Foundations That Stand

Introduction

Good morning. If you will please open in your New Testament with me to Hebrews chapter 11. Hebrews chapter 11. This morning we’re going to discuss the idea of foundations that stand. Foundations that stand, of course, we think of Jesus in Matthew 7, speaking of the two foundations, one on rock and one on sand. And how did you tell which one was which? Well, the storm had to come. When the storm came and the foundation was built on the sand, that house was wiped out and great was the fall. Those are the people who heard the words of Jesus, but didn’t do them. The house that stood, the house on the rock, was the house of those who had heard the words of Jesus and applied them.

Actually did what Jesus said. That was a foundation that stood. Two houses, two foundations that may have looked the same until the storm came.

For example, there’s that common axiom, you are what you eat. Never been a big fan of that, usually because it means I have to eat something healthier. He says, if you want to be healthy, you eat vegetables, yuck. If you want to put on some muscle weight, you eat protein. If you want to be happy like me, you eat lots and lots of ice cream. I know that’s a shock, looking at those results. But you are what you eat. We realize we have to do some things now to prepare for the future to get better, to get stronger. In Hebrews chapter 11, though, in this hall of faith, Abraham is highlighted. Not only is he highlighted in the Old Testament, here we have this New Testament reference to Abraham, not once, not twice, but you could argue at least three times mentioned here in Hebrews chapter 11 as having a faith that withstood several storms.

If you pick up the reading with me in verse 8, of Hebrews chapter 11, verse 8. My faith Abraham obeyed when he was called out to go to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out not knowing where he was going. Now by faith he went to live in the land of promise as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. And if you skip down to verse 17, the story continues. By faith, Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac. And he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, through Isaac, shall your offspring be named.

1. Abraham’s Foundation Stood

Now he considered that God was able even to raise him from the dead, from which, figuratively speaking, he did receive him back. So here you see Abraham several times showing strong faith. And of course, as it is in keeping with the Hebrews chapter 11 pattern in verse 8, you see, by faith, Abraham, here’s a verb, obeyed. Right? You have by faith, Abraham did what God said. But if we stop and highlight those circumstances and learn some lessons, we’re going to realize not just did Abraham have a strong faith, but what do I do in various crises that I will face in this life? So the first point, really, if we look at Abraham’s faith, it stood. His foundation was solid. It was on the rock, even when he was volunteering to do the unknown.

This one gives me shivers. We’ve talked about this before, but if you look in verse 8 again, by faith, Abraham obeyed. That’s good. He had faith, it was strong, he did what God said. But notice what he did. And more importantly, what he knew when he did it. By faith, Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. Now you read that and you go, well, that’s not very spectacular. I would go somewhere if you were going to give me free land too. If you said, hey, Greg, if you’ll go over to the other side of Orlando, I’ll give you some free land. All you do got to do is go. I would go. That’s not the problem.

What is the problem? The next part of verse 8 is what? He went out, do you see this? Not knowing where he was going. Now that’s a problem point for me. I think the only thing I like less than vegetables is going somewhere I don’t know. We don’t like the unknown. Right? We don’t like being uncomfortable, doing what we don’t know, having a routine that’s new, doing something where we don’t understand all the repercussions. Now, there are some people who like new things. You’re weirdos. But that’s not what even what Abraham’s doing. He is going somewhere blindly. God didn’t say, okay, stop when you get here. Right? And you can read up on all the travel procedures as you get there. He didn’t say, hey, here’s some good things where you’re going.

He said, go, and Abraham said, yes. Now, Abraham does it in such a way as recorded in Hebrews chapter 11, and of course the stories in Genesis 12, that it makes it seem like it’s not really an issue at all. This isn’t a crisis. But can we be honest and say, if God asks us to do something without telling us where we were going, how we were going to get there or how long it would take, then it might be a little bit of a struggle for us. It might just cause us to think a little bit, are we sure? Are you sure, God, that you want me to do that? Isn’t there someone more qualified? Could you at least maybe name the town? Can you name a town we’re moving through at least?

There’s only one type of faith, one type of foundation that would allow those instructions that God gave Abraham to allow for Abraham to obey. A strong faith, whose foundation is in God. It’s the only way we can do that. And yet it continues. Abraham was able to keep his foundation strong and firm with a promise kept in God’s time. If you notice the reference in verse 11, we had skipped over reading this at first. By faith, Sarah herself received power to conceive even when she was past the age, since she considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore, from one man and him as good as dead were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore.

Now, if you notice the scripture, this is funny, the way it approaches the female age versus the male age.

