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[0:00] As a little nudge to say, get back reading. So, amen. Alright, Hebrews chapter 11. And we're going to pick it up where we left off.

[0:10] We left off with Noah in verse number 7. We're going to move forward with these examples of faith. We read about Abel. We read about Enoch. We read then about Noah. And even noticed kind of what I was seeing as a progression where one exercises faith in a blood sacrifice, likening to the Lamb of God and receiving His righteousness by faith, New Testament faith.

[0:31] And then seeing how Enoch then approached God in faith and diligently sought God to know Him. And as what he learned of God and what it caused him to leave the world, it caused him to be transformed by the renewing of his mind and to walk with God now.

[0:48] He was not like the ungodly sinners that he preached to, but rather he was living a different life, one that pleased God. And then we saw something with Noah last week that against all human experience and against all understanding that he ever had, he was called to obey God and to fear Him above any obstacles or opposition of his day and to fulfill something that was just truly unique.

[1:16] And in the end, one of the greatest outcomes of his faith and his obedience was that his family was delivered as well because he obeyed what God told him to do. And I don't think I can understate that, how important that is that you follow the Lord and obey what He tells you to do and trust Him with everything, with the family.

[1:37] I'm doing it. And I think it's worthy of our consideration and our following that example. Tonight we're going to start looking at Abraham and Sarah. They're the next Old Testament examples that are going to teach us something about New Testament faith.

[1:53] And even though we've had a lot to consider already, especially with Noah, that was kind of heavy stuff in my opinion. His story and others, they don't relate the same to every single person.

[2:04] And not one person in this chapter summarizes all that there is to know about faith. So we're going to see some new things tonight that can help us. So follow with me.

[2:15] We're going to read from verses 8 to verse 16 and get a little bit about Abraham and Sarah. Verse number 8 says, By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed.

[2:32] And he went out, not knowing whither he went. By 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.

[2:45] For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God. Through faith also Sarah 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.

[3:00] Therefore 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 seashore innumerable. These 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.

[3:21] For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. And truly if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, and heavenly.

[3:35] Wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he hath prepared for them a city. So tonight we're going to look at Abraham and Sarah, and I'm going to say that this example is one of a changed life, or together changed lives.

[3:50] And I'll show you why I say that. And it is all by faith. Every bit of this is by faith. And there's some real important lessons that are going to be drawn out of this, I think. And I love it.

[4:02] It's good stuff. And I've lived some of it. And it's very important. And it's by faith. Let's pray, and then let's get into this. Lord, we ask that you'll just speak into the hearts of each one of us here tonight.

[4:14] Speak the word of God, and settle some things in our hearts, or challenge us in some way. I pray that this would be a time that we'd grow, because we've come together, and opened up the Holy Text, and now it's up to you to deliver, and to speak into us, and to show us something, and to instill a truth within us.

[4:36] And Lord, if it goes against our flesh, then so be it. May the word of God be more powerful tonight than anybody in here, than any flesh in here, than any opposition in here.

[4:48] May the word of God have effect, and may it take root in our lives, and may faith begin to produce something, an action out of us. And we pray that this example would help us, and may you make it happen tonight.

[5:01] We ask in Christ's name. Amen. Amen. Amen. All right, so three things I'm going to say to you tonight, and I'll just dive right in the first one that comes out of verse number eight.

[5:12] Would you notice verse eight again? By faith, Noah, when he was called to go out into a place, obeyed, and the end of the verse says, and he went out, not knowing whither he went.

[5:27] So get the picture. This is real. He was called to go out into a place which he should after, long after, receive for an inheritance.

[5:39] He was called to go out. He obeyed, and he went out. And I'm going to put Sarah right beside him because she literally was right beside him in all of this. And so first of all, by faith, Abraham and Sarah embarked upon a new life.

[5:55] They went. They obeyed God's call, not knowing what the future held, without any certainty of how this is going to go or where this is going to go.

[6:10] They went out. They embarked. They took a step. This is faith through and through. It's doing something based on the word of God and not knowing how it's going to work, not knowing if this is going to turn out good, bad, ugly.

