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Faith · Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

0:00
Sorry, I just turned this thing on a lot.
0:03
Then we discussed what repentance actually is.
0:06
! Number one, we said repentance is seeing one's sin, recognizing one's sin, seeing it for what it really is, seeing it in light of how God sees it.
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Number two, we said repentance is sorrow over one's sin, results in a brokenness, results in a contrite heart.
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We see that in Psalm 51 and other places in Scripture, Psalm 38.
0:24
Thirdly, we said true repentance was confessing one's sin.
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That's kind of the verbal expression of repentance in the life of a believer.
0:35
And then fourthly, we said that it's a turning away from one's sin, which is kind of what we normally want to think about when we think about repentance.
0:40
It's first and foremost in our minds, often a turning away from one's sin.
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But that's kind of the last stage in the process of actually repenting.
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It's turning away.
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So, okay, in light of last week's lesson, this week we're going to be talking about the other subtopic of conversion.
1:00
So we have repentance in one side and we have faith on the other side.
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Okay, so the other aspect of conversion is faith.
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Jesus Christ came in Mark 1.15 and he said, repent, and then he said, and believe in the gospel.
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So first he said, repent, then he said, believe.
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These are the two aspects, main aspects of what conversion actually is.
1:23
If repentance is a turning away from sin and thusly a turning around towards something else.
1:32
Okay, so I'm going this way and then I repent and I do an about face and I turn a different way.
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Then faith is the thing that propels you forward toward something else.
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Okay, so I'm walking this way.
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I repent.
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That means I turn the other way and then I walk towards something else.
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Faith is what enables a person to do that.
1:55
Okay, it's the actual going the different direction that faith is.
1:59
I kind of gave you a flawed illustration last week by saying that, by saying or telling you to think about conversion as a body
2:05
and then faith and repentance as the legs of that body that enable it to walk around and move.
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I think it would be more accurate to say that conversion is the body, okay?
2:17
Repentance is the legs of that body and then faith is kind of like the muscles.
2:22
That give movement, that give mobility or strength to the legs to actually function and work.
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I think that's more accurate.
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So repentance by itself is not a mobilizing thing.
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Just like legs without muscles are not a mobilizing thing.
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You have to have faith in order to move.
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So no man has ever come to Christ solely on repentance.
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Repentance.
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It's kind of like taking a sip of water when you're thirsty, but not exercising the proper muscles to swallow.
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Okay, it doesn't benefit you if you don't swallow the water and let it digest in your system.
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So the same thing is that if you only have repentance, if you only have the taking in of water,
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but you don't actually exercise that repentance with faith,
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it's kind of like you're wasting your time.
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So again, no man has ever come to Christ solely on repentance.
3:12
Many people genuinely repent for crimes against others or for misconduct or for acting irresponsibly.
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They genuinely feel broken about stuff like that.
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I recently was watching the news and I saw this guy,
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a young man whose face was covered in tears.
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He was sobbing, crying, yelling because he had been driving drunk and it had hit an oncoming car that was,
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I think, filled with children and killed them.
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Okay, so this guy's in an orange jumpsuit, you know, on the defendant's side of a courtroom with his hands behind his back,
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you know, in handcuffs and he's crying out, he's sobbing, he's crying out,
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begging for mercy from the families that were prosecuting him for this crime.
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Okay, that's an element of repentance.
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I think the guy was genuinely broken about that.
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But that isn't biblical repentance.
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It's not going to get him anywhere.
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It's not going to benefit him in Christ.
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It would not bring the man any closer to Christ.
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And so a like-mannered repentance by you will not bring you any closer to Christ.
4:16
There's a lot of things that we repent about, we feel sorry for, we get upset about,
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maybe tears stream down our faces about, that is not genuine repentance.
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Okay?
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Genuine repentance is God-centered.
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God-centered.
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On the last day, if that man wanted to use an argument of,
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hey, well, I mean, I was genuinely repentant about this thing that I did.
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But he had no repentance or sorrow because he had committed some kind of offense against God,
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that wouldn't do him any good on the last day.
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He would still be judged as a sinner and still condemned to hell because he did not repent to the right person,
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to Christ.
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True biblical repentance is directed towards the Creator and not fellow creation.
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Psalm 51.4 is a great verse.
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Turn there really quickly.
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I'll show you.
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Psalm 51.4.
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This is a really common, again, chapter of Scripture, kind of like Hebrews 11.
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And David is kind of had freshly committed adultery with this lady named Bathsheba.
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And then he had killed her husband to cover it up.
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And he is approached by a prophet who exposes this for him.
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And he's led to kind of write this psalm or pen the psalm and his brokenness.
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And he says this in verse 4.
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So mind you, again, keep this in mind.
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He has just killed the husband of the woman that he committed adultery with.
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And he says, against you, referring to God, you only have I sinned against.
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And done what is evil in your sight.
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He says, against you and you only have I sinned against.
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So David saw his sin as against, even in this situation, as against the Father.
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And that's how you should think about true repentance.
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It's against God.
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You have sinned against God.
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He's the one supporting you accountable.
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You can sin against other people as well.
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And we need to ask for forgiveness for them as well.
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We need to be given forgiveness when we sin against other people ourselves.
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But true repentance is against God.
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And that's where it's got to start.
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Okay?
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Against you and you only have I sinned against.
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And done what is evil in your sight.
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So many men feel sorrow for sin.
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Not because of their crime.
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Not because of their offense.
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But because they were caught.
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Because by what they had done, they harmed themselves.
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They harmed some other person.
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So ask yourself this question.
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What good will it do me, having repented, to take a step in the wrong direction?
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Okay?
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What good will it do you if you repent truly and then take a step in the wrong direction?
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If that step is anywhere that's not Christ, it's in the wrong direction.
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You could say it like this.
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Just because you change lanes on the wide road doesn't mean you're not headed towards death.
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Okay?
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A not God-centered repentance is kind of like changing lanes.
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But you're still on the wide road headed towards death.
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You're not avoiding it at all.
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You're just changing lanes.
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Getting a clearer view to it, in a sense.
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The direction of one's faith, or the object of one's faith, or the person of one's faith,
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is by far the most important element of one's faith.
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An element of repentance.
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Okay?
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There's only one way to get to God, and that is through Jesus Christ.
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John 14, 6 says what?
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I am the way.
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I am the truth.
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I am the life.
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Nobody comes to the Father except by me.
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So it starts with Christ, it ends with Christ.
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Your first step of faith after repentance must be towards Jesus.
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And must remain towards Him until the day that you die.
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And that is the work of conversion.
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When somebody is converted, okay, when you are truly saved,
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you get an interest in Christ.
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Your eyes fix on Jesus Christ.
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You see Him for who He truly is.
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You see your offenses against God, and you repent to God.
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Then He forgives you.
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He regenerates you.
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He enables you to believe on Him savingly,
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and you start walking towards Him.
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And that happens for the remainder of your life.
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It's an ongoing thing.
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And so the life of a Christian is a life of repentance.
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It's also a life of faith.
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Okay?
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We talked about repentance last week.
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This week is faith.
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That was the introduction.
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Let's get into it.
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Hebrews 11.
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If you turn to Psalm 51, go back to Hebrews 11.
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Again, now faith is the assurance or the substance of things hoped for.
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The conviction of things not seen.
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Here we are given the preeminent description of faith in all Scripture.
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The best one is right here.
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It's only one little verse, and it's small, but it is loaded with truth.
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And I'm looking forward to getting into it.
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And I want to start, as we begin to unpack this verse, I want to start with the very first word.
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It says, now.
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Okay?
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It says, now.
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We're going to start here.
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The author begins by saying, now.
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Now, this word is a transition word.
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Meaning, that the reader should change the way that he was thinking to a new line of thinking.
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Or he's, the author, in a sense, is going to transition the reader from what he just said to a new line of thinking.
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So, kind of like, in light of that, or like a therefore, or like a thusly, we're going to say this now.
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Okay?
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It's a transition phrase.
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A transition word.
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And because we're just jumping into this text, I need to give you guys some context.
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So you can understand what's happening here.
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It's going to help you understand the fullness of this verse, as we need to.
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We need to be very careful to allow the verse to speak to us in its natural flow.
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So, here's a little context for you.
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For ten chapters now, the author has been laboring to prove one primary main point.
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For ten chapters.
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That being, that the new covenant of grace, or of the blood of Jesus Christ, is better and is superior in every way to the old covenant of works.
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Okay?
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There's these things called covenants.
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God makes covenants with man.
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In the old covenant that God made initially with Adam in the garden, he said, you've got to keep my word perfectly.
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Now, Adam wasn't a sinner at this point in time.
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Okay?
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He had free will.
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He was completely free to choose to obey God.
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This is the Adamic covenant.
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Okay?
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And it has a lot more attached to it.
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But this is kind of where it starts.