Even when she was past the age. Do you notice what it calls Abraham? Even with him as good as dead. Right? The Hebrew writer understood there are some differences in communication, I guess, among the genders. But you think about Abraham, you think about Sarah. Abraham was a hundred years old when Isaac was born. This child of promise, this long promised lineage had to start with at least one. Sarah was 90. Abraham was a hundred. And so you say, well, it’s, I mean, that’s a miracle. But where’s the test in that? The test is that when God promised Abraham a great nation, it was twenty five years before Isaac would be born. That’s a long time. We often pray, we find ourselves praying to God, and we say, Will you help me with this?

Can you help us? Can you give me strength? Can you help me develop these tools? Can you help me develop this skill set? Can you get me this job? Can you find me this home? Can you cure me of this problem? And when it doesn’t happen the next day or the next week, or the next month, we’re like, all right, well, I guess God’s answer was no. Which, by the way, the answer could be no. But it might also be not yet. Abraham remained faithful. In fact, not just Abraham, but also verse 11 gives credit to Sarah herself. Now, she was able to give birth, verse 11 says, since she considered him faithful who had promised. Now here’s the key. How do you remain faithful when God is not doing what he promised you he would do?

You see, this is different than me just wanting something and God not delivering it. Do you see this next step? Since he who had promised is faithful, God had promised them a son. Five years, ten years, fifteen years, twenty years, twenty-four years later, no son, no lineage. Abraham is scripturally as good as dead, apparently. But God is faithful. Sarah, Abraham by extension, remained faithful. Now, if you read Genesis chapter 15, they tried to intervene. When you get into chapter 16, they tried a different path. But overall, they remain faithful to the idea that because God promised they could get through it. Now, that is always good advice. You know when good advice is given? When you tell somebody, hey, hold on, God will do this for you.

When you’re not the person facing the problem. When you go look at somebody else who’s struggling and say, hold on, God wants something better for you. But when you’re that person, you’re like, now wait a minute, is that the best you can do? When is God going to help? How is God going to help? And so we have this question, but the answer is found again in verse 11. To believe in God. To consider what has God done? Well, if you’re Sarah and Abraham, you know God has already done what? Sent you out to a land not knowing where you were going. And he had seen some good land. God had been with Abraham. God had been with their family, as it were. God takes care of his people.

You can look at Genesis, Exodus, all the way through Revelation. God takes care of his people, number one. And number two, and most importantly, God always keeps his promises. So we have to look carefully. What has God promised? My faith might shake because sometimes I think that God’s not keeping promises he’s made to me when if I actually check the New Testament pages, God didn’t make that promise to me. Some things that God did not promise me are great health and great wealth. It’s unfortunate, but he didn’t promise it. Now, if you look at Matthew chapter 6, when Jesus says not to worry, he says that we will have what we need to wear, what we need to eat, what we need to drink. God will take care of our needs.

But he never promises wealth. And that’s hard in this country to think until we take ourselves out of this country. And think about Christians overseas right now who have nothing. They have no physical possessions. What we are wearing in this room collectively is more than they will probably see in their lifetime in some cases. And now we realize God’s given me way more than I certainly deserve. Certainly need. And you could argue even then more than I should want. So what do I do with that blessing? First of all, I’m thankful to God that he has taken care of me. He has kept his promise to give me what we need. And I give him thanks and praise. Secondly, I realize only the devil wants me to look at what God’s given me and say, that’s not enough.

You see, God does good things for us, and what do we do? We turn our backs and we say, it’s not good enough. We want more. But Abraham and Sarah stayed faithful overall. They considered him faithful who had promised, and so withstood the storm. But here’s the most difficult one. Abraham’s foundation stood even when God demanded the unthinkable. Go back to verse 17 with me. In verse 17, by faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was in the act of offering up his only son, of whom it was said, through Isaac shall your offspring be named. Now we read verse 19 and we read this Hebrews 11 account, we go, man, Abraham is strong. That was no big deal, though.

He got past it. But go back in your reading this week. Consider Genesis chapter 22. In that chapter where God tells Abraham, you are to kill, offer, and sacrifice your son Isaac. Do it. Take him up. Now imagine being Abraham going up to offer the sacrifice with your son Isaac, the promised son, who you waited 25 years for. And have that son look to you and say, Where’s the sacrifice? Dad, we’re going up and offer sacrifice. Where is it? Verse 19 is powerful. Abraham considered God could even raise him from the dead. But imagine as you’re up there, you’re Abraham. You are following God only because of faith. There’s no other motivation for this. And you are about to take the life of your promised son.

