Hebrews 11 7-16: Examples of Faith

Q: What does the Bible say about faith and obedience?

The Bible teaches that faith without works is dead, demonstrating that true faith always results in obedience. In the sermon, it is emphasized that while we are saved by grace through faith, this faith is not inactive. Hebrews 11:7 illustrates how Noah's faith led him to obey God's warning about the coming flood by building the ark. The preacher highlights that faith must be accompanied by actions; otherwise, it is not genuine faith at all. James 2:14 reinforces this point by questioning whether faith without works can truly save a person. Such faith, he asserts, is justified through acts of obedience, which validates and demonstrates the authenticity of the faith.

Q: How do we know that grace is essential for salvation?

The Bible clearly states that we are saved by grace through faith, not by any works we do. The sermon asserts that grace is the foundational element of our salvation. Ephesians 2:8-9 explicitly states that we are saved by grace through faith and not by works, ensuring that no one can boast about earning salvation. It is God's grace that draws individuals to Himself, as seen in the example of Noah, who found favor in the eyes of the Lord (Genesis 6:8). This is echoed in John 6:37, where Jesus explains that those given to Him by the Father will indeed come to Him. Thus, grace is essential as it is through God's gracious choice and action that we have the ability to respond in faith.

Q: Why is faith considered a gift from God?

Faith is termed a gift from God as it is not initiated by our own efforts but bestowed by God's divine grace. According to the sermon, the concept of faith being a gift from God is essential to understanding salvation in a sovereign grace context. Ephesians 2:8 clearly states that faith itself is not generated by human will or works but is a divine endowment. The preacher emphasizes that even the act of believing comes from God’s sovereign choice and action, as seen in how God spoke to and chose Noah. This highlights the belief that God's grace allows individuals to respond in faith, demonstrating that all aspects of salvation, including faith, originate from God's unmerited favor.

Q: What does it mean to move in faith?

To move in faith means to act upon what God has revealed, demonstrating belief through obedience. In the sermon, the preacher underscores that true faith compels action. Drawing from the example of Noah, who acted on God’s warning by building the ark, moving in faith involves responding to God's call with urgency and obedience. Hebrews 11 showcases many examples of faith that result in significant actions, affirming that faith is not merely an intellectual assent but an active trust in God. This faith produces changes and obedience in the lives of believers, as making moves of faith reflects genuine commitment to God's revealed word.

Q: Why is Noah's story significant for understanding faith?

Noah's story exemplifies faith in action, illustrating how belief leads to obedience and salvation. Noah's story is significant as it encapsulates the essence of saving faith, which is intertwined with obedience. As referenced in Hebrews 11:7, Noah, when warned by God, demonstrated his faith through the act of building an ark, a clear manifestation of his belief in the unseen judgment to come. This narrative serves as a powerful illustration for Christians today, highlighting that authentic faith will always lead to actions that reflect that faith. By obeying God's word, Noah secured the salvation of his household and affirmed that faith is an active and responsive trust in God's promises.

