A Response Of Saving Faith-7

View all Sermons

A Response Of Saving Faith-7

Contributed by Byron Sherman on Nov 13, 2012 (message contributor)

(rate this sermon)
| 2,213 views

Scripture: Hebrews 11:3-40

Denomination: Baptist

Summary: 7 of ? The Hebrews writer recounted the very practical responses which faith had wrought in their forebears/ancestors. Saving faith yields practical responses to life. Saving faith meets life’s challenge with...

A RESPONSE Of SAVING FAITH-VII—Hebrews 11:3-40

Attention:

Lucky Saucer

A famous art collector is walking through the city when he notices a mangy cat lapping milk from a saucer in the doorway of a store & he does a double-take. He recognizes that the saucer is extremely old & very valuable, so he walks casually into the store & offers to buy the cat for two dollars.

The store owner replies "I’m sorry, but the cat isn’t for sale. The collector says "Please, I need a hungry cat around the house to catch mice. I’ll pay you twenty dollars for that cat."

The owner immediately says "Sold," & hands over the cat. The collector continues, "Hey, for the twenty bucks I wonder if you could throw in that old saucer. The cat’s used to it & it’ll save me from having to get a dish."

And the owner says, "Sorry buddy, that’s my lucky saucer. So far this week I’ve sold sixty-eight cats."

The owner’s faith in the bowl led him to respond a particular way to everyday challenges.

Faith’s response to life’s challenges

We indeed bring something of value to the table when we are saved!

The Hebrews writer sought to encourage & exhort his readers(hearers) by recounting the very practical responses which faith had wrought in their forebears/ancestors.

Saving faith yields practical responses to life, which encourage others.

What are some practical responses to life by saving faith?

How does saving faith respond to life?

In previous weeks we have observed 11 Responses to Life’s Challenge afforded by Saving Faith. These responses have focused upon the “elders”(:2)(patriarchs) but their application is for us.

We have found that Saving faith meets life’s challenge with...

1. A Particular WORLDVIEW(:3)—Concept presented 05/20/2012 with 10:39—11:3 as FELLOWSHIP

2. OFFERINGs Of PECULIAR QUALITY(:4)

3. DESIRE For GOD’s PLEASURE(:5-6)

4. CONDEMNING TRUST(:7)

5. A Particular PLACE(:8-10)

6. A Particular OUTLOOK(:11-12)

7. A Particular VISION(:13-16)

8. A Particular CONCLUSION(:17-19)

9. A Particular BLESSING(:20-21)

10. A Particular PREPARATION(:22)

11. A Particular BOLDNESS(:23)

Today we will look at a portion of Scripture(11:23-29) which records A RESPONSE Of SAVING FAITH as it pertains to MOSES. There are 3 responses of faith to be garnered thru Moses’ example.

12—Saving faith meets life’s challenge with...

A Particular FEARLESSNESS(:24-27)

Explanation: (:24-27)

:24—“By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,”

Moses himself exhibited faith after he had grown to manhood. He voluntarily chose to refuse the kinship to Pharaoh available to him.

Being “the son of Pharaoh’s daughter” would have limited Moses’ service...

Upon his having become old enough to make decisions for himself, Moses from that point, made a crucial decision regarding his God. Upon aligning himself with Israel & the revealed God of Israel, YaHWeH, Moses rightly “refused” to be recognized as “the son of Pharoah’s daughter.” The majority of Moses’ life was spent in Pharaoh’s household where “he became her[Pharaoh’s daughter] son”(assumed adoption?)(Ex. 2:5-10).

Rather Moses accepted his kinship with the Hebrew slaves of Egypt, his true lineage. He willingly declared his heritage because his “faith” drove him to it.

Moses’ decision came about prior to his experience at the burning bush on Horeb, the mountain of God(Ex. 2:11-15; Ex. 3:1). Moses was touched by the plight of Israel’s burden in slavery, knowing & personally accepting that he was one with them.

“Of age/Come to years/Grown up”—megav genomenov—Lit. =“Having Become Great”—FROM: megav—1) Great—1a) Of the external form or sensible appearance of things (or of persons), 1b) Of number & quantity: numerous, large, abundant, 1c) Of age: the elder, 1d) used Of intensity & its degrees: with great effort, of the affections & emotions of the mind, of natural events powerfully affecting the senses: violent, mighty, strong; 2) Predicated of rank, as belonging to—2a) Persons, eminent for ability, virtue, authority, power, 2b) Things esteemed highly for their importance: of great moment, of great weight, importance, 2c) A thing to be highly esteemed for its excellence: excellent; 3) Splendid, prepared on a grand scale, stately; 4) Great things. Strong—Big (literally or figuratively, in a very wide application).—+—ginomai—1) To become, i.e. To come into existence, begin to be, receive being; 2) To become, i.e. To come to pass, happen; 3) To arise, appear in history, come upon the stage; 4) To be made, finished—4a) Of miracles, to be performed, wrought; 5) To become, be made. Strong—To cause to be("gen"-erate), i.e. reflexively--To become (come into being), used with great latitude (literal, figurative, intensive, etc.).

