The Hall of Faith, and this is what most people refer to Hebrews eleven as as the chapter that contains the Hall of Faith, and the reason is is because t here is so many different Bible characters listed in Hebrews chapter eleven that. Exerted incredible faith in God and truly amazing stories. I hope that you guys have enjoyed these because a lot of times when we go back to these, it's like we're going back to to some of the great stories that we heard in kids' church and things like that growing up. And so it's a lot of fun to kind of look at some of these stories. And I hope that you have enjoyed each and every one of them so far in our series.
We have seen how able. Had faith and offered up an excellent sacrifice. You know that story way back in Genesis. Enoch, by faith, pleased as well as walked with God. Noah, by faith, built an ark.
Abraham. By faith, left his homeland and followed the Lord. But then, also later in Hebrews chapter eleven, Abraham by faith offered up the promised son, Isaac, on an altar. Sarah, what we saw last week, by faith believed not that she was perfect, but she believed and trusted. In the promise of God, and what's amazing is that each one of these stories that we have seen so far, they have really been about an individual believing or stepping out in obedience to something maybe that the Lord had asked them to do.
And this one, the next character that we're going to come to, is Isaac, and Isaac's story is a little bit different. And Isaac, or better yet, the the part that the writer of the book of Hebrews mentions, is interesting to me because the the element of his faith came at a very dysfunctional type of time for him in in this story. And so, in Hebrews chapter eleven, verse twenty number twenty, here is what it says: just one verse in Hebrews eleven talks about Isaac. And here is the one that what it chose the story that they chose. It says, "By faith, Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come." By faith, Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come.
Now, I want to give you a little bit of the story because I recognize that you know some of you have been in church your entire life and you know this story. You could probably get up and teach this better than I could today. But we also have people that might be newer to church; they might not be as familiar with this story specifically. And so, I want to take just a moment. Moment, we can't read it all because in Genesis twenty-seven, I believe there's forty-six verses about the story that Hebrews eleven is referencing.
But it really begins in in Genesis chapter number twenty-six. If you remember, Abraham and Sarah had Isaac. Isaac was the promised son. And it was through Isaac that God said that the world would be blessed. You remember that that all nations would be blessed as a result of Abraham's offspring, which was Isaac, and and so on through Isaac.
And and so he he mentioned that, and God would reiterate this promise often. But Isaac, who married Rebecca. In Genesis twenty-six, they had two twin sons, Jacob and Esau. Esau was a little bit older, and and it says in chapter twenty six that that they struggled. I believe is the word we have in Genesis twenty six.
They struggled in Rebecca's womb, and and so she was having a difficult time with the two of them. And what God told her was that the reason is is because you have two nations within you. You have two nations within you, and they were warring, and and you know when they were being born, like that one of them grabbed the hill, all this kind of stuff, and and they did that. But but what God promised to Rebecca and to Isaac was was this: is that the eldest would serve the youngest.
Now, that was totally different than than society. That was a cultural difference. Normally, the youngest would always serve the eldest. That was the cultural norm, if you would. But yet, God said and promised that it would kind of be flipped.
It would be backwards.
Well, they're born and and they grow up. And Esau, his name means red and hairy. Wouldn't you love that? Any any Esau's in the room today and um. That's really what his name meant, and so his name meant red and hairy, and and he was your typical like outdoorsy kind of kid.
Every kid is different, and and so he was just kind of an outdoorsy one. I imagine that if Esau was living today, you go into his house, there's probably a bunch of the animals that he had killed, kind of mounted on the wall, right? Sports centers on the TV, real loud truck out front, you know that kind of thing, and that's kind of the guy that you got with Esau. But Jacob was totally different. Jacob was more of a homebody, like to stay at home, kind of you know around the his mom and kitchen and different things like that.
Probably drove like a Miata or something. I don't know. But here is what I will tell you: he was just totally different than than Esau. Just two different guys, and and and right or wrong, they were just different. And and they had a very dysfunctional family.
And I say this, I said this last week because it's true. If you ever feel like, man, my family's A little dysfunctional, or your family's a little dysfunctional, and you kind of like, man, we're a little crazy. Go to stories like this; it's going to make you feel really good about yourself. Because here is the issue: Isaac or Rebecca literally had favorites. Had favorites.
