Sunday morning: May 7th 2017 – 10.30 am. The third sermon in the series ‘Increase our faith’. This week we continue our walk through Hebrews 11 with a view on pleasing God.
Imagine what it must be like not to have to die? Sounds like something out of science fiction does it not? Yet this was the experience of Enoch, who because he pleased God, bypassed physical death and – “could not be found because God had taken him away.” It would also be the later experience of Elijah (2 Kings 2 v 11 – 12) and might well be your experience if you are a Christian and happen to be alive when Jesus returns to planet earth in triumph and glory (1 Thessalonians 4 v 17.)
So how did Enoch go about pleasing God? By combining the Biblical passages where he is mentioned in Hebrews and Genesis it is possible to build up an identikit picture of how he, and how we in turn can please God:-
1 – By Faith.
“Without faith it is impossible to please God” and so it would seem that from what we are told that Enoch pleased God by believing two vitally important things:-
A – God is real.
“Anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists” (Hebrews 11 v 6.) Many people have the faith to believe in the existence of some sort of God, but the key issue is the object of that faith. Enoch’s faith was in the one, true God; and so ours must be in the God revealed in the Bible in all his glorious fullness.
Challenge – Do you have that faith in the reality of the one, true God?
B – God is relational.
Enoch’s faith went far beyond the acknowledgement of God’s existence; in addition he sought after God in relationship, safe in the knowledge that – “he rewards those who earnestly seek him” (Hebrews 11 v 6.) The Christian faith is more than a religion, it is a religion based on a relationship (John 17 v 3 & Jeremiah 9 v 24) that needs to be vigorously and not casually pursued.
Challenge – Are you earnestly seeking after God in relationship?
2 – By Following.
We are told on two occasions that Enoch after the birth of his son – “walked with God” (Genesis 5 v 22 & 24.) This walk was not something short term, in that it lasted for 300 years! A gentle reminder that the Christian walk requires persevering faith in that it is a marathon and not a sprint that needs to start, continue and finish well, as in the case of the Apostle Paul (2 Timothy 4 v 7.)
Challenge – Will you walk with God persevering to the end?
Service Details
Theme: “We aim to please!”
Reading: Hebrews 11 v 5 – 6 & Genesis 5 v 21 – 24
Preacher: Chris Hughes
Led by: Nathan Gordon