How can you possibly do that? You read Genesis chapter 22 and you recognize that God was not going to have him take the life of Isaac. He provided the sacrifice. In verse 19, Abraham’s faith was rewarded. But even if you consider what Abraham did, this doesn’t match the text of verse of chapter 22 of Genesis. In verse 19, it doesn’t say he considered God would provide a sacrifice. It doesn’t say he thought, well, God is going to tell me, all right, you got close enough. No, in verse 19, Abraham thought I could go through with it, and if I had to, because God is faithful, he can even do the miraculous. And do you see that that’s faith? I don’t know how God’s going to keep his promise, but I know that he will.

Can we think about that for a moment? Do you think how life-changing that would be if we could remember in our minds, I don’t know how God will keep his promises. I don’t know how I’m going to get through this, but with God I will. That is powerful. That’s faith. And in verse 19, when you see what God did, you see that Abraham knows God can do the miraculous. So we just have to do what he asks. And be ready for God to do the heavy lifting. And so then we see how Abraham’s foundation stood, but in four situations, will my faith withstand these difficulties of life? Because remember, in Matthew chapter 7, there’s the two houses, the two foundations. And when do you notice the difference?

2. When I Don’t Know What to Do

When the storm comes. What about the first storm? What about when I don’t know what to do? When I don’t know why, when I don’t deserve to be where I’m at, when I don’t think I know anywhere else to go, there’s no positivity, there’s nowhere to go but up because I am down, down, down. What am I supposed to do then? Let’s take some of our cues from Paul and his faith. If you look with me in Philippians chapter 1, in Philippians chapter 1, certainly Abraham was willing to keep moving to do whatever God asked, albeit not perfectly, but by faith his foundation overall stood. Paul, another pillar of faith. Notice what Paul does as he is in prison, by the way, pinning this letter, pinning the scripture, in Philippians chapter 1 and verse 12, he says, I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.

So it has become throughout the whole known throughout the whole imperial guard and to all the rest that my imprisonment is for Christ. And most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear. What do we do when life is hitting me hard? When I’m hurting, when I’m feeling unfairly treated, when I don’t know what to do. First of all, if you notice what Paul does, he never stops serving Christ. There’s always the answer. Always serve God. But secondly, do you notice Paul’s perspective? In prison, in chains in verse 12, what does he say? You know what? This has actually been for the good. You see the problem, by the way, with being down on ourselves and thinking, I have nowhere to go.

This is tough. This isn’t fair. We stop looking at the bigger picture. And what does God operate from? The complete picture. We usually look at one piece or a few pieces. God looks at the whole thing. Paul says, if I think about life like God does, I will see in my imprisonment what has happened, verse 14. Now people speak the word how? Boldly. Can you imagine, by the way, being the guard in verse 13? I don’t think this is exactly the reference point, but it says so that it’s become known throughout the whole imperial guard that my imprisonment is in Christ. I’m not sure that the point of this verse is to say that here’s Paul shackled the guards and he’s just talking about the gospel all day.

But can we not imagine that Paul was shackled to a guard that he would not be talking to them about the gospel all day? That they would he would be taking every opportunity to say, I may be in prison, but you need to know about Jesus who can free you from your sins. He can free you from your bondage. I just want you to listen. Can you imagine the impact and the chance Paul would have taken? He would have said, This is an opportunity. I would never get these guards otherwise. And those poor guards on shift. Imagine it was every 12 hours. They’re like, all right, I got the one who’s going to preach to me again. Be with me. Right? Paul would take the opportunities.

He would take the chances. Sometimes we just don’t know what else to do. We have to trust God anyway, though. There was a little boy who was found praying and he’s looking really disgruntled. And so his Bible class teacher walked over and she said, What’s wrong? He said, I’ve been praying, and my Aunt Harriet still hasn’t found love. My dad hasn’t found a job, and my uncle’s still losing his hair. I’m tired of praying for this family and not getting any results. And you think about all of a sudden my prayer life, and I realize I view God like that little boy does. I look at God sometimes like a genie. And I think, I should be praying. I should be getting what I want. It should fall into place.

Instead of realizing God has already placed me right where he needs me to be. It might be that I am facing consequences for bad choices, and we’re going to talk about that in a few moments. But it may also be that I was meant to be in this spot for this reason. And whether it is or is not, God’s directive, divinely stated, that he manipulated events to put me there. You know what Paul does? He assumes he’s meant to be there and makes the best of it for Jesus. It is also in Philippians that Paul says, for me to live is Christ and to die is gain. And here, even in bondage, even in prison, he acknowledges that fact. And he says, I might have gone down in this capacity, but I’m not out, and I can strengthen others too.