[6:26] They did not have a firm plan. They did not have a fixed destination. The only thing that they had was the assurance that God told them to go, that God called.

[6:38] He was called to go into a place. That's the only assurance they had. And this is a strong lesson to start off with. We're diving right into something good.

[6:48] Faith deems the word of God sufficient. Faith doesn't need anything more than the word of God. It doesn't need sight. It doesn't need details.

[7:00] Faith only needs the word of God. It does not demand anything else. The word of God is sufficient for faith. And by faith, Abraham and Sarah obeyed. They went out.

[7:11] They embarked upon a new life. Now, most of us would not think of doing something even on a much lesser scale unless we had all the I's dotted and all the T's crossed.

[7:24] We won't even, you know, and I'm not talking down on this in any way. This is just, it's prudent, right? The prudent man looketh well to his going. This is wisdom.

[7:35] It's biblical to foresee the evil and hide yourself, just to plan, to think ahead. It's a fool that would make a decision on a whim or on an emotional feeling or something like that and try to make some lifetime decisions.

[7:51] That wouldn't be wise at all. But know that we wouldn't do that in our everyday life. And it is true that we should be diligent and that we should be prudent and that we should exercise wisdom and decisions and diligent planning.

[8:05] All of that, I think, is a good thing. But when God calls, all of that gets dropped. When God calls, only faith will work. Everything else gets overruled by the call of God.

[8:20] When God calls, He only expects to see faith. He will not bless your planning or your calculations. When the Lord God was leading my family and I to move to Los Angeles, it seemed unimaginable.

[8:38] It just was, I couldn't get my hands on anything. I'm serious. I couldn't make any concrete plans except we're moving. That's like the only thing.

[8:50] And so we started scrambling. We had six months to get our family from there to here and to dot all the I's and cross all the T's and to figure it out. And it just seemed undoable to locate housing 2,500 miles away.

[9:05] People do it all the time, I suppose, but it wasn't working for us. I was online looking at all these different places, calling different realtors, started conversations, started paperwork and things, and it all was just falling flat to the ground.

[9:20] Like, a month went by, two months, three months went by, and there was not one thing checked off of the list of what we need to do to get to L.A. And it started setting in, Lord, you know, this should be going better.

[9:33] This is your will, right? It started getting a little nerve-wracking with just some of those things to check off a list. It seemed impossible. Looking into schooling for the kids, they were in a Christian school all of their lives and we wanted to just maintain that.

[9:48] And that wasn't happening. There was no way we were going to afford any of that out here. It wasn't even on the, not even close. The vehicles that we had, they weren't going to make it.

[9:59] Maybe one would make it, but the others, they weren't, this is not material to drive across the country in. And there was just details that were overwhelming and they were scary. But I'll show you this for to whom it may concern.

[10:12] Look back at Psalm 37. I'm sure I've passed this on before. And this is something that's, I'm going to take to my grave because this is something the Lord did for me when I needed it.

[10:27] As I could take you to the, the very spot I was at on a early Saturday morning as the sun was not even up yet, the sky was just turning light and I was out with, I think with Samuel and we were doing some deer hunting.

[10:42] And so I was just kind of tucked into a place, reading my Bible, going through these Psalms, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, and 36. I'm just reading along.

[10:54] Look at 36.1. It says, The transgression of the wicked saith with my heart that there is no fear of God before his eyes. He flatter, he's just talking about the wicked, the wicked, the wicked. That's, you know, I'm just reading. I'm not like, Oh God, give me some light.

[11:06] But then I got to 37 and I read verse one, I read verse two, and then I read verse three and something changed. Verse three said, Trust in the Lord and do good.

[11:18] So shalt thou dwell in the land and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the Lord and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

[11:30] Commit thy way unto the Lord. Trust also in him and he shall bring it to pass. And I'm reading about the wicked. I'm reading about the righteous man.

[11:42] I'm blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And out of nowhere, that psalm just, it just from the inside, the Lord just grabbed my heart and said, I'm talking to you. I'm telling you, you commit your way to me.

