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Trust: From East of Eden to Ararat (Hebrews 11:4-7)
Keith Howard, April 22, 2012
Part of the Hebrews series, preached at a Sunday Morning service
Last week, we entered the foyer to the Gallery of Trust and learned Hebrews 11:1-3 does not “define” faith/trust; it tells us how trust functions. If scripture defined trust, our sin natures would strive to mimic what God alone gives as a gift.
Instead of defining faith/trust, scripture gives us a grid to view what trust does until we see Jesus face to face. The grid of vv. 1-3 was this: (1) trust measure the present against the future; (2) trust measures the visible against the invisible. We learned that trust is found at that point where your wishes and demands slam head-on into what God wills for you and his Word promises and commands.
Today, in Hebrews 11:4-7 we will look at the portraits hung in the first room this morning, the Antediluvian (pre-flood) Room, in which Abel, Enoch, and Noah are portrayed. There is a progression in the theme of trust in the three portraits: (1) In Abel we see trust worshiping; (2) in Enoch we see trust walking; and, (3) in Noah we see trust working. We will briefly glimpse Noah this morning and return to him in our next study.
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| Earlier: | Same day: | Later: |
|---|---|---|
| « Entering the Gallery of Trust | None | Gospel Centered Community » |
Hebrews 11:4-7
4 By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks. 5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. 7 By faith Noah, being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. (ESV)