Now, I want you to know, if you're a child in the room, still under your parents, all right. Your parents do not have favorites, okay? And I feel like we hear that from time to time. You know, it's like when one kid's getting in trouble. What's the natural response to the other one?
If they get out of it, you know, they're like, "They're your favorite" or whatever. It's not true.
So kids don't believe it, okay? Don't believe it about your parents. But in this story, it was true. It was true. Isaac loved Esau, and Rebecca loved loved Jacob.
Which was a problem in and of itself. But as they grew older, as they grew older, we know that Jacob connived and and kind of, which his name means trickster and and deceiver. And so he deceived his brother. He stole his birthright when they were growing up. You remember that story.
But then, as we fast forward, Isaac's about to die in Genesis 27, and that's what we find here in Hebrews 11. Is what you know the writer of the book of Hebrews? He references this story from Genesis 27, Isaac's dying, and he felt because he he says in chapter 27, he doesn't know how much longer he had. His eyesight was gone, his hearing was struggling, and he was just like anybody else on their deathbed. Just some things were not functioning the way, and so he felt this would be the best time to bless his son.
And so he wanted to bless Esau. In other words, he wanted the inheritance to go to Esau. He wanted his future to go to Esau. That was his plan. But if you remember, before Esau and Jacob were born, God said that that the eldest Esau would serve the younger, not backwards.
But Isaac had a plan, and so he was going to, you know, bless Esau.
So he asked Esau, he said, "Hey, go kill an animal, and and then make us some food, and and it is in that moment that I'm gonna I'm gonna bless you." So Esau goes out. He's doing exactly what his dad wanted him to do. This is a huge moment for Esau. He's about to receive the blessing from his father, which contains so much, so many good things. About his future and about different things, and so he goes out to kill.
Well, well, Jacob and and Rebecca had a plan. They're like, this is our opportunity to once again deceive and connive their way into stealing the blessing from Esau. And so, what they did, they had to make it very believable in case Isaac, who couldn't see well, in case he wanted to to touch his son during the blessing, they had to get Jacob to feel and to smell just like Esau. And so, they go kill an animal and they put hair all over his arms and things like that. Let me just say this: that if somebody ever tried to act like you and they needed to smell like you.
And the way to do that is to go kill an animal. That's about the craziest thing. You need to you need to get a new cologne or whatever, right?
So so this was an issue, and so they killed this animal, put all this hair on him, so in case that would happen. And and Jacob goes in as his brother Esau, and Isaac didn't realize it because he's old, and and so he he blessed Jacob. Jacob received the blessing. Esau comes home. Esau's mad.
Of course, I mean you would be too, right? And Esau's angry.
So he he begs for a blessing, but this was like a can't go back on it kind of thing. Already blessed Jacob. And so Esau is angry. He goes looking for Jacob. Jacob flees out of that, and Esau misses out on the blessing of God.
And what is interest or the blessing of his father? What is interesting about this story is that this was totally different than than really what God had promised originally. And yet, that's the story that. That the writer of the book of Hebrews chose to mention. When you look at Isaac's whole life, you would think, why couldn't the writer have mentioned the story about when Isaac walked up Mount Moriah with his father and was surrendering to the most outrageous thing in the world, where his dad was going to sacrifice him?
And to our knowledge, from Genesis chapter twenty-two, we we don't have any record that he argued or fought with his dad. He he was doing that. Fully surrendered, or how he trusted God during a famine in the Old Testament. You know, there's so many good elements, but the the one story that they chose to mention here in Hebrews 11 is a moment of like weakness, if you would. In 1969, you guys would probably recognize this song.
Frank Sinatra he released a hit song entitled "My Way." Here's what the lyrics said: Regrets, I've had a few, but then again, too few to mention. I did what I had to do. I saw it through without exemption. I planned each charter course, each careful step along the byway, and more, much, much more. I did it, and you can finish the lyrics.
