Hebrews 11 1-6: Now Faith Is…

Q: What does the Bible say about faith?

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). In Hebrews 11:1, faith is described as the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. This means that faith serves as the foundation and assurance of the things we hope for, such as salvation and eternal life. It is not merely an intellectual assent; it signifies a deep believing in God, His promises, and His character. True faith goes beyond recognition of God's existence—it trusts in what He has revealed through Scripture.

Q: How do we know faith is true?

Faith is validated by the Word of God and the promises it holds. The validity of faith stems from its foundation, which is the Word of God. In the sermon, it is emphasized that faith is not a blind leap; it is rooted in the promises and character of God. As Paul stated in Acts 27:25, 'I believe God; it will be exactly as I was told.' This underscores that faith is grounded in God's unchanging nature and His covenant promises. Thus, our assurance is not based on feelings or circumstances, but on the steadfastness of God's word.

Q: Why is believing God important for Christians?

Believing God is essential for pleasing Him and receiving His promises. Believing God is crucial for Christians as it directly relates to our relationship with Him. Hebrews 11:6 states that without faith it is impossible to please God. This faith involves believing in God's character—who He is and what He promises to do. It is through faith that we access the grace and mercy of God. Our belief in Him as a sovereign, just, and merciful God allows us to align our lives with His will and experience the fullness of His blessings.

Q: What can we learn about faith from Enoch?

Enoch pleased God by walking faithfully with Him through belief. Enoch provides a profound example of faith in action. His life, as recorded in Genesis 5, demonstrates that faith involves a close relationship with God. Enoch walked with God and believed Him, which ultimately led to his being taken to heaven without experiencing death. This emphasizes that a genuine faith pleases God, as seen in Hebrews 11:5-6, and illustrates the reality that faith transforms our everyday living into a spiritual journey that leads us closer to God. Like Enoch, our faith should result in a life that reflects our trust in God and His promises.

