Dying In Faith
Notes
Transcript
Intro: It’s hard enough in life today to live by faith, having the complete Bible to guide our lives in hope. Can you imagine “Dying In Faith”, without having ever having seen the promises of God fulfilled. That’s what Abraham and others in the hall of faith did.
They lived trusting in God to keep his promises and died according to those promises. They saw the promises of God, but did not see them fulfilled. Abraham died before seeing the children of Israel march into the promised land. But he died in faith. They saw what their physical eyes never saw: God’s future fulfillment of his promises. They knew God was faithful, so they never stopped believing.
Tonight lets look at “Dying In Faith”
Text; Heb. 11:13-16
13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
14 For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland.
15 And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return.
16 But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.
1. Died In Faith; 13
1. Died In Faith; 13
Faith has hope [expectation] of a certain future [substance] in the promises of God [evidence].
What was the promise of God that had faith in?
7 Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” And there he built an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.
Abraham never fully received the promise of seeing his descendants receive the land in his earthly life, but he knew that promise would be fulfilled in the Lord. That did not shake the faith of Abraham that God didn’t fulfill His promises in Abrahams lifetime
Assured of them- convinced, believed
Embraced them- greet, accept, welcome
Confessed- acknowledged, admit
Abraham realized that he was a pilgrim on a journey and heaven was his true home, not Canaan. Canaan is Israels inheritance, not their home!
4 “I am a foreigner and a visitor among you. Give me property for a burial place among you, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.”
15 For we are aliens and pilgrims before You, As were all our fathers; Our days on earth are as a shadow, And without hope.
18 For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,
11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,
2. Lived In Faith; 14-15
2. Lived In Faith; 14-15
Abraham and others who saw the promises of God afar off, still lived by an amazing faith.
[15] Nothing prevented Abraham from going back to Haran but his “faith” in God’s promises!
Imagine us being in Abraham’s shoes.
He didn’t have a Bible to read to tell of what was going to happen in the future.
He didn’t have fulfilled prophesy that he could lean on to encourage future trust.
He didn’t even get all God’s promises fulfilled in his life to keep him from going back to Haran and giving up God as being a joke.
He never saw himself become a great nation nor did he see the coming of the Seed that will bless the world.
He struggled to make it to when Isaac was born!
How much greater should our faith be than Abrahams. We can see and understand the promises of God as we look back to the cross. We have the promises of God fulfilled in the Word and that Christ has already come once.
3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”
13 For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
3. Rewarded In Faith; 16
3. Rewarded In Faith; 16
These patriarchs of old were men and women who pleased God and it says, “He was not ashamed of them”.
What made their faith so appealing to God?
Visionary Faith- they desired more than what this world had to offer. A heavenly country, with a heavenly city.
9 By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise;
10 for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.
Growing Faith- not only did they have a desire for what God had promised them, but they were thankful that God chose them. [Assured, Embraced and Confessed]
Active Faith- Sought a new homeland [14]
14 For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come.
Enduring Faith- Never looked back to the past but pushed forward to the future God had prepared for them.
13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead,
14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Everything about faith in God is better than what we have without Him!
Close;
20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself.
If we had the faith of Abraham, we would not only live a stronger life of faith in this world, but we would die a greater death in faith, leaving behind a legacy of Jesus Christ for others to follow!