Heroes: February 10, 2014

TODAYS WORD FOR MONDAY February 10, 2014.

HEROES

DEFINITION:

One admired for courage, fortitude or ability; one known for brave deeds; one regarded as a model or ideal

SCRIPTURE:

These all died in faith. Hebrew 11: 13.

For living to me means simply “Christ” and if I die I should merely gain more of Him. Philippians 1:20 (J.B. Phillips translation).

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

All of us during our lifetime have had heroes in our lives. When we were younger we had many more heroes than now. Part of that was due to our age and lack of maturity. Over the years we have seen some of our heroes fail in some way and burst our so called bubble, because we thought they were the greatest. It is a great disappointment when someone turns out not to be what we thought they were.

In Hebrews chapter 11, we read about heroes of faith from the Old Testament. They include Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David and many others. When you look to the Bible for your heroes in life you will find role models that you can confidently use in growing your spiritual life.

The key to those that are listed above in Hebrews 11 is that they all lived by faith. If we pick these as our heroes and our role models and want to be like them we need to do all we can to live as they did. They all had their times of failure but in their faith they found their comfort, their daily guide, their motive for living and their support.

They believed the promises that came from God, under the law, and lived their lives relying on these promises. They were assured that their sins were blotted out through the mercy of God. These heroes were confident of their acceptance by God. They enjoyed living in His love and resting in His faithfulness.

They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth just as we are as believers today. They were looking forward to a country of their own, a better place than where they were or had been. They all were looking for their heavenly home and knew that one day they would arrive there and live an eternity with their Lord and creator. Is this the kind of hero you have chosen in your life?

In the verse we have written above from Hebrews 11: 13 we read that they all died in faith. They died in faith because they lived in faith. Hebrews 11:1 explains, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”

Faith is more than belief. We can believe a chair will support us if we sit on it. It is by faith that we sit on it. These men and women of faith had confidence that God would do all that He said He would do and acted on it. They had confident assurance of what they could not see.

Dying in faith looks to the future. They died knowing that the Messiah would surely come and one day they would rise from their graves to behold Him in the air.

If you are looking for heroes in your life, look no further than these heroes we read about in Hebrews. And you can be a hero just like them if you will look to Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith. You can be confident that God wants you to be assured of your faith as were the Bible heroes of faith. When you have doubts ask God to remove them and put your complete trust in Him. Live to gain more of Him.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Hebrews 11:6

But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

PRAYER:

As our family picks heroes in our lives help us to understand that we need to look up to men and women who lived lives of faith. Help us to live our lives daily by the faith we have in You so that others will see to us as a person of great faith fully devoted to You.