Hebrews 11. Now, you may get a bit weary of hearing me
say the same thing over and over again and urging you to deal with Scripture
in its context. But this is so very important.
that we look at any portion of God's Word in its context, leaving
it in the place God put it, preceded by and followed by those things
that God has chosen. You see, Scripture is interpreted
in the light of Scripture, not in the light of my thoughts or
feelings or anyone else's thoughts. You see, no scripture is of any
private interpretation. That is, no verse or group of
verses can be taken out and it said that this is what that means. You leave it where it is and
you interpret it in the light of other scripture. It's not
interpreted by itself, it's interpreted where it is. And our text begins
this way in Hebrews 11, verse 1, Now faith is. Now faith is. And that forces us to look back,
doesn't it? When it says, Now faith is this. Well, that forces you to go back
to the preceding chapter and read what he has said prior to
this statement. And back here in chapter 10,
I want you to look at verse 9. Now listen to this. Hebrews 10,
9, Then said he, then said Christ, Lo, I come to do thy will, O
God. And he taketh away the first
covenant, the Levitical covenant, that he may establish the second,
the covenant of grace, by the which will. Now whose will? Christ said, I come to do thy
will, O God. So it's by that will, the will
of God, that we're sanctified through the body of Jesus Christ
once for all. Every priest under the old covenant
stands daily ministering, offering oftentimes the same sacrifices,
which can never take away sin. But this man, after he had offered
one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of
God. from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his
footstool, far by one offering he hath perfected forever them
that are sanctified." Now verse 17, so therefore there's no more
sins. Because Christ offered one sacrifice
for sin forever, and by one offering he perfected us forever, then
there's no more sins. They're put away. They're cast
into the depths of the sea. They're separated from us as
far as the east is from the west. They're remembered no more. There's
no more sins. He says there's sins and iniquities.
Well, I remember no more. No more. We have no sins. Christ
has put them away. And verse 18, and where remission,
where forgiveness and pardon is, there's no more offerings.
There's no more sin, there's no more sacrifice. Therefore,
there's no more judgment. You understand that? No more
judgment, no more sacrifice, no more sin. It's over. It's finished. It's finished,
Christ said. And therefore, verse 19, Having
therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by
the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which he hath
consecrated us through the veil, that is to say, his flesh, come
on into the presence of God. There's no more veil. There's
no more sin. There's no more sacrifice. There's
no more judgment. There's no more veil, for when
Christ said it's finished, it was rent entwined from the top
to the bottom. And God said, Come in. Verse 21, And having a high priest
over the house of God, who is Jesus Christ, let us draw near
with a true heart in full assurance of faith. Now, he begins to talk
about this business of faith. One sacrifice, one great high
priest, no more sin, no more sacrifice, no more offering,
no more veil. Come on in the presence of God
by faith. By faith. And he keeps working
this over in his poor assurance of faith. Look at verse 23. Let's hold fast the profession
of our faith. Don't waver. He's faithful that
promise. You see that? All right, verse
35. Cast not away therefore your
confidence. Verse 38. Now the just shall
live by faith. But if any man draws back, my
soul has no pleasure in him. But we're not of them that draw
back under perdition, but we're of them that believe to the saving
of the soul. Now faith is. What is this faith? You see what I'm saying, Charles? By the will of God, Christ came.
By the will of God, we're sanctified. By the will of God, he gave himself.
And because he gave himself, there's no more sin, there's
no more sacrifice, there's no more judgment, there's no more
veil separating a sinner from God. Well, let's draw near in
faith. Believe in God. Hold fast that
profession of faith. The just shall live by faith.
And we're not of them that draw back, we're of them that believe.
That belief. Well, what is faith? What is
this faith? All right, let's see if we can
find out. Now, faith is, well, faith is to believe God. I know that. Not to believe there
is a God, but to believe God. Faith is to believe God. See,
the devil knows there is a God, but he didn't believe God. He
said, I'll exalt my throne above the stars of God. God said, my
throne is the only throne, my kingdom is the only kingdom,
but Satan didn't believe God. You see what I'm saying? He said,
James wrote, you believe there's one God, you do well, the devil
believes there's one God. Everybody says, well, I believe
there's a God. Satan believes that, but faith
is not to believe there's a God. That's not faith. Faith is to
believe God. to believe God, like Abraham,
