Abraham: A Model of the Enduring Faith | Hebrews 11:8-10 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (2/15/26)

Well, church, today we're going to pause on our series in Revelation, and I wanna just share with you something that I've been meditating on, and I wanna talk to you today about faith. Trusting God, what that looks like. And it's common that when this topic is addressed, there's one very common passage that is referenced in the New Testament, arguably the most famous when it comes to this, subject of faith. Hebrews chapter 11. And you can turn there if you'd like.

Hebrews 11 is quite amazing because when it comes to faith, it grants us a very concise definition of it. But it also gives us an extensive catalog of what faith looks like. It spends way more time demonstrating it than defining it. And one of the ways that it does this is that the Holy Spirit grants us notable figures from redemptive history that manifest what trusting in God should look like and they do so within their unique context and circumstances. But if you pay even more careful attention, you'll see that out of this list of people, there are 16 of them who are explicitly named.

And out of the sixteen, eight of them, exactly half of the total number, are found in the book of Genesis alone. Seven men, one woman. Now we don't have the time to discuss all the potential reasons for that, but one subtle motive, I believe, of the author of Hebrews is again, he is dealing with these Jewish Christians who are overcome by the temptation of returning to the law as their basis of relating rightly to God. They want to embrace again the Levitical system, And he is pleading with them eloquently and theologically why that would be a grave mistake. And so one of the things that he does even in Hebrews 11 is that he shows them how even from the beginning, what God was looking for all along is simple ongoing trust in him.

And he does this masterfully even with this list of names. Because again, eight of them are found in Genesis and Genesis clearly predates what? The establishment of the law. And so he even plucks from individuals from before the flood, like how much how much far back can you go to show? Do you see it?

Do you realize it? What God was searching for, what God is asking of his creation, those who are crowned in his image is faith. And and that's just one of the things that make the book of Hebrews an absolute masterpiece. But that's not the main point of this passage. It's one of them, I believe.

Like a diamond, the author takes faith and he elevates it before the eyes of his readers and he wants to show them the different facets of it that make it genuine. And one of the ingredients, one of the elements that showcases the faith that truly pleases God is that it is a faith that endures. It's ongoing. It's constant. And he illustrates this by reminding them of Abraham.

And so let's read now from verse eight down to verse 10. I want you to see what the Holy Spirit says about this man. By faith, Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance and he went out not knowing where he was going. By faith, he went to live in the land of promise as in a foreign land living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.

Let's pray together. Lord, just reading these verses excites our souls. But as we attempt to explain them, oh, lord, move us in a deep way. Change us. We pray that every thought would infuse greater grace to our faith and that we would align ourselves to true faith.

And in this case, a faith that endures, that you may be pleased with what you see and hear in our lives. We ask these things by the help of your Holy Spirit and for the glory of the name of your Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, whom we put our faith in. Amen and amen. I wanna ask you something. Is this the only time that Abraham is presented to us in the New Testament as a prototype of faith?

Answer? No. Paul and James are noted for using Abraham in their letters to communicate to their readers of what faith looks like. But interestingly, both Paul and James reference the same Hebrew verse, the same Old Testament reference to make their main point. It's in Genesis 15 verse six and you don't have to turn there.

It's easy to memorize really. That Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness. Now we would think as the author of Hebrew now, Hebrews reintroduces Abraham to us that he would do the same. He would fall in the same direction as as what we find in the letters of Paul and James, but he doesn't. To our surprise, he doesn't reference Genesis fifteen six at all.

And there is a reason for that. And the main one is this, that both Paul and James as they, yes, reference that verse, which is a very strong and compelling verse, they're doing so because they are trying to make an argument and illustrate points around justification by faith. That we are made righteous before God because of our simple trust and what he has said about himself, what he said about his son, and what that faith, that justifying faith actually should do in us. The author of Hebrews, however, is not talking about justification by faith. You can draw principles of justification by faith from these verses but that's not the main point.