Now, if you're here tonight and
you see these things and love these things, it's only by the
grace of God, not anything found in you. And verse 6 says, And
he raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly
places in Christ, that in the ages to come he might show the
exceeding riches of his grace, his free, abounding, abundant
grace, in his kindness poured out. Not our kindness, I'm not
looking for folks to be kind to God. I'm looking for those
to whom he has shown his kindness, the grace of his kindness toward
us through Jesus Christ, not through anything you've done
or are, through Christ. For by grace, that same grace,
Noah found in the eyes of the Lord, by grace you are saved. Watch it now through faith. We're
going to work on this a little bit, not apart from faith. not
without faith, through faith. God has no unwilling children,
he has no unbelieving children, every one of them are made willing
in the day of his power. Yes, they do believe. But even
that's not of yourselves, it's the gift of God. That faith's
not of yourselves, it's the gift of God. It's not of works, lest
any man should boast. I go back to the text, Hebrews
11, verse 7, by faith Noah Noah. All right, here's the second
statement, being warned of God. Being warned of God. Now, God
spoke to Noah. I don't know how God spoke to
Noah. I don't know how God spoke to Noah, and I don't know when.
I just know that Noah was an object of his affection. Noah
found favor with God. Noah found grace in God's sight. God was angry. God's anger was
against this old wicked world. He's going to destroy it, every
creeping, every living thing. But Noah found grace in the eyes
of the Lord, and God warned Noah. God spoke to Noah. God spoke
to him. It was God who spoke to him.
It was God who warned him. It was God who chose him. Now,
God didn't have to choose him. God didn't have to warn him,
but God for reasons known only to himself, set his affection
on Noah. And he found favor with God,
and God warned him. Now that's the same thing God
does for us. I want you to turn to John 6.
Now listen, with that in mind, it was God who spoke to Noah,
it was God who chose him, he found favor in God's sight, and
God Almighty warned him, God Almighty taught him, God Almighty
spoke to him. God spoke to in John 6, verse
37. Now listen to this. Our Lord
Jesus Christ said in John 6, 37, All that the Father giveth
me shall come to me, and him that cometh to me I will in no
wise cast out. All that my Father giveth me
they shall come. They'll come willingly, obediently,
lovingly, believingly, they'll come. And those that come I won't
cast out for I came down from heaven not to do my will, but
the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father's will
which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me, I'll
lose nothing, not a one, but raise it up again at the last
day. And this is the will of him that sent me, that of every
one that seeth the Son, with eyes of faith, seeth him as the
only righteousness and Redeemer, and believes on him," there's
that faith, may have everlasting life, and I'll raise him up at
the last days." And the Jews murmured at him because he said,
I'm the bread which came down from heaven. And these religious
Jews said, is this not Jesus? Is this not the son of Joseph,
whose father and mother we know? How is it then, he said, that
I came down from heaven? And Jesus therefore answered
and said to them, Now don't murmur among yourselves. Don't murmur
against this, because no man No man, Noah or you or anybody
else can, is able, has the ability to come to me, to believe on
me, to receive me, to even see me, except the Father which has
sent me draw him, awaken him, quicken him. And I raised that
man up the last day. It's written in the prophets,
they shall all be taught of God. Who spoke to Noah? God did. Who warned Noah? God did. Who
taught Noah? God did. Who called us? God did. Who warned us? God did. Who taught
us? God did. They shall all be taught
of God, all that my Father has given me, all that come to me.
And every man, therefore, that hath heard and learned of the
Father, he'll come to me." You see that? But Noah, Noah,
by faith, Noah. being warned of God. It's God
who speaks. I stand up here and speak, but
it's God who speaks through his word and through his servant.
Who's going to hear? Well, let's turn to John 10.
Let's see who's going to hear. John 10. John 10, verse 22. Want to look
at this for a moment? John 10, 22. And it was at Jerusalem,
the feast of the dedication, it was winter. And Jesus walked
in the temple in Solomon's porch. Then came these Jews round about
him, and they said to him, How long do you keep us in the dark? How long do you make us to doubt?
How long do you hold us in suspense? If you are the Christ, if you
are the Messiah, tell us plainly. And Jesus answered and said,
I told you. And you didn't believe me. The works that I do in my
Father's name, they tell you. But you don't believe my works.
But you believe not because you're not of my sheep. As I said unto
you, my sheep, hear my voice. And I know them, and they follow
me, and I'll give them eternal life, and they'll never perish,
neither shall any man pluck them out of my hands." Why did Noah
hear God when he warned him? He wanted God's sheep. Noah found grace in the eyes
of the Lord. God chose him. God elected him.
