LEAVING A LEGACY OF FAITH

“Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.”  Heb. 11:6 (NIV)

WHAT WE MUST MODEL AND TEACH ABOUT FAITH
FAITH IS…

1. BELIEVING WHEN I DON'T SEE IT.

            “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”            
            Heb. 11:1 (NIV)

2.            OBEYING WHEN I DON'T UNDERSTAND IT.
“It was by faith that Noah built an ark to save his family from the flood.  He obeyed God, who warned him about something that had never happened before.”  Heb. 11:7 (NLT)

“It was faith that made Abraham obey when God called him and go out to a country God had promised to him.  He left his own country without knowing where he was going.” 
Heb. 11:8 (GN)

3.            PERSISTING WHEN I DON'T FEEL LIKE IT.

“It was by faith that Moses left Egypt and was not afraid of the King's anger.  He held to his purpose like a man who could see the invisible.”   Heb. 11:27 (JB)

“What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see.”  Heb. 11:1 (NLT)

4.            ANNOUNCING IN ORDER TO EXPERIENCE IT.

“It was by faith that Joseph, when he was about to die, confidently      spoke of God's bringing the people of Israel out of Egypt.  He was so      sure of it that he commanded them to carry his bones with them when they left!”  Heb. 11:22 (NLT)

“By faith, we see the world called into existence by God's word, what we see created by what we don't see.”  Heb. 11:3 (Mes)

            “For He spoke, and it came to be.”  Psalm 33:9 (NIV)

(God said) “I have made you a father of many nations... God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.”  Rom. 4:17 (NIV)

“God speaks of future events with as much certainty as though they       were already past.”                Rom. 4:17 (LB)

“For it is by our faith that we are put right with God; it is by our confession that we are saved.”     Rom. 10:10 (TEV)

5.            GIVING WHEN I DON'T HAVE IT.

“It was faith that made Abel's offering to God a better sacrifice than Cain's. Through his faith…God approved of his giving.” Heb. 11:4 (GN)

            “Because of their great joy… They gave even more than they could afford.”                                                            2 Cor. 8:2-3 (ICB)

“Honor the Lord by giving Him the first part of all your income, and He will fill your barns and overflow your barrels with the finest wines.”  Prov. 3:9 (LB)

“On every Lord's Day each of you should put aside something from what you have earned during the week, and use it for your offering.  The amount depends on how much the Lord has helped you earn.”  1 Cor. 16:2 (LB)

6.            THANKING GOD BEFORE I RECEIVE IT.

“By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the people had marched around them for seven days.” Heb. 11:30 (NIV)

“When you pray and ask for something, believe that you have received it and you will be given what you ask for."  Mark 11:24 (GN)

            “Jesus said, ‘Because of your faith, it will happen.’”  Matt. 9:29 (NLT)

7.             TRUSTING IF I DON'T GET IT.

“They were all commended for their faith yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better...”      Heb. 11:39-40 (NIV)