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So, Adam had the choice to either choose to obey or not obey God.
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He did not.
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All of us fell into sin as a result of it.
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And so, that's the covenant of works that we were once in.
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We were enslaved to the law of Moses, to the old covenant of works that said, hey, you can't earn me my favor, my righteousness apart from Christ.
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So, they were living in this old covenant.
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Now, this new covenant came into play when Jesus Christ came on the scene, died, shed his blood, purchased for you life.
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Freedom from sin.
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Perfection by faith in him.
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That's the new covenant.
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Okay?
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So, for ten chapters, this author, we don't know who the author is in this book, but the author has been trying to prove to these people, these Jewish people, that the new covenant of grace or the blood of Jesus Christ is far better, far superior to every way, to every way and everything in the old covenant of works.
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And MacArthur once said this.
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He said, Christ is a better priest with a better sacrifice by which he sealed a better covenant.
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And he's writing to Jews to prove to them that the new covenant is the best.
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He says Christ is better than angels, than prophets, than Moses, than Aaron, than Joshua, than everything.
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That's what he's talked about throughout the first ten chapters.
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All these things.
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He's better than all these things.
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He's better than anyone and everything connected to the old covenant.
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So, in essence, okay, when he gets to verse 1 of chapter 11, he's saying, you have got to appropriate the new covenant of grace.
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You've got to possess it.
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You are not underneath this old covenant any longer.
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You need to possess this new covenant of Christ.
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Okay?
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See, the Jews were trying to earn their salvation.
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They had twisted this old covenant that God had set forth for them over the years into this cultish, works-based salvation that was filled with rules and all kinds of ethical obligations.
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I think it's something like, I mean, the Pharisees and Sadducees of Jesus' time had actually imposed upon the text of Scripture that they had at that point in time.
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So, imposed upon God's covenant something like 400, 600, I don't know what it is, something, hundreds, hundreds of, like, rules that were not what God had said.
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All these rules.
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You can't do this and this and this and this and this and this.
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I mean, it was all this total legalism.
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And they thought, hey, I'm going to earn God's favor by keeping these rules.
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They were wrong.
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They could never do that.
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They never could do that.
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God never intended it to be that way.
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So, they twisted the old covenant.
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And so, the 10th chapter closes with a warning to appropriate the new covenant.
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To make the new covenant yours.
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To step away from Judaism.
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To step away from this temple stuff.
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This priesthood stuff.
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And all that came with that.
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And come to the new covenant.
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Okay?
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Now, this brings up a question in the minds of the reader.
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Especially this early Jewish reader.
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That is, how?
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How do I do that?
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How do I appropriate this new covenant of Christ?
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How do I come into the new covenant?
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What do I do?
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See, this Jew was, again, he was used to this work system.
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He had no idea.
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He had no concept of grace.
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He had no idea what grace was.
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And these works weren't even involved.
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So, how then, one might ask, am I supposed to come into the new covenant?
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There weren't any sacrifices to make.
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Okay?
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There was no particular feasts that they had to observe.
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Under this new covenant of Christ.
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There weren't any ritual washings to go through.
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There was not any ceremonies to go through.
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There was no circumcision any longer.
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There wasn't even any memorization of ethics or the law anymore.
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All these things were nullified when Christ came and fulfilled it all and then died in righteousness.
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Perfect righteousness.
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All the works of the law were fulfilled in Christ.
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Someone said, or he corrects somebody I was looking for earlier.
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I couldn't find it.
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He says, I have not come to do away with the law.
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I've come to establish it.
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I haven't come to abolish the law, all these regulations.
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I've come to fulfill it.
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To become it for you.
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Okay?
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And a lot of people, I mean, I'm saying all this stuff, but a lot of people these days are still underneath the same thing.
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They believe they have to tack on to what Christ has done.
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It's Jesus Christ plus my exterior ability.
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Plus my ability to go to church on every single Sunday.
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Plus my, you know, going to Thursday night Bible study on fall break.
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Plus my, you know, like baking cookies for the Thursday night Bible study.
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You know, they have to do all these things to earn God's favor outside of Christ.
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And that is a, God hates nothing more than that.
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Than you thinking you have to do anything to earn His favor outside of Jesus.
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That diminishes His glory.
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Okay?
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And you get glory.
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That's why faith is a work of God.
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That's why your salvation is a work of God.
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That's why you're saved by grace through faith in Christ.
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That not of your own doing.
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It's a gift of God.
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Not of works.
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Lest you can boast.
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So God strips away from all of you the ability to boast.
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Okay?
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In this new covenant.
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So the answer to the question that these Jews are posing,
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how do I do this?
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How do I get this?
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This new covenant applied to me.
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The answer is believe.
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Have faith.
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It's so simple.
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Have faith.
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Have faith in Christ.
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Jesus' words when He died, His last words were what?
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It is finished.
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Right?
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It is finished.
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That's a pretty awesome statement.
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That's a loaded statement.
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Because that means everything that was required of us for salvation was finished.
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It is finished.
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So now we can justifiably say,
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all it requires is faith in Christ.
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Now we're going to see what real faith actually is.
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That's not simply intellectual descent to something.
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It's not simply walking down an aisle.
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It's not signing a card.
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You know, we've said this a million times.
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It's not for the faint of heart.
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Okay?
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True faith is serious business.
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I think I said last week it's warrior work.
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It's serious.
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Okay?
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We're going to see what this is.
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So having established this author,
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having established the preeminence of Christ over all areas of the Old Covenant,
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that the author now transitions in verse 1 of chapter 11
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to reaffirm, firstly for the Jews, what faith is.
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That's verse 1.
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He reaffirms, this is what faith is.
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Here's a good definition of what faith is.
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I'm going to describe it for you.
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Verse 1.
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And then he goes on to reassert for these Jews
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that it's always been faith that's saved.
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It's always been faith, or by faith,
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that the righteous have lived and pleased God.
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So when someone asks you,
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how would somebody say before Christ?
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By faith.
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It says it repetitively in Hebrews 11.
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It's never not been faith.
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It's always been intended to be faith.
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All the sacrifices that they were doing back in the day
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were meant to point to a Savior.
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To say, this is what you need.
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You can't, every day you're cutting lambs and bulls' throats
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and it's spilling blood
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because you don't have the ability to ever stop this work.
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This is kind of cool.
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The only thing that was missing from the tabernacle,
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the only piece of furniture that was missing from the tabernacle
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was a place to sit down
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because the work was never finished.
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Okay?
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So those priests never sat down
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because it was never done.
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Then Christ came and said,
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it's finished.
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I've done it.
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Okay?
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So he's going to reassert for them
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that it's always been faith
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that saved you.
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Now,
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the author of Hebrews
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doesn't exactly tell us
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what the object of our faith should be
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until chapter 12.
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He simply kind of describes its nature.
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He wants to kind of get into general,
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the general truth about faith first
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before he kind of gets specific.
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That's a common way
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that common way people write in the New Testament
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is to go from general to specific.
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So he does this.
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He goes general first.
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And I want to,
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I want to draw your attention
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for the sake of this teaching
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to chapter 12,
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which clearly,
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as you're going to see,
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distinguishes Christ
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as him
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to whom
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all of our faith,
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all of our confidence,
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all of our conviction
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should be applied.
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Okay?
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Because if you don't know
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what you're aiming at,
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you're going to miss.
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Okay?
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So all your faith,
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all your conviction,
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all your confidence
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has got to be aimed
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at Jesus Christ.
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Look at 12 verses 1 and 2.
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Therefore,
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since we have so great
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a cloud of witnesses,
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that's,
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he's referring back
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to what he just said
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in the entire chapter
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of Hebrews 11.
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Okay?
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Those are the witnesses.
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These are the people
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that have come before us
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and witnessed for us
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this thing,
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this truth,
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this faith.
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So therefore,
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since we have been surrounded
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by so great a cloud of witnesses,
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let us also lay aside
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every encumbrance
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in the sin
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which so easily entangles us
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and let us run with endurance
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the race that is set before us.
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How?
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How?
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Fixing our eyes on Jesus
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who is the author
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and the perfecter of faith.
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Fixing our eyes on Jesus
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who is the author
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and the perfecter of our faith.
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This is so crucial.
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If you don't see Jesus
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as the one who has authored
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or written
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or created
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your faith
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and he is the finisher
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of your faith as well,
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he's the one that drives it on,
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he's the one that energizes it
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day to day,
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you will burn out.
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You will find yourself
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trying to
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create faith
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from a human's ability.
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You will find yourself
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exhausted by ministry
22:45
and exhausted
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by the scripture
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and exhausted
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by preaching
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and exhausted
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by praying
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and exhausted
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by loving
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and worshiping Christ.
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You will find yourself
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burnt out
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if you do not
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see Jesus
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every single day
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as the author
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and the finisher,
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the perfecter
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of your faith.