3. When I Don’t Get What I Want

That’s a very different mindset. Then I don’t know what to do. This isn’t right. There’s nowhere to go but up. Also, what about the storm of life that says, I don’t get what I want? Maybe we’re not getting what we think we want because the genie hasn’t answered. Or maybe even we think God has promised, but it’s not going right. Look at Hebrews chapter 12. I said we’d speak about maybe some tough choices we’ve made. Hebrews chapter 12 notes that type of circumstance. Hebrews chapter 12 and in verse 3. Notice first the consideration is of Jesus. Now you consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or faint hearted. And your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.

Have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him, for the Lord disciplines the one he loves and chastises every son whom he receives. It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us, and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.

For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant. The later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. And we’re back this morning to another point we made previously. When you look at the judges, the period of the judges, it’s very easy to look at the Israelites and say, Why are you in captivity? Why are you struggling, Israelites? Why are you being oppressed? Because you disobeyed. God is punishing you. Why? So that you would see your need for him, that you would repent, that God would send another judge and save you. Easy and clean. You know when that’s hard to hear? When I’m being chastised, punished by the Lord. Now we read that. We have to be careful because the text doesn’t say how God punishes us.

In the old law, it was very clear. There was a clear set of conditions for the Israelites. If you would do this, you will receive these blessings. If you choose not to obey me, you will receive these curses. That is not so in the New Testament from a fleshly life point of view. So what do I do then when I don’t get what I want? And I realize in my life, maybe I’m not getting what I want because of my choices. You see, in verse 7 and 8, it’s very powerful. There’s this picture of an earthly father. And the scripture is so clear that you basically did not have a father if he did not discipline you. Parents love their children, and so they do what?

Train them. Try to help them be the best that they can be. Work on their soul, craft them, and in so doing, what does it take? Short-term pain, discipline, sacrifice for that long-term gain and growth. God is the same way. If our earthly Father can do it, how much more so is God not ready, willing and able to show love as his children? Do you see that in verse 5? My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord or be weary. No, that God is watching us. The Lord disciplines who in verse 6? The one whom he loves. Who does he chasten? The one whom he receives. Why would God allow us to suffer? Well, it might be that God didn’t want us to suffer.

Maybe we made choices that led to our suffering. You want to see a picture of that? Look at the Old Testament. God said to the Israelites, go and extinguish the people in the land of Canaan. And what did they do? They did it about, let’s generously say 90 something percent. You know what happened to that 10% over time? They were the ones who came back and caused problems for the people, introduced them to idolatry, continually put them into different forms of captivity and bondage and war. If we had just done what God said, and we were a Hebrew, we could say, we could have peace. But here we are as Christians, and we think we’re past that. God knows what we need. And it might be that in a tough choice, we realize this life is hard.

But what are we living for? Not this moment. The Israelites were in captivity, for example, in bondage for 70 years. In the case of Babylonian captivity. What if you were born in that time period? You didn’t deserve that. You’re not getting the freedom. Maybe you aren’t going to live to 70. Maybe you wouldn’t make it out if you were born four or five years into it. What do we understand? God is sending a message to his people. You need me. You need to trust me. And when life comes at us, he wants us, the devil wants us to think inward, and God wants us to think upwards. He wants us to set our mind on things above, to realize God is in control. God is watching.

4. When God Asks the Impossible

And what does he want as our Father? For us to be the best we can be. That does not mean health and wealth. It does mean a soul in good standing with God. And so the next question is, will my faith withstand when God asks the impossible? When God asks too much of me, we remember Abraham was asked to give up Isaac, the promised son, of twenty-five years in the making. And Abraham went. Because he trusted that God could do the impossible. What will I do? In Acts chapter 5, we’ve seen a tough example. The apostles are placed in a very tough, back against the wall type of circumstance. In Acts chapter 5 and verse 17 and 18, the high priest of the Jews rose up, and all who were with them, that is the party of the Sadducees, and filled with jealousy.

The text says they did it because they were jealous. They arrested the apostles and put them in the public prison. And you keep reading in verse 27 and 28. When they had brought them and they set them before the council, and the high priest questioned them, saying, We strictly charge you not to teach in this name. Yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us. This is a tough circumstance. Now we again we look at the apostles like we do Abraham. We go, wow, those are pillars of faith. They are strong. Until you remember that in the end of Jesus’ life, when he was crucified, what did all of those apostles do, including Peter? They fled.