[11:55] I've got you. You're going to dwell in the land and you're going to be fed and I'm going to take care of you. And he said, I will bring it to pass. And in that moment, I can remember the peace that came over me where I just said, Lord, I trust you then.

[12:10] But all this stuff I can't fix and I can't figure out and it's not working. But okay, thank you. And from that day forward, it was still stuff to do.

[12:21] But I didn't doubt a minute from that moment forward, the Lord gave me that in the word of God and faith grew. It absolutely grew in that moment from the word of God.

[12:34] For us to embark upon a new life, upon a new, a change in our life. Abraham and Sarah embarked upon a new life and they entered a life of faith.

[12:46] And this life begins with them stepping out and trusting God. And it says in our verse that not knowing whither he went, he didn't know where he was going.

[12:57] Now before we go any further, one thing to add, this is a valuable truth that works with this very well, is that you don't step out in faith unless God calls.

[13:10] And that's what it says, God called. In verse 8, he was called to go, he went out, not knowing whither he went. If God doesn't call you to go out, then you don't step out in faith.

[13:22] You know who wants you to step out in faith without a command to do that? The devil. Where do I get that? Matthew chapter 4. And Jesus Christ is up on the pinnacle of the temple and he says, cast thyself down.

[13:34] Just do it. Because it's written, God will give his angels charge over thee. Nothing's going to happen to you. You can trust God. Just take a step of faith. And that was satanic to pressure somebody to do something that God never called to do.

[13:50] You remember when Peter was on the boat? Peter didn't just say, well, I have faith. I'll get out. He said, Lord, bid me to come unto thee. And when Jesus gave him the license to come, Peter walked on the water.

[14:03] Peter took a step. He went out on faith. Now, that's an important truth to couple with this. By faith, Abraham and Sarah embarked upon a new life.

[14:14] It was all in faith. And what did they have? They had the word of God. They had a call of God and that was it. They didn't have the direction. They didn't have all of the details. But that was all they needed.

[14:25] That shows me faith deems the word of God sufficient. So secondly, then, by faith, Abraham and Sarah endured. They endured their new life.

[14:36] And this might sound like, what? What are you talking about? Well, it's in there. Verse number nine says, by faith, he sojourned in the land of promise as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob.

[14:50] He sojourned in a land. As much as a life of faith is a positive thing, I don't want you to get the wrong idea. It doesn't mean it's easy and it doesn't mean it's all fun and it doesn't mean it doesn't come with its shares of frustrations or just things, humanly speaking, we're uncertain of because the flesh is right there the whole time.

[15:13] It sounds like, oh, yeah, trust God, trust God, trust God. Yes, but you need to understand that built into a life of faith is also trials and hard times.

[15:24] Some things you'll have to endure and it's okay because faith can endure some things. But Abraham and Sarah had to learn this. They had to endure some things. The scripture doesn't really emphasize the struggle, but I'm going to try to point it out to you.

[15:38] I think it existed. So in verse number nine, we saw that they sojourned as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles.

[15:49] You know what that means? They never had a permanent home. They never had a, not just figuratively, but literally speaking, they never had a home that they built and said, this is our home.

[16:02] Abraham was a man of great substance and yet he was never permitted of God to put down roots, build a nice foundation with a nice yard, with plenty of room and land for his livestock, never did he get to build himself a house.

[16:19] Never did Sarah, from the day she left her home in the land of her nativity or left with Abraham, never did she get to dwell in a home and say, this is my home. This is my home.

[16:30] She didn't have that. She had to endure some things. They sojourned in tabernacles. Look at verse number 13. At the end of that verse, it says, they confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

[16:46] When you read the book of Genesis, you'll read the movements of this family and you can track how they moved from one place to another and this is not chronological. I'm just throwing out a few places they've been to.

[16:59] They went as far as Egypt, which never should have been, but they've also been in the land of the Philistines. We know of him being in Mount Moriah, mountains of Moriah in Genesis 22.

[17:09] He was in Bethel. He was in Hebron for a good bit in the plains of Mamre. Then in the south country in Gerar, he was in Beersheba. And all this time, they're dwelling among the people of the land.

