Hebrews 11:3-7 — Don McClure

Faith as the Guiding Influence of Life

By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts. And by it he being dead yet speaketh. By faith Enoch that was translated that he should not see death and was not found because God had translated him before his translation he had this testimony that he pleased God.

Coming to God by Faith

But without faith it is impossible to please him for he that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he is the rewarder of them that diligently seek him. By faith Noah being warned of God of things not yet seen moved with fear prepared an ark to the saving of his house by the which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

Father we thank you for your word and Lord we thank you for this tremendous experience in life Lord this of learning what it is to live in the whole world of faith substance of things not seen the evidence of things hoped for and Lord we ask that you would be increasing Lord our understanding of faith and deepening our relationship our fellowship our walk our life with you and we ask that you take your word to do this give us an understanding and Lord may we find ourself experiencing that which we read of we ask it in Jesus name amen.

Well as we have been seen and got into only briefly last week and the first you know part of this chapter is is essentially faith has got to ultimately become the guiding influence of all of our life.

It is so tremendously critical and important to all the aspects of life whether we know it or not it's influence in our life how we live by faith walk by faith learn to understand the work that faith has within us it is so important and this is perhaps the central chapter I suppose in the bible it's called oftentimes Hebrews hall of fame or others Hebrews hall of faith you might say combining them almost how faith in God made people's lives quite famous to the rest of history.

Here in this particular section we're looking at this morning we have a very very important aspect of all of life hopefully that we'll understand better this morning verse six it says but without faith it is impossible to please him for he that cometh to God must believe that he is and he is the rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

Here the bible tells us that really without faith you cannot please God so often we think many times of sin is something that we say or we do you know we live this way this is we have this behavior we say these things or things happen and there's sins of commission we commit things and and those are sinful things and displease God.

And then maybe as we grow we realize well sin is not just merely things that we do it's some of the things perhaps that we should be doing we're not doing as the sins of omission behavior that we ought to have you know attitudes or things that we ought to be saying things that we ought to be doing that we're not.

And we realize well that's sin. And then we grow a little bit more perhaps and we come to realize it's not just simply what I'm doing that's wrong. It's not just simply maybe what I should be doing that is also sin as well but of realizing that is how I think it's what's going on within my own heart in my life consciously subconsciously almost within ourselves sometimes.

And we grow and we realize as we come to a verse like this in Hebrews 11 where without faith it is impossible to even please God. God wants me to be living in the dimension of faith all the time ultimately.

Romans 14 23 even adds another sort of a concept to it says whatsoever is not of faith is sin that God wants me to live completely in a world of faith to where I trust him in any and all sorts of things.

And it's interesting how we so often we are as Christians we look at faith when we have to exhibit it almost like oh no this terrible thing we're being drawn into sometimes it's trials or pressures or attacks or you know something can happen in our home it can happen to our health it can happen in our career something there that oh God we want this life liberty and pursuit of happiness concept of life day in and day out the sun rises everything happens.

We go to work pay the bills life is fine for us. Meantime we may not be living by faith we may not be trusting God. We're just in this nice little happy zone that we're kind of operating in sort of a thing.

And then some trial comes and oh God you know and we have to trust him. And it's and it's almost an exception to the manner of life we've been. But God allows these things to open up a whole new dimension where I learn to trust him all the time in every aspect of life.

And so when a trial comes we're oftentimes like both Paul and James says you know that why do you act amazed when a trial comes you know and you should be counting it all joy when you enter into diverse temptations and trials they're okay.

God then let's go for it. What do you want to teach me in this thing. There's nothing too hard for you. So let's get down to it is the way that the Bible approaches these things. God wants to bring me ultimately all of us into this dimension where we trust him fully every day of our life.

For everything that is going on regardless of how events may be going on in the world around us so to speak. And here in Hebrews as he says that without faith it is impossible to please God. Very very simple and wonderfully laid out.

