Abraham: A Faith to Leave the Land (Hebrews 11:8-10) | Worship Service

What counts, no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.

For day and night, your hand was heavy upon me. My strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.

I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity.

I said I will confess my transgressions to the Lord. You forgave the iniquity of my sin.

Therefore, let everyone who is godly offer prayer to you at a time when you may defile.

Surely in the rush of great waters, they shall not be cheated.

You are a hiding place for me.

You preserve me from trouble. You surround me with shouts of deliverance.

You are a hiding place for me.

You preserve me from trouble. You surround me with shouts of deliverance.

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go.

I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Be not like a horse or mule without understanding.

Which must be curbed will have been enrightened, for it will not save you.

Many are the sorrows of the wicked. But steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the

Lord. Be glad in the

Lord and rejoice in the righteous and true.

For the Lord is with you, and you are right in his sight.

And good morning and welcome to Kootenai Church.

We're glad that you're here this morning. Would you please stand as we sing the old hymn,

Glory to His Name. Hold on one second. I heard the word uh -oh.

That's always a bad sign. Yeah. You want to play that song again for the come

Christians join to sing while I go fix this real quick? Here we go, here we go.

Check one, check, check, check. Okay we have the right slides.

I just love technology. All right, here we go. Down at the cross where my

Savior died, down where for cleansing from sin I cried, there to my heart was the blood applied.

Glory to His name. Glory to His name.

Glory to His name. There to my heart was the blood applied.

Glory to His name. I am so wondrously saved from sin.

Jesus so sweetly abides within, there at the cross where He took me in.

Glory to his name. Glory to his name.

Glory to his name. There to my heart was the blood of my.

Glory to his name. Oh precious fountain that saves from sin.

I am so glad that I entered in. There Jesus saves me and keeps me clean.

Glory to his name. Glory to his name.

Glory to his name. There to my heart was the blood of my.

Glory to his name. Come to this fountain so rich and sweet.

Cast thy poor soul at the Savior's feet. Plunge in today and be made complete.

Glory to his name. Glory to his name.

Glory to his name. There to my heart was the blood of my.

Glory to his name. We were ruined in our sin.

We were guilty and undone. When your love reached out with sovereign hands and beckoned us to come, you sought out the wonders, made the prodigals come home.

With a lavish feast you welcomed us, for you made us your own.

You have loved us like you love your son.

We are heirs with Christ, born by his blood.

Oh how great the love that we've been shown.

We're your children now, you made us your own.

We are strangers to the world, but no strangers to your throne.

We draw near you now with confidence, for all our fears are gone.

And when Christ our King returns, we'll meet saints we've never known.

And forever we will be amazed that you made us your own.

You have loved us like you love your son.

We are heirs with Christ, born by his blood.

Oh how great the love that we've been shown.

We're your children now, you made us your own.

You have loved us like you love your son.

We are heirs with Christ, born by his blood.

Oh how great the love that we've been shown.

We're your children now, you made us your own.

We're your children now, you made us your own.

Holy Lord, most holy

Lord, you alone are worthy of my praise.

Oh holy Lord, most holy

Lord, with all of my heart I sing, great are you

Lord, worthy of praise.

Holy and true, great are you

Lord, most holy Lord.

Holy Lord, most holy Lord, you alone are worthy of my praise.

Oh holy Lord, most holy Lord, with all of my heart

I sing, great are you

Lord, worthy of praise.

Holy and true, great are you Lord, most holy

Lord. You may be seated. Good morning everyone.

We have a baby shower scheduled here for next week, next Saturday for Lindsay Holmgren, and that is details for that are in your bulletin, so please make sure you take note of that.

Also for next Saturday after the baby shower, probably afternoon, whatever works out for whoever's going to volunteer for this, looking for a group of guys, five, six, seven, eight, ten able -bodied men who would be able to help take the stuff that we are storing in the upstairs of our church and move it down out into the shed, the storage shed that we have out here to the north of our facility.

I'm going to empty that out because within the next couple of weeks we're going to have drywallers in there and be starting work in earnest on that upstairs, so we need to get all of the junk, well not junk, but the stuff that we've been storing up there that doesn't fit down here, we want to move it out so it's out of the way.

So we'll do that next Saturday after the baby shower in the afternoon, 12 30 or 1 or whatever works out for whoever's going to volunteer.

So if you'd like to help out with that, please let me know and I'll put you on the list and make plans with you.

And then also the conference registration is both online as well as out in the foyer. If you register here or talk to whoever is doing registration today, they'll be able to give you a discount code for that conference registration, and feel free to take advantage of the opportunity to register for that.

We've already had registrations come in from Ohio, California, Washington, Montana. People are flying in from all over the place right now, and we haven't really promoted it anywhere but right here and whoever happens to be watching online.

So that's going to change in the next couple of weeks as we promote that outside, and we're hoping for a very full conference.

