First Baptist Church
Fairbanks, Alaska
805 Sixth Avenue
(907) 456-4923
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Fairbanks, Alaska 805 Sixth Avenue (907) 456-4923 |
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“Faith Hall of Fame (Part 1)” A Study of the Book of Hebrews (Part 6) Hebrews 11 Mark Howdeshell (June 1, 2008) Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Introduction A Touching Story About Faith and Miracles Tess was a precocious eight year old when she heard her Mom and Dad talking about her little brother, Andrew. All she knew was that he was very sick and they were completely out of money. They were moving to an apartment complex next month because Daddy didn't have the money for the doctor's bills and our house. Only a very costly surgery could save him now and it was looking like there was no-one to loan them the money. She heard Daddy say to her tearful Mother with whispered desperation, "Only a miracle can save him now." Tess went to her bedroom and pulled a glass jelly jar from its hiding place in the closet. She poured all the change out on the floor and counted it carefully. Three times, even. The total had to be exactly perfect. No chance here for mistakes. Carefully placing the coins back in the jar and twisting on the cap, she slipped out the back door and made her way 6 blocks to Rexall's Drug Store with the big red Indian Chief sign above the door. She waited patiently for the pharmacist to give her some attention but he was too busy at this moment. Tess twisted her feet to make a scuffing noise. Nothing. She cleared her throat with the most disgusting sound she could muster. No good. Finally she took a quarter from her jar and banged it on the glass counter. That did it! "And what do you want?" the pharmacist asked in an annoyed tone of voice. I'm talking to my brother from Chicago whom I haven't seen in ages, "he said without waiting for a reply to his question. " Well, I want to talk to you about my brother," Tess answered back in the same annoyed tone. "He's really, really sick... and I want to buy a miracle." "I beg your pardon?" said the pharmacist. "His name is Andrew and he has something bad growing inside his head and my Daddy says only a miracle can save him now. So how much does a miracle cost?" "We don't sell miracles here, little girl. I'm sorry but I can't help you,"the pharmacist said, softening a little. "Listen, I have the money to pay for it. If it isn't enough, I will get the rest. Just tell me how much it costs." The pharmacist's brother was a well-dressed man. He stooped down and asked the little girl, "What kind of a miracle does your brother need?" "I don't know," Tess replied with her eyes welling up. "I just know he's really sick and Mommy says he needs an operation. But my Daddy can't pay for it, so I want to use my money". "How much do you have?" asked the man from Chicago. "One dollar and eleven cents," Tess answered barely audibly. "And it's all the money I have, but I can get some more if I need to. "Well, what a coincidence," smiled the man. "A dollar and eleven cents -- the exact price of a miracle for little brothers. " He took her money in onehand and with the other hand he grasped her mitten and said "Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let's see if I have the kind of miracle you need." That well dressed man was Dr. Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon, specializing in neurosurgery. The operation was completed without charge and it wasn't long until Andrew was home again and doing well. Mom and Dad were happily talking about the chain of events that had led them to this place. "That surgery,"her Mom whispered, "was a real miracle. I wonder how much it would have cost?" Tess smiled. She knew exactly how much a miracle cost... one dollar and eleven cents ...... plus the faith of a little child. A miracle is not the suspension of natural law, but the operation of a higher law...... Faith………being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. How many of you take your faith for granted? How often do you use faith? How many of you agree that faith is something that we could all use a little more of? For the next few weeks, I want to look at the Faith Hall of Fame. Some call the people we’re going to study as the “Heroes of the Faith.” If we want to learn more about how our faith in God should be, then we should want to learn from the best. Hebrews chapter 11 contains the names of those listed in our Faith Hall of Fame. The Meat of the Message 1. In order to fully understand the lessons to be learned from the heroes of the faith, we must understand faith. Let’s go back to some of the basic truths of faith that I preached on September 2nd. a. What: Faith is best defined in the NT in Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. The philosophic definition can go like this…. “I believe…therefore I know.” It is in sharp contrast to the antithesis…I know, so I believe. The first implies that you know because of your intuition, not your logical processes. What are logical processes? Your five senses is a good start to understand this. If you can feel, see, taste, touch, or smell something… then you can believe it. You can see that this chair is sturdy enough to hold me…therefore you and I believe that it will. b. Where: Rom 10:17-18 17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ. c. Faith motivates our actions. Depending upon what we have faith in…spiritual or otherwise… will determine certain things that we do. If I have faith that my car will start every time I turn the key, then I’ll wait until the last moment to leave. If the car starts to fail me, I’ll leave earlier just in case it doesn’t start! Matt 9:20-22 20 Just then a woman who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak. 21 She said to herself, "If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed." 22 Jesus turned and saw her. "Take heart, daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you." And the woman was healed from that moment. Has your faith called you to action? How did you respond? It is easy to say, “I have faith in God.” It is much harder to live your faith as a testimony to Him. The Word tells us that God will recognize a lack of faith, too. Matt 13:58 And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith. d. How vital is faith? Eph 2:8-9 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast. Eph 3:12-19 12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence. 2. Though verse 2 states, “This is what the ancients were commended for,” the Faith Hall of Fame starts with an even more recognizable character………you!! Heb 11:3 3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. We have been inducted into the Hall of Fame, if we believe in creation!! If it’s that important, let’s take a look!! 3. The Spiritual realm was here before the physical realm. a. God was here…and always has been here. He made the world out of his Spiritual qualities (what was not visible) with every detail planned to the fullest. Gen 1:1-3 1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. 3 And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day. b. Jesus was there that first day. John 1:1-3 1 In the beginning God was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word ws God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made: without Him nothing was made that has been made. . c. SON light before the sunlight!!! i. The sun, moon, and stars were not created until the 4th day of creation. What light was it that shown upon the earth? ii. The Glory of God shown upon the earth and it illuminated all that God had created. God called it good because it reflected the creation of God…and it was ABSOLUTELY PERFECT!! iii. Same light will shine again! John 1:4-5 4 In Him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the dardkness but the darkness has not understood it. Rev 21:23 23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The city referred to in Rev 21:23 is the New Jerusalem…aka Heaven. The passage goes on to further say that it will be a perfect place that only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life can enter. The Bottom Line From front to back…Genesis 1:1 to Revelation 21. Faith is interwoven throughout the scripture as the only way to enter the New Jerusalem to witness the glory of God. Those that have faith in the creation of the world, are the first listed in the Faith Hall of Fame. That means that I have made the Hall of Fame!! I am a hero of the faith!! Are you? Do you believe that God is the Creator of everything… including you? Luke 19:40 says that even the rocks cry out of His might and power. If you believe that God created you, then how can you not believe that He is in control? Surrender to Him and let Him be Lord of your life!! Invitation Our Hymn of Invitation is # 309, Lord I’m Coming Home. Can you honestly, earnestly say that you KNOW beyond a shadow of a doubt that you will enter into the New Jerusalem? Do you doubt? Do you have questions? As we all stand and sing, slip out of your pew and come to the front of the sanctuary where we can pray and talk about it. Let God be glorified in your decision this morning. |
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