I did it my way. If I was to think of any song that would fit this story from Genesis 27, it would be that, because every character in the story of Genesis 27 and what Hebrews 11 talks about, every single one of them did things their own way. Every one of them. I mean, look at Isaac. His way was to bless Esau.
Rebecca's way was to steal the blessing for Jacob. Jacob's way was to steal the birthright from Esau and to trick his father, and Esau's way was just to continue to go along with something that God really didn't want to begin with, because God prophesied that Jacob would be the line of blessing from the very beginning, and so Esau just goes along with it and then reacted in in anger. And yet Hebrews eleven mentions Isaac as a man of faith. Listen, Isaac was not perfect, but we can learn some things about God and about the plans of God from this story. From Hebrews chapter number eleven, I want to give you a few things because I think that this is about as practical as we can possibly get from this story about God and His plans and His agenda.
Because each person in the story had their own plan, and what we learn is that God had a completely different plan. God had a completely different agenda than what Isaac had. God had a completely different agenda. Than what Rebecca had, God had a completely different agenda than what Esau had. God had a completely different agenda than even what what Jacob had.
And what do we learn about faith from this? Number one, I want you to see a few things about God's plan. First, God's plans are greater than our plans. If you believe that, can you say Amen this morning? If you have walked with God.
For any length of time in your life, you can say that this is true. In fact, if I was to invite some of our older members who have walked with God, some in here for over fifty years, if I was to invite them up front today and listen to their stories, they would really reiterate this fact that they could go back throughout their life and they can see some moments where they had an agenda. They had a desire, they had a will, and they had a plan, and then God came in and completely changed it. Did something different, and when they look back and survey their life, they can see and come to this conclusion that God's plans are always greater than our plans. What Isaac had to learn here is that God had a purpose and a plan.
He had revealed it. He had revealed it all the way back to Abraham, and in Genesis chapter number twenty-two, when he called Abraham and said, "Hey, listen, you're going to leave your family behind, and you're going to go into a land that I'm going to show you, and I have a plan for you. This plan is going to bless the entire world." That's what God's plan was through him, and we know the story. Abraham he he tried just like Isaac did in the story. He tried to do things his own way.
So you know they involved Hagar, the you know the Egyptian handmaid or whatever, into their family, and and they involved her and and Abraham slept with her. They had Ishmael. Surely that's got to be the plan of God. Maybe that's what he meant. And God said, No, no, no, no, no.
I had a very specific plan, and I had a very specific purpose. That one. Day Abraham and Sarah, you are going to have a son, the promised son, and through your promised son, the entire world would be blessed.
So they get pregnant. Sarah laughs, and it is through their child, the son of promise, Isaac, that God, all the way in Genesis twenty-six, says, "Hey, through him." The world will be blessed. You see, God had a plan all along. Even though Jacob, or even though Jacob and and even though Isaac and Rebecca and Esau, they all wanted to do their own thing. God had a plan.
And here's what I will tell you: one of the greatest obstacles, one of the greatest obstacles to you walking by faith, is our insistence. On doing things our way, would you agree to that? Like. One of the biggest obstacles that you have, I mean, I know when you look at these stories, you're thinking, "Man, I want to walk by faith. I want to live by faith.
I want to do things the way that you know God tells me to do things." And when you leave here and you head to your job and and you head to your community and and you head to your you try to lead your family and you do everything the way that you hope you know is God's way. Here's what I'll tell you: one of the biggest obstacles to walking by faith. Is realizing and surrendering your plans to His plans, because most of us, most of us pray for God to bless our direction. God, this is the way I see things. God, this is the way we've always done it.
God, this is the direction I want to go. God, I think this is best for my kids. I think this is best for my family. God, would you bless my direction? And the obstacle comes when you look at your life and you pray for God to bless your direction.
And some of us forget that what we are called to do is fully surrender to His direction. That's what we're called to do. We're not leaving here every day and say, "God bless my plans." God bless my agenda. God bless my will. No, we leave here every day, and we every single day say, "God, don't make this about me." God, surrender my will for Your will.
And God, I want Your agenda to come to pass in my life, whatever that is. God, help me walk in Your ways. Help me walk in Your will. Help me to surrender everything to you. Proverbs nineteen twenty one says this: There are many devices in a man's heart.