And if you want information on that, you can visit the website and there's also some information in your bulletin. Please turn now, will you please, to Romans chapter 4 for the scripture reading.

Romans chapter 4, this is a passage where the Apostle Paul talks about the faith that saved Abraham and makes the point that this is the same faith that saves us and that we are saved in the same way that Abraham was saved.

Evidence of something that we're seeing in Hebrews chapter 11, that is that from the beginning, it is faith that pleases

God, not works, not human merit or righteousness or achievement, but simply trusting

God and taking him at his word. And Paul uses the example of Abraham here to make the point that Abraham was justified by faith and not by works.

Romans chapter 4, we'll read together the entire chapter. What then should we say that Abraham, our forefather, according to the flesh has found?

For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the scripture say?

Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. Now to the one who works, his way is not credited as a favor, but as what is due.

But to the one who does not work, but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness, just as David also speaks of the blessing on the man to whom

God credits righteousness apart from works. Blessed are those whose lawless deeds have been forgiven and whose sins have been covered.

Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account. Is this blessing then on the circumcised or on the uncircumcised also?

For we say faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness. How then was it credited? While he was circumcised or uncircumcised?

Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised. And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while uncircumcised, so that he might be the father of all who believe without being circumcised, that righteousness might be credited to them, and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also follow in the steps of the faith of our father

Abraham which he had while uncircumcised. For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would be heir of the world was not through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.

For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise is nullified. For the law brings about wrath, but where there is no law there is also no violation.

For this reason, it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is a father of us all, as it is written, a father of many nations have

I made you. In the presence of him whom he believed, even God who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist.

In hope against hope he believed, so that he might become a father of many nations according to that which has been spoken.

So shall your descendants be. Without becoming weak in faith, he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead, since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah's womb.

Yet with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief, but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what

God had promised, he was able also to perform. Therefore it was also credited to him as righteousness.

Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited as those who believe in him who raised

Jesus our Lord from the dead. He who was delivered over because of our transgressions and was raised because of our

You stand with me as we pray. Let's bow our heads.

Our gracious God, we thank you for the salvation that is ours in Jesus Christ. Every Lord's Day we gather together to worship you because you are worthy of our praise and our adoration because of who you are, because you are a gracious God, a loving

God, a faithful God, a just God, a God who credits the righteousness to those who believe, who trust in your

Son. We thank you that our righteousness and our standing before you is not based upon our own merit, our own abilities, our own worthiness, but solely upon the worthiness and the merit of Jesus Christ because of what he has done.

Because he died, because he was buried, and he rose again on behalf of all those for whose sin he bore, we can be justified and declared righteous before you, and we are grateful for that.

We praise you for that great gift of salvation. We thank you that in your mercy and in your grace that you are working out your plan and your purposes in this world around us, and though the nations around us rage and they seek to cast your fetters off of them and to establish their own power, their own authority, and their own kingdom and dominion, we know that in the end all things will belong to you, all things do belong to you, and you will bring them all into subjection under Jesus Christ to accomplish your eternal purposes in this world and for all of eternity.

And so we pray that in this meantime, while we wait for that to be seen and made visible before us, we pray that your people would be faithful, that your missionaries would be faithful, that you would bring fruit and effective gospel proclamation through those whom you have sent into the nations.

We pray that in our own land you would make us faithful to preach the gospel, to proclaim its truth, and to abide in its precepts.

We pray that we would be united in our own love and affection for Christ, in our hatred for sin and unrighteousness.

Give us grace and wisdom to live in these times and in this world that we may honor you by giving to you the obedience that you are due.

We pray that our hearts may be subject to you and to your word and that you would accomplish your every purpose in us.

As we gather here together in worship, we pray that you would be honored through us and in us and by us in our words, in the meditation and contemplation of our hearts, and through all that is said in the preaching of your word and in the singing of your worship to you.

You are worthy, and we thank you for that. We praise you in the name of Christ our Lord and our soon and coming

King. Amen. precious blood my

Jesus Christ the lamb of God your gift of love they crucified they laughed and scored him as he died the humble king they made the fraud and sacrificed the lamb of God O Lamb of God, sweet Lamb of God I know the holy

Lamb of God who washed me in his precious blood my

Jesus Christ the Lamb of God I was so lost

I should have died but you have brought me to your side to be led by your step and run and to be called the

Lamb of God O Lamb of God, sweet Lamb of God I love the holy

Lamb of God who washed me in his precious blood till I am just a

Lamb of God who washed me in his precious blood till I am just a

Lamb of God in Ephesians chapter 2 it says and you were dead in your transgressions and sins in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world according to the ruler of the power of the air the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience among whom we all also formerly conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind and were by nature children of wrath even as the rest but God being rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us even when we were dead in our transgressions made us alive together with Christ by grace you have been saved and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places with Christ Jesus so that in the ages to come he might show the surpassing riches of his grace and kindness towards us in Jesus Christ for by grace you have been saved through faith and this not of yourselves it is the gift of God not of works so that no one may boast we're going to end this morning's service with oh great