[17:22] And God said, lift up your eyes, Abraham, north, south, east, west. I'm going to give this land to you and to your seed. And the whole time, it's being occupied by all these other nations and kings and their people.

[17:35] And what kind of deal is that? Leave your land and leave the, the whole, your father's house and the house of your kindred and leave all of that.

[17:50] Go to this new land, which I'll tell thee of, and then travel around as a pilgrim in that land from one place to another. I'm going to give it to you, but actually, I'm not going to give it to you in your lifetime.

[18:05] I'm going to give it to your seed after you. So, Abraham, you can dwell in this land, but you can't build anything permanent. And you're going to have to move from there, and then you're going to go over to there, and then you're going to build me an altar there, but you're never going to have a home here.

[18:20] The rest of your life is going to be living in tents, moving around like a nomad. Abraham was a great man.

[18:32] I don't mean character, I mean, like, substance. Like, do you think that was a tough pill to swallow? To live in a tent the rest of his life? Have you ever considered this?

[18:44] Did you just think everybody lived in tents back then? Because they don't. Let me show you something. Look at Genesis chapter 18. Back into this man's life a little bit, and just get a glimpse.

[18:56] Genesis 18. And I just saw this. It just, it stood out to me and almost shocked me to drive this point that they endured some things in this life of faith.

[19:10] It's a new life. It's a changed life. But there were some tough things. So I'm going to start in verse 1. Genesis 18.

[19:21] It's when the Lord shows up, and there's two angels there. And the Lord appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre, and he sat in the tent door because he lived in a tent dwelling in tabernacles.

[19:34] He sat in the tent door in the heat of the day. He lifted up his eyes and says in that verse he ran to meet them from the tent door. A little bit later, in verse 6, he hastened into the tent unto Sarah and said, Make ready quickly.

[19:48] And all the way in verse number 9, they said, Where is Sarah thy wife? He said, Behold, in the tent. The tent, the tent, the tent. This is his house. It's not a house. But this is where he dwells.

[20:00] But then look at chapter 20. God's going to go down to Sodom and Gomorrah. He's going to see what's really going on there. Verse number 1. Genesis 19, verse 1.

[20:13] And there came two angels to Sodom and even, and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom, and Lot seeing them rose up to meet and bowed himself with face to the ground.

[20:23] And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house and tarry all night and wash your feet. And if we read through this, he's got a house with a door that he could make sure and he's got a roof on it in verse number 8.

[20:41] And what am I saying? I'm saying Abraham and Sarah, much greater people with greater reputations and a greater substance dwelt in tents.

[20:51] Meanwhile, nephew Lot's down there in a city dwelling in a house where Lot's wife could decorate her house and could make it her own and they're in a permanent, more structured place.

[21:04] And how do you think it feels to be dwelling in a tent when people around you are dwelling in fortified cities and you're a great man of great substance? substance. You think it's not a little bit embarrassing?

[21:17] What do you think? You've got just as much money as the rest of them, just as much or more substance than the rest of them, but you dwell in a tent. You think, are you hearing, like, is it sinking in that this was really what they did because God made them do that?

[21:32] He told them, you're not going to do this. You're going to dwell in a tent. That's wild. It never really sunk into me before until now that this is Abraham's life.

[21:43] This was something he signed up for with this life of faith, obeying God. And he dwelt, it's pointed out, that he sojourned in a land of promises in a strange country dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob.

[21:56] That's a big part of his life of faith back in Hebrews. You can come back to the book of Hebrews. You think it was liberating to them to dwell in a tent? You think it was exotic?

[22:07] Do you think there were some kind of like hippies that, you know, just want to be outdoors? Others? Not at all. These are great people, well to do in a sense. And God kept them in a tent.

[22:21] So by faith, they endured some things in their new life. It's easy to allow their eyes, just like it's easy to allow our eyes to look on the homes of others and the security and the lifestyle that others have around us and imagine that that could be your life.

[22:38] No, that should be my life. Why wouldn't God give it to me? Why would he give it to them? Maybe this is why you're here tonight, but let me remind you, you don't know what's going on inside those walls of those homes.