Nevertheless, the counsel of the Lord that shall stand. Here is what the psalmist is literally saying: That there is a lot of plans on our agenda, but His plan is the one that will stand. His plan is the one that will come to fruition. Isaiah fifty five talks about this. My thoughts and ways are not his thoughts and his ways.
You see, what we learn here is that Isaac had a preference, but God had a purpose, and that's what you learn here is that God's plans are greater than our ways. But number two, God's plans are also greater than our failures. Aren't you thankful for that? In this. It's just amazing that, as everyone in the story tried to control the situation and try to control the outcomes, God remained sovereign over it.
As every one of them tried to control it, God still remained sovereign over it. Isn't that wild? It's wild when we think about God's sovereignty, like. It's hard for our minds because we're fleshly and we're flawed. It's hard for our humanistic minds to really grasp the sovereignty of Almighty God.
When we talk about His sovereignty, we're talking about His orchestration of everything that happens, you know, in time from beginning to end. That God ordained things. God orchestrated things. God has a plan. God is in control.
His sovereignty means that before the world, He was. And recognizing that, it means that He's also not only was He before the world began. It means that we're trusting that He's already in our future. He's omnipresent, and and when we see this, it's it's amazing.
Sovereignty means that you know he's in eternity past. He's already been there. He's done that. But beyond that, the entire spectrum from beginning to end, he sees it, and he's in control of all things. It doesn't just when we talk about his sovereignty.
It just it doesn't just completely say that he's seen it all. It is trusting in the fact that the entire thing from beginning to end is in the palm of our Savior's hand.
So when we look at sovereignty, we got to understand that God's sovereignty means that He's in control. God's plans are greater even than the failures that we commit from time to time. And what you learn here is that Isaac had a plan. I'm going to bless Esau. I love Esau.
I prefer Esau, and my plan is to bless him. But guess what? God had an orchestrated divine plan that operated above all of their preferences and above all of what they wanted in this story. God's plans are greater than our failures, and when we look at God's sovereignty, it means when you're trusting the sovereignty of God, it means that you trust that He is in control.
So, in other words, if you're going through a situation where life seems uncertain, it is trusting that it is never uncertain to Him. Because he orchestrated all things, he is above all things. He sees all things, and everything is in the palm of his hand. Has it ever come to your realization that what may show up as a surprise to you never surprises God? That is his sovereignty.
That's trusting that he's in control of everything. He's over everything. But not only that, God's sovereignty, and this is what Isaac realizes: God's sovereignty means His promises are secure. What the promise He made to Abraham, it's going to come to fruition. Listen, a promise is only as reliable as the person making it.
You know, if somebody who's broken a promise to you, isn't it funny? You struggle to trust that person the next time, don't you? They told me one time they're going to be here on time, and when they weren't, you're like, you don't believe it ever again, right? Listen, the promise—it's only as good as the person making it. And here, what you have to understand is in Genesis 22, the God of Heaven, the God who spoke the world into existence, the God who cannot lie, the God who is full of grace, who is full of mercy, the God who is just and perfectly holy and righteous—he's the one making the promise.
And when he made the promise to Abraham, he's going to come to fruition. No matter how much Abraham and Sarah didn't believe it, his promise is going to happen. His promise is secure. He cannot go back on his promise because he's God. He cannot go back on his word because he is holy, and he is righteous.
You see, God's promises are trustworthy. Because he possesses both the faithfulness to keep his promise, as well as the power to fulfill his promise, that's why you can trust him.
So, listen when you look at promises from you know in Scripture, and you're trying to take heed of these, and and your life just looks like man, it doesn't look like his promises are really come to fruition in my life. It doesn't look like things are working together for good the way Romans eight tells me they will. It doesn't look like things are happening. What you're trusting is this: is that even though we fail, even though we doubt, even though we sin, even though we make mistakes and we fail from time to time, that God's promise will come to pass in His perfect time. That's what God's sovereignty is.
