Category Archives: Hall of Faith

Heroes—The Secret of Abraham

We’re walking through the Hall of Faith together, in Hebrews 11. Links to the previous posts will be at the end of this one.

By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed and went out to a place he was going to receive as an inheritance. He went out, not knowing where he was going.  By faith he stayed as a foreigner in the land of promise, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, co-heirs of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

(To read about Abraham’s story, begin in Genesis chapter 12.)

water

There is a secret hidden in Abraham’s story. A secret that I hold onto  almost as one who holds running water, unable to fully grasp it and hold fast.

It’s the secret that compelled a man to leave everything familiar — home, family, a way of life. Words on paper clean it up, make it seem less gut-wrenching, like saying goodbye isn’t painful at all. Like leaving something good isn’t all that hard. By faith he went. No big deal.

Except it is. A big deal. It is. Leaving things and people and comfort and familiar and good is heaving sobs hard. So let’s not look at the words on paper and wave them off like they have no meaning for us. Like they’re just part of someone else’s story. They aren’t. They are the words of my story, your story, and the story of the generations to come.

When I said yes to Jesus, I left a life of drugs. It wasn’t hard. I was relieved to be done, and so thankful for the rescue from that life.

cring

But leaving the reason I did drugs in the first place, the desire to escape? That’s been a long, mournful process that sometimes felt like I was being ripped away from all I hold dear. Too dramatic? No. It is not. To leave a lifelong pattern of dealing with life, to live without the blanket you’ve carried since childhood? It is a hard fought battle of leaving, my friend.

Your story is different from mine, but it is the same truth for both of us. We all have to leave, and keep leaving.

Because we cannot follow Jesus without leaving.

Abraham’s secret first slipped in when I was reading Psalm 84 one day and verse 5 was on fire.

Blessed are those whose strength is in You, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

God lit it up and then dropped in into my heart, using it to put a name to something I couldn’t name. My sense of never feeling at home, never feeling attached or settled. Anywhere. My whole life.

I think one of the best intangible gifts God has given me is the gift of pilgrimage. Feeling like a stranger wherever I go, never feeling settled here, is precious to me.

Hebrews 11:13-15 ~ These all died in faith without having received the promises, but they saw them from a distance, greeted them, and confessed that they were foreigners and temporary residents on the earth…But they now desire a better place—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

Foreigners. Aliens. Temporary residents. This is part of our calling, the ‘come, follow Me’ that compelled us to leave something known for unknown. This is who we are. People with eternity in our hearts, and an awareness that we are simply passing through this place as citizens of a different homeland. People who carry a secret that strengthens us for all the leavings.

And when we live as those people, neither joy nor sorrow on this sojourn will shackle our feet to this earth.

By faith.

These first four heroes have all directed our gaze forward, past them, past us.

ABEL – to the Gospel and the Church.

ENOCH – to the rapture of the Church and the urgency of the Gospel.

NOAH – to the way out of the coming destruction.

And now Abraham.

Pointing us home.

Previously:

Abel   Enoch    Noah

Heroes: Noah—Why I quit smoking

We’re walking through the Hall of Faith together, in Hebrews 11. Links to the previous posts will be at the end of this one.

By faith Noah, after he was warned about what was not yet seen and motivated by godly fear, built an ark to deliver his family. By faith he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

(Noah’s story is in Genesis, chapters 6-9)

For years I had tried over and over to quit smoking, but nothing worked. I was firmly, undeniably, enslaved and I hated it. And then a series of events and one scripture passage happened.

Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” – John 5:14

And the fear of God came upon me at last. To be honest, I had been praying for a real fear of God, because I didn’t feel like I had any. I had a sincere love for God, devotion to God, affection for God and hunger for God. But I did not fear Him.

Until He told me, through His word, that there was something worse coming if I didn’t stop what I was doing and change course, and I believed Him and found my godly fear.

A fear of the Lord is defined as having reverence, or deep respect for Him. Some people also define it as being in awe of Him. All of those are correct. But for me, something was missing.

I knew God, loved God and walked with God. How could I not fear Him?

So here’s the deal. My deal, let’s just call it my deal because it may not be your deal at all. I have been fed on the grace and love and goodness and kindness and the “abba-ness” of God, and let me tell you, it has been nourishment for my broken soul. And feeding on the power of God to defeat the enemy, move mountains, heal sickness, and turn hearts, has lit.me.up with excitement and energy and determination and purpose. So so good.

close up buffet table arrangement cattering

But at the banqueting table of the fullness of who God is I have politely passed by a lot of what did not make me feel good, you know? The stuff that went down hard and felt strange to my pallet. I found that my spiritual appetite more or less mimicked my physical appetite. Eat what tastes good, don’t eat what doesn’t taste good.

Ironically, it is because God is good and kind and loving and full of grace, because He is my Abba-Father, that He led me to truth.

God always keeps His word. Even the hard to swallow ones.

So when He says that continuing in disobedience will bring something worse to me, He means it.

shut-the-door

And when He says that destruction is coming, He means it. And when He says He has made a way out of that destruction, but the day will come when He will shut the door of that way out, He means it. And when He says that if you have not obeyed His command to turn, believe in Jesus and be saved, you will perish, He means it.

And when He says that it is not His desire that you perish, He means it. 

By faith Noah took the way out provided by God. But He was motivated by godly fear.

Because He believed God meant what He said.