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Okay,
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you have got
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to remember this.
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This is so big.
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He's the one
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that gives you strength.
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Apart from me,
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you can do
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nothing.
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He says in John 15, 5.
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Repentance is a turning away
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from sin
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and faith
23:29
is that element
23:30
of conversion
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by which the sinner
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comes to Christ.
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It's that element
23:34
of conversion
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by which the sinner
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places their faith,
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their eyes of faith
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on Jesus.
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In the Gospel of John,
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chapter 6,
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Jesus finishes
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speaking to
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a multitude
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of people
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of his disciples.
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All these people
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gather around
23:50
to hear him speak
23:50
and he said
23:51
some crazy,
23:52
crazy stuff.
23:53
He says stuff like
23:54
eat my flesh,
23:55
drink my blood.
23:56
It's really cannibalistic
23:57
and weird
23:57
and strange.
23:58
But Jesus says this,
23:59
okay,
23:59
and it freaks
24:00
everybody out.
24:03
And a lot of them
24:05
leave.
24:06
Okay,
24:06
a lot of disciples
24:07
part away from him
24:07
and say,
24:08
I can't handle this.
24:08
This guy is strange.
24:09
He's a Charles Manson
24:11
kind of character.
24:11
I'm not going to deal
24:12
with this guy.
24:13
Okay?
24:16
So Jesus turns
24:17
to his 12 disciples
24:17
and he says this,
24:18
you do not want
24:19
to go away
24:19
also do you?
24:23
Simon Peter
24:24
answered him
24:24
and said,
24:25
Lord,
24:25
to whom
24:26
shall we go?
24:27
you have the words
24:30
of eternal life
24:31
and we have believed
24:33
and we have come
24:34
to know
24:34
that you are
24:35
the Holy One
24:36
of God.
24:40
Okay?
24:41
So Jesus said
24:42
some crazy stuff
24:44
and a lot of people
24:45
turned and left
24:46
and went away
24:46
from him.
24:47
But he says
24:48
through Peter,
24:50
through Peter says,
24:51
but you have the words
24:52
of eternal life.
24:53
We can't go anywhere else.
24:55
I know it's hard
24:56
to hear what you just said.
24:57
It's a struggle
24:57
for us to deal with that
24:58
but we can't go anywhere else.
24:59
We have to stay with you.
25:01
You have the keys
25:01
to the kingdom of God.
25:04
Realize that Jesus
25:05
is not an easy man
25:05
to follow
25:06
but he alone,
25:07
okay?
25:07
He alone,
25:08
there's only one person
25:08
that possesses
25:10
the key
25:10
to his father's kingdom
25:11
and we must
25:12
by faith
25:15
follow him
25:15
no matter the cost.
25:18
So I say this,
25:18
okay?
25:19
I mention that verse
25:20
to make a point.
25:22
And the point is this,
25:23
okay?
25:23
The Jews struggled
25:25
with Jesus.
25:27
When he was on earth,
25:28
they struggled.
25:29
They said,
25:29
you say hard things.
25:31
You say things
25:32
that are difficult
25:33
to understand,
25:33
that are difficult
25:34
to believe
25:35
and to comprehend.
25:37
And not only that
25:38
but you're from this town
25:39
and your brothers say
25:40
that you're not
25:41
the real deal
25:41
and there's all these
25:42
kind of speculative issues
25:43
with Jesus Christ.
25:46
You know,
25:46
I mean,
25:46
you're teaching
25:47
your doctrine.
25:48
It's really authoritative.
25:49
It's unlike anything
25:49
we've ever heard.
25:50
It's kind of new.
25:51
We're afraid of new.
25:52
You're authoritative.
25:53
You know,
25:53
you're doing all
25:54
these crazy miracles.
25:55
We don't know
25:55
if it's demons
25:56
or God.
25:57
It's just,
25:58
they struggled.
26:00
The Jews struggled
26:01
with Jesus.
26:03
Okay?
26:03
But those that knew
26:04
Jesus,
26:06
those that knew him
26:08
experientially by faith,
26:10
said,
26:10
even though you're
26:11
difficult sometimes,
26:12
Jesus,
26:12
I've got to stay with you.
26:15
So,
26:16
you may struggle
26:18
with questions.
26:19
Okay?
26:20
You may struggle
26:21
with questions
26:21
about Jesus' teaching.
26:24
About the inerrancy
26:25
of Scripture.
26:27
About certain doctrines.
26:30
Okay?
26:31
About truth
26:31
that we may speak
26:32
about Jesus Christ.
26:34
About his resurrection.
26:36
But I want to encourage you.
26:38
God will answer you
26:38
in due time.
26:40
He says
26:41
to seek him
26:41
with all your heart
26:42
and you're going to find him.
26:43
Ask
26:43
and you're going to receive.
26:46
Not,
26:46
the door's going to be open to you.
26:48
Okay?
26:49
I'm begging you.
26:50
I'm asking.
26:51
I'm pleading with you
26:52
to just labor with Jesus.
26:54
Don't get discouraged.
26:55
Don't run away.
26:56
Don't be like the crowd.
26:59
Tarry with them.
27:01
Okay?
27:05
Trust in the Lord.
27:06
Take him at his word.
27:08
And I promise
27:09
that he's going to comfort you.
27:10
He's going to answer you
27:10
in the end.
27:11
All right.
27:14
First point.
27:15
I only have two points tonight.
27:16
First point.
27:18
Faith
27:19
gives things
27:20
substance.
27:23
Faith
27:24
gives things
27:24
substance.
27:28
The first phrase there
27:29
in our verse,
27:31
Hebrews 11.
27:32
One says,
27:33
faith is the substance
27:34
of things hoped for.
27:36
The word substance
27:37
is hypostasis
27:40
in the Greek.
27:41
And it could be translated
27:43
ground or foundation
27:44
or substructure.
27:45
That which has actual substance.
27:47
Real being.
27:50
In the Greek.
27:53
Real substance.
27:54
Real being
27:55
is what it says
27:55
in the Greek.
27:56
Literally.
27:57
A thing hoped for
27:58
is not a tangible thing,
27:59
is it?
28:02
This is a strange phrase.
28:03
I'll give you that.
28:04
Listen.
28:05
Faith is the
28:06
assurance
28:07
or the substance
28:08
of things hoped for.
28:09
Something hoped for
28:10
doesn't have any ground.
28:11
Doesn't have any foundation.
28:13
Doesn't have any tangibility.
28:15
It's hoped for.
28:17
Okay.
28:17
If I
28:17
or I don't
28:20
hope for an ice cream cone
28:21
if I've got it,
28:22
if I've got one in my hand.
28:24
I hope for an ice cream cone
28:25
when I'm standing
28:26
on the corner
28:26
at my house
28:27
waiting for the ice cream
28:28
truck to come
28:29
through my neighborhood
28:29
and make it stop.
28:31
You know,
28:31
like that's what I'm hoping
28:32
for that ice cream cone.
28:32
It's not when I have it
28:33
in my hand
28:33
and I can lick it.
28:34
That doesn't make any sense.
28:36
I'm not hoping for that
28:37
if it's in my possession.
28:39
So if the thing is already
28:40
in your possession
28:40
then you don't hope for it.
28:42
Somehow
28:43
faith
28:44
has the ability
28:45
according to the verse
28:47
to give a thing
28:48
hoped for
28:49
realness.
28:53
Substance.
28:56
Okay.
28:56
Realness.
29:03
It's like tasting
29:03
the ice cream cone
29:04
before it's in your mouth.
29:07
That's kind of what
29:08
faith does.
29:09
So from the beginning
29:10
this eliminates
29:11
any notion
29:11
that faith is whimsical,
29:12
faith is emotional,
29:14
unintelligible,
29:14
silly,
29:15
easy,
29:15
mystical,
29:16
fantastical,
29:16
anything like that.
29:17
Okay.
29:17
Biblical faith is rocky.
29:19
It's real.
29:20
It's tangible.
29:21
It's got content.
29:22
It's got substance to it.
29:26
It's not some
29:27
fan,
29:28
you know,
29:29
idea.
29:31
It's real.
29:32
It does things.
29:35
What does this mean though?
29:36
What is this?
29:36
Faith is the substance
29:38
of things.
29:38
What does that mean?
29:39
MacArthur
29:39
kind of put it like this.
29:41
Faith gives things
29:42
hope for
29:43
a present
29:44
substance.
29:48
A presence.
29:48
I'm going to explain this.
29:49
A present substance.
29:50
The examples of our author
29:51
that he's about to give
29:54
and illustrate
29:54
in the rest of this chapter
29:55
illustrate
29:55
time after time
29:57
a person
29:58
that believes
29:59
in a promise of God
30:00
so much so
30:03
that it radically
30:04
affects the way
30:05
they think
30:06
about things.
30:09
I'm going to say that again.
30:10
Okay.