That's what He's saying here. Number three. God's promises are greater than our present circumstances. The third thing Isaac learned in this story is that God's promises are greater than our present circumstances. The circumstances surrounding Genesis chapter twenty-seven, which is what Hebrews eleven twenty is referencing, the circumstances involved.
Favoritism. It involved dishonesty. It involved deceit. I mean, literally, Isaac's household was completely fractured and messed up. It was dysfunctional.
But yet, God's covenant promise and His purpose continued. You realize that. That even though the circumstances was pretty bad, where there were all this sin and failure and problems, things didn't look good, and perhaps that's where you find yourself today. That your circumstances don't look good. Things at your job aren't making sense.
People in your relationships—it's not making sense—and you're looking at maybe it's a friendship, maybe it's a marriage, maybe it's a child in your your family that's not turning out the way that you had hoped. Whatever it is that you today that God has already maybe even put upon your heart that things are not looking the way that you hope. Here's what you have to understand, and what Isaac had to learn is in that story in Genesis 27. Nothing looked like it was going well. Nothing looked like it was going right.
But yet, God's promises are always greater than the present circumstances that we're in. And so things might not look good for you today, but what I would challenge you to say is from Scripture: is this is that there is a brighter day coming for you, that God's promises will come to fruition for you, and that we can trust in Him. Hebrews eleven twenty once again by faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come. Concerning things to come, even though Isaac intended to bless Esau, God's purposes could not be stopped. Isn't that interesting?
Like Isaac had his whole other agenda, but yet in the midst of his own agenda, God's purposes, His plan, and His agenda and His promise would would continue. You know, in this story, Genesis chapter twenty-two, eighteen, Genesis twenty-six, verses four and five, and Genesis twenty-eight, fourteen. In all of those passages, here's what the scripture says about the blessing that we're reading about. It says this statement: All nations. Of the earth will be blessed.
All nations of the earth will be blessed. In other words, God's promise and God's plan was this: that through Isaac, the promised son, the world would be blessed through him. When you look at Isaac's story of faith, what you have to see is this: ultimately. His story points us towards something much greater than a father's inheritance, than a father's blessing. You see, when God, way back in Genesis 22, when God promised Abraham that through his offspring all nations would be blessed, that promise would continue through Isaac.
And then that promise would continue through Jacob, and that promise would go all through the nation of Israel, God's chosen people, and then it would be forever fulfilled through the person of Jesus Christ. You see, what you learn here is that this story of faith, this story that came at somewhat of a messed up time, God's promises are always going to happen. They're going to, you know, they're going to come to its purpose, even when things around you don't look right. And what you see is that this promise—it stayed the course of time, even through doubt. God's promise still remains, even through deceit.
God's promise still remains, even through dishonesty and failure. God's promises—you can take it to the bank—will happen. They're not dependent upon you. Aren't you thankful for that? Listen, His promises are not dependent upon me because if they were.
I would fail, and then it would negate his promise. No, his promise is always based on the one who's giving the promise, and he's in perfect character.
So what he promises you, that he will do. And here, ultimately, this story. Finds its fulfillment in Jesus. You want to say like all the way through Scripture, and I tell our church this all the time. But I want you to understand this because several years ago, I just finally it clicked in my head like never before.
Because I grew up around church my entire life; it's my whole story. and And so, my parents dragged me to church you know three times a week my whole childhood. And I used to think the Bible is just a bunch of really cool stories. And we're looking at these stories here today. But what we forget is, from cover to cover, the Bible is about one.
One main narrative; it's about one main story, and there is a lot of little stories mixed in here. But every story is pointing to the grand narrative of Scripture that God created mankind so that man could have a relationship with Him. That's the reason why you were created. We love reading books and reading blogs and listening to podcasts about finding our purpose in life. You want to know your ultimate purpose in life?
It's really twofold. You could have a relationship with God, and that you through your life could glorify Him. That's the reason why you exist today. That's the reason why He still has you breathing, so that you could have a relationship with Him and you could give Him glory each and every day. But here's the problem: when God created us with that purpose in mind, He also created us with free will.
And in Genesis chapter three, here's what happened: mankind sinned, and sin passed upon all men. That's you. That's me.
