NOT KNOWING--HEBREWS 11:8

NOT KNOWING

HEBREWS 11:8, “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.”

Introduction:

“Not knowing” can bring trying times. There are times that we act or say without knowing what we are doing or without understanding the problem. However, in the life of faith God asks us to go, not knowing what will happen, but trusting in Him to guide and direct us. We have His promises and in the life of faith, that is what we rely on, that is, His Word.

After all, Hebrews 11 is the “Faith Chapter” that shows how countless men and women over the centuries have trusted the God of Heaven with their very lives. These people KNEW their Saviour and that knowledge grew as they learned to trust Him more each day during their lives.

I. ABRAHAM WENT OUT “NOT KNOWING” WHERE HE WENT.

A. “Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One who is leading.” Genesis 22:18, “And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.”

B. “The life of faith is not only a life of mounting up with wings, but a life of walking and not fainting.” Isaiah 40:31, “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”

C. Abraham is not a type of sanctification, but a type of the life of faith, a tried faith built on a real God. Genesis 15:6, “And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.”

1. He was not weak in faith, Romans 4:19-21, “And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara’s womb:”

2. He did not stagger at the promise of God, Romans 4:20, “He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;”

3. He was fully persuaded, Romans 4:21, “And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform.”

II. THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS A LIFE OF NOT “KNOWING WHERE,” BUT OF KNOWING “WHO” LEADS US TO ‘GO.’

A. Moses kept the Passover believing in the Word of the Giver of life, Hebrews 11:28, “Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.”

B. Moses led Israel through the Red Sea “not knowing,” but trusting that God would see them through, Hebrews 11:29, “By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned.”

C. Rahab the harlot trusted not in what she knew, but in the Word of God, that she and her family would be spared in Jericho, Hebrews 11:31, “By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace.”

CONCLUSION

The root of our faith is the knowledge of the Person of Jesus Christ, the God of Heaven. Not know what the future holds for us, we trust in His promises and lean on His understanding.