And he that cometh to God and here he lays out three wonderful aspects. We're going to look at a little this morning he that cometh to God must believe that he is number one. And secondly that he is the rewarder number two.

But that rewarding number three happens to those that diligently seek him. That when somebody is opening up with God I want to head off into this wonderful dimension in this world of faith where this world I don't see it.

I'm not governed by it. I'm governed by your world that I don't see. And that the God who created all this world there even though I start off with my feet here I'm going to end up with my feet in heaven.

And I want to learn in the process how to live there every day. And when that's what faith is so much all about. But it's first of all the first thing about faith is is that something there that I believe that God is.

And that God is somebody there that I want to please. You might ask yourself this morning is God somebody that you look at first of all and you want to please him. Is it something there with all of your heart you realize God I do want to live a life that is pleasing to you here if I do that and I realize that that is something I want it should be something every one of us that we would want above all else any other accomplishment.

If I accomplish everything in the world and I never accomplish the activity of pleasing God I failed I failed in life regardless of how pleasing anything else ever was temporarily at any other time the very reason for which I am created is to please God.

Revelation 4 11 says. Thou art worthy oh lord receive glory and honor and power. For thou has created all things and for thy pleasure they are and were created. You were created to please God. That's why you exist.

You weren't created for yourself. You were created some disallowed. You run around and try to please yourself. Run around have a nice time. Run around and see if you can discover who you are. God says I'll tell you who you are right from the get-go.

I'll tell you what you were created for. You were created to please me. And that isn't just a selfish God who's merely just looking and saying you'll never be happy until you please me. You know I'll make everything miserable for you until then because I'm a selfish God.

No God. Basically I mean on one hand he realizes number one being the creator of all things. There is nothing he has ever created that begins to touch who he is himself. And therefore not only is it something there that he will be pleased when we're with him but he also knows I will never be pleased until I am with him.

I'll never know real pleasure. And like that's what psalm 16 11 tells us before thou will show me the path of life. And in thy presence is the fullness of joy. At thy right hand are pleasures evermore God.

There's this wonderful coincidence that happens when I realize I am created to please God. I also will discover that in the activity of pleasing him at his right hand are pleasures evermore. In his presence is the fullness of joy.

Anything else that he has created outside of himself will never touch the magnificence of himself in the joy and the pleasure and the fullness. And do you know that you might ask yourself are you somebody that you would really look and realize.

There's no place in all the world as glorious as the place from which it all came God's presence. There is no experience in all of creation that is as great as the very experience of where the fountainhead of all creation came from.

God himself his throne his realm his power his presence. There is no event there is no activity. And and when I realized there why not just go to the very fountainhead of which all of life proceeds. God himself and lord.

I want to know you in the greatest and most wonderful way. And here the bible first tells us there you must believe that he is if you're ever going to get to where you really please him. And you live a life that's full and you're pleased unbelievably pleased.

It's when you realize I want to please him and therefore I must believe that he is. I must come to that realization of everything that God simply is. Period. Romans 12 3 tells us there that God has delivered or has dealt unto every man a measure of faith.

Every one of us God gives us a measure of faith. The bible makes that quite clear. Everyone has a measure of faith to all men. The only thing that's different about any man essentially is what he chooses to invest his measure of faith in.

And basically what happens is that everybody takes that measure of faith that measure there that capacity to put their trust in something out there or somewhere we all have it we'll all do it. But the only difference is is what you put your faith in.

And people basically will end up putting their faith in what they believe is what they believe really is whether it's the experience that they desire that's the most real the most powerful the most dynamic the most fulfilling or whatever else.

That's where they will put their faith. And therefore a lot of people they put their faith maybe in money or they put it in power or they put it in pleasure they put it in enjoyment they put it in activity they put it in sport they put it in something that's exhilarating to them.

And they said this is it. But the christian looks at that and says that's crazy. God is all this other stuff is passing all of this other stuff. It comes and it goes. But God is when God revealed himself into Moses and Moses said what is your name.

