“In such circumstances, we are forced to face what we mean when we speak of faith. How do we handle the deep and pressing ques;ons our own minds bring as our expecta;ons and reality do not match? For me, in my ;me in prison, I expected God to do certain things, and to do them in a sensible way and ;me. I expected that God would act quickly to intervene. When this did not occur in the way I expected, or in the ;ming I thought it should, I was both confused and angry. I had to learn that some of my unexamined assump;ons were not biblical.” -‐Stuat McAllister
“FIRM FAITH” Genesis 15
A. Confirma;on of Protec;on
A. Confirma;on of Protec;on B. Comfort of Provision
A. Confirma;on of Protec;on B. Comfort of Provision C. Confusion of Promise
A. Confirma;on of Protec;on B. Comfort of Provision C. Confusion of Promise D. Clarifica;on of Promise
A. Confirma;on of Protec;on B. Comfort of Provision C. Confusion of Promise D. Clarifica;on of Promise
A. God Cuts a Covenant with Abram
A. God Cuts a Covenant with Abram B. God Condi;ons the Covenant Alone
A. God Cuts a Covenant with Abram B. God Condi;ons the Covenant Alone
“And I will bring you to the land I swore with upliNed hand to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD.”
Exodus 6:8
“Do not say to yourself, ‘ The LORD has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness’…No, the LORD your God will drive them out before you to accomplish what he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a s;ff-‐necked people.” Deuteronomy 9:4-‐6
“I do not want you to be ignorant of this mystery, brothers, so that you may not be conceited: Israel has experienced a hardening in part un;l the full number of the Gen;les has come in. And so all Israel will be saved…As far as the gospel is concerned, they are enemies on your account; but as far as elec;on is concerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs, for God’s giNs and his call are irrevocable.” Romans 11:25-‐29
“Faith is confidence in the person of Jesus Christ and in his power, so that even when his power does not serve my ends, my confidence in him remains because of who he is.”
Ravi Zacharias
• Despite Difficulty
• Despite Difficulty • Despite Darkness
• Despite Difficulty • Despite Darkness • Despite Delay
“God is consistent, but he is also unpredictable. He is consistent in his nature. You always know where you are with God, but you seldom know what he is going to do next. You cannot find security in what God is doing. There is only security in who God is.”
Graham Cook