God oh oh make me yours forever your voice did not know your love within had no taste for heaven's joys then your spirit gave me life opened up your word to me through the gospel of your son gave me endless hope and peace help me now to live a life that's dependent on your grace keep my heart and guard my soul from the evils that I face you are worthy to be praised great

God glorify your name through me you are worthy to be praised with my every thought and deed oh great

God of highest you may be seated so let's pray together before we open

God's word our great Lord we are so grateful that you have revealed yourself in the pages of scripture in history to us by opening our eyes and making us to see

Christ and by your grace and drawing us to him we thank you for the mercy that you have shown in our salvation and for the mercy that you have shown us in revealing to us in your word what you want of us what obedience means what our faith is and and how we are to walk in it and we pray that you would grant us grace and understanding this morning as we look at this passage of scripture that we may see in Abraham those things which are parallel to ourselves and that we may learn the appropriate lessons from what is revealed here in scripture we ask your blessing upon this time for the glory of Christ our

Lord in his name we pray amen please turn if you will to Hebrews chapter 11 we are going to be back in Hebrews 11 this morning particularly starting at verse 8 we laid the necessary foundation of going through the

Abrahamic promises beginning in Genesis 12 and tracing those through the end of the book of Genesis starting at the beginning and seeing the way that information is communicated and revelation was given as it unfolded in history helps us to understand how it is that those passages and those promises should be understood and how they're going to be fulfilled and having laid that necessary foundation we we traced the promises from Abraham through Isaac and then

Jacob and then to Joseph and we stopped with Joseph at the end of the book of Genesis and you can see just as you glance through the order of the next heroes of the faith in Hebrews 11 how that was necessary to go all the way through Joseph you'll see

Abraham is mentioned in verse faith verse 8 Abraham's faith in verse 20 we're introduced to Isaac in verse 21 he mentions

Jacob and in verse 22 Joseph and those are the main characters that we looked at finishing up last week in Genesis Abraham Isaac Jacob and then

Joseph and each one of those men are commended for their act of faith for their faith here in Hebrews chapter 11 and their evidence of faith always comes back to the promise of that land for each one of these men it's not like Abraham got the promise of land and Isaac and Jacob and Joseph all had faith relating to something else it was this land promise it was this

Abrahamic covenant which is the theme all the way through Hebrews chapter 11 beginning at verse 8 all all four of these men

Abraham Isaac Jacob and Joseph they were looking forward to something they anticipated something they were trusting in something namely the word of God regarding the promises that he gave to Abraham now there are a have believed that are contained in some of the rabbinical writings and the commentaries on the

Old Testament there are a number of traditions that Jews today believe about Abraham Jews love their traditions you see that even in the first century in the time of Jesus he reproved the

Pharisees for their traditions that they had as the Jews read through the Old Testament anytime there was a white space they would fill that with tradition something attached in a commentary something that they believe something that some rabbi said and they would usually attach to those traditions the same type of reverence and authority that they would give to scripture which is why

Jesus had to reprove the Pharisees and the Jews of his day saying you nullify the word of God by your traditions why because they would take their traditions and even elevate them above the clear teaching of the word of God I'm a big fan of listening to Ben Shapiro and Dennis Prager I like both of those men orthodox

Jewish men when it comes to political things I think that they're I mean they're mirror images of me in many ways but when it comes to spiritual things it's just a face plant every single time why because it is their traditions that cloud their understanding of spiritual things it was the same in Jesus's day so here's some examples of traditions that the

Jews had regarding Abraham it was believed and is believed by many Jews today that Abraham started off as an idol worshiper so far so good we get that in Joshua chapter 24 we're going to look at that in a little bit he started off as an idol worshiper but they believe that Abraham began to reason to himself that everything created around us could not be the product of multitudes of gods many gods or a council of gods he began to reason and logically come to the conclusion that everything had to be the product of one god one sovereign god so Abraham by his own volition left all of the polytheistic religions of his day and the idol worship behind him and he became a monotheist in fact

Abraham invented kind of monotheism there were no monotheists before Abraham Abraham was a good monotheist and he began to evangelize others in this monotheistic religion and Abraham was such a righteous and pious and good and godly man that God looked down upon Abraham and saw in him this commendable faith this virtue this piety this god -seeking monotheist named

Abraham who lived in Ur of the Chaldees and God thought to himself now there is a man I can work with so God appeared to Abraham and said oh let's make a deal

Monty whoever that guy was back in 1950s let's make a deal what was it

Monty Hall yep I was gonna say Monty Python but I knew that was not right Monty Hall let's make a deal