to believe God, to believe His Word, to believe His promises,
to believe His purposes, to believe His Son, to believe God. Over
there in Egypt, when Moses says, take your cattle in, there's
going to be a grievous hail. Well, the man who believed God
took his cattle in. Moses said to the people of Israel,
God's going to pass through tonight at midnight Kill a lamb, put
the blood on the door. Those who believe God, kill the
lamb, put the blood on the door. They believe his word. Abraham
believed God. Not he believed there was a God
or believed in God, he believed God. Faith is to believe God. And then the object of that faith
is Jesus Christ. For there is a channel, there
is a person, there is a way. All that God has for the sinner
is in Christ. It pleased God that in Christ
should all fullness dwell. There's no fullness, and there's
no joy, and there's no forgiveness, and there's no life out of Christ. That's the channel. When there
was a grievous famine in Egypt and in all the surrounding territories,
people came to Pharaoh. And they said, give us corn.
We know you have corn. We know there's corn in Egypt.
We know that Egypt has plenty of corn. Now give us corn." He
said, go to Joseph. Pharaoh designated Joseph. He
said, Joseph, fill the storehouses and Joseph will dispense the
corn. And if you want corn, go to Joseph. Could he have given corn? Pharaoh
was Pharaoh. He could have given corn, but
he wouldn't. He said, you go to Joseph. That's the one that
has the corn, and that's Christ. Faith is to believe God's Word,
and to believe God's Word concerning Christ. He's the channel. He
said, I'm the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to
the Father but by me. You see what I'm saying? Faith
is to believe God, and the object of faith is Jesus Christ, because
all that God has for a sinner is in Christ, through Christ,
and by Christ. And the foundation of this faith
is the Word of God. That's the foundation of faith.
It's the warrant of faith. Well, man, how do you know all
these things you're talking about? God said it. When Paul came upon
the deck of that ship, that ship was tossing in the wind and the
waves and the storm and about to go down, and all those sailors,
they were They were experienced sailors and qualified sailors,
and they'd thrown everything over the side they could throw
over the side, and his back getting ready to throw themselves over
the side. And Paul said, Sirs, hold it. Be of good cheer. Be of good cheer? There's not
a thing around us to cheer us. You be of good cheer. There stood
by me this night the angel of the Lord, whose I am and whom
I serve, and he said unto me, God has given you all those on
the ship. So sirs, be of good cheer. I believe God. It will be exactly
as he told me. See, that's the foundation of
faith, the Word of God. Sirs, I believe God. My friends,
there's an article in your bulletin called Feeble Faith. It's a combination
of some things I've written and some things somebody else wrote.
And it goes like this. Is your faith feeble? If it's
feeble and tried, don't be cast down. Faith doesn't save you.
Though faith is an instrument of salvation and as such is of
great importance, but faith is but the instrument. Christ saves
you. Faith is to believe God. It's
to believe God, His Word, His promises. Faith looks to Christ. He's the object of faith because
God Almighty has put everything in Christ. And the reason for
faith and the warrant for faith and the foundation for faith
is God has set it. Then don't make a Savior out
of faith. If your faith is little, if it's
feeble, if it's sorely tried, that's no evidence you're not
a believer. The evidence of your acceptance with God is in the
beloved. You're accepted with God because
of your relationship with Christ. You're accepted because Christ
is accepted. Not because you believe, it's
because you're in him who is accepted. Then let your constant
motto be looking unto Jesus, looking unto the Lord Jesus,
looking to him just like I am. Looking to him when my faith
is feeble. Looking to him when my faith
is tried. Looking to him when my faith
is declining. Yea, looking to him when I fear
I have no faith. But looking to him. Looking to him. That's why Moses,
when he lifted up that serpent in the wilderness, he didn't
ask them to write a thesis on what they thought of the serpent.
He said, look to it. Look and live. Look and live. Jesus Christ is the author, sustainer,
object, and finisher of faith. All you want and need is in Him. Not in you, it's in Him. Can you look to Christ as the
thief on the cross? Tell me what that man knew. Just
tell me how much theology did he know? This man was an outcast of outcasts. This man was a thief and a murderer
dying under judgment. This man had nothing. He couldn't work, he couldn't
wait, he couldn't wash, and he couldn't witness. But he looked
to Christ. He knew he was a sinner and he
knew Christ was Lord. Can you do that? Can you look
to Christ? Can you reach out to Him as the dying woman with
the issue of blood? Can you fall before Him as Thomas?
My Lord and my God, I can sure do that. Then do it. Never mind
how much theology you know or how much faith you have. That's