God set his love upon him. And then God spoke to him. How
did God know he'd hear him? He gave him ears to hear. He
gave him eyes to see. He gave him a heart to understand.
Noah, God quickened him and made him alive. And he heard God.
And look what happened. Read on. And being warned of
God. Here's the third thing. Of things
not seen. What did God speak to Noah about?
He spoke to him of things he had never seen. Never seen. Like I said this morning, Noah
had never seen rain. God talked to him about a flood.
Noah had never even seen a puddle, let alone a flood. At that time
the world, as I understand it, was watered by mist and not by
downpour of rain. Noah had never seen rain. He
had never seen a flood. No, I don't think he'd ever seen
a ship. He certainly had never seen the world destroyed. He'd
never seen everything around him and everybody around him
drowned. So God, Noah found grace in the eyes of God's destruction,
God's wrath to fall upon the earth. Something that had never
happened, never happened before. And this man found grace in the
eyes of the Lord. And God spoke to him. God warned
him. But God warned him and spoke to him about things he'd never
seen. But Cæsar, like we was talking
this morning, that's what faith is. Faith is the evidence of
things not seen. Not seen. Faith is the proof
of things not seen. I want to turn to 2 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians chapter 4, verse
18. And Noah believed God. When God
talked to him about wrath, and judgment, and rain, and floods,
and a ship, and destruction, and death, and deliverance, and
the mighty salvation of God in an ark, he believed God. He believed
it, though he'd never seen any of it. Listen, 2 Corinthians
4, 18. While we look at the things which
are seen, while we look not at the things which are seen, not
at the things that are seen, but at the things which are not
seen. For things which are seen, everything you see, are temporal.
Am I right? Let's just take that into consideration.
You're looking at me, I'm temporal. See my pretty striped tie? Very temporal. This microphone
is wearing out now. That thing, everything, everything
you see is temporal. Look at your wife next to you.
She's going too. Even this world, God's going.
Everything you see is temporal. Well, what's going to last, preacher?
The things which you're not seeing? You don't see God tonight, do
you? He's eternal. You don't see the Holy Spirit,
do you? He's eternal. You don't see our blessed Redeemer,
do you? He's eternal. You don't see heaven's showers,
do you? They're there. They're eternal.
Nothing this flesh sees is eternal but the things which are not
seen. And that's what God warned Noah about, the things that were
not seen, and all that our God has told us, and God has spoken
to us. the Noah's of 1989, God has spoken
to us, and all that God has spoken to us about is things that we
don't see. Salvation, forgiveness, eternal
life, the coming of our Lord, the resurrection of the dead.
All these things are not seen. We've not seen them. But I tell
you this, we have more information than Noah had, a lot more than
Noah had, because we talk about one rising from the dead, one
dead. Somebody said one time, Preacher, if someone would come
down from heaven and tell us about what's on the other side,
I'd believe him. One did. He said, I came from
my father, and I speak the things of my father. Well, if one could
die and be buried and come back and talk to us, I'd believe him. He did. And they denied him. That's right. He did. All right, look at the
next line here. By faith, Noah, ordinary plain
old Noah, but he was warned of God. He found grace in the eyes
of God. God spoke to him. And God spoke to him about things
he'd never seen. And you know what he did? Noah
moved. I like that. He moved. He moved. He moved. He moved with fear.
He moved with fear. Oh, I tell you, Noah believed
God, and Noah got busy. He moved with fear, and he got
busy doing what God says. I know, I know this, we're saved
by grace, but not without faith. We're saved by grace, but not
without response. We're saved by grace, but not
without believing God. We're saved by grace, but not
without acting on faith. That's right. Faith alone justifies,
but true faith, saving faith, moves, obeys, and acts. And that faith is justified by
works. Turn with me to the book of James,
James chapter 2. Now listen to this, I'm telling
you the truth. I'm telling you the truth. Listen
to this now. It says here in verse Verse 14, James 2.14, now
listen to it. Now what shall it profit, my
brethren, though a man say he hath faith, and hath not works?
Can that kind of faith save him? Can faith without works save
him? Faith without obedience? You reckon Noah would have been
saved if he hadn't built the ark? You reckon Abraham would
have been saved if he hadn't obeyed God and come out of his
father's house? No, sir. No, sir. If a brother or a sister
be naked and destitute of daily food, one of you say, well, depart
in peace and be ye warmed and filled, and I'll pray for you.
And yet you don't give him anything that's needful to the body, what
does it profit? He'll still freeze, he'll still
starve. He needs food. Even so, faith,
if it works, can't clothe that man. I mean, faith can't clothe
that man. Faith won't feed him. Works clothes