30:11
Time and time again
30:12
the author illustrates
30:16
for us
30:16
a person
30:18
believing in a promise
30:19
of God
30:20
so much so
30:21
that it
30:24
radically affects
30:26
the way they
30:27
think about things.
30:29
They can be in a crazy,
30:30
bad,
30:31
horrible circumstance
30:32
and yet be content
30:33
somehow.
30:35
They can have joy
30:36
in the midst of suffering
30:37
somehow.
30:38
Now,
30:43
this,
30:43
okay,
30:43
I'm pausing
30:44
because I want this
30:45
to sink into your brain.
30:46
This is incredibly important
30:48
for you to understand
30:49
what faith actually does
30:51
to you
30:51
when you exercise it rightly.
30:53
They believe so strongly
30:55
that what God said
30:56
that he would do
30:57
so much so
30:58
that it radically
30:58
affected the way
30:59
that these righteous saints
31:00
thought about life.
31:02
Take Abraham and Sarah
31:03
for example first.
31:04
Okay,
31:04
Abraham trusted God
31:05
for 19 years
31:06
after he received
31:07
the promise
31:08
of a son.
31:10
19 years.
31:11
His name was,
31:12
this is kind of cool,
31:13
his name was Abram
31:14
initially
31:15
which meant
31:16
father of many.
31:20
Then,
31:21
God said,
31:23
I'm going to make you
31:24
a father
31:25
of multitudes
31:27
and your name
31:29
is now Abraham
31:29
which means
31:30
father of multitudes.
31:32
Now,
31:32
Abraham
31:33
was kind of a
31:34
stationary guy.
31:36
Okay,
31:36
he was kind of like
31:37
the first person
31:37
you would see
31:38
when you walk into town.
31:41
So,
31:42
what do you do
31:42
when you meet somebody?
31:43
Hey,
31:44
I'm John.
31:45
You are Abraham.
31:46
Oh,
31:47
father of multitudes.
31:48
How many sons do you have?
31:49
None.
31:51
And it was incredibly,
31:52
this is a very,
31:53
this is a very,
31:54
sons and daughters,
31:55
like that's an incredibly
31:56
important thing
31:57
back in the day.
31:57
I mean,
31:57
if you didn't have a family
31:58
like you were
31:59
considered to be,
32:00
you know,
32:00
you were like the,
32:02
what's it called?
32:03
The Brahmin
32:04
and like the what?
32:06
Untouchable.
32:07
You were untouchable.
32:08
Yeah.
32:10
Okay.
32:12
It was,
32:13
it was incredibly embarrassing.
32:14
For 19 years,
32:15
this guy just suffered
32:16
through this.
32:17
He was like,
32:17
come on God,
32:18
19 years.
32:19
I was already
32:20
father of many.
32:20
That was embarrassing.
32:21
Now I'm father
32:21
of multitudes.
32:24
And my wife
32:25
is feral.
32:28
This is embarrassing.
32:30
Okay.
32:30
So somehow,
32:32
faith for Abraham
32:33
and Sarah,
32:35
we learn this in
32:36
Romans 4,
32:37
20.
32:39
It says this about Abraham.
32:40
He didn't waver in faith.
32:42
Even when he considered
32:44
his own body.
32:46
It was as good as dead,
32:47
it says.
32:48
He was like a hundred.
32:51
You can't have kids
32:52
when you're a hundred.
32:52
Not wavering in unbelief,
32:56
but growing strong
32:57
in faith.
33:00
He grew strong
33:01
in faith
33:02
and that gave glory
33:02
to God.
33:04
He did not doubt God.
33:06
He did Abraham's wife,
33:07
Sarah,
33:07
doubt God.
33:07
Look at verse 11
33:08
of our chapter.
33:10
It says this,
33:11
by faith,
33:12
even Sarah herself
33:13
received the ability
33:14
to conceive.
33:15
Even beyond the proper
33:16
time of life
33:17
that she was considered,
33:19
keyword,
33:19
considered,
33:20
or thought,
33:21
remember I said
33:23
it changes the way
33:23
you think about things?
33:24
So Sarah considered
33:25
a thought,
33:27
God faithful
33:28
who had promised.
33:31
Faith for her
33:32
translated into
33:33
a new way of thinking
33:35
that gave her
33:36
the ability
33:36
to trust God.
33:38
Even though
33:39
it was impossible.
33:40
The elements said
33:41
it was impossible.
33:42
She's 90 years old.
33:43
Her husband's 100 years old.
33:44
They're past the time
33:45
of childbearing.
33:46
There's no possible
33:47
way this is going to happen.
33:48
They didn't bear children
33:49
when they were healthy
33:50
and vibrant.
33:50
Now they're definitely
33:51
not going to do it
33:51
when they're old
33:52
and decrepit.
33:53
But they do
33:54
and they have faith
33:55
and it makes it happen.
33:57
Faith gives the thing
33:58
they hoped for,
34:00
which is Isaac
34:00
in their case,
34:01
that was their son,
34:01
son of promise,
34:02
a present substance
34:04
enabling them
34:06
to patiently,
34:07
faithfully,
34:08
and even joyfully
34:09
wait for the promise
34:11
to be fulfilled.
34:14
Okay?
34:15
That's what faith is.
34:17
Real biblical faith is.
34:18
That's one of the
34:18
descriptions he gives you.
34:19
There's a lot of them.
34:21
And that gave glory
34:22
to God.
34:23
They didn't have
34:24
a physical Isaac
34:24
in their possession yet,
34:25
but they believed
34:27
so much so
34:28
that it brought them
34:28
real joy
34:29
when they thought about it.
34:31
Okay?
34:32
Abraham believed God
34:33
so much so
34:37
that it changed
34:37
the way that he thought.
34:40
Okay?
34:43
Now realize this,
34:44
okay?
34:45
You are called
34:46
to have the same
34:47
kind of faith.
34:50
What does Jesus say
34:50
in John 14,
34:51
verse 1?
34:52
Don't let your heart
34:53
be troubled.
34:54
Believe in God.
34:54
Believe also in me.
34:56
Then what does he say?
34:59
He says,
35:00
in my Father's house
35:00
are many mansions,
35:01
many dwelling places.
35:03
If it were not so,
35:04
I wouldn't have told you that.
35:05
I go to prepare
35:06
a place for you.
35:07
When I'm done
35:08
with my stuff,
35:08
I'm going to come back
35:09
and get you.
35:09
Now,
35:09
you realize
35:13
that's a promise
35:14
that he's making to you.
35:16
I'm going away.
35:17
I'm going to come back.
35:19
I got dwelling places
35:21
in my Father's house
35:22
for you.
35:25
That's a promise
35:27
that's meant to
35:28
quench your worry.
35:31
It's meant to pacify
35:32
your anxieties.
35:36
Okay?
35:38
When you think about
35:39
things that are heavenly
35:40
like that,
35:40
when you set your mind
35:41
on heavenly things,
35:42
it makes these earthly
35:43
issues that we're
35:43
dealing with
35:44
obsolete in a lot of ways.
35:47
It kind of puts them
35:48
in perspective.
35:48
It's not really
35:49
that big of a deal.
35:51
I don't have a car.
35:52
I don't have a job.
35:52
I just got a job yesterday.
35:53
I didn't have a job
35:54
for a long time.
35:54
I was poor.
35:56
But at the same time,
35:57
in light of the reality
35:59
of me being saved
36:00
by God's grace
36:01
and God is coming back
36:02
for me on a white horse
36:03
with blood on his robe
36:05
to kill all sin,
36:06
death, and hell,
36:07
and I'm going to be
36:08
a part of that,
36:08
I'm not really worried
36:09
about it.
36:10
It's not a big deal.
36:13
That's what faith
36:15
is meant to do.
36:19
It's meant to free you
36:20
from these kinds of things.
36:21
He says,
36:22
don't let your heart
36:23
be troubled.
36:24
How?
36:25
Believe in God.
36:26
Believe also in me.
36:28
Here's my promise.
36:29
I'm coming back.
36:31
Don't worry about it.
36:32
This is faith.
36:37
Same thing of Matthew 6,
36:38
32 and 34.
36:39
Through 34,
36:40
he talks about,
36:42
hey,
36:42
if you're worried about
36:43
your food and shelter
36:44
and your clothing,
36:45
I'm going to make
36:46
a promise to you.
36:47
Seek first my kingdom
36:48
and my righteousness
36:49
and all these things
36:50
you're worried about
36:50
will be added to you.
36:53
Don't worry about tomorrow.
36:54
Tomorrow,
36:54
today has enough
36:55
trouble of its own.
36:56
Just focus on right here,
36:57
right now.
36:58
I'm going to,
36:59
I have you in my hands.
37:00
I love you.
37:03
My righteousness
37:03
is applied to you.
37:05
Don't worry about
37:05
that stuff anymore.
