Two Sides of Faith
Scripture: Hebrews 11:1, 7; Genesis 6;
Explain how some believe Adam did not exist and the situation in the Garden was a metaphor. Use Noah and Moses to explain their truth as to the why they did what they did. Noah was a direct blood descendant from Adam. Moses talked with God and actually wrote the book of Genesis.
Introduction
Last week I started this message by defining what faith is based on what Paul says in Hebrews 11:1. This morning I will go deeper into these two sides. I will be approaching this subject from a historical perspective. Remember last week I talked about historical faith? Historical faith comes when you chose to believe the historical accounts as recorded in scripture as true. Based on this, you understand that the God of Scripture is the same God of today. There are two examples we will look at today in reference to the two sides of faith. As we review these examples, I want you to explore whether or not you believe the historical account as written. Believe it or not, there are people in the world who believe that the Genesis account of Adam and Eve is a metaphor that did not happen in “real life.” I wholeheartedly disagree with those who believe this and I will share with you why as we go through the message.
The two sides of faith, assurance and expectation, can be seen in the lives of those listed in Hebrews chapter 11. They had strong convictions about unseen present realities. They also had strong assurance that God’s promises would be fulfilled – even in the face of evidence that seemed to suggest otherwise. This morning I want us to look at two Old Testament examples of how assurance and expectation plays a major part in our faith walk. As we prepare to do this, I want to remind you of what Paul said faith is. He said faith is “being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” It is confidence in the reality of things we cannot see that lies at the root of our faith. Faith enables us to accomplish the impossible.
When you think of assurance and expectation, you begin to realize that you cannot be sure of something without expecting something. As we will discover, without expectation, assurance is not real. As we go through this message this morning, I want you to reflect on what you are seeking God for and if you are “expecting” Him to answer your prayer. If you are not expecting God to deliver on His Word, then you have no assurance. If, however, you are sure that God is going to deliver on His Word, then you are undoubtedly expecting something from Him. With this said, lets look at a few examples of how faith enabled individuals to do what others could not do and how through their assurance, they expected and received from God.
I. Faith Enabled Noah
“By faith, Noah when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.” Hebrews 11:7
“This is the account of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God……Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence…..So God said to Noah, ‘I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth…..So make yourself an ark of cypress wood….Noah did everything just as God commanded him.” Genesis 6:9, 11, 13, 14a, 22
The first thing that I want you to understand is that this story is true. They found Noah’s ark about 40 years ago on Mt. Ararat. It can only be seen during certain times of the year when the snow is melted. For the ark, or any boat of that size to get that high up onto a mountain, the flood waters had to be extensive. The waters rose at least 20 feet above all high mountains and last 371 days. Even “non-believing” scientists agree that the world was once covered with water. I tell you these facts so that you will be able to understand that this is not a myth, it is a true account. Here is one other fact that you need to understand. After the flood, Noah lived for 350 more years (Gen. 9:28). Abraham was born, if my math is correct according to Genesis 11:10-26, approximately 290 years after the flood. This means that Abraham was alive during the last 60 years of Noah’s life and heard the stories of how God had saved the world through Noah. He would have heard it directly, not hearsay. So if you believe in Abraham, you must believe in Noah because without Noah there would not have been an Abraham. To add to this, if you therefore believe in Noah, you must also accept Adam because Noah is a descendant of Adam. You cannot believe in a son without believing in their parents, grandparents, etc. With this history and the subsequent proof that has been found, it is easy for me to accept the genesis account of creation and the flood. So what prompted Noah to act?
As we have discussed, the first thing that prompted Noah to act was his “assurance” that God was going to do just what He had said that He would. How did Noah know that God would do it? Because he knew the story of Adam and Eve and what happened in the Garden of Eden. He knew this story to be true because his father Lamech was 56 years old when Adam died based on Genesis chapter 5. This means that Lamech, Noah’s father, had 56 years to learn from Adam about his creation and the promises of God. We also have another hint from Lamech when he gave Noah his name. He gave him the name Noah because he said “He will bring us relief from the painful labor of farming this ground that the Lord has cursed.” (Gen. 5:29) When did God curse the ground? When He cast Adam and Even from the Garden as noted in Genesis 3:17. Noah was given a name based on the curse (or deliverance from it) that was placed on the ground because of Adam and Eve’s sin. By the way, Noah was born 126 years after the death of Adam so he would have been very familiar with the history of his family. In the 6th chapter of Genesis God told Noah that He would surely destroy mankind from the face of the earth. Noah believed God and was assured that God would do just as He had stated that He would. Because he believed God would fulfill what He said, most now expected God to do it. We know this because he built the ark. Noah’s father died 5 years before the flood and his grandfather Methuselah died the same year as the flood, if my calculations are correct. Finally, do not forget that Noah’s great-grandfather Enoch was taken by God, he did not died in the natural sense as we know of death. Noah, based on his family’s history of serving and walking with God fully expected God to do just what God said that He would do. Because of his assurance in God and his expectation of God doing what He said He would do, Noah built the ark saving his family.