him and feeds him. Even so, faith, if it has not
works, is dead. Being alone, a man may say, well,
thou hast faith, I have works, show me your faith. Show me your
faith. How do you show faith? By works.
That's how you show faith. You see, our souls are justified
by faith. By grace, by faith, our souls
are justified. Our faith is justified by works.
That's how you prove you believe God. That's how you show you
believe God. That's how it's seen that you
believe God. By this shall all men know you're
my disciples if you love. If you don't love, you're not
my disciples. Faith always produces works. Yea, a man may say thou hast
faith, I have works. Show me your faith without your
works. I'll show you my faith by my works. You believe there's
one God, you do well. The devil believes and trembles. But wilt thou know, vain man,
that faith without works is dead?" So Noah moved. Noah found grace
in the eyes of the Lord. And God warned him. God spoke
to him. And God spoke to him about things
he'd never seen, never even imagined, couldn't even comprehend. But
he believed God. How did I know he believed God?
He moved. He moved. And he moved with fear. He moved
with reverence, he moved with respect, he moved with awe, he
moved, he acted. Just tell me what to do, Lord,
I'll do it. Just tell me your word, I'll act on it. And what's
this next thing? To the saving of his house. Oh, I tell you, this is the faith
that saves, this is the faith that saves, believing God. I
tell you, I want this house here to be saved. What's his name
singing about this old house? Well, I want this old house saved,
don't you? Well, how's this old house going
to be saved? By believing God with a justifying faith. By believing
God. And I want this house of my own
family to be saved. And I want this house to be saved. And I'll tell you this, this
house will be saved if we can believe God. Do you know that?
That's how Noah's house was saved! He believed God! "...warned of God of things not
seen, but he moved with fear before God, and he prepared that
ark to the saving of his house." Now watch the sixth thing. That
was the fifth. Here's the sixth thing. Here
are two-fold results of Noah's faith. A two-fold result. Here's a man that believed God.
Here's a man not wrapped up in the tradition of his fathers,
not wrapped up in the customs of his day. Here's a maverick. Here's a rebel. Here's a different
man. Here's a man that believes God,
dares to believe God. And I'll show you the results
of that faith. Number one, by the witch, that
is, by that faith, by that faith in God, he condemned the world,
by that faith. His faith in the word of God,
his faith in the words of God, his faith and his works added
to the judgment that was already upon the people around him. Noah's
faith condemned his neighbor and condemned everybody else.
It condemned them. It added to their condemnation.
It made their unbelief and their wickedness more wicked and it
made it more obvious. made it more obvious. That's
right. They were probably religious
like our day. Men have always been religious.
Go over in Africa, or China, or India, or anywhere, and people
not worshipping God, but they're worshipping gods. They're all
religious. And Noah's day was religious,
but Noah believed the living God. Noah knew the living God.
Noah heard from the living God. Noah's faith in the living God
added to the condemnation and exposed the wickedness of even
the religion round about him. And I tell you this, if you are
one of these, these knowers, who have been chosen of God,
taught of God, warned of God, about things not seen, things
you can't explain, things you can't even comprehend, things
you can't even put in words, the things God has prepared for
them that love him, which the natural religious eye of men
cannot see. And this preacher and this church
and other little churches round about us that believe God, these
churches preaching the gospel and people of faith make modern
religion to be more obvious, obviously wicked, and obviously
ungodly. than if we didn't exist. That's
right. It condemns them. That bulletin
board out there that has scripture on it condemns all these little
bulletin boards with their silly clichés. That's right. And this message we preach on
television that exalts God and gives honor and glory to God
and teaches the word of God and the truth of God and the real
salvation of God. It condemns every other program
round about it. They're responsible. It makes
them more responsible. It makes their foolishness even
more foolish. It makes their wickedness even
more wicked. Men shall be held responsible
for what they heard and what they could have heard if they
would have heard it. Right. If they would have tried to hear
it. Noah condemned his generation. That's what it says here. by
the faith by the which, that faith, he condemned the world. He condemned them. Noah was a
preacher of righteousness. That's right, a preacher of righteousness,
but nobody paying attention to him, nobody. But they knew a
prophet had been among them, because his faith, his faith
in God condemned those around about him. But there's something
else his faith accomplished. By the witch, he condemned the
world, and by the witch, he became an heir of the righteousness,
which is by faith. A whole Brother Roach was reading
to me. I didn't call you Old Brother