Abraham so he he suggested to Abraham that he would give Abraham certain things if Abraham gave to him certain things and so they worked out this deal this is basically the

Arminian view of salvation that God looks down through history sees which one of us are virtuous righteous smart and spiritual enough to embrace the gospel if offered to it and God says

I can work with that person I'll choose that person and bring that person the gospel it's the Arminian perspective of salvation you can see how this would would work out very good in a

Jewish system of religion because the Jews believed in their own works righteousness their own deeds their own piety their own faith their own abilities to please

God and so here is Abraham which is the prototypical example of somebody who on his own effort in his own merit can please

God to such an extent that God would work with Abraham that is how the Jews would view Abraham as being a virtuous person that is worthy of our of our following after his example now

Paul corrected that in Romans and in Galatians right I mean Paul made the case in Romans that Abraham was not chosen because he was a virtuous man he was not chosen because he offered something to God in fact

Paul makes the case in Romans and Galatians that Abraham was chosen by sovereign grace and that the faith that Abraham had is the same faith that you and I have it is a faith unto salvation a faith which is the gift of God a faith that results in obedience it is the faith that pleases

God Paul had to make the case that salvation was by faith and not works the author of Hebrews makes the case that faith is not just for salvation but that faith is for all of life faith is something that starts us off at the beginning of our salvation at the moment that God redeems us as lost sinners that faith is active and that faith is obedient and that faith is present and it grows all the way through of life we begin in faith we live in faith and we die in faith that is the that is the the story of every believer in Jesus Christ we begin in faith we live in faith and we die in faith faith is for all of life that's the lesson of Abraham so in verse 8 we'll notice in verse 8 he picks up the story of Abraham and makes reference to the things that we noticed last week in the last two weeks and that is the promise of the land that Abraham went out to a place that he was to receive for an inheritance that's verse 8 verse 11 speaks of Sarah by faith even

Sarah herself received an ability to conceive even beyond the proper time of life since she considered him faithful who had promised

Sarah being Abraham's wife so there were promises made to Abraham regarding a land and regarding a descendants

God honored the promises for both of those to both of those men impartial there are more fulfillments of those promises that are yet to come but verses 8 through 10 deals with Abraham verse 11 deals with Sarah so we're focusing on Abraham in verses 8 through 10 we're going to be looking specifically today at verse 8 and I want you to notice that there are three things about Abraham that manifested his faith his faith is made evident in three things first in verse 8 he left his home for a promised land in verse 9 he lived in the land as a pilgrim and then verse 10 he looked for an eternal city he left he lived and he looked

I didn't borrow that outline from anybody I came up with that all by myself as far as I know if anybody else had that I'm not litanizing that uh knowingly

I might be doing it unknowingly but I'm certainly not doing it knowingly it's a good it's a good outline he left the home for a promised land he lived in that promised land in tents and then he was looking for an eternal city let's read the text beginning of verse 8 by faith

Abraham when he was called obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive as an inheritance and he went out not knowing where he was going that is he left he left her of the calves and went into the land that God was to show him verse 9 by faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise as in a foreign land dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob fellow heirs of the same promises for he was looking for the city which has foundations whose architect and builder is

God he left he lived and he looked you can see how Abraham is the perfect prototype for what it means to walk and to live in faith as a believer because this is the story of everybody who is in Jesus Christ at some point in our salvation in the past we have left something we have left family we have left old religion we have left our attempts at self -righteousness we have left our sin we have abandoned any or all and all of those things and then currently we live in this land in this world which is not our home we recognize that as Christians we are to live as aliens and strangers in this world because our citizenship is not here so having left everything behind us that God calls us out of darkness into light now we live as aliens and strangers dwelling as it were living semi -permanently in a world which is really not our home and how are we to do this by looking forward to something that we are to receive in the future right just like Abraham we look forward to that city whose architect and builder is

God a city with foundations we're looking forward to what we have in the in the future the fulfillment of those promises we have left we are living and we are looking forward there's three tenses of your

Christian life there today we're looking at Abraham leaving verse eight read with me again by faith

Abraham when he was called obeyed but going by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance and he went out not knowing where he was going i want you to notice the connection between Abraham being called and Abraham obeying by faith

Abraham when he was called he obeyed i want you to notice that God takes the initiative in salvation we see this in Abraham's life

Abraham was called and Abraham immediately obeyed his obedience was itself the evidence that he had faith in this

God who had called him but there is no record before this of Abraham seeking God in any way there's no record before this of Abraham being a righteous or a pious man who warranted

God's grace or God's favor to him there's no record of that there's no record of of Abraham becoming a monotheistic uh

Yahweh worshiper long before he was called we just simply read of Abraham and Terah his father and dwelling in the land and and moving around and Terah dying and then suddenly in Genesis 12 verse 1 now the

Lord said to Abraham go forth from your country and from your relatives and from your father's house to the land which i will show you it is