[22:51] You don't know what that life is inside of that home. You look at it, you see the cars, you see the pool, you see the lifestyle, you think, oh man, why? I'm doing right, why? You have no idea what's going on on the inside.

[23:03] You don't know what that lifestyle is really like either. And if having that lifestyle or what the heathen have means that you've got to live among the sodomites and live among sinners, then take the tent and do something for Jesus Christ with it and endure something for Christ's sake in this life.

[23:22] Living comfortable amongst the Canaanites is not the life that God has for a life of faith. That's not what he's given to his children. And he calls them to endure some things.

[23:32] You're in Hebrews, look back at chapter 6. He calls his children to endure some things. And there's a purpose to this. Look at Hebrews chapter 6 and I'll start in verse 12.

[23:52] Verse 12. That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. For when God made a promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he swore by himself, saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee and multiplying I will multiply thee.

[24:12] And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. And that wasn't even in his lifetime. But Abraham and Sarah had to endure some things in their life and it was part of the call.

[24:29] He called them to come out. They embarked upon a new life, but they also had to endure some of the things in that new life. Look at chapter 11 again. And look at some of this stuff.

[24:43] If you think living in a tent was bad, it wasn't nothing like this. Look at verse 36. 36 through 38. It says, And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover, of bonds and imprisonment.

[25:01] They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented, of whom the world was not worthy.

[25:15] They wandered in deserts and in mountains and in dens and caves of the earth like pilgrims and sojourners. Whatever happened to Christians enduring hardships or enduring any kind of suffering or affliction.

[25:32] How is it that that stuff sounds good for the people in the Bible? But God forbid any trial comes my way. How can it be God?

[25:44] Oh God, how could you do this to me? What happened to Christians enduring some things? Could we compare our lives and our trials to that that our ancestors in the faith have endured and have experienced?

[26:01] Rotting in a jail cell or just like what we read here in chapter 11. Some extreme situations, some literal torture, very rare but nevertheless real.

[26:14] But the takeaway from this tonight is that faith can endure some things. When you're obeying God, faith can endure some things.

[26:25] The flesh gets frustrated. The flesh expects it to go better for you. Your flesh is convinced that you deserve better in this life than what God has given.

[26:37] But that's not what God issues for a life of faith. And God never promised an easy road to anybody. And so Abraham and Sarah, they called, they were called, they obeyed, they went out, they embarked on that life, and in that life they endured some things.

[26:55] But that's okay because faith can endure things. And would you think of it like this? The easy road that you want doesn't require faith.

[27:07] What do you need faith for if everything's going well and perfect and great and happy and all the bills and all the money's there and everybody's healthy and it's just wonderful? You don't need any faith.

[27:20] The life of faith is actually then going to have some of the other stuff in it. It's built into it. God puts it in there. It's good for you. It's going to test your faith. And you're either going to make it or break it.

[27:33] And if you don't exercise faith, you'll fall on your face when the affliction comes, when the hard times come. You'll just feel like I deserve more and I'm going to go back. But if you'll exercise faith, you'll make it.

[27:47] Your faith will grow exceedingly. So there's Abraham and Sarah. They embarked on a new life in obedience to God's word. That was all they needed. They also endured some things in this new life which is just built in.

[28:01] You can expect it. And then thirdly, and maybe I think the most important thing is this. It's in verse 13.

[28:13] It says, These all died in faith not having received the promises but having seen them afar off were persuaded of them and embraced them and confessed they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

[28:25] I want to say this thirdly is that by faith Abraham and Sarah embraced their new life. This was a choice. This is such a big deal. This is more than just obedience to God.

[28:38] But it's saying, Yes, Lord, I'll obey. But it's saying, Yes, Lord, I want this. I want what you want for me. I don't want what I had. I want what you want for me.

[28:50] And taking everything that comes in that life of faith as from the hand of God, good or bad, and saying, I'll stick with you, Lord. In verse number 10, it says this, He looked for a city which hath foundations like his tabernacle never had as the point.

[29:10] He looked for a city which hath foundations whose builder and maker is God. Well, Abraham's not searching the earth for a city. He's not searching the land of Canaan for a city with foundations that God built.