Roach. That's just a common expression, Old Brother May. I was listening to a preacher
on tape one day. I was riding along the highway,
and this young preacher friend of mine was preaching, and he
says, like old Brother May had said, and he went on. And I said,
what did he say? She said, you heard him. I said,
well, turn it back. I said, that's a sorry thing. But Cecil read here, all these
once were sinners, defiled in his sight, now arrayed in pure
garments. In praise they unite in pure
garments. Noah's faith robed him and clothed
him in the holy righteousness of Jesus Christ. By that faith. That's the reason I said we're,
I tell you, we're handling some heavy material here. Some awful
heavy material. Awful heavy. It was faith. He
didn't just wake up one morning and find out he was saved. God
showed grace to him, and he found favor in God's sight. But God
spoke to him, and Noah heard God, and Noah acted. He acted to the saving of his
house. And by that action, by that faith,
by that faith, he condemned everybody around him. But not only that,
by that faith, he became an heir to the very righteousness of
God Almighty, which is by faith. That's what that chapter is all
about. Or you look at the next verse,
you see the same message. By faith, Abraham. Well, who's
Abraham? Do you know who Abraham is? He was down there in Ur of
the Chaldees, and he was an idol worshiper. He was 75 years old,
living in a commune with his father and all their kinfolks,
the whole outfit, and they were all idol worshipers. Is that
right? Am I telling the truth? And Abraham found grace in the
eyes of the Lord. You were an idol worshipper,
and you found grace in the eyes of the Lord. He could have passed
you by. Same thing true of you, Terrence.
Same thing true of you. He found you, and you found,
just like Abraham, you found grace in the eyes of the Lord.
Look at the next line. By faith Abraham, when he was
called, who called him? Who called him? God called him.
If God hadn't called him, he'd still been there. And if God
hadn't supernaturally, by the Holy Spirit, called you, you'd
still be where you are. You may still go back, because
it may not be God who called you. Maybe I did it. Maybe Mama
did it. Maybe one of your friends did
it. But I tell you, if God called you, that's a white horse of
another color. And you'll wind up on the other
side if he calls you. Because he never calls in vain,
does he? He never does. By faith, Abraham, by faith,
when he was called, when he was called to go out to a place which
he should afterward receive as an inheritance, did he know about
the place? No. Had he seen a brochure on
it? No. Had he ever seen it? No. Had
he ever talked to anybody who had been there? No. Did he know
it was there? Only by the Word of God. Isn't
that right? Things not seen. Things not seen. But he left, 75 years old, got
his wife and packed the camel and a burrow, and away they went. God called him. I'll tell you
this. This is what I know. I'm not being hard. I just know
when God sets his affections on a man or a woman and God calls
them by his word and God extends that effectual, quickening, regenerating
call of the Holy Spirit. They move. They move. They don't sit around and debate
and argue and find out how it can be done. They just move.
They just move. What did he do? It says here,
he obeyed. He obeyed God and he went out,
not knowing where he was going. Well, brother Maynard, if you'll
give me some guarantees and show me a picture and prove it, prove
it! I can't prove it. Faith is the proof. Now what
you said, John, faith is the proof. All right, read on. And by faith
he sojourned in a land of promise as in a strange country. Do you
know that Abraham never owned any of the land God promised
him? But he lived in tents He dwelt in tabernacles, that's
tents, with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same
promise, because he was looking for a city. It wasn't an earthly
land he was looking for. It wasn't an earthly abode. It
wasn't a temporary thing. He was looking for a city which
had eternal, everlasting foundations that will never be moved, whose
builder and maker is God. That's the faith. Turn to Romans
4, and let's read just a little bit about his faith here and
see how it relates to us. Romans 4, verse 19, verse 20. He staggered not at the promise
of God through unbelief, but he was strong in faith, giving
glory to God and being fully persuaded that what God had promised,
God was able to perform. Therefore it was imputed to him,
just like to Noah, for righteousness, that righteousness which is by
faith. Now it was written, it was not written for his sake
alone that it was imputed to him, but for us also to whom
it shall be imputed if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our
Lord from the dead. And his resurrection is proof
of his acceptance and of the effectual work he performed. who was delivered for our offenses
and raised for our justification. Now let me show you something
in the next two verses. Verse 11 and 12. Through faith
also, through faith. Now I don't understand, I can't
explain this now, just like I can't explain how God created the world
out of nothing. I can't explain Adam's fall. I can't explain Christ's incarnation. I can't explain these unseen,
mysterious, marvelous things of God. But I do know that though
