11.7
Next in line is Noah. Notice the emphasis on “things not yet seen”. Back in 11:1 the definition of faith included “assurance about what we do not see”. Abel offered his first fruits without any guarantee of a reward. Noah was told a flood would come. There was no evidence of this except the word of God. Faith is relying upon the word of God. This faith led to action, Noah built an ark, as directed by the Lord. Such a course of action was sensible if and only if God’s word was reliable.
By his faith the world was condemned. People say it is impossible to believe in God, or that God has not given enough evidence. Noah, in his day, showed that it was possible to hear God and to act on God’s word. Today the fact that many do believe in God refutes the claim that there isn’t enough evidence. Gen 7:1 says that God found Noah to be righteous, this happened after he had shown faith.
11:8
Abraham is the example par excellence of faith, cited in Isaiah 51, and the foundation of much of Paul’s teaching. Abraham was called by God and to leave the place he lived in to go to another country. But God did not tell him where he was going. The only source of security that Abraham had was that God had spoken to him, his evidence was the word of God. This was his assurance of what was not yet seen. The Jews would know that Abraham did indeed receive a land, though it came to future generations. Faith is built on a trust in the character of God.
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