“Refused”—arneomai—1) To deny; 2) To deny someone—2a) To deny one’s self—2a1) To disregard his own interests or to prove false to himself, 2a2) Act entirely unlike himself; 3) To deny, abnegate, abjure; 4) Not to accept, to reject, to refuse something offered. Strong—To contradict, i.e. Disavow, reject, abnegate.

:25—“choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin,”

Moses made the choice, by faith, to “suffer affliction” with those chosen of God(Israel, himself included). He chose this path of suffering instead of “enjoying the passing pleasures of sin.” These so-called “pleasures” were available to him by means of his position & prestige as the son of Pharoah’s daughter.

Moses personally chose to endure ill treatment from being identified with the people of God’s choosing, the Israelites. This was a faith choice. If he would have chosen Pharaoh’s name it would have actually been a choice to indulge in sin.

*“Sin” is always a personal indulgence in something futile & fleeting.

Godly Fearlessness arises out of the choices made in my heart of hearts.

“Suffer affliction/Endure ill treatment”—sugkakoucew—1) To treat ill with another; 2) To be ill treated in company with, share persecutions or come into a fellowship of ills. Strong—To maltreat in company with, i.e. passively--Endure persecution together. Used 1X.

“Passing/For a season/For a short time/Temporary”—proskairov—Adj.—1) For a season; 2) Enduring only for a while; 3) Temporary. Strong—For the occasion only, i.e. Temporary—Used 4X.

From—prov—a preposition of direction; Forward to, i.e. Toward(with the genitive case The side of, i.e. pertaining to; with the dative case By the side of, i.e. Near to; usually with the accusative case The place, time, occasion, or respect, which is the destination of the relation, i.e. whither or for which it is predicated)—+—kairov—An occasion, i.e. Set or proper time.

“Pleasures”—apolausiv—1)Enjoyment. Strong—from a comparative of apo(off, away) & lauw(to enjoy); Full enjoyment. Used 1X.

“Sin”—amartia—1) equivalent to amartanw(‘not a part of’)—1a) To be without a share in, 1b) To miss the mark, 1c) To err, be mistaken, 1d) To miss or wander from the path of uprightness & honor, to do or go wrong, 1e) To wander from the law of God, violate God’s law, sin; 2) That which is done wrong, sin, an offense, a violation of the divine law in thought or in act; 3) collectively, The complex or aggregate of sins committed either by a single person or by many. Strong—A sin(properly abstract).

:26—“esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward.”

Egypt was a nation to be reckoned with. They were the ‘big-dogs’ of the time. They were the purveyors of food, wealth & authority in the known world.

However Egypt’s(America’s/Europe’s, etc.) “riches” were of no value in comparison to “the reproach of Christ.” To Moses, the personal “reproach” of the world toward any who are “of Christ,” is actually the greater of two types of riches.

Moses did not know Jesus as the Christ. The ministry & identity of the Christ wouldn’t be revealed for another 1400yr.s(?), but Moses knew of God’s promise to send Messiah.

Moses acted on the knowledge he had at his disposal. So Moses lived by the same saving faith which we now rightly place upon Jesus.

Moses considered “the reproach of Christ” of vastly greater value than of all the tremendous riches available to him thru Egypt.

*Trusting God above the world is paramount to living as a Christian. For us who are being saved it is our “reward.” Moses thereby “looked to” that which was in his future.

Refusal to indulge my personal/fleshly desire makes the statement that I consider “the reproach of Christ” of greater value than any earthly thing, particularly my personal choice if offensive to God.

Godly Fearlessness arises from the person/thing upon which “esteem” has become centered.

Php. 3:3-14—“For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, rejoice in Christ Jesus, & have no confidence in the flesh, though I also might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he may have confidence in the flesh, I more so: circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee; concerning zeal, persecuting the church; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, & count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ & be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; that I may know Him & the power of His resurrection, & the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind & reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

“Reproach”—oneidismov—1) A reproach. Strong—Contumely[harsh language or treatment arising from haughtiness & contempt]. Used 5X.

“Greater”—meizwn—Adj. comparative—1) Greater, larger, elder, stronger. Strong—Larger(literally or figuratively, specifically in age).

“Riches”—ploutov—1) Riches, wealth—1a) Abundance of external possessions, 1b) Fulness, abundance, plenitude, 1c) A good i.e. that with which one is enriched. Strong—Wealth(as fulness), i.e. literally--Money, possessions, or figuratively--Abundance, richness... specifically--Valuable bestowment.

