land, they would for certain are headed to a better city.
So, come as we will see how they shamed not God with their faith and I have today just one major point, with four short sub-points to support it.
First of all . . .
1. THEIR FAITH WAS SO STRONG, THAT THEY DIED BELIEVING WITHOUT RECEIVING (v.13)
“These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them,”
Had you ever heard the story of the little boy that went to town with his father, and his father told him to wait on a particular corner for him until he returned. The story lets us know, if I remember correctly that as the day passed it rained, but he stood right there and other situations occurred, but the young child didn’t move. It had started to get dark and he was still waiting on his father, and when the father came back to where he was, he found the boy wet, cold and hungry. And he asks him why didn’t he go home? And the boy responded “because you told me to wait here and I knew that you would come back for me.”
That is what happened to the patriarchs. They knew that if they waited on God and counted on His promises, He would deliver as promised. Now although they did not receive the promise of the land, yet they saw them from a distance in their hearts. The point to see is this: these all died believing what God had promised and not a single one of them ever received the promise on earth. If they were to receive them, they had to accept them by faith. Believing in them and hoping in them was the only way they could possess them. That is what the text said that they were persuaded of them, and embraced them. Although death came their way it did not stop their faith because their faith was seen by others and it was infectious, so infectious that many around them believed them too.
I need you to note four sub-points and I’ll be done and maybe these sub-points will allow us to gather outside of faith’s proverbial traditional box.
1. Their faith was a visionary faith. They saw the promises of God afar off, not by sight but in their hearts and minds. What was the promise? It was the promise of a country as found in verse fourteen. Now although they believed in the promise of a country of their own, verse sixteen gave them a promise of a better home that is known as heavenly. Jesus even said that Abraham saw His day and rejoiced in the hope of it, according to John 8:56. So not only did they believe that they would receive an earthly home from God, but they also knew that they would receive a heavenly home as well, one that was prepared by Jesus Himself. So they first had a visionary faith.
2. Their faith was a growing faith. They saw the promise of God in their mind’s eye and were thankful to God for the privilege of seeing it. Keeping in mind of whom the patriarchs were it was Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the other ancient men of their time. And by visually seeing the promise fulfilled in their hearts, they shared it with the younger generations and they shared it with conviction. That is what we have to do when sharing our faith, we have to share it as if we are convicted by it. Not only were they convicted by it but, they were persuaded by the promise because God said it and they embraced or welcomed the promise, because the promise would exceed in supplement and beauty then where they came from and in their appreciation they would never forget that. So, the second thing is that they had a growing faith.
3. Their faith was a working faith. They actively sought after the promised land and declared the fact to all. They did not just sit back and talk about the promised land, thinking that God would take them to it when it was time. They did no go on about their lives upon this earth ignoring the promised land, thinking that they were good enough and God would never reject them from inheriting it. The early believers actively sought after the promised land. They got up and went looking for it, leaving the world and its possessions behind.
My brothers and sister if we are to receive the promises of God, we are not to sit here waiting for God to do something we need to get up and do something toward obtaining the promise. In other words’ faith of an action word. So we find that the third thing was that they had a working faith.
4. Their faith was an enduring faith. They never returned to the country they had left. They had separated from the world and began a search for the promised land of God and they stayed on the search. Simply stated, they kept their mind and thoughts upon the promised land. Much like the early settlers of this country. To prevent them from thinking about returning to England, their leaders burned and destroyed the ships they came here on, in order to keep them focused on the new land.
The majority of the patriarchs did not harbor a longing of the things of their home land, although, there were some that wanted to return. They simply endured to the end and not even death could stop the burning desire of reaching the land in which God had promised. So, they had an enduring faith.
CONCLUSION
Well, it is time to go now and if I hadn’t said it to you, I wish you a Happy New Year. But before you go, I need you to know that I feel like the patriarchs of old. There is a promise land that God has given me. In my heart I can see it completed, in fact I can just about reach out and touch it. Everytime I go to my office I can smell the freshly painted rooms and I can hear the people enjoying the promise of God.
I don’t know about you, but can’t you see it. New floors and new paint, no more drafty rooms or lead base paint, no more allowing families to seek other places to have a repast for their loved one.
Can you see it? I can even see an elevator for our seniors, classrooms with plenty of light for the children. Can you see it?
I’m reminded of Eph. 3:20 which says; “Now unto Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask of think , according to the power that worketh in us.” But look what verse 21 says “Unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus through out all ages, world without end. Amen.”
