Tag: Abraham’s faith

Posted on

Living by Faith

Abraham is the Bible’s most prominent example of a person who lived by faith in God. He is honored in Hebrews chapter 11, the faith Hall of Fame. Warren Wiersbe wrote, “Abraham believed God when he did not know where (vv. 8-10), when he did not know how (vv. 11-12), and when he did not know why (vv. 13-16). It was faith in God’s Word that made him leave his home, live as a pilgrim, and follow wherever God led.”

The New Testament says that those who have faith in Jesus are spiritual descendants of Abraham (Galatians 3:6-9; Romans 4:16; Hebrews 2:16). This means that we may inherit the promises made to Abraham if we live by faith, as he did. Hebrews 11 uses the story of Abraham to teach us what it means to live by faith.

Obedience

“By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as an inheritance, obeyed and went” (Hebrews 11:8). When he said “yes” to God’s call, Abraham was saying “no” to all that was familiar. In fact, his home city, Ur, was a center for idol worship (Joshua 24:2). So he was saying “no” to the worship of false gods and responding with a “yes” to the only true and living God.

For Christians, obedience means saying “no” to anything that is in opposition to the will of God and saying “yes”  to what we know God wants us to do. The will of God is revealed in the Word of God. The Bible tells us what to believe and how to live. Like Abraham, we are called to respond to God’s will with  obedience.

Identification

“By faith he made his home in the promised land, like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents” (Hebrews 11:9). Canaan, the new land to which God sent him, was inhabited by people who lived in cities. By contrast, Abraham lived as a nomadic herdsman, moving through the land and living in tents. In several different places he built altars for the worship of God. In this he was publicly identified  with the true God.

Augustine, over 1600 years ago, lived in the decadent Roman empire. He taught that there is a distinction between the “city of God” and the “city of man.” Followers of Jesus hold dual citizenship and every day we  weigh whether loyalty to one conflicts with loyalty to the other. Like Abraham we are to keep our eyes of faith on the eternal “city with foundations whose architect and builder is God” (Hebrews 11:10, 16).

Testing

Abraham’s faith was put to the test on several occasions. In Genesis 12-16 we see him dealing with one challenging situation after another: famine, conflict over grazing lands, the kidnapping and rescue of his nephew Lot, Sarah’s temporary unbelief, and the matter of Hagar and Ishmael.

His greatest test of faith is mentioned in Hebrews 11:17-19. “By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice.” Genesis 22 tells the surprising story of how God directed Abraham to sacrifice his son. God was asking Abraham to give up the most precious thing in his life, Isaac the son of promise. He must have been bewildered by this command. It seemed ridiculous to offer up his son when God had promised that it was to be through Isaac that Abraham’s chosen descendants would be numbered.

How did he respond to this test? “Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead” (Hebrews 11:19). In fact he considered that God would have to raise Isaac from death if he was to keep his promise. God had promised descendants to Abraham and that those descendants would come through Isaac. He maintained his faith in the word and power of God. In the desperate moment when the terrible sacrifice was to be offered, God delivered Isaac from death by means of a substitutionary sacrifice. Abraham passed this supreme test of faith.

When God interrupts our lives with uncomfortable circumstances or new directions, we should not panic. Instead the example of Abraham shows us the way to pass the test. We must pause and take time to reason it out, and consider what God has promised to do. Then respond with faith in his promises.

Pastor Randy Faulkner

Posted on

“Yes” to the Will of God

Bill Bright was the founder of the student movement known as Campus Crusade for Christ. With thousands of full time Christian workers all over the world, “Cru” has been used by God to influence millions of people  for Jesus Christ. An interviewer once asked Mr. Bright “Why did God use you and bless your life?”

He answered, “When I was a young man I made a contract with God. I literally wrote it out and signed my name at the bottom. It said, ‘From this day forward, I am a slave of Jesus Christ.'”

Bright’s story reminds me of Abraham. He stands out as an example of obedient faith and full surrender to God. In Hebrews 11, the great faith chapter, almost one third of the verses are about Abraham’s faith. “By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as an inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going” (Hebrews 11:8).

When we read about Abraham, we learn we learn some things about living by faith. Abraham responded to God’s call with instant obedience. He  was called to leave his home in the ancient city of Ur. Archaeology has uncovered a treasure of information about this great city.  Hundreds of cuneiform tablets have been unearthed there revealing Ur as the cultural capitol of world civilization in Abraham’s time.

Surrounded by lush orchards, irrigated fields and beautiful gardens, Ur was wealthy and sophisticated. It was a center for commerce, the arts, engineering,  and government. Ur was a desirable place to live. God spoke to Abraham there and told him to leave. As soon as he heard God’s call, Abraham started packing! This was an act of faith. Living by faith means we will be willing to obey God, as Abraham did.

Suppose you were Abraham’s next door neighbor and he told you he was leaving. “Why?” you ask. “Are you going on vacation?” “No.”

