Hebrews 11:1-7 The Message (MSG)
When I think of the word faith, I immediately think of believing God’s Promise to love us from the beginning of life until the end of life—oh, and trusting Him with every bit of the time in between. The foundation for our faith is the Love of God found in Jesus. In fact, Jesus makes it all possible, because we find our refuge in him. When I was a child, we used to sing a hymn in church, “How Firm a Foundation.” Below are three of the verses. Truly, the song speaks to the love and care God desires to extend to us; but we must believe in God’s goodness. If our faith is not built on the foundation and Cornerstone of Christ, we may know some things about God, but we have not tasted the true and thriving relationship God has for us. Throughout history, God has drawn a distinction between the believing world and the unbelieving world. Make sure your faith is in Christ’s righteousness; then you will please God. The enemy has no power to shake the Lord, so stay fixed on Jesus and he will hold you in His Hand, today.
How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word
What more can He say than to you He hath said
To you who for refuge to Jesus have fled
Fear not, I am with thee; oh be not dismayed
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid
I’ll strengthen thee, help thee, and cause thee to stand
Upheld by My righteous, omnipotent hand
The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose
I will not, I will not desert to its foes
That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake
I’ll never, no never, no never forsake
Hebrews 11:1-7 Faith in What We Don’t See
11 1-2 The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see. The act of faith is what distinguished our ancestors, set them above the crowd.
3 By faith, we see the world called into existence by God’s word, what we see created by what we don’t see.
4 By an act of faith, Abel brought a better sacrifice to God than Cain. It was what he believed, not what he brought, that made the difference. That’s what God noticed and approved as righteous. After all these centuries, that belief continues to catch our notice.
5-6 By an act of faith, Enoch skipped death completely. “They looked all over and couldn’t find him because God had taken him.” We know on the basis of reliable testimony that before he was taken “he pleased God.” It’s impossible to please God apart from faith. And why? Because anyone who wants to approach God must believe both that he exists and that he cares enough to respond to those who seek him.
7 By faith, Noah built a ship in the middle of dry land. He was warned about something he couldn’t see, and acted on what he was told. The result? His family was saved. His act of faith drew a sharp line between the evil of the unbelieving world and the rightness of the believing world. As a result, Noah became intimate with God.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for the faith you have placed within me. You have sustained me through this faith in the past, but I know my faith needs to continue to grow. Thank you for being my foundation, Jesus, and by faith keeping me unshakable, today. In Jesus’ name. Amen.