He says I am that I am the timeless eternal ever-present unchanging being. Everything else was or will be or might be for a flash in the pan moment. But I am. And when somebody realizes everything else comes everything else goes.

God is. And when I realized that and I must believe that God is and this wonderful thing there that he's the one that's omnipotent he's the one that's omniscient he's the one that's omnipresent. He is everywhere.

He is all powerful he's all magnificent. And the christian knows that the christian has come you know to that realization as well as Jack knows that too the size to know. But it's something there that we so often we maybe sit there and say well I believe that I would imagine that most human beings when they begin to think about where is the fountainhead of existence and is there a God that he make it.

I believe most people believe he is. But amazingly a lot of people even though they say that he is they believe he is. They don't trust him. They don't exhibit faith. And we look at the faith as this kind of this weird commodity.

I need more faith as if faith is some sort of a thing in and of itself and where they're going to put their faith or how they conjure it up. But essentially the interesting thing to me about faith is that faith in and of itself isn't really much of anything.

It really isn't much of anything at all. Faith is essentially it is actually only as as good or as strong as essentially as the object in which you put it in. Faith in and of itself is not so you put it wherever you want to but the amount of faith that you'll also need is going to be directly related to your concept of the object that you put it in.

For example if when you know the end of the service we walk out and all of a sudden I've got to go to Phoenix Arizona got to get there today and I need a ride and I say I need a ride to Phoenix. Can somebody get me to Phoenix.

And you come up and say hey hop in I'll give you a ride and I say great. And then I look and you have a 1960 Nash Rambler and the tires are bald. The engine is smoking. The tires don't brakes are no good clutch grinds and and you say hop in I'll give you a ride and you got a dollar in your wallet and a gallon of gas in the tank and I look at you and say oh man pray for me.

I need a thing because the faith is directly related to my understanding how much faith that you need is directly related to my concept the object I'm putting it in. But on the other hand I walk out I said oh I got to go to Phoenix.

I don't know if I can get there. And you pull up and you say hop in and you've got a brand new Rolls-Royce cornice convertible. You know and you've got that thing just checked and rechecked you know and every it's just flawless and it's glorious and it's beautiful.

And there you say hop in and you've got a lot of credit cards and you've got a full tank of gas and say I'll take you and you got a helicopter that flies behind in case we need a hamburger on the way or whatever else.

And I'm sitting there and I'm looking at you. I don't need a lot of faith. Do I I looked here and if I say oh pray for me I need a lot of faith. You look say what excuse me do you know what a Rolls-Royce is.

You would look at me and just say understand the object. Well that's why the bible tells us faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. When I just begin to pick up the owner's manual when I begin to read this thing and God says here's the Christian life trust it.

And I said oh I don't know if I can trust. Then start reading the owner manual. See who made it see how powerful it is how glorious it is how eternal it is. But it does how it works the unending way in which it operates.

You pick up there and you begin to get an understanding in the word of God. You know that who created the world how it was created why it was created what is about the business of doing as it's revealed in here.

You read those that trust in the blessings he puts in their life the power he puts the direction the wisdom the understanding the provision the protection the one miracle after another he's so sufficient.

And you realize is anything too hard for God when you begin to pick up the bible and to trust him. And we think I need more faith. No if you're struggling with faith and you think you need more faith then you'd need to sit down and figure out who he is.

And you must realize faith that here it's something you must believe that he is. And the more I realize who he is. And then I look at all the rest of the world out there and all their trust in me and rest of me.

And I'll help you through this and realize how corny they all are compared to God who stands up and says I love you. If I spare not my own son for you will I not give you all things. And then to look at that and realize the whole record of who he is and what he's all about what he's done and how wonderfully and gloriously he does it.

And here hebrews 11 tells us about those who by faith came to a simple understanding of who God was and understanding who he was. They invested whatever was God wanted of their life into him. They responded in the directed way in each one of them in a different way in this unfolding story of faith through hebrews 11 and the in the demonstrations and activities of it.

