Hebrews 11:17-28 New King James Version
17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, 18 a]of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,” 19 concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.
20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come.
21 By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.
22 By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones.
23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s command.
24 By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 25 choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the b]passing pleasures of sin, 26 esteeming the c]reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures d]in Egypt; for he looked to the reward.
27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. 28 By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them.
I forgot to add First Impression to the list, so First Impression?
- I read the whole chapter at once the first time, so my first impression for this section was not new. My focus on it now is how the people were in tune with God to the point of knowing their children’s future.
17-19 Abraham believed God could raise the dead. Do you? Do you act upon it?
- Not often.
20 Do you bless your kids about the future?
- I prepare them, but I do not see it.
21 Worshipped when dying. Will you?
- I certainly expect to.
22 Joseph believe about the future. Do you have plans for the future? For your bones?
- Yes. I understood the Bible to tell us to have plans and then allow God to change them. Some plans are long term like live in a place I do not have to maintain and others are save money for the future. Others are shorter like work until the little kid is out of school doing the same thing I am now, unless God shows me differently.
23 Why does God use beautiful people? Why hide if not in fear?
- To impact those who pay attention to beautiful people. To accomplish the call of God and be willing to die for it.
24-25 Do you accept the suffering of your heritage?
- I do not want to suffer for my worldly heritage, but I accept that I shall suffer due to my standing on my heritage as a Christian.
26 Did you know Moses focused on Christ?
- I had not looked at it in this specific light before.
27 Persevered as one who sees Him who is invisible. Wouldn’t you?
- The Jews had been a people for only three generations (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob) and had lived in captivity in Egypt for 400 years. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph had set how they interacted with God as a small family group and without the law as given to Moses in their future. God was active in the lives of these five men, but as this generation saw the life of Moses, the plagues, and the miracles of the visible presence of God on a daily basis, they still turned away. That Moses did not is miraculous. We can only persevere as one who has seen God if we follow that piece of God called the Holy Spirit that lives in us as believers. There is no spiritual success without the faith that this represents.
28 Does lamb’s blood across the door seem silly?
- I should have stopped before this one. My point was that the people had to perform an action that was clearly not normal in order to demonstrate their faith. It is silly, but if God asks, it becomes sacred. To the world, many things Christians are called to believe in and stand for seem silly, but they are the true path as shown by God. So be silly to the world by obeying the call of God and His Son through the Holy Spirit.