God chose Abraham, Abraham had to act in faith. Though God chose
Noah, found favor in God's sight, Noah had to build that ark. He
had to act, he had to move. And though God gave a son to
Abraham and Sarah in their old age, it was by faith. It's by
the act of God, it's by the will of God, it's by the grace of
God, it's by the favor of God, but it was by faith. And without
faith, it's impossible to please God. Now watch this. Through
faith, also Sarah herself received strength to conceive seed. And
she was deliberate of a child when she was past age, ninety
some odd years old, because she judged him faithful, who had
promised. Therefore sprang there even of
one, this is Abraham, and him as good as dead. Now watch these
words, past age, as good as dead. So many as the stars of the sky
in multitude as the sands which are by the sea show innumerable.
Now here's a man 100 years old, as good as dead, a woman 90 years
old, God said, past age. All hope of bearing children
gone, but through faith in God, through faith in God, faith in
the promise of God, faith in the purpose of God. It's God
who decreed it, they believed it. It's God who determined it,
they believed it. It's God who purposed it. It's
God who brought it to pass, but they believed. And there came from them a kingdom,
a host of people like the stars of the sky and the sands of the
seashore, because they believed God. All right, here I am. Describe
me as you will, it doesn't matter. Like Brother Barnard said about
me one time, he said, I ain't called him yet what he really
is. But in me there's no power, there's no strength, there's
no hope in me. Born of woman, I'm dying, I'm
a dying man, I'm going to be buried and go back to the dust.
I have no power at all to do any of these things. I am nothing,
know nothing, have nothing, can do nothing. From dust I shall
return. But one day, by the power of
God, by the decree of God, by the will of God, by the grace
of God, I'm going to be like Christ Jesus. One day, by the
power of God, by the will of God, by the grace of God, I'm
going to be in glory with an everlasting body, with an immortal
body, with an incorruptible body, with an incorruptible soul, just
like Jesus Christ. How's that going to happen, preacher?
By the power of God and the power of faith. I believe it. I'm going to be there because
God decreed it. I'm going to be there because
I believed it. just like Abraham and Sabaoth,
dead, dead, dead, past 80. But they gave birth to a crying
little baby boy, a pink plump baby boy. Somebody said that's
impossible. That's exactly right. But they
believed God. They believed God. And one of
these days I'm going to stand in glory just like the Savior.
You say that's impossible. No, it's not either. It can be
done by the power of God through faith. Now let me read you a
scripture. You probably read it and never
paid any attention to it, but I'm going to slow down on this
now and wind it up. Matthew 25. Now this is important. This shows the importance of
faith, acting in faith, acting on the Word of God. Now I'm not a hard shell, and
I think hard shellism and fatalism is as deadly as Arminianism. I wouldn't turn my hand for either
one. Somebody says it's all of man, God's done all He can do,
now it's up to you, that's wrong. But this thing that says God
will save you whether you believe or not, whether you hear the
gospel or not, whether you follow Him or not, that's wrong too.
It's both wrong, both deadly. Both put you in hell is what
the both will do. Now I want you to watch this, Matthew 25,
verse 14. I've never preached a message
on this here in this church. Maybe it's all saved up for right
now. Verse 14, Matthew 25. Now, the kingdom of heaven, this
is Christ speaking, the kingdom of heaven is as a man traveling
into a far country who called his own servants and delivered
unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents,
to another two, to another one, to every man according to his
several ability, and straightway took his journey. Then he that
had received the five talents went and traded with the same
and made five other talents. He acted on his abilities, acted
on his knowledge, acted on his gifts. Likewise, he that had
received two, he gained two more. But he that received one went
and digged a hole in the earth and hid his Lord's money. Well,
after a long time, the Lord of those servants came back and
he reckoned with them. And so he that had received five
talents came and brought five other talents, saying, Lord,
you delivered to me five talents. Behold, I've gained besides them
five talents more. I acted on the gift you gave
me, the knowledge you gave me, the gifts, talents you gave me.
I've used them. You gave them to me. They were
free now. He gave them to me. I didn't earn them. I didn't
ask for them. I didn't merit them. You gave them to me, but
I used them. I got five more. And his Lord
said, well done. That is good, thou good and faithful
servant. You've been faithful over a few
things, five talents, not much, but I'm going to make you ruler
over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord."
And he also that had received two talents came and said, Lord,
you delivered to me two talents. Behold, I've gained two more.
I believed you. I received them, I acted on the
gifts, I acted on the talents, I acted on what you gave me,
I put in you what you put in me and in my hand." His Lord