He wants to look at a different component of sincere faith. And here with Abraham, he wants to show that true faith is something that perseveres in the face of conflict and challenges that that faith might cause in your life. And so he comes to Abraham and by teaching about Abraham, he's essentially telling these Jewish believers who are experiencing immense persecution, crushing social pressure for their faith in Jesus of Nazareth as their Messiah. Did you ever consider, you Jewish believers, of what one of your heroes in the faith had to endure for his trust in God? Do you think it was easy for him to go on believing?

Do you understand what the father of your nation endured? The father of our faith in many respects had to undergo in his faith? Not just what he endured but more than that, how he endured it. You see, led by the spirit, the author wants to inspire these readers, these Christians. And one of the ways that he's gonna do it is by reflecting on the testimonies of one of their greatest heroes in their history, Abraham.

And we're gonna benefit from it as well. Because this afternoon we're gonna consider three outcomes of true faith. Three realities of true faith and what it will produce in us and here's what it should do for us. Number one, it will help us discern if we possess it. Do I actually have the kind of faith in God that the Bible speaks about?

Well, Abraham is gonna show us. And if we do have it, then like the Hebrew Christians who are receiving this letter, hopefully it will strengthen us to remain steadfast as Abraham was. And so the first thing that stands out from the first verse that we read in Hebrews 11 here in verse eight, is that faith obeys without knowing the full results. Look again with me verse eight. We talk about living by faith, Abraham shows us that it is fundamentally built upon a positive response to God's will.

Look at the first four words again of verse eight, by faith Abraham obeyed. Faith and obedience are not the same thing, but as you know true faith will produce tangible obedience. And that's what's shown here. To say that one, for example, trust in the character and the expertise of their their doctor, but every time he prescribes a medicine you refuse it, well, your trust in who that doctor is is put into question. Is it not?

In like manner, for us to say, I trust this God but whenever he gives you something to do, when he gives you a clear command or call and you resist it or you hesitate to believe in it, your faith equally is called into question. And so faith right here, right away with Abraham is is shown, it's proven through obedience ultimately but that's not the main emphasis. He wants to show the extent of Abraham's obedience. He did obey but to what point? Look again at the last part of verse eight.

And he went out not knowing where he was going. Oh, that's spectacular. He obeyed, yes. But he obeyed into the unknown. He walked into the dark.

He walked into uncertainty. And that's what the Holy Spirit wants to underscore. So you have to remember that Abraham was called when he was in Mesopotamia. And according to the book of Joshua, this might shock you, but Abraham was an idolater. Abraham at one point for most of his young life worship false gods.

And there's a point in his life where God appeared to him in Mesopotamia, commanded him something and granted him a promise if he were to trust in this God, in the true God. And that's elaborated more in Genesis chapter 12 where we see that God calls Abraham to leave his country, to leave his kindred, to leave his father's house, and to go into the land that he would show him. And more than that, he would make him into a great nation. Now, those instructions for Abraham are unique but they do present a pattern that is familiar throughout the Bible. This pattern, that when God does command us, he often attaches a promise with it.

A reward in this life. A reward in the life to come. But the Holy Spirit also now instructs us and perhaps reminds us there is another pattern that we often miss with Abraham's example. Yes, God when he commands you something, he often reminds you of a promise with it. But also that when he commands you, the Lord does not give us exact details of what your obedience will lead to.

True faith does not need a comprehensive map for the future in order to trustingly obey what God asks of you and I today. So let's grate straight to the application in this. If you're sitting here today and you find yourself hesitating to obey God from a clear command that he has given you and convicted you about because you feel like you have the right to demand an explanation of the aftermath of your obedience or all the possible scenarios of your yes and your no, I say this in love, that is not true faith. That's not true faith. To say, Lord, I'm only willing to go ahead if you tell me exactly what will happen when I do, that's something foreign to Hebrews chapter 11.

So if there is a believer listening to this and maybe you're pursuing a relationship that God has convicted you about because that person is unequally yoked. They don't know Christ. They don't love Christ. And God has been pricking your heart about that, yet you find yourself at a standstill because you fear, well if I end this relationship, how or when will God bring me a believing spouse? That's not faith.