37:06
I'm going to provide.
37:08
And he always has.
37:09
Show me a verse.
37:11
Show me a point in time
37:11
in history.
37:12
Show me a point in time
37:13
in any true Christian's life
37:15
when God really deserted them.
37:18
And you can't do it
37:19
because it hasn't happened.
37:24
That's the reality of faith.
37:29
The thing to admire
37:30
about these Old Testament saints
37:31
we read in Hebrews 11
37:32
is their faith.
37:34
They're incredible
37:35
in the way that they persevere.
37:38
The promises that came
37:39
to those people
37:39
were so real
37:40
that even though
37:40
they never saw them,
37:42
they based their life on them.
37:45
Do you realize that?
37:45
They never saw
37:46
these promises fulfilled.
37:48
I mean,
37:49
Abraham had one son.
37:50
That wasn't multitudes of people.
37:52
God said,
37:52
go look at the stars.
37:54
As many as you can see,
37:56
that's how many sons
37:56
you're going to have.
37:57
faith.
37:57
Like the grains of sand
37:59
on the beaches.
38:02
He saw one.
38:06
He grew strong in faith.
38:08
He believed in what God said.
38:10
And his people
38:11
continued and continued
38:12
and continued.
38:13
And the story of the Old Testament
38:14
is incredible
38:14
to see how God
38:15
raised up a people
38:17
through Abraham's lineage,
38:19
through Isaac
38:19
and Jacob
38:20
and the sons of Judah
38:21
and all these people.
38:22
and he preserved them.
38:25
You see things like Joseph,
38:26
you know,
38:26
he was traded into slavery
38:28
in Egypt
38:28
and then he was shipped off
38:30
and he was in jail
38:31
for running away from
38:32
Potiphar's wife,
38:34
I think,
38:34
or something like that.
38:35
And then he was brought back up
38:37
and Pharaoh put him
38:37
as his second hand man
38:38
and then he was able to save
38:39
the rest of his family,
38:42
the lineage of Abraham,
38:44
because he was in that position
38:45
to do so.
38:47
God is just time and time again
38:48
providentially answering
38:49
and answering
38:50
and answering
38:50
and answering
38:51
and saying,
38:52
my promise is going to be fulfilled.
38:53
My promise to Abraham
38:54
is going to be fulfilled.
38:55
All these things are happening.
38:57
My Davidic covenant
38:58
is going to be fulfilled.
38:58
Abrahamic covenant
38:59
is going to be fulfilled.
39:00
All these things
39:01
God is doing
39:01
and is doing
39:02
and is doing
39:03
and preserving
39:03
and he's never not
39:04
fulfilled these promises.
39:06
2 Corinthians 1
39:07
something
39:09
20 says this,
39:11
for as many
39:12
as may be the promises
39:13
of God and him
39:14
that's in Christ,
39:17
they're yes.
39:19
Wherefore also
39:20
by him
39:21
is our amen
39:21
to the glory
39:22
of God
39:22
through us.
39:30
So we have nothing
39:31
to worry about.
39:34
These Old Testament people
39:35
simply took God
39:35
at his word
39:36
and they lived
39:37
on the basis of that.
39:40
They were people
39:40
of faith
39:41
and that faith
39:42
gave substance
39:43
to what was in the future.
39:46
Maybe you're still confused,
39:47
okay?
39:48
Maybe you are.
39:49
I don't know.
39:51
I'm making it
39:52
more practical for you.
39:52
Have you ever hoped
39:53
for anything
39:53
with such certainty
39:57
that it became
39:59
a present reality
40:00
to you?
40:02
Have you ever
40:03
so hoped
40:04
for something
40:04
that it became
40:05
a present reality
40:06
for you?
40:09
Maybe like vacation,
40:11
right?
40:11
It's May.
40:15
No.
40:17
It's April.
40:19
Crazy school April
40:21
where all my tests
40:23
are happening.
40:24
I'm psyched out
40:25
and there's that,
40:26
there's those few moments
40:27
when I know that,
40:28
hey, my vacation in May
40:29
is coming up
40:29
and I'm thinking about it
40:31
and I'm thinking about
40:32
my feet being in the sand
40:33
and in the ocean
40:34
and I'm thinking about
40:35
just relaxing on the beach
40:36
with a book
40:36
and hanging out
40:37
with my best friends
40:38
and soaking in the rays
40:40
and I'm just like,
40:41
I can feel,
40:41
oh my gosh,
40:43
I cannot wait
40:43
to that moment.
40:45
Right?
40:45
You so dwell upon
40:46
that moment
40:47
that it becomes
40:48
a present reality
40:48
for you
40:49
and you take joy in it.
40:51
Right?
40:52
That's an example.
40:53
Another example
40:54
is a baby, right?
40:54
You don't have a baby yet
40:55
but you prepare
40:56
for the baby.
40:57
You get all excited
40:57
about the baby.
40:58
You paint the room.
40:59
You get all the,
41:00
you get the cradle.
41:00
You get all these things
41:01
set up.
41:01
You get the colors.
41:02
You, you know,
41:03
see this sonogram
41:04
whatever thing it's called
41:04
and then finally
41:06
the baby does come
41:08
but before that
41:08
you're still,
41:09
you're rejoicing
41:10
in that baby's preparation.
41:11
You can,
41:12
you're thinking about it.
41:12
You're anticipating it.
41:14
You have faith
41:14
that it's going to come
41:15
and because of your faith,
41:16
because of your certainty
41:17
of that thing happening,
41:19
it gives you
41:21
a present substance.
41:25
A present reality.
41:27
A realness.
41:29
A tangibleness.
41:32
Right?
41:34
Steak dinner is the same way.
41:36
Going home after a long day
41:37
is the same way.
41:38
Heaven is the same way.
41:40
Read Revelation.
41:41
It's incredible
41:42
what you agree
41:42
about reading about heaven.
41:45
John MacArthur,
41:46
what he was like,
41:46
he was saying this,
41:47
this,
41:48
a great sermon I listened to
41:49
kind of preparing for this
41:50
on this passage.
41:51
He was like,
41:52
you know,
41:52
I've,
41:52
I've,
41:52
I've basically been to heaven
41:54
in a lot of ways.
41:55
Like I've read so much
41:56
about this
41:57
and I've studied it so hard
41:58
and I've seen the pearly gates
41:59
and I know,
42:00
and I know the dimensions of heaven
42:01
and I've been to the,
42:02
to the,
42:03
you know,
42:03
glass or crystal sea
42:05
and I've seen that tree of life
42:06
and all these things
42:08
and I've,
42:08
I've pictured
42:09
and I've imagined
42:10
and I've meditated on
42:11
God sitting on his throne.
42:13
He's like,
42:13
I've been there.
42:14
I mean,
42:14
it's given me present reality
42:15
and joy
42:16
even though it's not here yet.
42:19
Right?
42:20
But it is here.
42:23
Already,
42:23
but not yet
42:24
kind of idea.
42:24
So,
42:28
J.
42:29
Mac said,
42:29
faith is the ability
42:30
to take that
42:30
which is in the future
42:31
and give it a present substance.
42:34
That's what it is.
42:42
Here's the difference though
42:43
between bringing present substance
42:45
to those things
42:46
that I just mentioned
42:47
and being able to bring
42:48
real and present substance
42:50
to Jesus Christ.
42:54
It is the supernatural work
42:57
of God
42:57
that enables a man
42:58
to see
42:59
and to believe
43:00
in Christ
43:01
with such assurance
43:03
that it becomes
43:06
a present reality.
43:08
Okay?
43:09
Everybody
43:10
can do that
43:11
for a steak dinner
43:12
or for a vacation.
43:15
But not everybody
43:16
can do this
43:18
with Jesus.
43:20
So,
43:21
the difference is
43:22
faith
43:23
is a thing
43:24
that God
43:24
must give you.
43:27
He is the author.
43:29
He is the finisher.
43:31
The perfecter
43:31
of your faith.
43:34
Okay?
43:34
So,
43:34
if you don't have this,
43:36
this faith in Christ
43:38
that enables you
43:39
to have Him
43:40
as a present reality,
43:41
to go about your days,
43:42
to endure persecution
43:43
or suffering
43:44
or bad days
43:45
or good days
43:45
or whatever else it may be,
43:47
if you don't have that Christ,
43:48
then you need to pray
43:49
on your knees
43:51
for that Christ.
43:53
you need to ask God
43:55
with all your heart,
43:56
soul, mind,
43:57
and strength
43:58
to give you
43:59
Jesus Christ
44:01
no matter what it costs you.
44:03
There is nothing
44:04
in this world
44:04
that is better than Him.
44:07
There's not a single thing.
44:11
Okay?