Previously:

Heroes: Cain & Abel

Heroes:  Enoch

Heroes: Enoch—Who will look for us?

We’re walking through the Hall of Faith together, in Hebrews 11. A link to the previous post will be at the end of this one.

“By faith Enoch was taken away so he did not experience death, and he was not to be found because God took him away. For prior to his removal he was approved, since he had pleased God.  Now without faith it is impossible to please God, for the one who draws near to Him must believe that He exists and rewards those who seek Him.”

Just like that. He walked with God, pleased God, and then he was taken away. I assume the words ‘he was not to be found’ imply that people, the ones who had been left behind, were searching for him. This stirs something in me. Enoch points to the end, to the day of Christ’s return to take His Church to be with Him!

In Luke, chapter 17, Jesus speaks of that day that Enoch’s story foretells.

I tell you, on that night two will be in one bed: One will be taken and the other will be left.  Two women will be grinding grain together: One will be taken and the other left.

And then in 1 Thessalonians: 4:17 Paul tells us…

Then we who are still alive will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and so we will always be with the Lord.

And suddenly I am filled with fresh hope. Because although I know the truth, and I know that this day is coming, I get bogged down in day-to-day life down here and I tell ya, it can feel like this is it. So I find myself holding onto this life with both hands clenched tight as though this earthly existence is all I get. When I forget the truth, things down here appear much bigger, much more important, than they really are.

Every thing we have on this earth will be left behind. All the trappings that we had to have, that we worked to build, that we believed would bring the peace and the happiness we wanted…none of it will survive the final hour. That leaves us with this:  who will be left behind when Enoch’s story becomes mankind’s story? Who will look for us but will not find us?

And so I find Enoch pointing not only to the rapture of the Church, but to the urgency of the Gospel. Enoch reminds me that there is no thing on this earth more important than the people on this earth, and whether or not they will one day be counted among those who will be “caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and so we will always be with the Lord.” 

By faith.

Paul told the Thessalonians to encourage one another with his words concerning the end, so this is me, encouraging us…

Editable vector illustration of a man winning a race

One day we will discover that this earthly life is not the end, but the beginning. One day, our race here will end and we will all be gathered at the finish line with Jesus, our great reward!

Who will be with us?

Previously:  Cain & Abel

Heroes: Cain & Abel—What are you pointing at?

By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain did.

I’ve read commentaries. Looked up the original words in Hebrew. Tried every way I know to peek underneath this verse, but the fact is, God never tells us why He preferred Abel’s offering over Cain’s. But we can still go deeper and find the treasures hiding here.

Cain’s response to God’s rejection of his offering is anger. Not repentance. Not humility. Anger and pride. And God took it as a teaching moment and said to him ‘If you do what is right, won’t you be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.”

Cain did not take it as a learning moment, and instead, killed his brother.

I think, and it’s just opinion talking here, that Cain’s offering was like a man going through the motions with God. It was made more out of obligation than faith. And when he saw Abel, and not himself, receiving the approval of God, he showed his true heart.

It’s almost like Cain’s offering is pointing directly at a spirit of religion. And a spirit of religion is always a mask worn by pride. Note that Cain did, in fact, bring an offering to God, giving the appearance of obedience and reverence. But then God unmasks Cain’s pride by refusing his offering. Once unmasked, we see Cain’s anger and petulance toward God, even when God questions him about the disappearance of his brother.

Then the Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s guardian?”

Unmasked, Cain’s true attitude is on display. And then, we see even deeper, when God tells him the consequences for killing his brother.

“But Cain answered the Lord, ‘My punishment is too great to bear! Since You are banishing me today from the soil, and I must hide myself from Your presence and become a restless wanderer on the earth, whoever finds me will kill me.’”

Again, no repentance. No sorrow for his sin. Only prideful concern for self. And while we can see this on the backside of this story, we know that God knew it before it ever happened. 

In contrast, Abel’s offering was given by faith. And his offering was “some of the firstborn of his flock and their fat portions”.  The fat is defined as the best, or most excellent of any kind. 

So Abel’s offering, by faith, was a blood offering, made from the sacrifice of the first-born, the best, or most excellent of any kind. And, ultimately, Abel was persecuted for his faith, was he not?

So, if Cain’s offering points to a spirit of religion, is it possible that Abel’s offering points to the Gospel of Christ, and His Church?

jesus-cross

For some reason, this makes me weep, this treasure buried back in the beginning. Not just a collection of stories that we blow the dust off every now and then, but markers pointing to the cross and to the Firstborn, the perfect lamb, who offered the Father His life as our ransom. So that we could become His Church.

And I am compelled to ask God, what about me? What do I take from this for my own life?

Slow down and take a deeper look at what you do ‘for Me’. Do your offerings point to the Gospel of Christ and His Church, or do they point to a religious spirit? Simply put, are your offerings to Me coming from faith, or from pride?

This question goes far beyond tithes and offerings. It seeps into our ministries, into our volunteering, into how we operate in our giftings, our prayer lives, our giving, and even in our presence on social media. The question goes deep into everything we do, including our relationships with others and with God. Because our whole lives are to be the offering.

Are we bringing offerings that please God? Or do we just assume He accepts whatever it is we do in the name of Jesus?

There’s a good chance someone may discover the answers on the backside of my story. But what makes me stop and need to put my face on the floor is this…

God already knows.