That's not faith. Or if you have developed this habit now in your business dealings to do some shady things with money because it's a steady flow of income and And your justification is, well, I'm providing for myself and I'm providing for my family and if I stop this stream, what will happen to my finances? That's not faith. You know it's wrong, you know it's sin, God's been telling you about it and in your mind, you can't get yourself to make the right choice because you just don't know what will happen if you do. It can even come down to simple things like baptism.

A clear command in the scripture for every professing Christian and yet, oh how many people who first find it within themselves to inquire of all their family members and all their loved ones to see if they will agree. Let me just test the waters, no pun intended, before I actually get in the water. Will they approve of my decision? That's not faith. That's not faith.

Faith is not I will do this because this is what it will necessarily produce. Faith is I know the one who asked this of me and he deserves my obedience. No matter what it leads to. That's faith. And this is a question we have to ask ourselves then.

What led Abraham to do this? I mean, you were in a distant land with pagan gods and other people who worship different deities and all of a sudden now you're willing to go into a different land with no plan for your future, just this general kind of idea, I'll make you into a great nation. I'll tell you how. Stephen tells us how when Stephen speaks about Abraham in Acts chapter seven. Go there with you with me in your Bibles and notice what Stephen says at the introduction of this sermon when he is confronted by the religious leaders of his time.

I mean the sermon was so good, he was killed for it. Acts seven, look at verse two with me. And Stephen said, brothers and fathers, hear me. The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia before he lived in Haran and said to him, go out from your land and from your kindred and go into the land that I will show you. This must have been shocking to his audience.

The God of glory? You're telling me that God's glory appeared somewhere apart from Israel? You're telling me that God's glory manifested in a different place apart from the the temple in Jerusalem? Oh, this must have been sobering. Yeah.

God's glory is not confined to a nation. It's not something you Jewish people can contain. Though, yes, there is an element of God's glory being introduced to you. Oh, I wanna show you that God's glory went somewhere else and it appeared to a certain man who is our father. Now we don't know exactly how God appeared to Abraham, but all I know from this verse is that it was glorious.

It was glorious. There was something about God's glory. I'm sure it was a it was an element of his beauty, of his holiness, of his majesty, of maybe his compassion. Whatever it was, there was an element of God's glory that compelled Abraham to move out in faith. And I argue that's what you and I need if we find ourselves hesitant to trust God because we don't know all the details on the other side of that faith.

You need to know God more. I need to know God more. I need I need to so understand who he is, his heart, his mind, his ways, his consistency. So that when he does ask me of anything, I can trustingly walk ahead. I don't need a blueprint.

I don't need what my five year future plan is gonna be. If you give me the word, if I see it in here, I will go because I know you. I've caught enough glimpses of your glory. I'm absolutely persuaded that you are trustworthy. And you are so amazing that if this is what's gonna please you, then I'll give it to you.

And I'm gonna believe that you'll take care of everything else. That's faith. Faith obeys when it doesn't know the full results of that obedience. Number one. Number two, true faith.

If you wanna discern, do I have Abraham's faith? Do I have Hebrews 11 faith? Well ask yourself this, Does your faith make you a pilgrim in this world? True faith will cause you to live more and more detached from this life. And here's how that's communicated in Hebrews 11.

Look again at verse nine. By faith, he went to live in the land of promise as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. Living in tents, that's what the Holy Spirit wants to tell us about Abraham's story, at least at this point. He lived not in a home, not in a castle, but in a tent regularly throughout his life. Now how does that help us?

Well again, by faith he lived in tents. And one way to understand this is that even though God promised Abraham a land, even though God promised him a people, Abraham didn't treat it as his final home. He had a different perspective. Living in a tent means means he was a nomad, he was a sojourner, he was a traveler. The opposite of of living in a tent is being a settler.

That you plant your roots in one place, that you own property. But for him to live in tents means something very significant. This was a man showing us that he traveled lightly in this world. He understood that there was promises pertaining to this world but he didn't live as though this was his home. And so he chose to live in tents and this must have been a very helpful reminder for the Hebrews who were reading this.

Do you know why? Because the same author in the the chapter before commends them for how they started in their faith. They were so strong and they paid a very high price for trusting in Jesus as their Messiah. And he reminds them of that as they're becoming weary. Look at Hebrews 10 for a moment.

