Your world changes. All have to cross the river. Walking with God is not just for Enoch. Having trouble logging into your account? This means that the Son is Creator, Sustainer, and Redeemer. Faith taken seriously makes a difference in our world and changes the way we live. THE OLD Assembly's Catechism asks, "What is the chief end of man?" and its answer is, "To glorify God, and to enjoy him for ever." This indicates that things were going to become even more difficult in the immediate future. Perhaps that's what happened to Enoch. But Enoch did not go through it. There is, of course, overlap between the objective and subjective senses of these words. I need not try to convince you of anything. What else could compare with this? The story comes from Genesis 27. You are currently impersonating {{userSessionData.email}}. Hebrews 11:8 Sermons: By faith, Abraham, when he was called, obeyed to go out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance. v. 24. Pleasures are found at Gods right hand, and those who walk with God taste these pleasures before they ever arrive in heaven. The minivan ran over a large chunk of metal that had broken off the back of a truck. 48:51. b. Habakkuk lived in difficult times before the Babylonians came to take away Judah into captivity. As they burned him at the stake, he died singing! Copyright, Steven J. Cole, 2004, All Rights Reserved. I am sure there are some people to whom God has given such grace that believing is never a challenge, even in the midst of extreme circumstances. Tim Russert was 100-percent right. [2] For by it the people of old received their commendation. His faith saved his entire family. Hebrews 11 begins by telling us what faith is: Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen (Heb 11:1). Faith was about my belief in God. There is more to life than that. You are at peace in the presence of God, because you have nothing to hide from Him. Although the stress of the next section of Hebrews is on practical exhortations, doctrine is either taught or assumed in this part of the book as Read More Hebrews 11:1-7 - The Description of Faith Verse 1 says that faith has "substance." Faith is tangible, even though it is invisible. Scot and Janet escaped the blaze with burns, but they couldn't save their children: Ben, 13, Joe, 11, Sam, 9, Hank, 6, Elizabeth, 3, and Peter, six weeks old. And John MacArthur, with his rich, expository style of preaching, draws out the lessons we can learn from each of them. Ultimately, this will undermine the relationship, because it erodes trust. That is what faith is: Faith is believing there is another dimension to life other than those which can be touched, tasted, seen or felt. This ancient story may seem a long way from the realities of your life today. That's what Tim Russert said to Jon Meacham when he invited him to appear on Meet the Press to debate noted atheist Christopher Hitchens. The "hoped for" things we are sure of, are things God has promised. All of us are on a journey going somewhere. The flood came in the 600th year of Noahs life and if you compare that with the long years of Methuselahs life, you will see that God sent the flood in the year that Methuselah died. One day Enoch and God had walked so far that God said, "Why don't you come home with me?" If you would like to download two encouraging, FREE full-length MP3s of Tony's popular sermons: "The Sovereignty of God" and "How to Handle a Crisis," you ca. Imagine the impact of this first recorded death by natural causes. I did what I did because I believed it to be biblical and thus pleasing to God, but it resulted in a number of people trying to get me fired. Why is it important to affirm that faith is not a work that gains Gods merit? Hebrews 11:1-16 NASB. 1) Faith: Being Certain of What You Do Not See - Hebrews 11:1-2 2) Creation: Understanding the Power of God's Word - Hebrews 11:3 3) Abel: Giving God the First Portion - Hebrews 11:4 4) Enoch: Believing God's Goodness - Hebrews 11:5-6 5) Noah: Heeding God's Warnings - Hebrews 11:7 6) Abraham (1a): Following God's Leading - Hebrews 11:8 I need a pure heart. Faith does allow us to overcome the struggles we face in life. Here is a message especially for all the men. It has the idea of a "foundation or basis. The word also is used as a technical term for the unity of the Trinity, although this is not what is implied here. When he looked at Abel's heart, he found faith there, and it was faith that he rewarded. The fact that the author puts verse 3 at the start of his list of by faith examples, shows that faith in God as Creator is foundational to knowing God. And in such a world, Enoch walked with God! By Faith - Sermon on Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-12 Leave a reply Last week we discovered that God's vision in creation is to be with us. The Creator of heaven and earth; the sovereign Lord of the universe is your heavenly Father, and He is so intensely interested in you, so intimately involved in your life, that He would choose to walk with you! Impossible Without Faith: Hebrews 11:17-40. Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon (Isa 55:6, 7). All of the patristic and medieval scholars understood the words in the objective sense, but Melanchthon advised Luther to render it, sure confidence. Luthers interpretation has influenced most scholarship since the Reformation (Koster, ibid.). Such faith, as we will see in the numerous examples of Hebrews 11, is down to earth and practical. The seed on the thorny ground may have lasted a bit longer, but eventually it was strangled by the temptations of worries, riches, and the pleasures of this life. Faith proves or gives evidence for the things that we cannot see, thus giving us a conviction that these unseen things are true. Walking involves slow, steady movement. The answer lies in the resurrection and the ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ. 