44:12
So,
44:12
if you don't know
44:12
Jesus in this capacity
44:13
where He is a real thing
44:15
to you,
44:16
if He's just some
44:17
distant idea
44:18
or some guy
44:18
that you've learned about
44:19
like you've learned about
44:20
a John Calvin
44:21
or a John Wesley
44:22
or if He's just
44:23
some historical figure
44:24
to you,
44:25
then you're not saved.
44:28
Because salvation
44:29
produces this faith
44:31
that takes hold
44:35
of Christ
44:35
and says,
44:36
this is my Christ
44:37
now.
44:39
He's my possession.
44:42
I'm going to cling
44:43
on to Him.
44:44
It's a cool...
44:48
Mary, right?
44:49
Mary,
44:49
another good example.
44:50
She sees Jesus
44:52
at the tomb.
44:54
She's so elated.
44:55
She's so filled
44:57
with joy to see Jesus.
44:58
He says,
44:59
don't cling to me.
45:00
Don't cling to me.
45:01
We should be
45:01
that kind of way.
45:03
You know?
45:03
May Jesus say,
45:04
get off me.
45:06
You're clinging
45:07
too close to me.
45:08
You know?
45:08
He's not going to say that.
45:08
I'm just saying,
45:09
in this scenario,
45:10
we should be like a Mary
45:11
that just grabs
45:13
on to Jesus
45:14
and holds on to Him.
45:18
The Scripture says
45:19
that Jesus knows
45:21
His church
45:21
like Adam knew
45:22
His wife.
45:23
That's an intimate thing.
45:27
I mean,
45:27
it's sexual intercourse
45:28
between Adam and Eve.
45:30
And that's meant
45:31
to be reflective
45:32
of God's intimacy
45:34
with His people.
45:36
It's intense.
45:38
It's not sexual.
45:39
I'm just saying
45:40
it's intense, though.
45:41
You know?
45:43
True faith
45:46
isn't mystical longing.
45:48
It's a certainty
45:49
about Christ.
45:50
It changes the way
45:51
you think about everything.
45:53
A true man or woman
45:54
of faith
45:54
will be able to
45:54
actively believe
45:55
in the promises of God
45:56
so as to bear
45:58
the fruits of faith.
46:00
Love, joy, peace,
46:01
patience, kindness.
46:02
These things
46:03
are a reality
46:04
for the believer
46:05
because of their faith
46:06
in Christ
46:07
who supplies them
46:08
with it.
46:10
And it's not circumstantial.
46:11
I want to give you
46:15
one more illustration
46:15
from the Scripture.
46:16
Turn to 2 Corinthians.
46:21
This is just a good illustration
46:22
of what I've just said.
46:25
Faith has the ability
46:26
to change the way
46:27
you think about things.
46:31
2 Corinthians 1,
46:32
beginning in verse 8.
46:37
This is Paul.
46:38
He says,
46:40
We do not want you
46:41
to be unaware, brethren,
46:42
of our affliction
46:43
which came to us in Asia.
46:45
So in Asia,
46:45
they were afflicted.
46:47
They were persecuted
46:47
for something.
46:50
That we were burdened
46:51
excessively
46:52
beyond our strength
46:54
so that we despaired
46:55
even of life.
46:56
So Paul,
46:56
in a sense,
46:57
was suicidal.
46:59
Okay?
47:00
He was so afflicted
47:01
in Asia
47:02
that he despaired
47:03
of even living.
47:04
He didn't want to live anymore.
47:05
He was so afflicted.
47:06
Indeed,
47:10
we had a sentence
47:11
of death
47:12
within ourselves
47:12
in order that we
47:14
should not trust
47:15
in ourselves
47:16
but in God
47:17
who raises the dead.
47:22
Who delivered us
47:23
from so great
47:24
a peril of death
47:25
and will deliver us.
47:26
He on whom
47:27
we have set our hope
47:28
and He will yet
47:29
deliver us.
47:31
So Paul is burdened
47:32
excessively
47:33
beyond what he can bear.
47:36
And he says,
47:36
the only thing
47:37
that sustained me
47:37
was that promise
47:40
that you see
47:40
in verse 9 there.
47:43
I put my hope,
47:44
I put my trust
47:45
in God
47:45
who raises
47:46
the dead.
47:49
That was the promise
47:50
that Paul
47:51
clung to
47:52
in his persecution
47:53
that enabled him
47:55
to endure.
47:56
And then he goes on
47:56
and he starts
47:57
praising God
47:57
and he says,
47:58
who delivered us
48:00
from so great
48:00
a peril of death
48:01
and He will deliver us.
48:02
He on whom
48:03
we have set our hope
48:04
and He will yet
48:04
deliver us.
48:06
Three times
48:06
in one verse
48:07
He says He's going
48:07
to deliver us.
48:09
He's going to deliver us.
48:10
I know it is true.
48:13
It was a certainty
48:14
about Christ.
48:14
There wasn't some
48:15
mystical,
48:16
you know,
48:17
wishful thinking.
48:18
I hope it happens.
48:19
It wasn't a
48:19
maybe this is going
48:20
to happen.
48:20
I hope it happens.
48:21
It was a
48:22
I know
48:23
in Christ
48:24
this will happen.
48:25
He will keep me.
48:27
He will enable me.
48:30
This is faith.
48:31
Okay,
48:31
this is what faith is.
48:33
Changes the way
48:33
that you think
48:34
about things.
48:36
Secondly,
48:36
oh,
48:38
good quote for us
48:38
from Spurgeon.
48:41
Little faith,
48:42
a little bit of it,
48:44
will bring the soul
48:45
to heaven.
48:47
But much faith
48:48
will bring heaven
48:50
to the soul.
48:53
Little faith
48:53
will bring you
48:55
to heaven.
48:56
But much faith
48:58
will bring heaven
48:59
to the soul.
49:00
Now,
49:01
do you lack
49:05
in joy?
49:05
Do you lack
49:06
in hope?
49:06
Do you lack
49:06
in peace?
49:09
You've got to
49:10
grow in your faith.
49:13
Start taking God
49:14
at His word
49:14
and just reading it
49:15
and saying,
49:15
all right,
49:15
God,
49:16
you said,
49:17
you said this today.
49:18
I'm going to apply
49:19
it to my life.
49:21
You said it's better
49:21
to give than
49:22
to receive.
49:23
So give me the grace
49:24
to give today.
49:25
I'm just going to
49:26
trust it.
49:27
Right?
49:28
And sure enough,
49:28
I promise you,
49:29
God's going to come
49:29
through on that.
49:30
He's going to prove it.
49:31
Second point,
49:32
she's going to be
49:32
shorter.
49:33
One page.
49:37
Faith gives
49:38
things feet.
49:41
First point was
49:41
faith gives
49:42
things substance.
49:43
Second point is
49:43
faith gives
49:44
things feet.
49:46
Feet.
49:47
faith says
49:48
verse one.
49:55
Faith is the
49:55
assurance of
49:56
things hoped for.
49:57
It is the
49:58
conviction of
49:59
things not
50:00
seen.
50:01
These are very
50:01
closely related.
50:02
These two phrases
50:03
are just a kind
50:04
of a description
50:04
here.
50:05
But the big
50:06
discrepancy between
50:07
the first phrase
50:08
and the second
50:08
phrase is the
50:09
idea of action.
50:10
OK, the first
50:13
thing changed the
50:14
way you thought
50:14
about it.
50:16
The second, the
50:17
conviction of things
50:18
not seen changes
50:20
the way that you
50:21
live.
50:23
Changes the way
50:24
that you live.
50:27
The word for
50:27
conviction is I
50:28
can't say
50:29
L.
50:30
L.
50:32
L.
50:32
L.
50:32
L.
50:34
That's the Greek
50:34
word for conviction
50:35
and it means a
50:37
proof.
50:39
That by which a
50:40
thing is proved or
50:41
tested.
50:44
L.
50:44
L.
50:44
L.
50:46
L.
50:46
L.
50:46
L.
50:48
L.
50:49
but it's also in the way that one lives.
50:53
This is a little bit further step from the phrase of our verse.
50:57
It implies action, as I said, okay?
50:59
It implies an action, activity,
51:02
something that I do in light of what I believe now.
51:07
J. Max said, this is banking your life on your hope.
51:10
This is putting all your chips in to Christ.
51:15
The faith, this faith is lived out.
51:17
I like to think of it as an expression of one's faith.
51:22
Have you seen God?
51:25
Have you smelled Him?
51:27
Have you tasted Him?
51:28
Have you touched Him?
51:29
Have you heard Him?
51:31
No.
51:34
Yet you believe.
51:37
Not one of your five senses has ever sensed Him,
51:40
yet you believe.
51:42
Can you observe Him?
51:43
No.
51:44
Can you test Him in a test tube?
51:45
No.
51:46
Can you look at Him through a microscope?
51:48
No.
51:50
Yet you believe in Him.
51:53
So although you cannot prove God scientifically,
51:57
you still believe in God.