Look at verse 34 of Hebrews 10. It says here, for you had compassion on those in prison and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property. Joyfully accepted the plundering of your property since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one. Imagine that. The cost of following Christ in this context with these believers is that people knocked on their door to authorities and saying, oh, you've abandoned the Jewish faith, you've abandoned the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, we're taking this away from you.

And now they come to Hebrews 11 and the author reminds them, do you know that Abraham lived in tents? He he wasn't too attached to his property either. I'm sure that bless some, but there's even more to say about why Abraham lived in tents and why that's significant. That made him a sojourner. That made him an exile.

So you have to understand that even his living situation communicated something to the neighbors in Canaan. Abraham didn't walk into an empty real estate. There were people living in the land at the time. He had neighbors and they didn't believe in the true God. But in their understanding of watching Abraham's life, they knew, okay, he's just traveling by.

And that was a reflection of his spiritual condition. That he was just traveling by. He was not making his home here. When you watch him, you realize he's living for someone and he's living for something beyond this life. He's living as though his treasure is not in this world.

And now that observation is brought from Genesis here in the New Testament and it's projected on the believers. This is what true faith looks like. And we find this theme throughout the New Testament, do we not? Do you remember what Peter said in first Peter two eleven when he says, Beloved, I urge you as sojourners. I I urge you as sojourners and exiles.

When's the last time you talked to a Christian like that? I don't remember the last time somebody looked at me and said, Hey, exile. Hey sojourner. Beloved, I urge you as sojourners, as exiles, to abstain from the passions of the flesh which war against your soul. Do you see it?

Do you see the connection between being a sojourner and that being a means of consecration and separation and purification? It's no different with Abraham. He's living in a tent and that radiates this truth that he was not a part of this world. He was separate. And I wanna I wanna really reinforce this point.

It's gonna take us to Genesis and it's gonna take a careful eye to see something. Let's go to Genesis. I want you to see just how significant it is for Abraham to be living intense and what that says about his faith. There's a pattern in Abraham's life. It's found in Genesis 12 verse eight.

Let's start there. Genesis 12 verse eight reads, from there he moved to the hill country on the East of Bethel and pitched his tent with Bethel on the West and Ai on the East. And there he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord. Now go to chapter 13. Look at verse three.

And he journeyed on from the Negeb as far as Bethel to the place where his tent had been at the beginning between Bethel and Ai to the place where he had made an altar at the first. And there, Abram called upon the name of the Lord. One more place, Genesis 13. Look at verse 18. So Abram moved his tent and came and settled by the oaks of Mamre, which are at Hebron, and there he built an altar to the Lord.

So pause for a moment. What have we gathered so far about Abraham living in tents? Number one, it showcases that true faith will cause us as Christians to live light in this life and to also be distinct from the customs and the convictions of those around us. And if we don't have those two things, we don't have the faith that pleases God. But did you see a pattern here with with Abram, later known as Abraham?

Every verse that we read of the early movements of this man in this new land is that he would pitch his tent and then he would build an altar. Now, I'm sure the altar is very very direct in its symbolism. It speaks of worship. Here's what we take from this. Number one, wherever Abraham went, he worshiped.

No matter where his faith, even faith of the unknown never diminished his adoration of God, his love for God. So wherever he would pitch his tent, he would also build an altar showing us that even as you go on trusting God and don't know the next step, one thing should be certain about you and me, we should be worshiping. I worship you. I trust you. I love you.

I don't love you because of my circumstances. I love you for who you are. This is what Abraham is showing us. But, oh, do you see a pattern in the verses that we read? Do you see the order?

What's the order? The tent was pitched first or at least mentioned first and then the altar. Virtually every time we see Abraham and his tent, it's found in this exact equation which shows us what? You and I can't truly worship unless we are first separate from the world. We have to be tent dwellers before we have altars built for God.

And there are some people who don't build tents. They are way way too connected to this world. The beliefs of this world, the systems of this world, the pleasures of this world, and they think that they can build a legitimate altar and offer pleasing sacrifice. You can't. It can only come from the decision of being a sojourner.