“Treasures”—yhsaurov—1) The place in which good & precious things are collected & laid up—1a) A casket, coffer, or other receptacle, in which valuables are kept, 1b) A treasury, 1c) Storehouse, repository, magazine; 2) The things laid up in a treasury, collected treasures. Strong—A deposit, i.e. Wealth (literally or figuratively).

“Looked”—apoblepw—1) To turn the eyes away from other things & fix them on some one thing—1a) To look at attentively; 2) To look with steadfast mental gaze. Strong—To look away from everything else, i.e. figuratively--Intently regard. Used 1X.

“To”—eiv—Prep.—1) Into, unto, to, towards, for, among. Strong—a primary preposition; To or into (indicating the point reached or entered), of place, time, or figuratively--Purpose(result, etc.); also in adverbial phrases.

“Reward”—misyapodosia—1) Payment of wages due, recompense. Strong—Requital(good or bad). Used 3X.

:27—“By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible.” ”

Godly Fearlessness gives me an ability to decidedly cling to that which is important & conversely release that which is detrimental.

Thus...

Godly Fearlessness gives me “endurance.”

Since this country(America) was founded on Christian religious principles, the majority of Americans follow Christian values/norms rather than Christ Himself. Thereby the nation is steeped in godly foundations though most may not relate that fact. Therefore things will ‘naturally’ grow worse. Because they simply interpret political law & personal needs based on ‘natural’ processes rather than on the spiritual straight edge of truth.

“Forsook/Left”—kataleipw—1) To leave behind—1a) To depart from, leave—1a1) To be left, 1b) To bid (one) to remain, 1c) To forsake, leave to one’s self a person or thing by ceasing to care for it, to abandon, leave in the lurch—1c1) To be abandoned, forsaken, 1d) To cause to be left over, to reserve, to leave remaining, 1e) Like our "leave behind", it is used of one who on being called away cannot take another with him, 1e1) Especially of the dying (to leave behind), 1f) Like our "leave", leave alone, disregard—1f1) Of those who sail past a place without stopping. Strong—To leave down, i.e. Behind; by implication--To abandon, have remaining.

“Endured/Persevered”—karterew—1) To be steadfast. Strong—To be strong, i.e. figuratively--Steadfast(patient). Used 1X.

“Seeing/Saw”—oraw—1) To see with the eyes; 2) To see with the mind, to perceive, know; 3) To see, i.e. become acquainted with by experience, to experience; 4) To see, to look to—4a) To take heed, beware, 4b) To care for, pay heed to; 5) I was seen, showed myself, appeared. Oraw gives prominence to the discerning mind, blepw to the, particular mood or point. When the physical side recedes, oraw denotes perception in general (as resulting principally from vision), the prominence being in the mental element. blepw on the other hand, when the physical side recedes, gets a purely outward sense. Strong—properly--To stare at [compare optanomai], i.e. by implication--To discern clearly(physically or mentally); by extension--To attend to; by Hebraism--To experience; passively--To appear.

“Invisible/Unseen”—aoratov—1) Unseen, or that which can not be seen, e.g. Invisible. Used 5X.

Argumentation:

*Mt. 10:28—““And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul & body in hell.”

Lk. 12:4-5—““And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, & after that have no more that they can do. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!”

Not annihilation but eternal separation to wretchedness is actual destruction.

Rom. 8:8-18—“So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors--not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, & if children, then heirs--heirs of God & joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”

2Cor. 12:7-10—“And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

Php. 4:6-7—“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer & supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; & the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts & minds through Christ Jesus.”

1Jn. 4:18-19—“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because He first loved us.”

Ps. 27:1—“<> The LORD is my light & my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the strength of my life; Of whom shall I be afraid?”

Ps. 146:3—“Do not put your trust in princes, Nor in a son of man, in whom there is no help.”

Rom. 8:28-39—“And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; & whom He justified, these He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, & furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: “For Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Ps. 56:4—“In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?”

*Mt. 10:28—““And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul & body in hell.”

Illustration:

Today is Veteran’s Day/As we consider their sacrifice we must consider their fears/Are soldiers fearless? Yes & No/Do they experience fear? YES!/But their love for God & country contains that fear, giving them A Particular FEARLESSNESS

True Christians can call Abortion murder & Homosexuality sin & proclaim it fearlessly! in the face of those ‘free-thinkers’ & intelligentsia who base their decisions upon relative morés of man’s civility/ /A Particular FEARLESSNESS

House churches in China(or anywhere else for that matter)/Simply because they operate underground does not mean fear reigns/Blatantly inviting exposure to fools with physical power is foolish/The house pastors & patrons do not fear the political system which would destroy them...They operate out of fear of losing people to the devil!/A Particular FEARLESSNESS

Application:

?Does your life evince A Particular FEARLESSNESS in God?

?How do you Respond to life’s challenge?