not the issue. How much faith I have is not
the issue. How much I know is not the issue. How able and willing He is, that's
the issue. you look to him. Is that right?
All right, let's look at this verse again. Now, faith is, faith
is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not
seen. What does this mean? Faith is
the substance of things hoped for. Well, what do we hope for?
What do we hope for? What do you hope for? What do
I hope for? Well, I hope for forgiveness
of sins. I want my sins blotted out. I
want salvation. That's what I hope for. I hope
for comfort and strength in death. I hope I can die the death of
the righteous, don't you? I hope for resurrection from
the grave. I hope to be made like Christ.
I hope for eternal glory, all right? On what grounds do I hope
for those things? What right have I to hope for
such treasures? Those are the things I hope for.
What right do I have to hope for them? What ground do I have
to hope for them? I'm a sinner. Can I hope for those things through
works? No, sir. Through heritage? No, sir. Through
my goodness? No, sir. Through my righteousness?
No, sir. Then on what ground can I hope
for those things? Believe in God. So faith is the
ground. That word substance is ground.
Faith is the confidence. Is that right, John? Faith is
the foundation. What do you hope for? I hope
for all these treasures. On what ground do you hope? I
believe God. So faith is the ground, the substance,
the foundation of these things we hope for. That's what that's
saying. And then look at the next line.
Faith is the evidence of things not seen. Faith is the evidence. In other words, this God-given
faith is the proof. That word evidence is proof.
When you present evidence in court, you present proof. This
proves it. This is evidence. So faith is
the proof of those things which I don't see. I've never seen
the covenant of grace. I've never seen the Lamb's book
of life. Do you know one exists? Oh yeah. I've never seen it. I've never seen the Lord of glory.
I've never seen his death, his resurrection, his reign. I've
never seen the dead rise. You ever seen anybody rise from
the grave? I've never seen the glory of
heaven. Paul said he went up there and heard things that weren't
lawful to utter, but I hadn't been there. But those things
are as real to me, as real to me as you sitting right there
in front of me. Those things are as real to me. God's grace, God's purpose, God's
covenant, Christ's death, those things are as real to me. I don't
see them, but this God-given faith. This miracle of grace
allows me to receive as real facts those things which I don't
even see. But they're real. They're real. What's the proof of them? Faith. I believe God. I believe God. I believe God. I believe things
as real facts that the natural eye cannot even see. So that's
what that verse is saying. Now this faith, this faith, and
I told you faith is to believe God. Faith's object is Christ,
the only way. And faith's foundation is the
Word of God, the only foundation of faith. And this faith is the
very confidence and ground of all I hope for. And what I hope
for is not seen with these natural eyes, but what I hope for is
as real to me as you are, because of faith. Faith is the evidence,
I believe. Now look at verse 2. For by it,
by it, by faith, the elders obtained a good report. Alright, here's
the question. Who are the elders? Who are the
elders? By this kind of faith, by this
faith, the elders obtained a good report. Who are the elders? Well,
Abraham, Noah, Enoch, Moses, David, Job, Jacob, Isaiah, these
are the elders. But do you realize these men
were all just men? Do you realize that these men
were all sons of Adam and sinners like you and me? That's right,
just like you and me. Abraham was a man just like you.
I could take you through his life and show you the fact that
he's a man like you. Noah, David, Job, these were all just men. Well, what makes them so special?
It says they obtained a good report. What makes them so special? How did they obtain a good report
with God? How did they obtain favor with
God? How did they obtain the esteem
of a holy God? You know how? Faith. They believed God. James takes
care to tell us, Elijah was a man of like passions as you, but
he believed God. That's what made them special.
That's what made them highly esteemed. The ground of all I hope for,
the evidence of all I don't see, is faith. And by this faith,
those men of old whom we highly esteem, whom we greatly respect,
whom we quote, they were nothing but men, men among men, but they
obtained a good report. Why? God. Now that's it. And you can have
the same report. Noah. These men don't think for
a moment that these men were justified before God by their
works. What shall we say of Abraham
that he had obtained? Righteousness. How? He believed
God. That's what Paul said. Noah had never seen a flood.
Noah had never seen a drop of rain. The world wasn't watered
by rain. It was watered by mist, isn't
that correct? That old guy believed God and
built a boat. And he'd never seen a boat. Abraham called out of his father's
house. He's never been away from that