Only exiles can build true altars to God. And if we're not like Abraham in this sense, then not only are we forfeiting true worship, we might be actually entertaining a faith like Lot. You remember Lot? The nephew of this man Abraham whom we are observing? You know Lot had his own tent, right?

He did something very different with his tent, however, in comparison to his uncle. Can I show you? Go back to Genesis 13 with me. Genesis 13 and look at verse 10. Now Abraham, yes, his faith is praise but it was an imperfect faith and that should encourage us.

So the Lord told him, leave the land, but leave your family and he didn't do that. He brings Lot with him. Did that help Abraham? Did that cause him problems? It caused him a lot of problems.

And here's what's happening in this chapter. They become so prosperous that their herdsmen and their managers are now fighting and bickering. So they have to come to this decision. Alright. We gotta go our separate ways.

And Abraham gives him the right to choose first. Which direction do you wanna go? And notice what Lot decides in Genesis 13 verse 10. And Lot lifted up his eyes and saw that the Jordan Valley was well watered everywhere like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt in the direction of Zoar. This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.

You know what's so interesting here? Before Abraham and Lot have come to this point, Abraham made a foolish decision in going to Egypt. Remember that? Where he went down to Egypt because there was a famine and he had a lapse of faith and he takes Lot with him. But then Abraham, he's convicted, he leaves Egypt.

He returns to the altar. He returns to his original faith and he goes on. He moves on. Here's the sad story. Abraham goes to Egypt.

He brings his family with him. And what I read here is that though Lot followed Abraham out of Egypt, Egypt didn't leave Lot. And that's a lesson for leaders. Be very careful. Your decisions and mine, we may be able to recover from but not those who are under our leadership.

May God help us. He has Egypt in his heart. He looks ahead and he goes, Oh, that looks like Egypt. And he even says here that it looked like the garden of the Lord. That's a warning to us.

Sometimes things look like they're from God and they're not. It's like the garden of the Lord. It's like Egypt. And then he goes on to do this, verse 11. So Lot chose for himself all the Jordan Valley and Lot journeyed east.

Thus, they separated from each other. Abram settled in the land of Canaan while Lot settled among the cities of the valley. This is the part you wanna highlight and moved his tent as far as Sodom. Now the men of Sodom were wicked, great sinners against the Lord. God saw Sodom differently than Lot did, But it doesn't end there.

So he's now pitching his tent in the direction of Sodom. Bad news. It only gets worse unfortunately. Look at Genesis 14. In this next chapter, there's this interesting account of these kings going to war with one another.

One of those kings is the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah. Well, we find out that Lot gets himself in trouble and Abraham, his uncle has to rescue him. But how did he get himself in trouble? How did he get himself in the middle of this mess? Genesis fourteen eleven tells us in verse 12 as well.

So the enemy took all the possessions of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their provisions and went their way. They also took Lot, the son of Abram's brother who was dwelling in Sodom and his possessions and went their way. Oh. So he went from pitching his tent as far as Sodom to now doing what? Living in Sodom.

He moved into the city. Because he moved in, he was recognized as one of the citizens of Sodom. So when they were conquered, he too was conquered. It's a very dangerous thing to live in Satan's territory. I've heard of scary stories of people who thought that they can visit the domain of the evil one thinking that they can remain and come back unscathed.

Sometimes you get scars that you'll never recover from. God will forgive you, yes. But those scars may remain. So he's he's ransacked. He's taken.

And then he's rescued. You would think, You learned your lesson, You can't live in Sodom and expect God's blessing. Oh, he doesn't learn his lesson. Go over to Genesis 19 now. Look at the first verse.

This is when the Lord had determined enough is enough. It's time to judge Sodom and Gomorrah. And he sends two of his angels. He dispatches them to investigate but more than that, to answer Abraham's and Abraham's intercession for his family there. Look at Genesis 19 verse one.

The two angels came to Sodom in the evening and Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them and bowed himself with his face to the earth. Now be careful, this is more than just a coincidence, a providential thing where, you know, Lot happens to be at the gate at the entrance and as the angels walked in, they cross paths and the story goes on. No. No.

No. No. No. No. No.