[29:23] So what's he doing? He's looking, but he's not looking on earth. He's looking beyond this life. He walked in tabernacles in the land of Canaan looking to the future.

[29:38] His heart was fixed on what God promised him out ahead, beyond this life. In verse number 13, we read this. It says that they all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off because that's where those promises were.

[29:56] They weren't attainable in this life, on this side, but they were out there. And so Abraham and Sarah, they just embraced this life while they're living, walking, following the leading of God.

[30:10] They're looking on something out there, something that God has for them. They embraced this life. And verse 16, verse 16 says now, but now they desire a better country, that is, and heavenly.

[30:27] They weren't mindful of that country from whence they came. In verse 15, they came out of that one. They weren't even thinking about where the old days were. They desired something better.

[30:39] They desired what God had promised them in the future. This is so real, Christian. This is what God, this is what you need to pick up tonight, is to learn how to embrace a life of faith, that stop desiring what this life can offer you.

[30:56] Stop desiring what you can get your hands on. Hey, Abraham, if you'll invest your money in this in 10 years, it'll be worth this. And Abraham's, he's looking beyond 10 years.

[31:08] He's looking out there where there's riches and that moth and rust doth not corrupt. Where thieves can't break through and steal treasures in heaven.

[31:18] I'm looking to a heavenly place. Hey, Abraham, won't you just build a little town right here? You've got plenty of servants. You've got plenty of substance. If you'll build a town, you could name it after yourself.

[31:30] People would come. There's all kinds of good people around here that'll come. It'll be a huge city in no time. And Abraham says, no, there's a place actually after this life that for a while it's going to be named after me.

[31:44] And a lot of good people are going to show up there. It's called Abraham's bosom. And that's something that God has for me, but this is not what God has for me right now. And so Abraham instead embraced a life of faith.

[31:58] In verses 11 and 12, we read about them having a baby, that they had a baby in their 90s. Abraham was 100 years old when that baby boy came to him.

[32:12] That union, at such an old age, was an act of faith, a major step in getting to experience what God promised to them.

[32:22] In verse number 9, the verse ends with the word promise, that his boys, his son and his grandson were heirs with him of the same promise.

[32:35] Verse 11 ends by, she judged him faithful who had promised. And they died in faith in verse 13, not having received the promises. But they were looking beyond this life the whole time to those promises.

[32:50] And so they embraced this life because it was going to lead to those promises that God had for them. Now, in verse 13, I want to highlight these three words. They're powerful words.

[33:01] It says, in the middle of the verse, they were persuaded of them and embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

[33:12] Persuaded, embraced, and confessed. These three words are telling of this couple. They were persuaded in their mind that God's word is true, God's promises to us are real, and they're going to be realized if we do this, if we stay pilgrims and strangers on this earth and dwell in tents, that God's going to fulfill his word.

[33:37] They were persuaded in their mind, they embraced it with their will. They made a choice to embrace what God had for them rather than be mindful of the country they came out of.

[33:51] And thirdly, they confessed it with their mouth, the new life that God had for them. Their motto and song today would be, I have decided to follow Jesus, no turning back, no turning back.

[34:07] When these three, your mind, your will, and your mouth, when those three operate in harmony to follow and to obey God, I'm not sure if anything can get in the way of that.

[34:19] Because that's what allowed some men to go to a stake and be burned with fire. That's what allowed them, I don't want to get into it, but there's so many gruesome and horrific things that have happened to born-again Christians because they're Christians.

[34:35] But when you embrace this life of faith, it's a new life that operates in faith, I think you and I are capable of pleasing God in ways you wouldn't even believe.

[34:45] You wouldn't think you could ever accomplish that or do that or endure that. But once you're persuaded in your mind that this is right, and once you embrace with your will that this is what I'm going to do, and then they confessed with their mouth that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth, this is what we are.

[35:08] Abraham and Sarah confessed it to everybody. Hey, Abraham, why don't you build yourself a house to give yourself, your wife something nice for once? And they both said, oh no, we're just strangers in this land.