God who pursued Abraham there's no record that Abraham was pursuing God God pursued Abraham and this is the way it is with every every sinner who is saved it is always

God who is the one who initiates it it is God who pursues sinners Jesus said you didn't choose me i chose you we love him because he first loved us

God is the one who initiates salvation God is the one who plans salvation who purposes salvation who affects salvation and when he called

Abraham that effectual call to Abraham came with it the power to obey and the faith to believe and the willingness to obey it is

God who does this God pursues sinners sinners do not pursue God there's no such thing as a seeker church a church full of seekers because there's no such thing as a seeker

Romans 3 verse 9 and 10 as it is written there is none righteous not even one there is none who understands there is none who seeks after God I know you're tempted to think in your mind well there was a time when

I was pursuing the truth I was looking I was I was investigating I was I was being you were being drawn is what you were you weren't seeking you were being drawn

Jesus said no one can come to me unless the father who sent me draws him this is the drawing of God God draws sinners sinners don't seek after a

God that requires them to lay down their lives and to die to themselves sinners don't seek such a

God sinners do not seek a God who promises wrath for their sin against sin sinners do not seek after a holy

God sinners are drawn to God but it is God who does the initiating it is God who does the planning it's

God who by his power draws sinners in and he did this with Abraham Abraham was an idol worshiper when

God called him Genesis sorry Joshua chapter 24 Joshua said to all the people that says the

Lord God of Israel from ancient times your fathers lived beyond the river namely Tara the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor and they served other gods then

I took your father Abraham from beyond the river and led him through all the land of Canaan and multiplied his descendants and gave him

Isaac he was an idol worshiper Tara Abraham is his relatives they were idol worshipers

Isaiah 51 verse 1 listen to me you who pursue righteousness who seek the Lord look to the rock from which you were hewn into the quarry from which you were dug look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who gave you birth great birth to you in pain there

Isaiah the prophet reminds them of their humble beginnings look from the pit from which you were taken out of you think

Abraham was this this noble person out of all of humanity who warranted God's grace it is not so look to the pit from which you were dug look to that rock from which you were hewn

Abraham and Sarah those are humble beginnings God calls sinners to turn from their wicked ways and he grants with that call repentance and faith those are gifts of grace he calls us to himself he reveals himself to us he opens our eyes he changes our hearts he gives us hearts to obey this is the drawing of God and every sinner who has ever come to Jesus Christ in repentance and faith for salvation and the forgiveness of sins has only come to Jesus Christ in that way because God was at work in the heart of that one bringing him to faith in Christ because God is an initiating converting redeeming

God God seeks sinners sinners don't seek God and Abraham's conversion is an example of this living in idolatry in a land surrounded by pagans

God said to Abraham go leave this and go there and Abraham this is

Abraham's regeneration this is Abraham's conversion story he turned from his idols to serve the living and true

God that's what salvation is 1st Thessalonians 1 9 and 10 Paul said to the Thessalonians the they themselves report what kind of a reception we had with you how you turned from idols to serve the living and true

God you turned to God from idols this is repentance it is a turning around and it is

God who is said in the book of Acts that turns us from our wicked ways this is this is the gracious God who pursues sinners he finds sinners who hate him we're at war with him who want nothing to do with him and God opens their eyes and works on their hearts and turns them from their sin makes their sin look exceedingly sinful and makes the

Savior look exceedingly glorious so that he turns them from their sin and opens their eyes and redeems them gives them eyes to see and ears to hear and a heart to obey this is all the gift of faith it is all part of that sovereign grace of God that comes in the effectual call

Abraham called a God called Abraham and Abraham turned why because the gift of that calling that effectual calling comes with the willingness and the ability to obey it all men are idol worshipers every last one of us every last sinner before they come to faith in Christ is an idol worshiper we have idols of ourself idols of our reputation idols of we make idols out of our comforts our conveniences the ease of our life we make idols out of our nation idols out of our leaders idols out of church leaders idols out of everything in our home idols out of our possessions our retirement we have no problem coming up with idols and real conversion is

God calling to the sinner and the sinner recognizing those idols the hideousness of that idolatry and turning from that sin to salvation in Jesus Christ 2

Corinthians 5 17 says if we are in Christ we are new creations we have left something and Abraham is the perfect example of what it means to leave something and he walked away in obedience and this is actually it's in Abraham's obedience that we see what that his faith was real we can't see that somebody's faith is genuine unless we see how their faith works itself out when they obey this is what

James meant when he said that men are justified or made to see to appear righteous in the eyes of other people by their act of obedience show me your faith without your works

I'll show you my faith by my works because my works are my act of obedience is in fact the evidence of my faith and where there is no obedience we have no reason to think that there is any such thing as genuine faith let me say that again where there is no obedience to the word of God we have no reason to believe that genuine faith exists