Gates in ancient times, in biblical times, were where laws were determined, where judicial matters were settled, where civil cases were clarified, where legal transactions were established, and you would have elders at the gate, sitting at the gate, overseeing in terms of leadership. So what does that say about Lot? Lot sitting in the gate means he now becomes the leader, one of the leaders of Sodom. Can you imagine this? He went from pitching his tent as far as Sodom to dwelling in Sodom to now becoming one of the leaders of Sodom.

What a contrast between him and Abraham. Here's Abraham constantly living in in tents and when he pitches his tent, he builds an altar. When he comes to a new place, oh, I'm gonna I'm gonna elevate something here. I'm gonna erect this thing. I wanna worship the Lord.

And what's happening to Lot? He's walking further and further away from the Lord. He's becoming more and more comfortable and established and embedded in a hedonistic, flesh satisfying, God hating culture. Now here's the thing, if I was just left with the book of Genesis, I would think there is no way that lot is saved. Then you read Peter in second Peter and what do you find out?

That the Bible by the Holy Spirit calls this man righteous. Have you read that? After I when I came to that passage for the first time, I reread it over and over and over. Is there a different definition of righteous that I'm not aware of? Righteous?

Yes, righteous. Positionally, but Lot is a picture of a worldly Christian who is not consecrated, who is not comfortable living in tents. He's more comfortable living in Sodom. Can I ask you something? Which faith out of the two reflects yours?

Are you striving more and more to be like Abraham? That you refuse to be shackled by the sins of this life, by the attractions and the thrills of this life that wanna keep you, that wanna drag you. And notice, it's always a slippery slope, isn't it? It's just peeking over from a distance and you get closer and then you immerse yourself and then you find yourself comfortable in the company of the wicked. Do you find your do you find your tent, do you find your faith becoming stronger in the area of believing God, loving God, looking ahead?

Or do you find yourself month after month, year after year being accustomed and comfortable in this age and those who represent it. Abraham, as one said, shared the soil of Canaan, but not the soul of the Canaanites. And that must be true of you and I. You know what's interesting if you come back to Hebrews 11 verse nine, it doesn't just highlight how Abraham lived in tents. Did you notice that?

Look again. By faith, he went to live in the land of promise as in a foreign land living in tents with Isaac and Jacob. We're talking about Abraham here but the Holy Spirit wants to also inform us that Abraham lived in tents, yes, but with his son and his grandson. Now why are we being told about Isaac and Jacob? I think one thing that is obvious is that we're told here that Isaac and Jacob followed in the steps of Abraham in this regard, that they also were tent dwellers.

But remember, Abraham has the spotlight at this point in Hebrews 11. So this something this says something more about Abraham than it does Isaac and Jacob. What does it say about him? What God said about Abraham in Genesis 18? Go there with me.

This is before the Lord with the two angels were making their way towards Sodom and Gomorrah. And the Lord asked if he should reveal what he was planning to do to those cities, to Abraham. But there's something in there that complements this truth. Look at Genesis 18 verse 17. The Lord said, shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do seeing that Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him?

Now pay attention to verse 19. For I have chosen him. That's how the ESV renders it. For I have chosen him that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him. Do you see that first part of verse 19?

The Hebrew word for chosen more accurately means to know. So there are some translations that maybe in the translation that you're holding where the verse actually says, for I not have chosen him for I know him. For I know him that he will command his children and his household after him. What a precious thing for God to say about any man or any woman. I know that he will command his children.

I know that he will command his household. I know that he will do this. I know that he will instruct them. I know that he will lead them. Does not speak volumes of Abraham's faith?

It does. Here's what it teaches. If faith actually makes us pilgrims in this world, it will also shape the way we live in our homes. How old was Abraham when he had Isaac? According to the bible, he was 100.

100 years old. That's an old dad. 100. How old was he when he died? 100 and what?

75. Abraham was 175 when he died. So how old was that made of was that made of Isaac at the point of Abraham's death? 75 years old. Right?

How old was Isaac when he got married? 40. 40. Did he have children right away? No.

In that same chapter of Genesis 25, we learned that he was 60 when Jacob and Esau were born. So how old would have Jacob been at the point of Abraham's death? 15 years old. So this this strongly suggests something. They were all alive at the same time and even Jacob was old enough to hear the stories of Abraham.