hillside farm where he was raised. But he believed God. That's what
made him special. That's what made him, by faith,
obtain a good report. David, shepherd boy, he'd never
faced a giant before. The only thing he'd faced was
some wild animals, you know, but here's a giant that had brought
to a standstill the whole armies of God. But he said there's a
cause, he believed God. sent to deliver three million
people out of the hands of the most powerful king on the face
of the earth with a shepherd's staff? And Moses had been on
the backside of a desert for forty years and couldn't even
carry on a good conversation? He said, I can't talk. I'm no
talker. But there he goes. There goes
that old man, eighty years old. Where are you going Moses? I'm
going to deliver three million people out of Egypt. You're pretty
old for that kind of work, aren't you? What you gonna do it with? This
rod? You're kidding. You are joking. No, I'm not joking. I got time
to talk to you. Go get that three million people. From Pharaoh? Yeah. Well, well. He believed God. He believed
God. Faith is the evidence of things
not seen, not seen. Like I said, I haven't seen the
Lamb's book of life. I haven't seen the covenant of
grace. I haven't seen heaven, but it's there. I haven't seen anybody come out
of a grave, but they will. I haven't seen those things.
Now watch verse 3. Through faith, we understand
that the worlds were framed by the Word of God so that things
which are seen were not made of things which appear. Somebody
said, but preacher, I can see the sun. I need something I can
see. I need something I can touch.
I can see the moon and the stars. I can see a tree and touch a
tree. And I can see the soil and put
my hand in it. And I can see the corn grow.
And I can believe what I can touch and see. Well, hold on a minute. How were
all these things made that you see? They were made from things you
don't see. That's right. One day there was no sun. God
said, let there be light. One day there was no moon. What'd
God make it out of? He made it from things which
do not appear. I understand that everything
that was made was made from things that don't exist. So we're wrapped
up in this whole thing, I mean materially, physically, and spiritually
with things that you don't see. You literally shut up to faith
in God or nothing. Even for the things you see,
they were made out of things you don't see. Even the things you see were
made out of things you don't see. Look at this verse 4. By faith, believe in God, Abel
offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which
he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of
his gifts, and by it he being dead is yet spoken of. Abel offered
a sacrifice of blood. Why did he bring blood? He believed
God. He believed God. Now, Abel was
no more excellent than Cain, but his sacrifice was. Are you
with me? He was no more excellent than
Cain. They came out of the same womb, raised by the same daddy.
Both hard-working men. One was a farmer and one was
a shepherd. But Abel, by nature, was no more
excellent than Cain. His offering was excellent. Abel
by nature was no more righteous than Cain. Oh no, I beg your
pardon. Abel was no more righteous than
Cain. Not by nature. But his substitute
and his lamb was righteous and he was righteous through faith.
His faith made him righteous. Just like Abraham, he believed
God and it was charged to him for righteousness. God didn't
accept the person of Abel. He accepted Abel in his sacrifice. Read it again. By faith, Abel
offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain. By which,
by that faith and by that sacrifice, he obtained witness that he was
righteous. God himself testifying of his
guilt. See what I'm saying? And in these two men are all
the world's religion. The world's two religions are
pictured in faith and works. Total, absolute dependence on
God and dependence on God and me. Now wait a minute. Cain built
an altar and Cain brought an offering and Cain recognized
God. But Cain cooperated with God. And Cain entered into an agreement
with God, and Cain entered into a work with God to justify himself. Over here, Abel brought another. He brought a lamb. He brought
a sacrifice. He brought blood. He looked to
the lamb of God who died. Or I look at Enoch, verse 5. By faith, Enoch, by this same
faith, Enoch was translated that he should not see death. And
he was not found because God translated him, for before his
translation he had this testimony, he pleased God. How did he please
God? He believed God. That's how Enoch
pleased God. Oh, you say, this is beyond me.
Now hold it. Let's go over to Genesis 5 a
minute. Genesis chapter 5. Genesis chapter
5. Let's read about Enoch. Genesis chapter 5, verse 21. This is the only place. Genesis 5, verse 21. And what
I'm pointing out is Enoch was a man. Enoch was a family man. Enoch was a father. Enoch was
a fallen man. Enoch was a human being. But
Enoch believed God. In verse 21, Genesis 5, And Enoch
lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah. And Enoch walked
with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat
sons and daughters. He had all kind of children.
And all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five