52:01
That's a strange thing.
52:02
That's weird that you would do that.
52:04
The word elechaz could also be translated evidence.
52:13
Okay?
52:14
Evidence.
52:15
It's the evidence of things not seen.
52:19
Faith in the life of a regenerate person
52:21
is the greatest evidence that there is a God.
52:24
God has seen fit to shame the wise people,
52:31
the worldly wise people,
52:33
by enabling
52:36
the...
52:40
What was it again?
52:42
Not the Brahmin and the...
52:43
The untouchables.
52:46
We're the untouchables.
52:47
He's enabled the untouchables
52:48
to do His will.
52:50
To live a life of faith.
52:54
To accomplish things
52:55
that really can't just be explained.
52:59
I don't think it's coincidental
53:00
that God has ordained
53:01
the majority of His salvations
53:02
to come through
53:03
the faithful witness
53:05
of His people.
53:08
You can see more of God
53:09
in the life of a believer
53:10
than anywhere else.
53:13
Okay?
53:13
So faith is something that's supernatural.
53:16
It's not going to be simply
53:17
ascertained by
53:19
a Bunsen burner
53:22
and microscopes
53:23
and test tubes.
53:25
Okay?
53:26
God is an invisible God.
53:30
And He has revealed Himself
53:31
in Christ.
53:32
So if you want to
53:33
know about God,
53:34
if you want to study God,
53:35
if you want to
53:36
understand Him,
53:37
if you want to get
53:38
evidence for Him,
53:39
first look at Christ
53:40
who says,
53:41
I have...
53:42
If you've seen me,
53:43
you've seen the Father,
53:43
He says.
53:45
If you've seen me,
53:45
you've seen the Father.
53:46
So look at Christ,
53:48
firstly,
53:48
and then look at His people.
53:52
And you will know
53:53
that there is a God.
53:56
Faith in the first place,
53:57
first phrase of our verse,
53:59
actualizes a future truth.
54:02
It brings it into one's possession.
54:04
Okay?
54:04
Faith in the first phrase,
54:05
which is the substance
54:07
of things hoped for,
54:09
brings a future truth
54:11
into your possession.
54:13
It brings it into the heart
54:15
and the mind
54:15
of the believer.
54:19
The second phrase
54:20
commits a life to it.
54:23
It commits your life to it.
54:25
It changes the way
54:26
that you think,
54:27
then it changes the way
54:27
that you live.
54:30
Look at Noah,
54:31
verse 7 of Hebrews 11.
54:33
By faith,
54:35
Noah,
54:36
being warned by God
54:37
about the things
54:38
not yet seen,
54:41
in reverence,
54:42
prepared an ark
54:43
for the salvation
54:44
of his household,
54:46
by which he condemned
54:48
the world
54:48
and became an heir
54:50
of the righteousness
54:50
which is according
54:51
to faith.
54:52
This is ridiculous
54:53
what Noah did.
54:56
Okay?
54:56
Backward information
54:57
on Noah.
54:58
Noah lived in a time
54:59
in which it had never
54:59
rained before.
55:00
He had never seen rain.
55:04
Ever.
55:08
There was a vapor canopy
55:09
surrounding the earth
55:09
at this point in time.
55:10
This is pre-flood.
55:11
It was different back then.
55:13
People had to be
55:13
900 years old.
55:14
UV rays were basically
55:16
non-existent
55:17
in a lot of ways.
55:19
It's wild.
55:21
Okay?
55:21
He had never seen rain.
55:24
God says,
55:24
build a ship.
55:25
I'm going to flood this place.
55:28
Noah says,
55:29
okay,
55:32
120 years later,
55:35
God lets rain happen.
55:40
120 years.
55:43
Okay,
55:43
if you think
55:43
Abraham's ridicule was bad,
55:45
imagine Noah's.
55:46
What are you doing?
55:49
You're building a boat?
55:50
It's been 80 years.
55:52
It's not rain.
55:53
It's not going to happen.
55:55
The guy's an idiot.
55:57
Right?
55:59
120 years.
56:03
It's one thing to
56:04
think about rain
56:06
and say,
56:06
that might happen.
56:07
Yeah,
56:07
I hope that happens.
56:09
It's another thing
56:09
to commit a life to it.
56:13
This is the example
56:15
of faith that we're given.
56:17
This is God saying,
56:19
hey,
56:19
your faith should be like this.
56:20
It's ridiculous sometimes.
56:22
It doesn't make a lot of sense
56:23
sometimes.
56:24
You know,
56:25
we're worried about putting
56:26
more than 10%
56:27
in the offering plate.
56:28
Noah's worried about
56:29
rain coming after year 85.
56:33
Okay,
56:34
faith is nothing.
56:36
But this is the kind of faith
56:37
we're called to have.
56:37
This is the kind of faith
56:38
that God will give
56:39
to His people.
56:44
Faith is to believe it
56:46
and then bet your life on it.
56:48
Boom.
56:51
But the natural man
56:52
can't do this.
56:52
He cannot,
56:53
like Moses in 1127,
56:55
see Him who is unseen.
56:56
They can't see this.
56:57
They can't see God.
56:58
They can't see the reason
56:59
in doing that.
57:00
They think it's foolishness
57:02
the Gentiles do.
57:04
Foolishness,
57:05
atheists will call you.
57:06
Idiot.
57:07
Wasting your life.
57:11
Missing the point of life.
57:16
No.
57:17
No.
57:18
Not the last day.
57:21
We'll see if it's the last word.
57:25
This faith in which we speak
57:26
cannot be acquired
57:27
through observable proofs.
57:28
1 Corinthians 2.9
57:29
establishes this.
57:30
Things which eye
57:31
has not seen,
57:32
ear has not heard,
57:34
which have not entered
57:34
the heart of man,
57:35
all that God has prepared
57:37
for those who love Him.
57:39
For to us...
57:40
Who's that?
57:41
Who's the us?
57:44
Christians.
57:45
Christians.
57:48
All that God has prepared
57:51
for those who love Him.
57:52
For to us,
57:54
God revealed them
57:55
through the Spirit.
58:00
So if you have Christ,
58:01
you have His Spirit.
58:03
His Spirit is a guarantee.
58:04
His Spirit is a pledge.
58:05
It's a down payment.
58:08
That this is true of you.
58:12
You have this ability.
58:14
You have this salvation.
58:15
I'm going to give you
58:15
my Spirit to prove it.
58:18
But the world can't see it.
58:21
Their ears can't hear it.
58:22
They can't perceive it.
58:23
It hasn't entered
58:23
their heart yet.
58:25
It's a supernatural thing.
58:30
How do you know
58:31
what real faith looks like
58:32
in a very practical sense?
58:35
I think you should turn
58:35
to the parable of the sower.
58:39
Okay?
58:39
Test yourself to this.
58:43
In Matthew...
58:43
You know what?
58:45
I'll tell you what.
58:46
I'll just explain it.
58:46
Matthew 13.
58:48
Alright?
58:48
Matthew 13.
58:50
Jesus describes
58:51
the parable of the sower.
58:54
And He says,
58:55
the first...
58:55
He says,
58:56
a sower goes out
58:56
to sow some seed.
58:57
He sows some seed
58:57
against the rock,
58:59
against the pathway,
59:01
basically,
59:02
on the rock.
59:03
Then He sows some seed
59:04
on...
59:05
No.
59:05
Okay.
59:06
Forget about it.
59:06
I can't recall it.
59:07
We're going to read it.
59:09
Alright?
59:09
I know it's already
59:10
10 till...
59:11
It's fall breaks
59:12
and nobody's got a test
59:12
tomorrow
59:13
so I can keep you longer.
59:14
Let's just read this.
59:18
It's so good.
59:21
13.1
59:21
On that day,
59:25
Jesus went out
59:26
of the house
59:27
and was sitting by the sea
59:28
and great multitudes
59:30
gathered to Him
59:31
so that He got in the boat
59:32
and sat down
59:33
and the whole multitude
59:33
was standing on the beach
59:34
and He spoke many things
59:36
to them in parables,
59:36
saying,
59:37
Behold,
59:38
the sower went out to sow.
59:39
And as He sowed,
59:40
some seed fell beside the road
59:42
and the birds came
59:42
and ate them up.
59:43
Other seeds fell upon
59:44
the rocky places
59:45
where they did not have
59:47
much soil
59:48
and immediately they sprang up
59:49
because they had no depth of soil.
59:50
But when the sun had risen,
59:52
they were scorched
59:53
and because they had no root,
59:55
they withered away.
59:56
And others fell among the thorns
59:57
and the thorns came up
59:58
and choked them out
59:59
and others fell on good soil
1:00:00
and yielded a crop
1:00:01
and some 100 fold,
1:00:02
60,
1:00:02
or some 100 fold,
1:00:03
some 60,
1:00:04
some 30.