Even Jacob was old enough to be instructed by Abraham. Can you imagine it? Abraham sitting there in his old age and Jacob is sitting on his knee. Let me tell you what it means to walk by faith. Let me tell you how we got let me tell you why we're living in tents.

And there's Jacob listening. He didn't get it right away. I mean, you read Jacob's life, he he was a troublemaker to start with. But all those seeds of faith, they were not in vain. They were not in vain.

So here's what that tells me. This man who was a he was a pilgrim. He was an exile, but he lived like it at home. You know what's amazing about Abraham? Was he wealthy or was he not wealthy?

He wasn't just wealthy, it says he was very wealthy. But you know what Isaac saw in his dad? Oh, he's living for something else. He walks with God. Jacob has grandson observed that.

That's why Hebrews is telling us this, that he lived in tents with Isaac and Jacob. His faith wasn't private. It wasn't weekly. It was real. It was real to the Canaanites who said, who's that tent dweller?

He has a lot of money, a lot of herd, a lot of cattle. But why is he living in a tent? Because he's not living like this world is his home. And here, Isaac and Jacob in the tent, that's the real deal. That's the real deal.

They had hiccups in their own faith and Isaac learned some bad things from his dad as you know, But Hebrews praises Abraham for his consistency and his conviction. He was a pilgrim in this life and it shaped the way he lived at home. May God help us do the same. Yes. May our faith be generational, may be passed down, may the greatest inheritance that you leave your children and their children is a walk with God.

Amaze them with God. Show them the beauty of the Bible. Show them the beauty of a holy life. Show them how how much of a joy it is to be a part of the local church. It's a privilege not dragging your feet.

Okay? We gotta get to church. We get to go to church. We get to go with God's people and sing to the living Christ and hear from him. Abraham, he lived in tents.

He didn't live alone with Isaac and Jacob. Which brings us to our final point of what true faith produces. True faith obeys even if it doesn't know the results. True faith makes us pilgrims in this world. And lastly, true faith will cause you to anticipate the life to come.

Hebrews 11 verse 10. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. So true faith will not only stir you to be separate from this world, it will also cause you to yearn for the world to come. That's how you that's how you can check the pulse of your faith. Where do things go downhill for Lot?

Remember what we read? He lifted up his eyes and he looked into the horizon of the Jordan Valley and he saw that it was well watered. He thought it was like the garden of the Lord. It was like the land of Egypt. He lifted up his eyes.

It was his perspective. It was his evaluation. And so while Lot is looking towards Sodom which led his heart towards Sodom, where is Abraham looking according to verse 10? He's looking to another city. And this city clearly speaks about a heavenly city.

Who's the designer of it? God. Oh, what a city that's gonna be. No mistakes. No issues, no problems.

No matter what direction you look, it's gorgeous, it's splendid, it's a reflection of his nature and his character. This is where Abraham is looking. He was looking toward and forward to the city. And so, yes, this man lived in tents but we learn how he was able to abide, how he was able to remain, how he was able to become steadfast living in tents because he was constantly looking. The eyes of his heart were yearning and the word for looking here is an intense gaze.

Like you're looking forward to, you're anticipating it. Not just like, you know, glances every Sunday when you're reminded that there's an eternity. No. He lived looking. He lived looking and here's what's amazing.

He's wealthy, however, he understood that there was something infinitely more pleasurable, infinitely more lasting, infinitely more perfect than whatever he had in his possession. He held things with a very loose grip in this world because his eyes were looking to the world to come. One of the things that you learn about Abraham by the way, the more I study them, the more I The Bible has hundreds of references to this man. It's it's a call for us to really dig deep into his story. And here's one of the things that I discovered recently.

He always looked ahead. He always had a revelation of what's to come. Even in ways that you might not have considered. Do you remember what Jesus said about Abraham in John eight fifty six? When he's been confronted by the religious leaders about his identity, his divine identity, he makes this point in John eight verse 56.

Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad. We don't have time to look at where where Abraham had that revelation but at some point in his life, God granted this man insight about the person and work of Jesus Christ. He perceived it clearly. He saw it and Jesus affirms that.