years. And Enoch walked with God. He
believed God. And he was not. God took him.
He just walked with God. One day he walked on into heaven. But he had this testimony. He
pleased God by faith, by faith. He believed God. I want to believe
God. You know, I see in this several
things that are encouraging to me. In Enoch, here's a man, a
human being, a father, a family man, a son of Adam, a sinner,
but who believed God, who walked with God, who walked with God,
believed God, and one day just walked right into heaven without
dying. And I see several things. One thing I see here is the close
relationship between this life and glory. It must not be too far away,
Charlie, because Enoch walked right out of his duties and relationships. One day he just took for a walk
and never came back home. He's walked on home to glory. Must be awful close, this relationship,
mustn't it? One day he just didn't come back
home. Where's Enoch? Well, Enoch's
with God. He's with God. And then another
thing I see here, he went to heaven without dying. You don't
have to die to go to heaven. When Christ comes again, some
are going to go to heaven without dying. He said, we shall not
all die, but we shall all be changed. And then another thing
I see is that I see the resurrection of believers, body and soul.
Enoch walked into heaven, body and soul. That's right, walked
into heaven, body and soul. He believed God. I wonder how much I believe God. I wonder how much I really believe
God. I don't mean I believe baptisms
by immersion. I can see that. I believe you
ought to have wine and unleavened bread. I can see that. I believe
God created the heavens and the earth. I can see that. That beats
some tadpole jumping out of a creek somewhere. I mean, for me. I
can believe that. I can believe God is sovereign.
I can believe that. That's not too hard. If He's
God, He's God. I can believe I'm a sinner. I get convinced of that every
day. Every day, even on Sunday. And I'm convinced I can't save
myself. I can believe that. I can believe
nothing in these hands I bring can please a holy God. How can
I please God? But how much, how much do I believe
God? I mean believe God. Really walk
by faith, like old Enoch of old, just believe God. I believe God.
All right, that's all right, I believe God. It'll be all right,
I believe God. I'm going to quit murmuring and
complaining and griping and finding fault and believe God. I'm going
to walk with God, because I believe Him. Some preacher told about taking
this little girl somewhere in a cave or something and a bat
flew out and she just grabbed her daddy by the leg and looked
up and grinned. She wasn't afraid. He was, he said. He just scared
me to death. I didn't have nobody grab. I do. If I believed him like that little
girl believed her daddy. If I really believed him. And
that's, I believe what I see, but faith is to believe what
I don't see. And believe it just as much or
more, Ronnie, than what I do see. Because what I do see was
made from what I don't see. I'll tell you this, verse 6,
I'll go into this and quit. I'll tell you this, without faith
it's impossible to please God. You just write it down. Enoch
had this testimony that he pleased God. And he pleased God not because
he wore different clothes from everybody else. Not because he
quoted more scripture than anybody else. Not because he had more
family altars than anybody else. Not because he gave more admissions
than anybody else. It's because he flat-believed
God. That's how he pleased God. He believed God. He believed
God. And without faith it's impossible
to please God. To be without faith is to be
without Christ. Christ is our peace. Christ is
our righteousness. Christ is our peace. Christ is
our wisdom. And to be without Christ is to
bring my filthy rags of self-righteousness before God. That won't please
Him. Christ pleases Him. This is my
beloved Son in whom I'm well pleased. See what the whole thing
comes down to. Far, verse 6, far, without faith
it's impossible to please God. Far, he that cometh to God must. Must. Two things. Believe that
he is. That he is. That he is what?
That he is God. That he is God. God is who he
says he is. He's Father, Son, Holy Spirit
as revealed in the blessed scriptures. He's holy. He's unchangeable.
He's just. He's merciful. He's true. He's
righteous. He's sovereign. He is God. Faith is to must believe that
he is. God is. God is. Secondly, and that he is a rewarder. He will be merciful. to all them
that diligently, diligently, violently, sincerely seek Him. Yes, He will. We were talking
at the breakfast table this morning, Doris and I, about this business
of commitment, seeking the Lord. I don't know, I just wonder how
many are really seeking Him. The Ethiopian eunuch, out of desperation and fear and
need, rode all the way to Jerusalem. He wanted to know God all the
way, all the way. And coming back, reading the
Scriptures, searching the Scriptures, And God sent him a preacher. And I wonder how many people
in this world... I got a letter from somebody
one time that was going to come to a Bible conference, but they
couldn't come because their dog got sick or something like that.