said, that's good, well done. Verse 23, good and faithful servant,
you've been faithful over a few things, I'll make you rule over
many. Enter into the joy of your Lord.
Then, he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord,
I know you're a hard man. I know you're a hard man. I know
you're sovereign, absolute ruler. I know you control all things.
I know you're a hard man. Watch it now. I know you reap
where you don't sow. I hear people say, God say, with
or without me. You reap where you don't sow.
You gather where you've not strawed. all things in your hand, you
control all things, you manipulate all things, even the wicked,
for the day of your power. So I was afraid. And I went and
hid that talent in the earth. And here's what you gave me.
Lo, here thou hast that is thine. And his Lord said unto him, Your
wicked and lazy serpent You knew I reaped where I sowed not."
He didn't deny it. God'll do what he will. That's
right. John the Baptist filled with
the Holy Ghost from his mother's womb. The Lord Jesus walked through
the cornfield on the Sabbath day and picked corn and healed
a man on the Sabbath day. He'll do what he will. He didn't
deny that. He didn't deny he was absolute sovereign king.
He didn't deny that. He didn't deny he was in control,
did he? He said, you knew I reaped where I sowed not, and you gathered
where I have, and I gather where I have not strawed. But you ought,
therefore, to have put my money to the exchangers at least, and
then it might come, and I'd receive my own with interest. User is
interest. Take, therefore, the talent from
him, and give it to the one who has ten, for every one that hath
To him shall be given, those people that hear and obey and
act on what God has taught them, and act on the gifts God has
given them, act on the information God has given them, and act.
Do you see what I'm saying, Jim? Do you see what Christ is saying?
Those who have, to them shall be given. And he shall have an
abundance, even walking the light God gives you, and he'll give
you more light. But from him that hath not shall be taken
away even that which he has. Every man, every woman in this
town has heard something about God, something about the Bible. Have they acted on it? Have they
responded? Have they believed? Have they
followed Him? Have they put it to use? No, sir. And God's going
to take away what to do with them. Their light will be turned
into darkness. That's right. And they'll believe
a lie and be damned for believing a lie. And cast that unprofitable
servant into outer darkness, there'll be weeping and gnashing
of teeth." Now take that scripture and read it again. Yes, the God's
on the throne, and he'll do what he will. But when God puts some
knowledge in a man, and some gifts in a man's hands, and some
information, like Noah, he better move. He better move. Like Abraham,
he better move. That's what he's saying. And
Sarah and Abraham, God said, you're going to have a son. But they believed God. Abraham
believed God. And he had a son. Can you believe? Can I believe God? One thing
more. One thing more. Verse 13. These all died in faith. They
all died. Even though God chose them, they
died just like everybody else. Even though they believed God,
they still died like everybody else. Even though these people
obeyed God, they died like everybody else. They died. These all died,
but thank God they died in faith. They lived in faith. And you
know something? They never got beyond faith.
John, they lived, Abraham lived to be over 150 years old. I'll
be something like that. But he died where? Right where
he started, believing God. He died in faith. He died like
everybody else. And he died in faith. He died
believing God. But he never died elevated to
beyond faith. He never died elevated to higher
ground. He died right where he started,
believing God. He died in faith. He died in
faith. He died in faith. Oh, let my
latter end be like theirs. Let me die the death of the righteous
in Christ. Let me, God, die in faith. Believe in God. I hope that I've
made some things clear tonight from this scripture, which are
clear to me, that all things are of God. All glory, credit,
praise is due unto Him. But I do believe. I know faith
is the gift of God, but it's a responding gift. Isn't that
right? It's an obedient gift. And anything
else that hides that thing in the ground, well, he's going
to save me, he's going to save me no matter what. You better
watch it. That won't do. It's when he puts, when God says
something, act on it. When you come to knowledge of
something, act on it. Isn't that right? Believe God.
you

Hebrews 11 7-16: Examples of Faith

What does the Bible say about faith and obedience?

How do we know that grace is essential for salvation?

Why is faith considered a gift from God?

What does it mean to move in faith?

Why is Noah's story significant for understanding faith?

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Hebrews 11 7-16: Examples of Faith

What does the Bible say about faith and obedience?

How do we know that grace is essential for salvation?

Why is faith considered a gift from God?

What does it mean to move in faith?

Why is Noah's story significant for understanding faith?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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