(2) Hebrews 11:8-218By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. 9By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: 10For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. 11Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. 12Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. 13These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. 14For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. 15And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. 16But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city. 17By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, 18Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: 19Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure. 20By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come. 21By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff. (Hebrews 11:8‑21).
WE would just remind our readers that in our last paper we called attention to Abel, who learned the secret of approach to God and worship of God. Also to Enoch, who “by faith was translated that he should not see death.” After a brief biographical sketch of six men each ending with the tragic words “and he died,” we read of one whose faith delivered him from the fear of death and from its power. Lastly Noah by faith prepared an ark to the saving of his house and passed scathless through the judgment.
In this paper we propose to consider the record of other three men: Abraham. Isaac and Jacob; under the heading of
(1) The Venture of Faith.
(2) The Vision of Faith.
(3) The Victory of Faith.
The fact that a large portion of our chapter is devoted to Abraham would suggest that the Holy Spirit has an important lesson which He desires us to learn. We have to fill in the details of the story partly from the historical account in Genesis 21; also from Joshua 24 Acts 7. etc. as well as from the chapter which we trust now lies open before us. We find that by faith Abraham was made superior
(a) To social links.
(b) To the laws of nature.
(c) To the power of death.
In a land of idolatry (Josh. 24:22And Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor: and they served other gods. (Joshua 24:2)). there came to him a call from “the God of Glory” (Acts 7:22And he said, Men, brethren, and fathers, hearken; The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran, (Acts 7:2)). He was called to get out from his country, kindred and father’s house (Gen. 12:11Now the Lord had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will show thee: (Genesis 12:1)). “By faith... he obeyed and he went out, not knowing whither he went” (Heb. 11:88By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. (Hebrews 11:8)). That call altered the whole course of his life. Idols were abandoned: social links were snapped; former associations were forsaken; and he went forth by faith in God.
Some one may ask. “Does that mean that I must literally leave my father’s house; give up my means of livelihood and step out to be a wanderer upon the face of the earth?” No, not by any means. But it does mean that “the God of Glory has called us who believe, net only from our sins and out of the condition under His judgment in which we were because of our sins: but He has called us out of this world; has set before us another world, and He would have us allow nothing to hinder our responding to that call. It will cost us something but the compensation will far outweigh the cost. “By faith, Abraham obeyed and went out.” Have we done so? If not, shall we do so?
Abraham knew not whither he went, but God knew. We know not the path that lies before us if we step out, but God knows, and that is sufficient. Abraham’s faith was tested, as ours will be. God promised him a son but that son was long in coming. It would seem as if at times Abraham grew weary of waiting: Sarah certainly did, but Abraham believed God. “He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith giving glory to God” (Rom. 4:2020He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; (Romans 4:20)). He believed the impossible. He was one hundred years old, and Sarah was only ten years his junior: when “at the set time” Isaac was born (Gen. 21:22For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. (Genesis 21:2)). At the very time fixed in the divine plan, on the tick of the clock, the promise was fulfilled. We have read or heard somewhere:
“God never before His time,
And never is behind.”
Is some one reading these lines who has been praying and praying and praying; and waiting and waiting and waiting for years for something. Pray on; wait, and “at the set time” He will surely answer. What a marvelous result in this case for there “sprang... so many as the stars of the sky in multitude and as the sand which is by the seashore innumerable” (Heb. 11:1212Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. (Hebrews 11:12)). and as the following verse tells us “these all died in faith.” They did not receive the promises but with a telescopic view they saw them afar off, they were “persuaded of them” they “embraced them”: and, as a result, they “confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.”
How the Holy Spirit seems to delight to linger over this. It was not mere theory, it was reality: nor was it fancy it was fact. They were mightily moved by it, and living in the light of another world they were set free from the entanglements of this world. How God showed His appreciation of that. “Wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for He hath prepared for them a city” (verse 16). Do we give God cause to be ashamed of us? Have we cause to be ashamed of ourselves? Oh, that the light of God’s word might attract us, and so wean us from this world that found here as strangers (away from home), and pilgrims (going home), we might give pleasure to His heart.
But a severe test awaited Abraham. There came a call from God to offer up Isaac whom he loved (Gen. 22:1,21And it came to pass after these things, that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. 2And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of. (Genesis 22:1‑2)). Think of it! Isaac was the child of promise for whom Abraham had waited long: the one of whom God had said. “In Isaac shall thy seed be called” (Gen. 21:1212And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called. (Genesis 21:12)), and now he was called upon to offer him up. What happened? Let us look at our chapter. verses 17-19:
“By faith Abraham when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said. That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the dead: from whence also he received him in a figure.”
Incidentally, this shows that “only begotten” does not refer to generation. Isaac was not Abraham’s only begotten son according to generation, nor in point of time, was he the first begotten. But he was the center of his father’s affections, and the one round whom not only his father’s plans, but the divine plan, circled. So in John 1, the only begotten was, and is, the center of the Father’s affections, and the Father’s counsels, and for the carrying of these out, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son” (John 3:1616For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)). That by the way. By faith Abraham offered up Isaac and received him even from the dead in a figure. His God-given faith rendered him superior to the power of death, because it was in the God of resurrection.
Space permits no more than a glance at Isaac and Jacob. Isaac’s life seemed to be more or less uneventful but at its close he had the vision of faith as he “blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come” (verse 20). He looked down through the ages, past the period in which we find ourselves, to a time when Israel shall have the place that has been forfeited because of having rejected the Messiah; and when having owned Him, it shall have the position that God had planned from the outset.
What shall we say of Jacob? True to his name, he seemed to be nut to supplant everybody. Scheming, working for his own ends, indifferent to what happened to his fellow-men, he followed a devious course at Bethel (The house of God). God appeared to him and made a magnificent offer, Jacob seemed to think he could bargain with God as he did with men. Terrified by the vision he went forth and the story of the next few years is a sad one. Then God in His infinite patience, appeared to him again, recalled him to the place where he first missed his way. There he learned his lesson, and not only renewed his acquaintance with Bethel, but got to know the God of Bethel (Genesis 35:77And he built there an altar, and called the place El-beth-el: because there God appeared unto him, when he fled from the face of his brother. (Genesis 35:7)); built an altar, and, from that point, went steadily forward.
He had to go through a sea of sorrow after that, but he had a bright sunset. He blessed the sons of Joseph, not as their father desired, but as God willed, and the close of his chequered career was that he “worshipped leaning-upon the top of his staff” (Heb. 11:2121By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff. (Hebrews 11:21)). This was indeed the victory of faith.
In all this there is encouragement for us. These men were like Elijah, “subject to like passions as we are” (James 5:1717Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. (James 5:17)), they failed, but God did not fail; their faith wavered, but God’s faithfulness never slackened; they grew weary, but God was ever and always the same. They trusted God in the most critical circumstances and in face of seemingly insurmountable difficulties, and God honored their faith. Their manner of life in the main was consistent with their confession and God showed His appreciation of it.
They suffered loss here but were assured of reward hereafter. They lived in separation from this world energized by the vision of God’s world, and thus faith triumphed. God was glorified, and they were blest. May we be greatly encouraged to follow on in the path of faith!
W. Bramwell Dick.
Next month, God willing verses 22-31. Kindly lead the whole chapter over and over again.
Let us put all matters into God’s hands, and have them there. Can they be better ordered than by Him? We newer think that the sun, moon and stars will go wrong, because man has nothing to do with the ordering of them.