Had to take him to the vet. You laugh about that, but honestly,
one of them said, I've married a wife and I can't come. One
said, I've bought some property and I can't come. I tell you, if you ever get hungry
for his presence and person and blessings, you'll come. And there's
nothing in this world that will get in your way. You'll come. He is the rewarder of them that
diligently seek him. Diligently seek him. That's the
faith that pleases God. Without faith it's impossible
to please God. For he that cometh to God must
believe he is. We're not going to debate that,
are we? He is God. And that he is faithful and merciful
to all who diligently seek him, must have him. Well, we'll go
on tonight with that chapter. All right, let's open the Bible
now to Hebrews 11. Now, we're going to handle some heavy
material tonight, and I hope you'll listen carefully. I pray you'll listen carefully,
but I pray more that God will speak, whether we listen or not.
I just hope he'll speak. I hope we listen, but I pray
more than that that he'll speak, that we'll, with some wisdom,
handle these scriptures. Now, let me read verse 7. That's
where we left off this morning, Hebrews 11, 7. By faith, Noah, being warned
of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared
an ark to the saving of his house, by the which he condemned the
world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith."
Now, let's camp there for just a few moments. This very first
verse of our text carries with it the whole message of this
chapter, the whole message. And let me show you these six
things. Number one, it says, by faith, Noah. Who was Noah? Well, Noah was a common, ordinary,
everyday, fallen son of Adam. That's who Noah was. He was a
common, ordinary, everyday fallen son of Adam. He was a man, born
of a woman, grew up as a child, worked at a vocation, had a wife,
three sons, who married wives. He was a man of like passions
as you and me. He was a man who lived in a day
much like our day. a sinful, depraved society. But the thing that distinguished
this man from other men is he found grace in the eyes of the
Lord. Now, that's what distinguished
him. That's what made him different.
God made him different. He found favor with the Lord.
Let's hold this scripture right here and turn to Genesis chapter
6. And here's where we read this,
now in Genesis chapter 6. He was no different from other
men in birth, nature, in any way, until God made the
difference. In Genesis 6, verse 5, And God
saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that
every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that
he had made man on the earth and grieved him at his heart.
And the Lord said, I will destroy man whom I have created from
the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing, fowls
of the air, for it repented me that I have made them. But found grace in the eyes of the
Lord. God set his affection on Noah.
Noah found discriminating, sovereign, free, abounding grace in the
eyes of the Lord. That's right. You see, in Genesis 6-8, that's
the first time that grace is mentioned in the whole Bible.
That's the very first time the word grace appears in the Bible.
Now, what the old time was taught was this, the Law of First Mention. Anybody ever heard of the Law
of First Mention? The Law of First Mention is find
the word the first time it's mentioned in God's Word, and
that is the basic foundation meaning of that word all the
way through the Bible. Is that right, John? The Law
of First Mention. And that's the first time the
word grace appears. And here is a society, a depraved
society, a wicked society, a corrupt society, a whole world going
its own way, unbelieving, and God Almighty set his affection
and his mercy and his grace on a man called Noah. I want you
to turn to another scripture, Ephesians chapter 2. And if you
know God, and if you have been brought to love his word and
believe his gospel, the same thing is true of you. God made
the difference. You found grace in the eyes of
the Lord. You're no different. I'm no different from the society
in which we live. I was born just like every rebel
in the world. as conceived and shaped in iniquity
and brought forth speaking lies, just like any other son of Adam,
religious and ungodly, depraved and unbelieving, but God chose
me, God elected me, God set his love upon me, I found favor and
grace and mercy in the eyes of the Lord. And Ephesians 2 tells
us what we were, what we are by nature, and verse 4 says,
but God. But God. It's not but I changed.
It's not but I woke up. It's not but I came to my senses.
It's not but I realized what I was doing.

Hebrews 11 1-6: Now Faith Is…

What does the Bible say about faith?

How do we know faith is true?

Why is believing God important for Christians?

What can we learn about faith from Enoch?

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Hebrews 11 1-6: Now Faith Is…

What does the Bible say about faith?

How do we know faith is true?

Why is believing God important for Christians?

What can we learn about faith from Enoch?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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