He saw it and here's the part that moves me the most. He saw it and was glad. Which teaches me that knowing certain things about the future and believing them can impact your joy today. So he had this perception not just of heaven but of the person of Christ. This man had the habit of looking ahead and it stabilized him in the in the now.

He was able to live in tents in this way. Abraham constantly meditated, he constantly drained, he constantly talked about, I'm sure with his son and his grandson, of this city to come. And if we wanna imitate this kind of faith that pleases God, listen very carefully, I say this with love, you and I have to look where he looks and long for what he longs for. Do you know how I know that? Go to Hebrews chapter 13.

Look at verse 14 with me. Hebrews 13 verse 14. The same author at the last chapter of this book gives his final instructions to these Hebrew Christians and notice what he says to them and to us. Hebrews thirteen fourteen, for we have no lasting city but we seek the city that is to come. Not just Abraham, we.

Do you? Just a few final reflective questions for us today. In these three verses, we looked at three components of true faith, what it will produce, what it looks like. So I wanna ask you today, is there something that God has been pressing you about? A clear command from his word that relates to situation in your life that you are trying to silence and suppress because you have fear, fear fear of persecution, fear of loneliness, fear of provision not being there.

You making any demands on God to know all the answers of your obedience is not faith. And so if the Lord is calling you to get up and leave, get up and walk in a different direction, oh, I I charge it today, give him true faith, Abraham like faith and believe him even though you don't know where you're going necessarily. Even though I don't know where this is gonna lead me but I know the one who called me, it's there in his word, I will trust and obey. That's true faith. Or do you find yourself inching closer and closer towards Sodom instead of building an altar as you go on in this life?

Is your worship steady and increasing? Or do you find yourself drawn and magnetized towards the things that grieve God's heart? Here's one way you know, the things that used to bother you, you listen to it on whatever format, the language that they use, the scenes that they project. At one point you would recall, at one point you would look away. Now you're like, just keep watching.

You find your zeal for serving God, living for God, knowing God, dwindling, dwindling, and all these other passionate things that are overtaking what once was so bright and strong, and they're trivial things. They're carnal things. Borderline sinful things. You might be pitching your tent closer and closer to Sodom and if you're not careful, you might be living there sometime soon. As the years go by, do you find your heart excited and longing for that city to come?

Or is it becoming more and more dim because of all the other things that are trying to get in the way and eclipse your vision? Ask God today to strengthen your perception, to live ahead. Abraham saw Christ's day and was glad. There is a day for us to meet Christ. There is a revelation of Christ yet to come and the one who really has this kind of a faith thinks about it and lives by it and strengthens it.

Use this message today to walk out of here with a stronger faith for what's promised to you and I because of Christ. Abraham, a model of enduring faith. Let us follow him as he followed Christ. Let's pray. Lord, we stand amazed at how you can say so much in such a short passage of scripture.

In the same chapter, we know that faith pleases you so give us faith so that we could please you. May you reveal yourself in your glory in such a manner that it would burn away all obstacles and hesitations to our faith. May we not only be tent dwellers but alter builders that in no matter what season of life we're in, we will build our worship towards you. And Lord, we know that the secret ultimately to Abraham's enduring faith was looking to the reward ahead, the world to come. Lord, we pray that eternity would be more real to us than this life.

That the treasures and the promises of that world to come would be more exciting than anything we inherit in this world. Only you can help us strengthen this perception that holds so much promise. So Lord today, no matter where we are, we ask for the same thing. Give us faith. And like Abraham, as we wait on you, help us trust in you.

Help us worship while we wait. Help every father, every mother here, bring their faith home. Model that faith before their children. Help them be encouraged that even Abraham was very imperfect in how he trusted you, and yet you still honor him because his heart's desire was to do so. So Lord, we just pray for every parent here that they would not grow weary.

They would not put into question what their faith can do in their progeny, in their offspring. Lord, we love you. We thank you for speaking so clearly to our hearts. Now we speak to you in song and rejoice for how you love us and how you speak to us and guide us in our faith. In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen. Let's stand together. Let's worship the Lord.