"I am your Shield, and Reward, and Righteousness"

"Whether you go to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, 'this is the way; walk in it.'" Many Christians would recognize or could even quote this verse, found in Isaiah 30:21, from memory. But I wonder how many people who claim to be Christians live this verse out in their day-to-day lives? It's a hard thing to have faith, really. Hebrews 11:1 defines faith as, "Being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."





That, my friends, is faith. And it has been a struggle for all of mankind down through the ages. Even Christians often have doubts about whether or not God really exists or whether or not they are truly saved. Having faith can be so difficult!





Yet, as we look closer in scripture, there are few things that are spoken of as highly as having faith. What an amazing thing! Simply believing God is one of the most highly spoken of virtues in the Bible. In Hebrews, chapter 11, the passage that I quoted earlier, there are verses about many different Biblical heroes throughout the Bible. Yet no one person was spoken of more in this chapter than the patriarch Abraham.

11:8-12, "By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. By faith Abraham, even though he was past age-- and Sarah herself was barren-- was enabled to become a father because he considered him faithful who had made the promise. And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore." 17-19, "By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had received the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, "It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death."

James 2:23 says, "And the scripture was fulfilled that says, 'Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,' and he was called God's friend."

Galatians 3:6-9, "Consider Abraham: 'He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.' Understand, then, that those who believe are children of Abraham. The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: 'All nations will be blessed through you.' so those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith."

Abraham lived during the Old Testament times, yet he was mentioned again and again in the New Testament. Why? Because his faith was counted unto him as righteousness.