[35:20] We're just pilgrims. We're just, we're just passing through. We're not building anything here. That's not why we're here. But not everybody that is called embraces the change because the change can have some hard aspects.

[35:40] It can ask you to endure some things. And not everybody that's called embraces it. Sometimes it's hard to let go of where you came from. And so here's our example.

[35:53] This is Abraham and Sarah. They didn't say to anybody, this is not our home. Or, I'm sorry, they did not look at everybody and say, look, this is our home now. We left Ur and this is our home now, the land of Canaan.

[36:06] They didn't say that. They didn't say, look, we're happy with a tent and we're happy traveling around. It's a lifestyle that suits us and we enjoy it. They didn't say that either. But what they said, what they confessed is, we are strangers and we are pilgrims.

[36:22] That's why we're living this way. We're strangers and pilgrims on the earth. We don't have a home on this earth anymore. It's not down here for us. We're seeking a heavenly.

[36:35] It's a new life for them. It's a life of faith and they embraced it. This is where some Christians fall short. They hear the call of God or the call to live a life of faith, to step out in faith and to follow Him and to forsake some things of the old life or some people of the old life or some things, places, things all, and they step out of that.

[36:59] And then they find there's some persecution, there's some ridicule, there's some mockery, there's some things you have to endure and that's tough. Maybe we can put up with it. But what some people fall short in doing is embracing, no, if it means I get mocked, I'm staying with Jesus Christ.

[37:17] If it means my family doesn't invite me over for the holidays, I'm not giving in on the Lord Jesus. I'm staying in this life. Whatever I have to endure, I'm going to endure for Him.

[37:31] Embracing it. Abraham and Sarah embraced it. They didn't look back. They didn't complain about it. They looked for something new. Now I'm going to close.

[37:41] I'm already about done here, but I want to close by throwing out one thing. Go back to Genesis chapter 12. And I'd like to end with a nice negative note. Their changed life was a new life.

[37:57] A life of faith. But it wasn't without its share of problems. And what I mean is not just what I've already brought up, but some of the problems you can read about in this book of Genesis.

[38:10] Problems that could have been, should have been avoided. But they brought them on just the same way we bring them on. And I'm just going to, I'm not going to turn to all of these, but I'll turn to the one and then mention it and that's it.

[38:23] In Genesis 12, here's what God said to Abram. Verse 1. Now the Lord had said unto Abram, get thee out of thy country. That's Ur.

[38:34] Ur of the Chaldees. And he did that. And from thy kindred and from thy father's house unto a land that I will show thee.

[38:46] And in verse 4, so Abram departed as the Lord had spoken unto him. But what's the next five words? Lot went with him.

[38:59] Lot went with him. Lot went with him. Lot is the son of his brother. His brother passed away. So Lot now is almost essentially his brother in a sense.

[39:13] Like in that economy, he kind of steps up and takes over that role of the head of that household, of that family. His father, let me find it, Terah, had three sons back in chapter 11.

[39:27] Abram, Nahor, and Haran. We're not going to get into all that. But the Lord said unto Abraham, look back at verse number 1 again, get thee out of thy country. So Abraham departed.

[39:40] And from thy kindred and from thy father's house. So he did some of that, but he brought along Lot.

[39:51] He allowed Lot to come along. You say, what's the big deal? Well, what did God say in verse 1? He wanted a separation.

[40:01] He told him specifically to get out of the country, get away from your kindred and from your father's house. And he did. He departed. But he allowed a part of that old life to come with him.

[40:16] And what happens then? If we wanted to go point by point, you can't name one good thing that happened in Abram's life because of Lot.

[40:27] The very first thing you see is that Lot's servants and Abram's servants start striving together. Strife. A mark of the flesh. Not faith.

[40:40] Envyings and strifes and all that. Carnality. Babes. Lot shows up. He's a picture of that flesh coming along for the ride. What else happens? They get an opportunity that they have to separate.

[40:52] So Lot's, of course, he looks down and sees the well-watered plains of Jordan. That's where I'm going. He takes the best, the good, the stuff that looks good to the sight. He's so carnal and goes down and next thing you know he's dwelling in the gates of Sodom and Gomorrah or Sodom.