They left. Peter denied Jesus, not once, not twice, three times. These were men. Men with gifts of the Holy Spirit, yes. But they were men. Who were faced with a tough circumstance by Jews, by brethren, until not too long ago, they were told, do not teach Jesus anymore. And now they’re in a bind because their Lord, the resurrected Savior, said, You go into the world and teach the gospel. And now the Jewish leaders of their society are saying, We’ve told you, knock it off. Here they’re in prison, they’re going to be beaten. What will they do? In Acts chapter 5, we learn the key is that they would pray. They would pray for boldness, but more so than boldness later. Notice in the moment. And this is the key.

Not ten days later, not ten months later, right away. What was Peter’s response in verse 29? We must obey God rather than men. Here’s how you know if your foundation is strong this morning. You decide today, this moment. When the storm comes, what will my answer be? Sometimes I’m asked questions in the middle or high school classes or an individual basis about what do I do in X circumstance? What do I do if this happens or if my back’s up against the wall this way? And the first part of the answer is always, don’t be in that circumstance. If you think ahead of time, you can avoid most of these traps. When we look at what Satan wants us to think, he wants us to think, God needs me to do the impossible to get out of this.

I have no choice. I just have two bad ones. No. You have a choice not to put yourself there. But also in the case of the apostles, they had a choice that when they did the right thing, it would put them in the throes of the trouble. What we have to decide today is that God is worth my sacrifice. I have to decide. I won’t give in to sin anymore. I won’t lose control. I won’t give up the reins. I will let God make the decisions. I will let God make the choices because I answered to him, not men. And you see, from that point of view, the choice in life is hard, but intellectually, it’s easy. Make the choice that no matter where society goes, I will stand for what is right.

There’s a picture of a boat up against the shoreline. And sometimes we wonder as a site, how did we get so far from God? The Bible’s been the same for hundreds of years. How have we drifted in our view? The minute we pick up our anchor, the ship is still close to shore. But over time, what happens to a ship with no anchor? It drifts farther and farther and farther along until you can no longer even see the shoreline. We have to decide today that no matter what God ask of me, if God has asked it, he knows that I can what? That I can do it with his help. That’s the key. God doesn’t ask us to do something that we can’t do because he knows our limits.

5. What Do We Do When Life Is Good

He knows what we can do. And if we can’t do it, he can propel us to do the impossible. We’ve seen that with Abraham. You can see that with Moses. You can see that even in Jesus. In Matthew chapter 26, Jesus knows the worst fate is coming. Crucifixion is nigh. And he finds himself praying three times. If it is possible, Lord, let this cup pass from me. But nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done. Make the choice today. Nevertheless, not my will, but thine be done. There’s one other storm that often gets in our way. What do we do when life is good? If you look with me quickly at Proverbs chapter 30, it’ll be the last passage we look at this morning. In Proverbs chapter 30, we often don’t think of life being good as a tough storm.

Think of storms as when we lose our job, of when we lose our income, when we lose all the money in our bank account. But if you notice the Proverbs, in Proverbs chapter 30 and verse 7, notice what the writer says. Two things I ask of you. Deny them not to me before I die. Remove far from me falsehood and lying. Give me neither poverty nor riches. Feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, Who is the Lord? Or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God. Do you see that that’s wisdom? That I would not be poor or rich. Because when I’m rich, what do I do? I think I don’t need God.

When I’m poor, I might have to do some things that are wrong. I might have to steal and wonder why isn’t God helping. And then you think about the secret of Paul back in Philippians, in his imprisonment in chapter 4, he has learned to be content. Why? Philippians 4, verse 13. Because I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. Make the decision today. Things will not define me. And that might mean not buying them in the first place. It may mean going home and purging them from our home. It may mean changing where I live, what I drive, how I act, how I dress. It may mean that when God asks too much of me, I realize that’s not a real problem. That’s a worry from the devil that God knows what I can do, and if he’s asked it, I can do it with his power, with his help.

Conclusion

If you’ve never become a Christian, recognize this morning that God does give you a way to be forgiven. Without God, we are without hope. There is nowhere to turn. But with him, you can have your sins washed away. You aren’t stuck. If you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, if you’re willing to confess Him as Lord and Savior in your life and all that that means, repent of your sins of choosing to not do what God says, and you want to start submitting your life to Him, you can be baptized and share in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Become a new creature. Serve Him faithfully today. Or maybe you’re a Christian and the storms of life have come.

It’s shaken your foundation. And it may not have completely fallen, but it’s cracked. It’s torn. And it needs some help and repairs. God’s family is here for you. God wants you to be whole. He wants your foundation to be secure. If you trust in the Lord and you need to make things right, come forward as we stand and sing the invitation song.