We do not know if Noah’s brothers and sisters died before or during the flood, all we know is that his immediate family was saved because of his faith. Remember Paul’s definition of faith and having assurance and being certain in what you cannot see? This was Noah. When he built the ark, the area where he lived did not get a lot of rain. Building an ark of that size around no large body of water must have seemed foolish to all of his neighbors. Yet Noah believed God and saw the flood by faith and acted accordingly. His belief in what God told him and his actions demonstrating that belief was counted to him as righteousness. Let’s look at one more example.
II. Faith Enabled Moses
“It was by faith that Moses’ parents hid him for three months. They saw that God had given them an unusual child, and they were not afraid of what the king might do. It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be treated as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to share the oppression of God’s people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin. He thought it was better to suffer for the sake of the Messiah than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to the great reward that God would give him. It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt. He was not afraid of the king. Moses kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible.”
Hebrews 11:23-27
Most of you have probably seen the movie, “The Ten Commandments” that came out years ago. The movie does a very good job of some of the accounts of Moses’ experiences, but took some liberties with some things. Here is what we need to understand about Moses. First, his parents were parents of faith. Because Pharaoh had heard the rumors that a deliverer of the Hebrews had been born, he ordered that all male children be killed. His parents hid him for 3 months knowing that if they were caught, they would be killed. They saw in Moses (having assurance) that God had plans for him. Expecting God to use him, they took action to preserve Moses’ life. Their actions led to the deliverance of the Hebrews from Egypt.
Now let’s take a look at Moses. He grew up in Pharaoh’s house, but chose to leave his house to be with his people. One day he witnessed an Egyptian (one of Pharaoh’s servants) beating one of the Hebrews slaves. Moses defended the slave by killing the Egyptian. It meant certain death for a Hebrew to strike or kill an Egyptian. For this reason Moses fled Egypt and ended up in Midian. While there he comes face to face with God who spoke to him through the burning bush. When this happen, Moses became a man of faith, no longer fearing for his life, he returned to Egypt. Why did he do this? Because he had assurance from God that He would deliver his people from Egypt through Moses’ hands. Did Moses immediately accept this assignment by faith? No. Actually he angered God (Exodus chapter 4) with his lack of confidence in his ability to perform this task in the initial conversation. With all of his hesitancy, he finally accepts what God had commanded him to do. Before he did accept, God had to prove to him that He would be with Moses and that Moses had nothing to fear. Through God’s proof of what He would do, you can read the 4th chapter of Exodus to see just what God did to prove Himself to Moses, Moses’ confidence began to grow and He began to see what God would do. Moses saw the Hebrews coming out of Egypt. He saw himself leading them under God’s direction. For this reason, He went back.
Although he was a marked man, marked for death, Moses overcame his fears and set out to do what God had told him to do. Moses stepped out in faith, believing that what God had told him to do, he could do. If you look at what Moses did during his interactions with Pharaoh, he had assurance and fully expected God to perform every miracle that God performed to get Pharaoh to set the Hebrews free. Moses prepared the people for the plagues and their future deliverance because he knew what was coming. Even when his own people did not believe him and questioned his motivation, he did not stray from what God had told him to do.
Most people would agree that Moses existed. We know through Egyptian history that the Hebrews at one time lived in Egypt. We also know that they came out of Egypt. Moses had a special relationship with god. God talked with Moses just like I am talking with you. We do not know everything that they talked about, but we do know that Moses was in a unique position to ask God about history. Moses, being brought up in Pharaoh’s house would have also had direct access to the history of his people since their time in Egypt. Why is this important? Moses was one of the few individuals who had access to history from the Egyptians and through direct conversation with God. If you believed that Moses existed and that he walked with God, you should accept his record of history. Based on his relationship with God, why would he be wrong about something as important as his history? Finally, Moses appeared to Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus went there to pray. I share this with you so that you will not question the history for which your faith is based on. You either accept the historical accounts or not. All through history men and women of God came to the point that they were sure that God would do what He said and thus they expected Him to do it.
These are two examples of individuals whose faith enabled them to do what God had told them to do with the full assurance and expectation that God would perform His part. In that latter part of Hebrews chapter 11, Paul addresses us. Paul wants us to know that our faith enables us. The pathway of faith that Hebrews commended is the answer to our search for meaning and progress in the Christian life. But we must be aware that our walking in faith is no guarantee of good times. Paul in verses 35-38 mentions others who faith led to them suffering. He told of those tortured to death (some at his very own hands) of others mocked and flogged and bound in prison, and still others killed by stoning or murdered by the sword. Some lost everything and fled naked into the desert, to live like animals in caves and holes. Why would they do this? Because they believed in the promise of an afterlife for those who accepted Christ and expected to receive what was promised. Although they could not see it, they believed it and were willing to forsake all, even their lives, to attain it. Taking the path of faith and committing ourselves to obey God no matter what in no way promises that the circumstances of our lives will be pleasant. Faith does not guarantee good times, but guarantees our realization of the hope we have for transformation within leading to eternal life with Christ our Lord.
When you talk about faith it is important that you understand that your faith can bring you both positive and negative outcomes. Your faith is neutral. It can be used for both good and negative outcome. My goal is to expose both so that you can channel your faith towards outcomes that will move you forward in your faith walk. What do you believe? Are you sure about what you believe about God and His promise to you through Jesus Christ His Son? When you pray, do you expect God to answer your prayer or are you just going through the motions?
We will continue this series next week. May God continue to bless you.