“Is it for a new job opportunity?” “Not exactly.”

“Do you have relatives living there?” “No.”

‘When are you coming back?” “I don’t know. Maybe never.”

“What will you do there?” “I don’t know that either.”

“How will you live and support yourself?” “I don’t know.”

Then he tells you something that sounds strange to your ears. He says that an impression from the one true God, an impression that seemed very much like a voice, told him to leave Ur and go to a new place to which he would be guided. He tells you that God said that something very good would happen to him and his family if he did what God told him to do.

What would you think if you heard something like that? That may have been what Abraham’s friends and relatives thought too. Daft! Crazy! Abraham has taken leave of his senses!

Archaeologists also tell us that Ur was a center for idolatry. There was in Ur a massive ziggurat and several temples dedicated to the worship of the moon god. The Bible says that Abraham’s father Terah, worshiped false gods (Joshua 24:2). So Abraham was brought up in a culture of idol worship. In leaving Ur, he was saying “no” to a world that was opposed to the living God. He was saying “yes” to the person and the purposes of the one and only true God.

Howard Hendricks used to illustrate the principle of obedience to God in this way. “Suppose written on a piece of paper I told you that I have the will of God for your life. You might ask me, ‘What can you tell me about it?’ I’d say three things for sure: it is good, it is acceptable, and it is perfect (Romans 12:1-2). God says his will for us is good. If you ask me how good it is, I would answer, ‘As good as God is. His will is acceptable and perfect. That means there is no way to add to it or take away from it. You cannot improve on it.’

“You might say, ‘Well that sounds appealing.’ When I hold out the paper to you it is blank. There is only one thing on it. There is a line for you to sign your name. If you ask, ‘What are the details? Can I see the fine print?’  The answer would be, ‘Just sign it.’ Agreeing to the will of God for your life means letting him fill in the details. It means saying ‘yes’ to his plans and purposes whatever they may be.”

Abraham (Hebrews 11:8) signed off on God’s will  and said, “I’m all in!” God led him on a tremendous adventure. He had no idea where God was going to lead him to go. He had no idea what God was going to ask him to do. He was living by faith and his faith is an example to us.

Pastor Randy Faulkner

Posted on

Abraham’s God

Connie and I have been reading and discussing the saga of Abraham in the book of Genesis. We have been impressed by the man’s faith in the Living God. Responding to God’s call, he left his homeland and family and migrated to a new land which the Lord promised to give to him and his descendants.

One of the striking features of the story is his awareness of a personal God who spoke to him, guided him, corrected him when he was wrong, who blessed him materially, and who made an eternal covenant with him. We are told that Abraham believed in the Lord and the Lord “credited it to him as righteousness” (Genesis 15:6). He will do the same for us (Romans 4:23-24).

God revealed himself to Abraham as a living person. He has names by which he reveals himself. These names teach us about his nature and his purposes for Abraham and for us.

In Genesis 12 Abraham built altars of worship, “calling on the name of the Lord” (Genesis 12:8, 13:4). In the new land, among people who did not know the Lord, Abraham demonstrated his faith in Yahweh, who would later explain the meaning of this name as “I am who I am,” the eternally self-existent God, the one who is the only God (Exodus 3:15).

After a successful military rescue mission to save his nephew, Abraham worshipped the Lord as God Most High and Creator of heaven and earth (Genesis 14:19, 22). By these names and titles, Abraham testified that he was devoted to the supreme God who provided for all of his needs.

God identified himself to Abraham as God Almighty in Genesis 17:1. He intended to fulfill his promise to Abraham in spite of appearances to the contrary. Despite a long delay God Almighty would give Abraham a son through whom he would fulfill his covenant promise to bless all nations of the earth. The stress is on God’s power in the face of human helplessness.

Abraham’s prayer of intercession for the city of Sodom has much to teach us about approaching God. It was respectful and humble. Yet at the same time it was bold in expressing his desires. Abraham’s prayer in Genesis 18:25 was based on an understanding of God’s character, God’s authority and God’s willingness: “Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?” Abraham did not get what he asked for, but he trusted God to always do the right thing, even in judgment.

The name Eternal God is used in Genesis only in 21:33. Abraham invoked this name in worship, remembering that the God who made his unconditional covenant would keep his promises to him and to his descendants after him forever (Genesis 17:8-9).

Abraham’s God was, and is, the God of heaven (Genesis 24:7). He is also the God of earth. I think Abraham’s faith in this God is a beautiful and compelling example to us. He shows us that the transcendent God of heaven is not a remote abstraction beyond the stars, but he is also the God of earth who takes an active and personal interest in his people here.

As Connie and I have been reminded of Abraham’s faith, I have been praying for a greater faith in this living, personal God. Romans 4:20-22 says of Abraham: “Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This is why it was credited to him as righteousness.”

Pastor Randy Faulkner