[41:07] And do we have to go down that road to describe that? Because of Lot, there was a time before that, it's in chapter 14 that all these kings come together and they get a hold of Lot.

[41:22] In 1412, they took Lot, Abraham's brother's son, who dwelt in Sodom and now Abraham's got to go run to his rescue. Getting involved in battles that he never should have gotten involved in had no, it wasn't his business.

[41:37] But because of that old flesh, now he's not as only as there's strife introduced into his life, there's battles, things calling his attention that was not God's walk of faith.

[41:48] On top of that, Lot has this incest with his daughters and Ammon and Moab show up and going forward, who are two of the biggest perpetual enemies to the nation of Israel but the Ammonites and the Moabites.

[42:02] Thank you, Lot. Well, Abraham, why did you bring him along? That's just one point. A problem that could have been avoided had he just obeyed in faith.

[42:14] Along that life of faith, we see that Abram had a flesh just like me and you. And it shows up in another way. He went down to Egypt in one of the cases and he deceived the king because he was afraid, not faith, fear.

[42:27] And there's another mark. Another case, he has a son by his handmaid named Ishmael. That was not of God. That was not of faith. And that brought strife into the home and problems with his wife and went out into the future just the same.

[42:43] And the point is that these acts throughout his lifetime were outside of faith. They weren't the life that God called him to. They weren't the new life that he was calling him to walk with.

[42:56] They caused major problems too. And so, there's the life of faith and it's all true that they embarked. They did depart and they, the second one was, they endured some things in the life along the way.

[43:12] Things that are built into a life of faith. Trials, that's real. But faith can handle that. And then the third thing, they embraced their new life. But even in all of that, there was the flesh.

[43:23] And the warning is, you give your flesh an inch. You give him a little allowance and he's going to mess something up. God is calling you to a life of faith and it's pure.

[43:34] And if you, you step into that and go in with both feet, it's wonderful. But then Saturday night comes along or Monday morning comes along and you give your flesh a little. These two do not work together.

[43:47] The flesh and the spirit, they're enmity. One against, they're contrary, the one to the other. And you cannot do the things that ye would. There's things that Abraham would have done for God and it would have been in his will that the flesh conflicted or restricted.

[44:02] And now he's got more, more on his hands than he should have with Hagar and Ishmael and Lot and all of that. And so you see there, just to close it off, a reminder to keep the flesh closed up and put off.

[44:18] Otherwise, he's going to mess up your life of faith, the life that God calls you to. So Abraham and Sarah is the next example. And along that, there's some of these little elements that I think are valuable lessons teaching us things, more things about faith, New Testament faith, that the easy road doesn't demand faith, but the life of faith is going to have some afflictions with it.

[44:43] No problem. Faith can endure it. And I won't repeat it all, but there you, I hope you got it all. I'm going to let you go now. It went a little longer than normal, but I hope that helps you and I hope there's something in there that you can grab a hold of and take with you on your way out and write down and pray over and let the Lord help you with it.

[45:00] Let's close in prayer and then we'll be dismissed. Our Father, we want to thank you for Abraham and Sarah and for the example that they are. Thank you for their obedience to you and showing us how we can in like manner obey and trust your word even when you don't spell it all out and show us how it's going to turn out.

[45:19] God, help us not to be afraid to walk by faith. Teach us to trust you and I pray that you'll put it into our hearts, this courage to exercise faith.

[45:29] And Lord, it's a wonderful feeling to know, to have that peace in our hearts, to know that we're walking with you and letting you do what you want to do and obeying you.

[45:39] The obedience is a wonderful feeling, but sometimes it's hard to come to. So God, give us grace and be merciful with us and be patient with us, we ask.

[45:50] But also, Lord, give us that courage that we need to exercise faith. Help us to embrace the new life, the changed life that you call us to in this New Testament.

[46:02] We pray this in Jesus' wonderful name. Amen. Amen. All right, well, you'll be dismissed with that. There'll be obviously no practice men. So, Lord willing, see you Sunday.