Abraham was obedient Luke 6 46 why do you call me

Lord Lord and you did not do the things that I say that's what Jesus said you call me Lord but you don't obey me you know how incongruous this is that these things just don't match up that we affirm his lordship then then those who affirm his lordship those who are owned by him those who belong to him we will in fact obey him and obedience is the theme of Hebrews 11 one of them

Abel obeyed God and he offered the sacrifice that was commanded Enoch obeyed God and he walked with God Noah obeyed

God and he built the ark for the salvation of his family and Noah's obedience was irreverent obedience remember it was a cautious meticulous pious diligent obedience that was careful to observe all that the

Lord had given him to observe and so when Abraham obeyed his obedience was immediate there is no record of an argument between Abraham and the

Lord verse 8 says by faith Abraham when he was called obeyed it doesn't say by faith

Abraham when he was called negotiated with God finally lost the argument said all right I'll go that's not how that that's not how that cashed out

Abraham could have said you know I've never been to that land I might hear that it's a really good land the

Lord says it's a good land I've never seen it with my own eyes I know the land in which I live is a really good land right along the

Euphrates River not liver river Euphrates River it's lush that's where the

L was going to come from it's lush it's green it's it's prosperous it's productive it's fertile this is this is a beautiful land and the

Lord said leave this and go there and Abraham could have said Lord if you're just going to give this land to my spiritual descendants in a spiritual way

I could stay here and not actually have to go to the physical land to inhabit it and but that's not what the

Lord promised or commanded him the Lord commanded him to leave Abraham could have said Lord how about instead of leaving that's 700 miles is a long trek how about instead of that how's about I give you some sacrifices

I have animals I can offer up one two how many of those do you want will you I can increase my tithe I'm a wealthy man

I could give you uh I could do more for the widows and the orphans Abraham didn't negotiate with God at all

God called him to leave and he immediately left he was obedient Spurgeon said this and and I thought this was clever how very curiously people try to give

God something else instead of what he asked for the Lord says my son give me thine heart and they give him ceremonies he asked them for obedience and they give him will worship he asked for faith and love and justice and they offer 10 ,000 rivers of oil and the fat of fed beasts they will give all except the one thing which he is pleased with and yet to obey is better than sacrifice and to hearken better than the fat of rams see that that is the kind of obedience that pleases the

Lord an obedience that comes out of my faith that is the evidence of my faith but it is not an obedience that obeys late it's not an obedience that negotiates with God for some common ground it's an obedience that says if this is what the

Lord has called me to if this is what the Lord demands of me then then I will obey this that is biblical obedience

Abraham's obedience was also remarkable particularly when you when you consider what it is that he left what it is that he was going to and what it is that would have cost him would you take for a moment just just to think for a couple moments about what it was that Abraham was leaving

Abraham was called out of Ur of the Chaldees this was along the what we call the fertile crescent in that Mediterranean area up the the

Euphrates river to the the headwaters of the Euphrates river and then down the coast of Israel this is the area that that Abraham lived in in Ur of the

Chaldees it is known as the birthplace or the cradle of civilization even pagans refer to it as the cradle of civilization they don't understand that after the flood that's where civilization began they say well roughly 8 ,000 years ago we have some writings from then so that's where cavemen first crawled out of their holes and started scratching on rocks to communicate with one another they don't recognize any of the truth of biblical history but they do recognize this that the earliest civilizations came from Ur of the

Chaldees this was an advanced civilization that Abraham would have left it was in the

Mesopotamian valley this is near where the Tower of Babel was at this is where civilization started and cities were built initially after the flood the fertile crescent was a beautiful area this is the birthplace of the

Sumerian civilization Babylonian Assyrian Phoenician these were complex and advanced societies even in Abraham's day these were cities that had foundations these were cities that had buildings and houses this was some of the most advanced civilization on the face of the planet at the time

Abraham was not leaving one cave off in the woods for another cave off in the woods somewhere else

Abraham was leaving civilization as he had always known it the most advanced the most glorious civilization on the planet at the time that is what

Abraham was turning his back on it was a place we can assume that Abraham would have had a home or a house in Ur of the

Chaldees because there were buildings at the time he would have had to have sold everything left all of the comforts and the conveniences all of the luxuries all of the security all of the people that he knew his family his acquaintances his business partners or associates that he would have had everybody that he knew that he was familiar with the culture the language he would have been leaving all of those things behind when he left

Abraham was not called to just move his tent from one cave to another

Abraham was called to leave everything that he was familiar with and had known behind and to turn out and to go to a place that the

Lord was sending him a place that he had never seen and never been to before that is faith that helps you appreciate what

Abraham was doing right because the Lord didn't give him any of the details about what the land was in fact the

Lord in Genesis chapter 12 didn't even tell Abraham specifically exactly where he was going so go out to the land which