But it's primarily their people that sat there and realized God is and in everything whatever it is that their life was about whatever the issue whatever the battle whatever the need in their home or their health or their family or their career or their call or their identity.

And then they began to take as overwhelming as it may be humanly. But then they added God to the equation and a belief in who he was. And all of a sudden bingo all of a sudden you've got somebody there that we end up saying what an unbelievable human being they were.

And they would be the first one i'm sure to tell us no what an unbelievable God who gave me a ride who picked me up in the parking lot where he found me and took me to a destination gloriously i arrived one after another after another after another in their issue in their trial and their struggle.

And they arrived in style. They arrived in fullness. They arrived with a glorious identity. And here is we're just we're just going to look at three of them here this morning as i read up you know in the sense of where they understood the concept of faith they realized things that God had laid out.

All they had to do was just simply when he said get in the car i'll get you there. They did it and they got there. And the world stands in awe of them. Amazingly simple difficult you know unbelievably difficult if they were had no vehicle if they had no power if they had no God.

But with God it was nothing by faith. Verse 4 able offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain by which he obtained to witness that he was righteous God testifying of his gifts and by it he being dead yet speaketh here the very first thing i believe that God wants and he initiates in every the heart of everyone who says i want to try faith i want to put my faith where it ought to be the very first thing here that God brings up to us.

Abel and Worship Through Sacrifice

That's not only you know might say going through a list of events in time and that being you know the first one here being able. But it's also i believe not just events in time but in events in priority spiritual priority in the sense that the very first thing that God wants by faith is that somebody knows what it is to worship God by faith here able rather he offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain.

Now to explain that back in Genesis 4. Genesis 4 1 through 7 i'll read until you turn to it there. But Genesis 4 it says. And Adam knew Eve his wife and she conceived and bear Cain and said i have gotten a man from the Lord and she again bear his brother Abel.

And Abel was a keeper of the sheep but Cain a tiller of the ground. And in the process of time it came that Cain brought the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord and Abel also brought the firstlings of his flocks and of the fat thereof.

And the Lord had respect unto Abel and of his offering. But under Cain in his offering he had not respect and Cain was very wroth and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain why are you wroth.

And why is your countenance falling. If thou doest well shalt thou not be accepted. But if thou do us not well sin lieth at the door and unto thee shall be his desire and thou shalt rule over him here God simply there the very first thing that he wanted from Cain and Abel.

And of course this famous story of where Cain ended up murdering his brother and his jealousy of it by the way as a sideline do you know how long Cain hated his brother as long as he was able. But anyway I'm sorry forgive me that's actually a John Corson joke I promise never to tell his they're no good.

But anyway Cain and Abel they came there to come before God to make an approach to be accepted before God. And Cain brings there the fruit of the soil. He brings an offering from the field and Abel brings the blood offering.

He brings a blood sacrifice. And God accepted the blood offering. And he had no respect for Cain's Cain. Of course he's very angry and he's wroth and his countenance falls and but the Lord comes to him.

He says Cain what is your problem. Why are you angry. Why is your fault. You can do. Well you can be accepted. You can get it right just as easy as your brother did. There is no difficulty here there is just a simple easy decision to make.

How are you going to be accepted before God. Now all through the Bible even back I mean they've seen on how their own father when Adam and Eve had sinned and there is God forgave them is that you know repented in a sense as God.

Then he killed an animal and he covered them with the skin of the animal and it required the killing of an animal the shedding of blood for the forgiveness of their sins. And there are no doubt as these children grew up and they saw their their own parents on how do you get right with God.

And the offering and the sacrifice of blood even as we read back in Hebrews 9 22 for almost all things are by the law purged with blood and without the shedding of blood there's no remission of sin here very simply just as as their father.