Now, every one of us are born into sin. We are born into sin, and guess what? A sinning people or a sinning person cannot have a relationship with a perfect, holy God. It can't, because His holiness cannot allow our sin to go unpunished.
So the story of the Bible is this: God sending His one and only begotten Son to pave the way, so that all the world. All the nations of the world could be blessed, and it started with the nation of Israel. And we go through the Old Testament, but all of that is pointing to one grand narrative: that out of Abraham's lineage, out of Isaac's lineage, out of all of that, would come one Jesus, the Messiah, and through him, and relationship with him, and his sacrifice on the cross of Calvary for you. And for me, we could be blessed. When you read these promises in the Old Testament, it says all the world's going to be blessed one day.
That's you. We're blessed as a result of this. We're blessed as a result of God sending His one and only begotten Son to die for us. Galatians three sixteen. It says this now to Abraham, and his seed, where the promises made.
He saith not into seeds as of many, but as of one into thy seed which is Christ. Here's what Paul is saying to the church at Galatia, Galatians chapter three. He's saying this that the promises that God made to Abraham they were ultimately made for one heir, and that is Christ. That through His life. Through Christ, we would experience blessing, but not through deceit, not through disguising ourselves as somebody one, as somebody else, just like Jacob did.
But through the gospel, we receive the blessing of God through His perfect sacrifice on the cross for us. And later in that chapter of Galatians three, when Paul's expounding on this, and he's explaining that the nation of Israel was there because it was God's plan to eventually send Jesus, the Messiah, so that all of us could be blessed as a result—not just the nation of Israel, but the entire world—as a result of this. He later in Galatians three, verse twenty-nine, he says, "If you are Christ, you're part of Abraham's seed." In other words, we're a part of the blessing that was promised from the Old Testament. That blessing is for all who believe, and so I invite you today. If you've never believed on Jesus as your only way to God, then guess what?
Here's the good news for you. Here's the good news for us: is that if you believe, you can be a part of the promise. You can be a part of this promise of blessing for all who would believe. Listen. In the end, here's what Isaac had to learn.
Isaac had to learn that faith meant trusting what God had promised was greater than what Isaac preferred.
So, as we wrap this whole thing up about Isaac and his story, here's the question that you have to ask yourself, and you have to answer in your heart. You don't have to answer this out loud. But here's the question that we have to ask: Is this? Are you willing to trust God's plan when it's different than ours? For some of you, it might be salvation.
You're just believing that the only way you can get to God and be accepted by Him is through your good works. You think that the only way you can get to God is through your good deeds. You think that the way to get to God is being in church every week?
Now those things are good, but that's not the way we get to God. By giving to the poor, that's a great thing, and I'm glad you do that. But let me tell you this: that's not how you get to God. We have our own plans a lot of times of how we can be accepted before God one day when we stand before judgment. But listen, those plans all fall short.
The only way that we get to God at the moment of judgment, the only way we can stand before God at the moment of judgment, is this: is through trusting in the blood that was shed for you and for me. That's the only way. And so, you have to ask yourself: Are you willing to trust God's plan, even when it differs from from your plan? And that could be salvation, or you say, Pastor, I am a Christian. I've trusted in Jesus as my Savior.
I've trusted in the blood that was shed for me. What does this look like for me? Here is what it means: is when you leave here, there is going to be moments in your life, there is going to be seasons of your life, where what you want contradicts what God's saying, because we we have the flesh, and and you are going to want to do things your way. And you're going to want to go about things your way, so that you can control things, so that you can control the narrative, so that you can control what's happening around you. And the question that you are going to have, if you're going to walk by faith, this is the question we have to wrestle with: Is this, are we willing to trust in His plans even when it differs from ours?
Because there's going to be a lot of times that that happens. And walking by faith requires that you and I. We trust in His plans, recognizing that He is sovereign over my mistakes. He's sovereign over my failures. He's sovereign over my shortcomings.
He's sovereign over my agenda. He's sovereign, and He's made a promise to me, and He has a purpose for me, and I'm trusting Him to fulfill it, even when my plans look different. Would you?
