| From
the Church on the Hill
by Dan Coburn Pastor, Emmanuel Baptist Church Wouldn’t it be nice if there was an Old Testament outline we could refer to? Something we could look at and scan and sound like we were knowledgeable and learned, without actually spending all the time going through the whole Old Testament? Well there is. It is the 11th chapter of the book of Hebrews, where God gives us a litany of Old Testament Heroes, and with the pride of a loving father, cries out for us to “look at them”. “Emulate them”. You might know this passage of Scripture better as “the Faith chapter”. Verse 1 gives us the biblical definition of faith – “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen”. Then we take a stroll down the hallowed halls of “herodom” and see just who God chose, and how He used them, and I cannot help but be dumbfounded by the fact that none of these were who I would have chosen. And it’s not just me; remember the first king of Israel? His name was Saul. He wasn’t Gods man, but rather the peoples. And do you remember why “the People” chose him? Because he was handsome - charismatic, and was “head and shoulders above the rest”. That means he was tall. “Everyone else has a king – we want one too”. That’s how man thinks. But God chooses barbarians. People the “religious world” will surely reject. Ex-Loggers. This is really good news for us. Don’t you see? God doesn’t want you to be conformed to some world view of what a Christian should be. Are you different? Maybe even a little weird? God wants to take the you that He made, and use you mightily on His behalf. You can read the whole 11th chapter of Hebrews, and see all the things God accomplished through these folks, but pause at the 39th verse and recognize that All of them obtained a good report with God through what? Faith. Here is the kicker; God had promised each and every one of them something, and though they lived their whole lives like it was already given them, the fact is None of them received the promise in their lifetime. How did they do that? Faith. Are you somewhat intrigued but not quite sure it is applicable in your life? Then stay tuned next week when we look at one character and see through him that we (even we) can be used of God in a mighty way. |
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