How do you get right with God. You get right because of the shed blood because of an offering because of a sacrifice. And here Abel came there and he offered the sacrifice of blood all pointing of course to the ultimate sacrifice that was yet to come the Lamb of God that would take away the sins of the world trusting fully in the blood of Christ.

But here Abel you know he so Abel goes and he does it. He offers the sacrifice that God designed God wanted. And Abel comes and he makes his own concoction. He goes out into his own field. He brings in there the fruit of his own labor.

And God says I won't take that. And he's angry. What do you mean. You won't take it. I grew it I worked hard on this. There's still time or energy or effort and I've just given it to you. And he watches there.

His brother is just at peace. He's worshiping. He's happy he's in communion. He's worshiping God. God has accepted to him. And in his jealousy of course he goes and he kills him. But very simply is that he just simply believed in the blood.

He believed that if I'm ever going to get right with God it's going to take a sacrifice acceptable to God based upon shed blood pointing of course to the ultimate sacrifice of all Christ. Paul tells Titus Titus 3 5 he says it's not by works of righteousness which we have done but according to his mercies has saved us.

And by the washing of regeneration the renewing of the Holy Spirit. Here Paul says how do you get right with God. Not by works of righteousness not by our own labor not by the fruit of our own hands not by our own sweat.

But the very first and key and simplest and most important aspect of faith at all when it's being exhibited is the number one. I come there and I can say you know nothing to thy to thy presence I bring or something only to thy cross.

I cling nothing in. I don't know. It's a wonderful little thing if I can think of it I just can't sorry but you know it make it up when you're yourself. There's a lot of great ones. But so often when I come there and realize the only thing I have is the cross.

And when I first of all when I want to get right with God I want to please God and I realize and I must believe that he is and he's a rewarder of those that diligently seek him and my diligence of seeking him I realize that what pleases him is that when I come there acknowledging that the way to get right with him is the way that he has provided through his son.

No other way no other condition. Cain's song was you know I owe I owe. It's off to work I go. I'm just going to work my way through. But not not Abel's song. Abel's song was would you be free from the burden of sin.

There's power in the blood. Power in the blood. Would you over evil a victory to win. There's wonderful power in the blood. There's power power wonder working power in the blood of the lamb. And may I ask you today when you first if you want your faith to grow first of it's something where you can look there at Jesus Christ and his sacrifice.

And you can say I need no other. My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness. That is what I entirely rest my cause and case and hope eternally upon. That's the birth of faith.

That's where it begins. That's where the initial aspects of it that are so important. But then it goes on from there. Faith not only worships God correctly it's secondly and this to me is so wonderful.

Enoch’s Daily Walk With God

We skip right by this so easily often but by faith verse 5 Enoch was translated that he should not see death and he was not found because God had translated him before his translation at this testimony that he pleased God.

And here the second and I believe second in importance to God second in priorities of faith when it is really being exercised is that first the primary foundation upon which it is built upon is my complete sufficiency in belief and the sufficiency of the blood of Christ to atone and to forgive.

And God looks at his sacrifice and loves me when I come acknowledge it and say God through the blood of Christ forgive me cleanse me. Heaven smiles. God is pleased. And so am I. And as well though the second aspect here is that faith not only worships God correctly it also walks with God daily here the simple thing you know to me when you look at this and you look at this wonderful man Enoch somebody that we know so little about.

Genesis 5 21 says. And Enoch lived 65 years and he begat Methuselah and Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah for 300 years and he begat sons and daughters. And all the days of Enoch were 365 and Enoch walked with God and he was not for God took him here you look at this a man living in a very wicked age when you go back there at that time in Genesis.

And yet he lived a life that was dedicated to just walking with God trusting in God daily. Just look at this wonderful thing he believed. He had this wonderful reward day by day that God would he would give him.

He would make him the rewarder of those that diligently seek him. He looked at the world that there was around him. He had come to a saving knowledge in the blood. But now it resulted in a walk. He just simply walked with God and he received this unbelievable reward for 300 years in a world so corrupt so wicked.

