Today’s Reading: Hebrews 11:1-16; Psalm 31
Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see. Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation. – Hebrews 11:1-2
As we read in chapter 10 yesterday, God is not asking us to create a holiness of our own or to reach for perfection by human strength. If we try to do that, we have missed out on the role of our perfect High Priest, who wants to daily strengthen our faith and increase our hope. Faith is not something we can muster up on our own, it is a gift God gives us when we ask Him for it. He will give us the faith we need to persevere, to endure patiently, to step into His presence with sincere hearts fully trusting Him.
The writer of Hebrews took the time to pull examples from the history of God’s people in order to encourage readers to use the faith God had given us to endure whatever we may face. Look to God for strength in the difficult times, just as those who came before us have done. Have faith in any circumstance, and hold tight to the God who loves you and never leaves you!
By faith, we believe God created the entire universe simply by commanding its existence. We believe this world did not appear accidentally but through the words of a holy Creator who said “let there be” and there was.
By faith, Abel gathered together the best of what he had and offered it to God while his brother, Cain, chose to keep the best for himself and give God less. Abel’s offering reflected a heart of righteousness, and God was pleased. By faith, I am reminded that all I have comes from God and it belongs to Him. There is nothing I have that is worth hanging onto tighter than my relationship with God.
By faith, Enoch was known for being a person who lived to please God. When he was sixty-five years old, the Lord blessed him with a son. From that day on, Enoch lived in close fellowship with God. Enoch lived to be 365 years old and then one day he disappeared, because God took him (Genesis 5:21-24). Enoch’s story reminds me that God wants to be a part of my every moment. God is pleased when we live in close fellowship with him. It also reminds me that waiting for God’s blessings can increase my faith in Him.
And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. – Hebrews 11:6
By faith, Noah obeyed God when warned that something was about to happen — something that had never happened before. God gave him a big assignment and he responded in obedience, doing everything exactly how God had commanded him to. When God’s heart was broken by the extent of human wickedness on earth, Noah found favor with the Lord (Genesis 6). By faith, I can live the kind of life that stands out in contrast to the disobedience and disregard of this sinful world.
By faith, Abraham responded in obedience to God’s call, leaving everything he knew in order to set out on a journey with an unknown destination. And when he arrived to the land God had promised him, he continued to live by faith because the promise of God’s blessings was still unseen. You see, Abraham did not live for earthly gain but was confidently looking forward to his eternal home — a city designed and built by God (Hebrews 11:10).
By faith, Sarah believed that God would keep his promise. Even though she was barren and old, Sarah experienced the miracle of God’s promise of a son, and from that son a whole nation was born — a nation so large that God compared them to the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Life does not always make sense, but I can trust that God has a bigger plan at work. I can rest today knowing that I serve a God who has my tomorrows.
All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it. They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth. Obviously people who say such things are looking forward to a country they can call their own. If they had longed for the country they came from, they could have gone back. But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. – Hebrews 11:13-16
By faith, they saw the fulfillment of God’s promise in the distance and they welcomed it. They died still believing that God keeps His promises. They lived life as if they were on a journey towards God, not as if they had already arrived. They lived light on their feet, as foreigners and nomads here on earth. I am choosing to stop and soak in these testimonies this morning. I want their life of faith to strengthen mine; I want to be changed by the examples of this cloud of witnesses.
What is God trying to say to you today? If you have not heard from him yet, read through the stories of faith in Hebrews 11 and trust Him to speak into your own story. Ask God for more faith for today, believing He is the God who keeps His promises.
So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised. – Hebrews 10:35-36