I'll show you and Abraham was just supposed to go out and start walking Abraham would have left behind Terran and his great the grave site of his father the city of Haran he was 75 years old when he left he would have been leaving his religion his idol worshiping community all of his friends all the people that he'd worship with everything behind and what went with him and where was he going

Abraham didn't even know where he was going he went to a land he did not know to a land that he had never seen and he had no way of knowing by his own eyes of sight whether the land to which he was going was better or worse than the land from which he had come he had no way of knowing that he'd never been there

I find it interesting in Genesis chapter 12 I think it's verse 7 when it says that Abraham left in verse 4 he went into got into the land of Canaan and then

Moses makes the note and the Canaanites lived in the land at that time that I wonder if that took

Abraham by surprise right the Lord said go out to the land that I'm going to give you and Abraham thinks okay good I'm gonna

I'm gonna end up settling down in a place where there is nobody and he gets into the land of Canaan and guess what he finds there there are cities there there are houses there there are

Canaanites in the land in fact Abraham could have looked around at the people in the land at that time and he would have seen that they were warring tribes and warring factions because when he got into the land of Israel in Genesis chapter 14 when he got into the promised land in Genesis chapter 14 there was a war between the five kings and the four kings you remember and the king of Sodom was one of those that's it is in the spoil of that and the aftermath of that that's when

Abraham met Melchizedek do you remember that Genesis 14 so you had warring factions then you have a lot going and settling near Sodom so you had idol worshiping cities you had rank paganism you had violent warring factions with all of these many kings that were all seeking to uh rape and pillage and plunder one another each other's cities all over the place and then this was these cities were filled with pagan worshiping idolaters that were involved in all forms of sexual immorality

I wonder did Abraham show up and think so this is the promised land

I mean I left I left one idolatry idolatrous culture for another idolatrous culture

I sold my house I left that city and that civilization and then

I show up here this is this land is anything but empty still to this day in Israel up in up in Dan the city of Dan there is a monument called

Abraham's gate and it is it is the rock gate through which Abraham would have went in Genesis chapter 14 he went up as far as the city of Dan went up into that region it's called

Abraham's gate because that gate dates back to prior to Abraham's time and the foundations are still there and the rocks are still there you can walk up and put your hands on stones that Abraham would have walked right next to that are still there to this day

Abraham did not go into into an empty land he went into a land that was filled with people that were hostile to him and to his

God and to his worldview that's what God called him to do you know what that would have cost him by the way can you imagine being

Abraham and trying to explain that whole thing to all your business partners and your neighbors right to be

Abraham and have somebody walk up and say look I was I was scrolling through Zillow I noticed that you put your house up on the market I'm just wondering how come you didn't tell me

I mean I would have given you an offer on the house I think you've overpriced it and then Abraham would have to explain that he was selling the house and gonna sell the land here's what

I was going for and well where are you going to another land well where is this other land north south east west at this point

I don't know what does it look like I don't know never been there never been there have you ever seen it

I've never seen it do you know which what direction you're going no at this point I don't why are you going there oh there's the rub right

God told me to go to the land in fact

God promised me that if I leave everything here and I go to the land he'll give that land to me and to my descendants he will give me descendants that outnumber the stars of heaven and the sands on the seashore

Abraham you're 75 years old Sarah's 65 years old you're gonna have descendants she's been barren all of this time she has not you're gonna have descendants

God told you to leave all of this and go there do you see why

Abraham's faith is so commendable at the bare word of God and his command

Abraham left everything and went towards something that he had not yet seen faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen right

Noah was warned about things not yet seen and he built an earth Abraham was promised something he had not yet seen and he left that's faith faith takes

God at his bare word and is willing to believe and to trust that the God who promises is the

God who will bring to pass everything he has promised Abraham went out in ignorance having never seen the land having not known where he was going having never been there he went out in ignorance and there is an element and there is an element of ignorance in all of our faith when we all first come to Christ is there not you remember back when you first trusted

Christ for salvation did you know everything that the Lord had planned for you at that time no you sure did not did you you had no idea that you would be here today or that you would be have experienced all the things that you've experienced since your salvation and yet the walk of faith and the walk that God calls us to is a walk where if we knew ahead of time what it was going to cost us or what we were going to endure we would never volunteer or sign up for that but it is something that once we're on the other side of it we look back on it and say

I really would not have it any other way isn't that an oddity if we if we knew ahead of time we would never volunteer for that but looking back on it we say that's exactly what was best

I would never have that any other way for Abraham that's what it was he he didn't know ahead of time all that God had planned for him in fact we saw as we went through Genesis 13 14 13 15 and 17 those chapters that more and more detail was added every time

God reconfirmed the covenant with him God gave him a few more details at the beginning Abraham didn't know that God called him and he obeyed that was it and all of the details he did not have at the time but on the other side of it

