By Faith, Abraham . . .
Hebrews defines faith as “confidence in what we hope for and assur-
ance about what we do not see” (Heb. 11:1, NIV). Then it provides a list
of faithful people from the history of Israel who exemplify what faith
is, and it shows how they manifested that faith by their deeds.
Read Hebrews 11:1–19. What did these “heroes” of faith do that
exemplified their faith? How are their actions related to the hope
of things not seen?
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Abraham is probably the most important character in this chapter.
Abraham’s last act of faith is especially instructive regarding the true
nature of faith.
Hebrews notes that God’s instruction to Abraham that he offer Isaac as
a sacrifice seemed to imply a contradiction on God’s part (Heb. 11:17,
18). Isaac was not the only son of Abraham. Ishmael was the firstborn
of Abraham, but God had told Abraham that it was all right for him
to accept Sarah’s request and cast Ishmael and his mother out because
God would take care of them, and because Abraham’s offspring would
be named through Isaac (Gen. 21:12, 13). In the next chapter, however,
God asks Abraham to offer Isaac as a burnt offering. God’s instruction in
Genesis 22 seemed to flatly contradict God’s promises in Genesis 12–21.
Hebrews concludes that Abraham amazingly solved the conundrum
by arriving at the conclusion that God would resurrect Isaac after he
had offered him. This is amazing because no one had yet been resur-
rected. It seems, however, that Abraham’s previous experience with
God led him to that conclusion. Hebrews 11:12 notes that Isaac was
conceived by the power of God from one who was “as good as dead.”
Paul also noted that despite Abraham’s being “as good as dead” and
Sarah barren, Abraham believed “in hope . . . against hope, that he
should become the father of many nations” because he believed that
God “gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do
not exist” (Rom. 4:17–20, ESV). Thus, Abraham must have assumed
that if God in some sense already had given life to Isaac from the dead,
He could do it again. In God’s leading in the past, Abraham saw an
intimation of what He could do in the future.
Why is meditating on how God has led our lives in the past so
crucial for maintaining our faith and trust in Him now?