HEBREWS CHAPTER 11 part three

(A little about Abraham)
Hebrews chapter eleven, verses eight through nineteen, talk about Abraham and Sarah, Abraham’s wife.
To really do a good job at explaining and expounding Abraham and Sarah would take a book, a very thick
book. Since, we don’t have that much room or time I will limit our discussion of Abraham and Sarah to
fit within the scope of these articles.
Hebrews 11:8-10 (KJV)
8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an
inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.
9 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:
10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God..
Genesis 12:1-5 (KJV)
1 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and
from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee:
2 And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and
thou shalt be a blessing:
3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all
families of the earth be blessed.
4 So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him: and Abram
was seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.
5 And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their substance that they had
gathered, and the souls that they had gotten in Haran; and they went forth to go into the land of
Canaan; and into the land of Canaan they came.
Abraham lived during the 1900’s B.C.. Back in that time you didn’t leave family and the area that you
lived in because it was dangerous to go away from the protections of alliances of family and friends.
Abram, he wasn’t re-named Abraham until he was ninety nine years old, chose to rely on God’s
protection and guidance rather than that of family and friends. This is believing, doing what God tells
you to do! Look at what Romans says about Abraham.
Romans 4:1-22 (KJV)
1 What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found?
2 For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God.
3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for
righteousness.
Believing is the key to deliverance. Believing is the key to power in your day by day walk.4 Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt.
What each and every one of us has to get straight in our minds is that we can’t save ourselves by
works. No matter what pew you are in on Sunday morning, no matter how much you give to the
poor, no matter how many good deeds you do you cannot, will not make yourself righteous
enough to get the blessings of God. You CAN’T go to Heaven on good works. The only way to
get to Heaven and the only way to please God is to believe! It is by grace that we are saved not
of works lest any man or woman boasts.
5 But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith
(believing) is counted for righteousness.
6 Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth
righteousness without works,
7 Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered.
8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.
9 Cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only, or upon the uncircumcision also? for
we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.
10 How was it then reckoned? when he was in circumcision, or in uncircumcision? Not in
circumcision, but in uncircumcision.
Abraham believed God and after he, Abraham, believed God made a covenant with him and the
sign of that covenant, that contract was for Abraham to circumcise himself and all his house (all
the males in his house.)
11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had
yet being uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all them that believe, though they be not
circumcised; that righteousness might be imputed unto them also:
The circumcision refers to Israel. The uncircumcised are those outside the pail of Judaism. This
is referring to the opportunity that everyone has after the Day of Pentecost. Where the body of
Christ is one body taken out of both Jews and Gentiles.
12 And the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only, but who also
walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham, which he had being yet uncircumcised.
13 For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed,
through the law, but through the righteousness of faith (believing.)
14 For if they which are of the law be heirs, faith (believing) is made void, and the promise made
of none effect:
15 Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.
16 Therefore it is of faith (believing), that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be
sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law (Jews), but to that also which is of the
faith of Abraham (Jews and Gentiles who do Romans 10:9,10); who is the father of us all,
17 (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed,
even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations,
according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
This is interesting. At the age of ninety nine all hope of having a son where gone. Abraham AND
Sarah were both well past menopause. No longer did their reproductive organs function. So,
Abraham had to believe against hope! He had to forget about looking forward to having a son,
but rather, turn his eyes on God and His promise and take action. By this act of believing
Abraham became a father of many nations!
19 And being not weak in faith (believing), he considered not his own body now dead, when he
was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb:
20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith (believing),
giving glory to God;
21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.
22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness.
I have included, for your enjoyment, the conversation between Abraham, Sarah and the Angels of God
regarding Sarah’s pregnancy and the birth of their son.
Genesis 18:1-15 (KJV)
1 And the LORD appeared unto him, Abraham, in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent
door in the heat of the day;
2 And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he
ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground,
Angels don’t have wings or halos. They look, like us.
3 And said, My Lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy
servant:
4 Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the
tree:
5 And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts; after that ye shall pass on: for
therefore are ye come to your servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said.
6 And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures
of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.
7 And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetcht a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young
man; and he hasted to dress it.
There was no such thing as fast food back then. This whole process took hours to accomplish.
8 And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he
stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.
9 And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent.
10 And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy
wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.
11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age; and it ceased to be with Sarah
after the manner of women.12 Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure,
my lord being old also?
13 And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety
bear a child, which am old?
14 Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according
to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.
15 Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, Nay; but thou didst
laugh.
After that the angels departed.
Genesis 21:1-3 (KJV)
1 And the LORD visited Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did unto Sarah as he had spoken.
2 For Sarah conceived, and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had
spoken to him.
3 And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him, whom Sarah bare to him,
Isaac.
Hebrews 11:11-16 (KJV)
11 Through faith (believing) also Sara 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.
Both Sarah and Abraham were well past menopause so BOTH had to believe. Abraham for his body and
Sarah for hers.
12 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 sea shore innumerable.
13 These all died in faith (believing), 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.
14 For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country.
15 And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had
opportunity to have returned.
16 But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called
their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.
Abraham looked forward to a city who’s builder and maker is God. That’s why it is “heavenly.” God
builds it, but, puts it here on Earth.
This is absolutely accurate. Abraham was promised, by God, Paradise, here on Earth. A new Earth, but,
Earth. Christians are promised to go to Heaven.
Abraham was faithful to God his whole life. He walked with God and he talked with God and because of
his believing and the believing of Sarah they, both, made it into the roll call of honor of Hebrews chapter
eleven.