4:4). For them it was all about the faith. Ditto for Cain. ii. When the flood finally came, only eight people were saved: Noah and his wife, his three sons and their wives. The Word became flesh and tabernacled among us (John 1:14). Most scholars take the second instance (Heb. Abel had been killed, but that was before Seth or any of his descendants were born. The "unseen things" we are convinced of, are things God has revealed. So it is. Since Gods promises are given in specific contexts, how can we know which of them apply to us now? And that is our calling today. these people were heroes. We have to believe it. It has to change the way we live. Put your faith in Jesus Christ! All the days of Seth were 912 years, and he died (Gen 5:8). We live in a world that is far from God and all of us are going to die. He wants them to become imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises (6:12). Abel was commended as righteous because of a sacrifice that God accepted. Scripture: From Abel to Enoch to Noah - what joins these men together? Isaac's blessing of Jacob and Esau shows faith in God's promises, even when circumstances seem to contradict those promises (11:20). Faith is unconditional trust in the promises of God. This was Gods provision for multiplying the human population in its earliest generations. Hebrews 11:1 gives a definition, or at least a good description, of the faith that pleases God: "Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." "Confidence" is the translation of a Greek word that means "foundation." Faith is the foundation that . This sermon is yet another feeble attempt to do so. How does all of this relate to Hebrews 11? Why? This is confirmed by a prophecy given by Enoch, that is quoted and preserved for us in the New Testament. It punctured the van's gas tank and set off an explosion that ripped a hole through the backseat floor. Free shipping on books, Bibles, gifts, VBS, and church supplies of $50 or more. Charles Hoffacker On the whole, the Bible is not taken up with providing definitions in the way that a dictionary does. 4:15). So, Adam was still living when Enoch was born. The constant, conscious enjoyment of the presence of God that, by faith, is possible for you now is a taste, an anticipation of the joys that will be yours forever in heaven. Living with that "end" in mind, the Christian daily exercises faith in an unseen, almighty, and awesome God. The author does not want us to have a temporary, flimsy faith that shrinks back to destruction. Please include this statement on every copy distributed: By Colin S. Smith. When Noah and Mrs. Noah entered the ark, their boys went with them. And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him (Heb 11:6). How did they know to bring an offering to God? Faith, Creation, Jesus, Abraham, Noah, City Of God, Enoch, Abel, Example, Perseverence, Justification By Faith, 52-week preaching calendar to help you plan your sermons, Customizable sermon manuscripts for verse-by-verse preaching, Preach with creativity and impact throughout the year, [NEW YEAR] 4-Week Series to kick off 2023, [PRODUCTIVITY] Fulfill your full potential, [FOUNDATIONS] Getting back to what matters most. Donald Hagner puts it this way (Encountering the Book of Hebrews [Baker], p. 142): From the examples of faith lifted up in this chapter it seems clear that what is not primarily in view is what we feel or possessassurance, confidencebut rather, how faith substantiates, or gives substance to, what is promised, how it provides evidence of what is believed about unseen and hoped-for realities. Those who kept their faith in the LORD in these awful times would live. 2 For by it the men of old gained approval. Ecclesiastes 3:11 says that God has put eternity inside every human heart. I often wonder if I would be a Christian if I hadn't been born in a Christina home, reared by Christian parents, lived next to a Christian church, surrounded by Christian people. Fathers, listen up. Ages (worlds) is a Hebrew way of referring to the creation from the standpoint of its successive duration. How do I know that? But true faith, faith that rests on God and his Word and believes all that he has said, true faith sees the unseen and say, "Yes, it is true.". But when you believe in His Word about salvation, you gain understanding about the origins of the ages that makes everything in history fall into place. It's what we believe about the things that matter most. Verse 1 says that faith has substance. Faith is tangible, even though it is invisible. Those who are alive when Christ comes in glory will be taken across the river, without going through it. They just aren't brave enough to say it. Has it occurred to you that God may have done this so that you will seek Him and walk with Him in a way that you were not doing before? We can't see the soul in heaven. The roll call of the saints of the Old Testament would have been well known to the congregation. Before we leave verse 1, lets apply it by illustrating how faith worked in the lives of three Hebrew young men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego (Daniel 3). The prevailing current worldview, that matter always existed and that the current universe, including man, happened by sheer chance over billions of years, is based on blind faith, because there is no evidence to support it. Either way, it is Christ who will take us up, and we will be at home with Him. But you have not said it to build the other person in Christ, and so it is not loving. We are not a very trusting people. In fact, Adam was still living when Enochs son Methuselah was born and when Enochs grandson Lamech was born! Instead we find complexity, and diversity not only between religious communities but within it as well." The principle is this: Trust is essential for close personal relationships. They believed because he believed. Rick has earned a Doctor of Ministry in Preaching from Northern Baptist Theological Seminary and a Master of Theology in preaching from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. Since the birth of Seth, all of these patriarchs carried on living. One brother kills another in an outburst of rage and envy. He's Where the Joy Is by Tara-Leigh Cobble, Black Church Leadership & Family Conference. The hoped for things we are sure of, are things God has promised. Enoch was the seventh of these 10 generations from Adam to Noah. That's the power of a godly leader. If you would draw near to God, you must believethat he rewards those who seek Him (vs. 6). The evidence of our eyes is against all of this. Husbands, observe this carefully. Listen as Old Testament giants of faith still speak to us through their lives. While the term is roughly equivalent to world, it allows for what modern science has established, that time is related to matter. Adam lived to see his great, great, great, great, great, great, grandchildren. Sometimes it involves leaning into the wind. The Power of Faith will help you strengthen your confidence in God's promises. You become a father, or a mother, and you find yourself saying, God has given me this wonderful gift and if I am to raise this child in this ungodly world, I need strength. He offered a first-born lamb from the flock. How did Cain know Abel's sacrifice had been accepted and his had not? He speaks of straining forward toward what lies ahead (Phil 3:13). If the story of Cain and Abel seems short, the story of Enoch is minuscule by comparison. This is also the case here as it says the evidence of things not seen. So faith has the idea of what would normally be considered impossible, possible. The eternal God brought physical matter and time into being by His powerful word alone! 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