I'm sure Abraham would have said I wouldn't have had that any other way I know what you're you're tempted to think at this point this is something that I've heard people say you might be tempted to think to yourself well

Abraham's obedience is easier because he heard a voice right and it might be that Abraham heard a voice or saw vision or some sort of a manifestation

Abraham heard a voice I mean if God spoke to me and told me what he wanted me to do and I heard a voice or saw that manifestation

I would obey like Abraham obeyed as well no you wouldn't you wouldn't if you will not obey the written word of God you will not obey a voice in fact what

I typically find is the people who think they're hearing voices will jump after it no matter how nonsensical it is to avoid obeying the written word of God Jesus said they had

Moses and the prophets and if they will not hear Moses and the prophets they will not hear even if somebody rises from the dead and goes and preaches to them

Peter speak speaking of hearing a voice the voice from heaven that said this is my beloved son in whom

I am well pleased that's in Matthew chapter 17 Peter describes that experience in 2nd Peter chapter 1 and he says

I had this experience I heard this voice but we have the written word made more sure do you understand that in this revelation you have more information than Abraham could have ever imagined having about God and his purposes and if you will not obey this you will not obey even a voice because the written word is more sure notice in verse 8 by faith

Abraham went out goat went to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance and he went out not knowing where he was going the mention of the word inheritance there is something that reminds us of what we read up in verse 7 by faith

Noah was warned about things not yet seen look at the end of verse 7 and he became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith the reference to Abraham inheriting something or going out and receiving an inheritance is a hearkening back to the same thing that he talked about with Noah there's something that all the righteous whether it's

Noah or Abraham or you and I have in common that that is that there is an inheritance that awaits the righteous there is something that we are given after this life in the life that is to come in the world that is to come that is the part and portion of all those who have faith in God and have been declared righteous on the basis of that faith we have an inheritance that is to come

Abraham went out and his inheritance was that land a land that he and his descendants have not received in full yet but he will and we also will receive the inheritance and everything that is promised to the righteous not just righteousness but also eternal glorification and a new heavens and a new earth and and a dwelling in and a participation in that kingdom that was promised to Abraham Isaac Jacob Joseph David and all the rest of the

Old Testament righteous we get to enjoy the very same thing that righteous or that reference to an inheritance also reminds us of Hebrews 11 verse 6 where the author said that without faith it is impossible to please him for he who comes to God must believe that he that his

God is and that he God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him the faith that pleases

God is a faith that acknowledges that there is a God and that this God will will reward those who diligently seek after him it is only because Abraham believed that God would keep his word that he was willing to leave all of that and go to the land that God had promised if Abraham did not believe that God would reward those who diligently seek him

Abraham would have never left because Abraham had in terms of this world and from the sight of his eyes he had no reason at all to believe that anything would be better than what he had in Ur of the

Chaldees he had everything in Ur of the Chaldees he was a wealthy man when God called him he had a life there a culture there a civilization there he was called to leave all of that and to go out to a place he had never seen in a place that he did not know and had never walked in and Abraham was willing to leave all of that because he believed that God is and that God rewards those who diligently seek him that is biblical faith that is the kind of faith that pleases

God the faith that pleases God is a faith that says I believe that if God has promised this if I pursue this and I'm obedient to him

God will keep his word if not in the short term certainly in the long term even if even if obeying him cost me everything in this life and all

I do is live as a pilgrim and a stranger and an alien in this world even if I have to wait for the world to come

I believe that God will keep his word and he will fulfill everything that he has promised that is the reward and if you don't believe that then you won't seek

God if you think the treasures of this world are not worthy to be are more than worthy to be compared with what you think you might gain in the world to come then you won't seek

God but if you believe that all the treasures of this world and all the kingdoms of this world are not worth anything compared to the inheritance that the righteous are promised if you believe that then you will pursue

God and pursue obedience by faith without that faith it is impossible to please him the first mark of Abraham's faith was a willingness to leave everything that is salvation that is a perfect illustration of what salvation is a perfect a perfect example of what it is how it is that the righteous evaluate everything in this life a willingness to turn our backs on it and to leave for another land we're like pilgrim in pilgrim's progress we're striving after the celestial city and we're willing to leave kins and country behind us and to count all those things as loss for the sake of having

Jesus Christ and his righteousness that is biblical genuine faith one last quote about faith by Spurgeon Spurgeon said this the faith that makes us obey is alone the faith which marks the children of God it is better to have the faith that obeys than the faith that moves mountains

I would sooner have the faith which obeys than the faith which heaps the altar of God with sacrifices and perfumes his courts with incense

I would rather obey God than rule an empire for after all the loftiest sovereignty a soul can inherit is to have dominion over self by rendering believing obedience to the most high close quote it is possible to rule an empire and never rule yourself seeing that aren't we it is possible to conquer empires and never conquer yourself never be able to conquer yourself because it is easier to conquer an empire than it is to obey when