ICS Daily Devotions
Abraham and Rahab Believed in God
Heb 11:17-19 (NKJV) By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,” concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.
What gave Abraham the imputed righteousness before God is based on his faith in God’s work. He believed that God had the power to resurrect Isaac even if he were to slay him on the altar. Abraham believed in the resurrection of Christ. Abraham offered up his only son just like God who offered up His Son Jesus Christ. Abraham’s journey and act on Mount Moriah mirrored the work of God on the place of the Skull where Jesus was crucified.
Roman 10:9-10 (NKJV) That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
The key to having the saving faith is that we are to believe in our heart that God has raised Jesus from the dead just like Abraham that God was able to raise Isaac up. And for the second, we need to confess with our mouth as we are free moral agents and have the right to our own lives.
Of course, believing in the heart comes first prior to saying it with our mouth. There might be occasions when the person is not able to say it with their mouth because of sickness or illnesses. It can be a nod of their head, the blinking of their eyes or any form of acknowledgment for the sake of those who are ministering to them. They are definitely saved when they believed in their hearts! This is the confidence in God because their salvation has to be purely based on grace through faith. They might not have the time to show forth fruits of righteousness or good works.
James 2:21,25-26 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar? … Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way? For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.
The scripture revealed to us the extreme spectrum in society revealing the work of Abraham who was rich in livestock and Rahab the harlot. The common thing among the two were their acts of faith despite of the difficulties that they faced. Rahab was an inhabitant of the land when the two spies sent out by Joshua came to spy out the land. She believed in God regarding how He has delivered the Israelites. She acted to help the spies to escape. She had to face the punishment of her own people if they were to discover what she had done to betray them. It was a price that she had to pay with her life!
Isaac meant a lot to Abraham because he was the son given to him at his old age and of promise given by God. Isaac was very dear to Abraham’s heart and was precious in his sight but he had already considered Isaac dead when he was walking up Mount Moriah with Isaac. Can you imagine how difficult it was for Abraham to answer Isaac when he asked him of the sacrifice knowing that he was the sacrifice? Abraham had to put what was dear to him on the altar as an act of faith in God!
One was the father of faith for the Israelites and Rahab was a Gentile but she chose to believe in God. Both Abraham and Rahab did acts of righteousness when they believed. As Christians, we need to follow their example. We should present our bodies as a living sacrifice, acceptable of God, in order to serve Him. We can manifest our relationship with God by walking according to His principles and faith.
Sermon Series: An Active Faith