He knew what it was to have the peace of God rain day in and day out as he just walked with God. I think it's such a wonderful little story because I believe it tells us something that would ought to be very wonderful and very important to every one of us all of our lives and ought to touch our whole value system spiritually.

I think because you see all that we're told about Enoch very simply he just walked with God. And then he was translated one day and he was not for God took him. Now think about that you know for a moment with me Enoch when you look at his life he never did any great things that we know of written it all recorded for us.

Never did any great work. Never opened any rivers. You know turned you know water to blood manna out of heaven water out of rocks. Never destroyed an army. Never multiply loaves and fishes. Never a miracle ever any activity whatsoever that people would look at and say unbelievable.

Never stopped the mouths of lions never did any great sort of activity at all. That people would so often look and say wow he just walked with God. That's all you know. We live in a world today that we so often we measure the value of a human being by what they do not what they are.

God measures a person by what they are not what they do. And God just simply looks at who somebody is not their accomplishments. We live in a world and particularly in our little corner of the world so often you know we want to know how smart is somebody.

What have they done. What are their successes. You know in life how far have they risen on the corporate ladder. How many people answer to them. How much are they worth. How much of this. How much of that we say wow look what they've done.

No that's just what they've done. That is not who they are. God looks at somebody and he measures them by who they are. And there when their value system is is that by faith. I just want to walk with God.

That's it. Now people may say well don't you want more. Well yes hopefully we all do. But I don't want any more until I know what it is to walk with him. That is the foundation upon which it all comes from.

And that he is the ultimate he is. He is the destination of life. He's not simply a means to another end. He is the end in himself. And I want to share my life with him. I want to tell him my burdens.

I want to walk with him. I want him to lead me and guide me. I want his presence. I was made by God for God to be with God filled with God led by God empowered by God sharing his life. And when somebody realizes by faith God just simply says who cares what we do today.

I would just like to know can we do it together. And then what happens. It's immaterial. Immaterial means a little I think one of the most astounding things to me. When you look at the life of Jesus himself on this planet for 33 years we only know about three of them 90 percent of his life isn't even recorded.

You would think you know here son of the living God on the planet for 33 years and yet basically just 30 years of just walking. That's all we know living in perfect harmony. Nothing great recorded at all.

And those were just as important to God as the last three because God was just doing all those things through him. But first it was just the and when you and when we realize Lord this is what I want. And when I worship God by his sacrifice and I know what it is to really worship God you know to walk with God.

Then the last thing here this morning is is that by faith. Verse 7 Noah being warned of God of things not seen as yet he moved with fear prepared an ark to the saving of his house by the witch he condemned the world and he became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

Noah’s Faithful Work in a Corrupt World

And here faith first of all it worships God correctly it walks with God daily. And then it works for God eternally. Here there was something where he here Noah comes along and you look at this amazing story a time.

And you know back in Genesis. In Genesis 6 it tells us there that God saw the wickedness of man it was great on the earth every imagination of thoughts their heart was only evil continually. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

And here God takes Noah aside and there while the world so corrupt as it tells us filled with violence but God then instructs him. He says I want you to build an ark. And it's going to take years. And he poured years and years of his life decades into building a boat on dry land in a world in which it had never rained.

I mean in people you'd imagine the it tells us he had the ridicule. You what is this thing. It's a boat. What. What is a boat. A boat floats in the water. Noah there's no water here you know there will be.

Oh there will. Where's it coming from the sky. And how's it coming. It's going to rain. What's rain. You'll find out you know. But believing there he was a man as it tells us being warned of God of things not seen as yet of a world of judgment to come.

Nobody could comprehend it. But God told him Noah this world as you know it is passing it's ending. And while the world mocked that this world will never end this world is real. This is gonna end. I don't think so you're crazy but the child of God the first thing I believe the Lord wants is that I know what it is to worship in my faith walk with him daily.