1:00:05
He who has ears to hear,
1:00:06
let him hear.
1:00:07
Okay?
1:00:07
So He tells the story,
1:00:08
He says,
1:00:08
Hey,
1:00:09
some seed fell upon
1:00:09
the side of the road,
1:00:10
some seed on the rocky soil,
1:00:11
some seed in the midst
1:00:13
of thorns
1:00:14
and some seed on good soil.
1:00:17
Then He explains it
1:00:18
in 18.
1:00:20
And He says,
1:00:21
Hear then the parable
1:00:22
of the sower.
1:00:23
When anyone hears
1:00:24
the word of the kingdom
1:00:26
and does not understand it,
1:00:27
the evil one comes
1:00:29
and snatches away
1:00:30
what has been sown
1:00:31
in his heart.
1:00:31
This is the one
1:00:32
on whom the seed
1:00:33
was sown beside the road.
1:00:34
And the one
1:00:35
on whom the seed
1:00:35
was sown
1:00:36
in the rocky places,
1:00:36
this is the man
1:00:37
who hears the word
1:00:38
and immediately
1:00:39
receives it with joy.
1:00:41
Yet He has no firm
1:00:42
root in Himself.
1:00:43
It is only temporary.
1:00:44
But when affliction
1:00:45
or persecution arises
1:00:46
because of the word,
1:00:47
immediately He falls away.
1:00:49
And the one
1:00:50
on whom the seed
1:00:50
was sown
1:00:51
among the thorns,
1:00:52
this is the man
1:00:52
who hears the word
1:00:53
and the worry of the world
1:00:54
and the deceitfulness
1:00:55
of riches
1:00:56
choke the word
1:00:57
and it becomes
1:00:58
unfruitful.
1:01:00
And the one
1:01:01
on whom the seed
1:01:01
was sown
1:01:01
on the good soil,
1:01:02
this is the man
1:01:03
who hears the word
1:01:03
and understands it,
1:01:05
who indeed bears fruit,
1:01:06
and some are bringing forth
1:01:07
some a hundredfold,
1:01:08
some sixty,
1:01:09
and some thirty.
1:01:10
So you want to know
1:01:11
if you have faith or not?
1:01:15
Test yourself
1:01:16
to this passage.
1:01:17
Are you the kind of person
1:01:18
that it goes
1:01:21
in one ear
1:01:21
out the other?
1:01:25
You never really
1:01:25
even consider
1:01:26
the things
1:01:26
that you hear
1:01:27
in church?
1:01:30
Buildings?
1:01:32
Number two,
1:01:33
are you the kind
1:01:33
of person
1:01:33
that has
1:01:34
the seed
1:01:35
of the gospel,
1:01:35
the truth
1:01:36
about Christ
1:01:37
sown upon you?
1:01:38
You receive it
1:01:39
with joy
1:01:39
for a moment
1:01:40
at a New Year's
1:01:41
conference
1:01:41
or at a Thursday
1:01:44
night Bible study
1:01:45
or Sunday morning
1:01:46
church service.
1:01:47
You receive it
1:01:47
with joy
1:01:48
in a moment.
1:01:49
You feel convicted
1:01:50
the lights are dimmed
1:01:51
low and the candles
1:01:51
are lit
1:01:52
and the aroma
1:01:52
is nice
1:01:53
and the preacher
1:01:55
was hilarious.
1:01:58
And you receive it
1:01:59
with joy
1:02:00
and you're so happy
1:02:00
for a week and a half
1:02:01
and it's
1:02:02
ah,
1:02:03
Jesus isn't really
1:02:04
as exciting
1:02:05
as it used
1:02:06
to be.
1:02:07
You forget
1:02:08
about Jesus
1:02:08
and it withers
1:02:10
away.
1:02:10
Persecution
1:02:10
comes,
1:02:11
somebody approaches
1:02:12
you by your
1:02:12
faith,
1:02:14
the going
1:02:15
gets hard,
1:02:16
the road's
1:02:17
a little bit
1:02:17
rocky,
1:02:19
and you just
1:02:19
forget about it,
1:02:21
I'll deal
1:02:21
with it later.
1:02:23
That's not
1:02:23
faith.
1:02:24
Thirdly,
1:02:25
are you the kind
1:02:26
of person that
1:02:26
is the word of
1:02:26
God sown upon
1:02:27
you,
1:02:27
the seed of
1:02:28
Christ,
1:02:28
the gospel of
1:02:29
Christ comes
1:02:30
into your ear,
1:02:31
you hear it,
1:02:31
you receive it,
1:02:32
it springs up
1:02:34
for a time,
1:02:34
it looks like,
1:02:35
hey,
1:02:35
this is genuine
1:02:35
faith,
1:02:36
this guy,
1:02:36
we should bring
1:02:38
him into the
1:02:38
church.
1:02:40
Then all of a
1:02:40
sudden you see
1:02:41
this guy has
1:02:41
got a strange
1:02:43
interest in
1:02:43
riches,
1:02:44
and he just
1:02:47
cannot get away
1:02:48
from the pleasures
1:02:48
of the world,
1:02:50
and worldliness
1:02:51
just chokes
1:02:52
him out.
1:02:53
It's not true
1:02:54
faith either.
1:02:57
True faith,
1:02:58
when it comes
1:02:58
into your heart
1:02:59
and into your
1:03:00
mind,
1:03:01
takes root
1:03:01
and bears
1:03:02
true fruit.
1:03:04
Some 60,
1:03:05
some 30,
1:03:06
some 100,
1:03:07
but it bears
1:03:08
fruit.
1:03:11
And it
1:03:11
continues and
1:03:12
it persists.
1:03:14
And Jesus
1:03:14
says himself,
1:03:16
those that the
1:03:16
Father gives
1:03:17
me, I don't
1:03:17
lose them,
1:03:18
any of them.
1:03:20
If you're truly
1:03:20
his, he's not
1:03:21
going to lose
1:03:22
you.
1:03:24
That's a good
1:03:25
way to test
1:03:25
it.
1:03:27
So what a
1:03:28
salvation we
1:03:29
have.
1:03:29
Worthy is
1:03:31
the Lord
1:03:31
of all the
1:03:32
glory.
1:03:37
There is a
1:03:38
natural faith
1:03:39
people are
1:03:41
acquainted with.
1:03:42
Everyone lives
1:03:43
by the
1:03:43
principle of
1:03:44
natural faith.
1:03:45
You go to
1:03:45
the doctor's
1:03:46
office, they
1:03:47
say, you
1:03:47
have cancer.
1:03:48
You say,
1:03:48
okay, you
1:03:50
come back,
1:03:51
right?
1:03:52
He says, I'm
1:03:52
going to cut
1:03:53
you open with
1:03:54
a scalpel,
1:03:56
cut this tumor
1:03:57
out, so you
1:03:59
back up and
1:03:59
then send you
1:04:00
on your way.
1:04:00
It's going to
1:04:00
cost you $100,000.
1:04:02
And you say,
1:04:03
all right, fine,
1:04:04
I'll talk to my
1:04:04
insurance company.
1:04:05
You go back,
1:04:05
you willingly get
1:04:06
stuck with the
1:04:08
needle, shot
1:04:09
drugs up you,
1:04:10
you pass out,
1:04:11
you get cut
1:04:11
open, sliced
1:04:12
open, they
1:04:13
fool around
1:04:13
inside of you,
1:04:14
and then after a
1:04:14
few hours, you're
1:04:15
back out.
1:04:15
That's natural
1:04:16
faith.
1:04:16
I don't know,
1:04:17
I mean, I'm
1:04:17
trusting this guy
1:04:18
who knows what
1:04:18
he's doing.
1:04:20
You drink water
1:04:20
from a water
1:04:21
fountain, I hope
1:04:21
it's clean.
1:04:22
I hope I don't
1:04:24
get Ebola
1:04:24
virus from this
1:04:27
water, you know?
1:04:28
Not here,
1:04:29
obviously, but
1:04:30
other places.
1:04:31
That's natural
1:04:32
faith.
1:04:35
God is requiring
1:04:36
of you a
1:04:36
supernatural faith
1:04:38
that you can't
1:04:40
conjure up.
1:04:43
An enduring
1:04:44
faith.
1:04:48
Trusting
1:04:49
faith.
1:04:49
Faith.
1:04:52
That is
1:04:53
patient.
1:04:54
That is
1:04:55
steadfast.
1:04:56
That is
1:04:56
immovable.
1:04:58
A faith that
1:04:59
results in
1:05:00
work and
1:05:03
love and
1:05:04
joy in
1:05:04
Jesus.
1:05:06
It moves a
1:05:07
man to
1:05:08
action.
1:05:11
Right?
1:05:12
Okay, so
1:05:12
faith is
1:05:13
gives things
1:05:16
substance and
1:05:18
faith gives
1:05:20
things feet.