_________ i have found my island; waiting for the island to let me in `

Thursday, June 10, 2004

BY FAITH (BIBLICAL VERSION)

Now faith is being sure
of what we hope for
and certain of what
we do not see.
This is what the ancients
were commended for.

By faith
we understand that the universe was formed at God's command,
so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

By faith
Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did.

By faith
he was commended as a righteous man,
when God spoke well of his offerings.

And by faith
he still speaks,
even though he is dead.

By faith
Enoch was taken from this life,
so that he did not experience death;
he could not be found,
because God had taken him away.
For before he was taken,
he was commended as one who pleased God.

And without faith
it is impossible to please God,
because anyone who comes to him
must believe that he exists
and that he rewards those
who earnestly seek him.

By faith Noah,
when warned about things not yet seen,
in holy fear built an ark to save his family.

By his faith he
condemned the world
and became heir of the righteousness
that comes by faith.

By faith Abraham,
when called to go to a place
he would later receive as his inheritance,
obeyed and went,
even though he did not know
where he was going.

By faith
he made his home
in the promised land
like a stranger in a foreign country;
he lived in tents,
as did Isaac and Jacob,
who were heirs with him of the same promise.
For he was looking forward
to the city with foundations,
whose architect and builder
is God.

By faith Abraham,
even though he was past age
--and Sarah herself was barren
--was enabled to become a father
because he considered him
faithful who had made the promise.

And so from this one man,
and he as good as dead,
came descendants as numerous
as the stars in the sky
and as countless
as the sand on the seashore.

All these people
were still living by faith when they died.
They did not receive the things promised;
they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. A
nd they admitted that they were
aliens and strangers on earth.

People who say such things
show that they are looking
for a country
of their own.

If they had been thinking
of the country they had left,
they would have had opportunity to return.

Instead,
they were longing
for a better country
--a heavenly one.
Therefore God is not ashamed
to be called their God,
for he has prepared a city for them.

By faith Abraham,
when God tested him,
offered Isaac as a sacrifice.
He who had received
the promises was about to sacrifice
his one and only son,
even though God had said to him,
"It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned."
Abraham reasoned
that God could raise the dead,
and figuratively speaking,
he did receive Isaac back from death.

By faith
Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau
in regard to their future.

By faith Jacob,
when he was dying,
blessed each of Joseph's sons,
and worshiped as he leaned
on the top of his staff.

By faith Joseph,
when his end was near,
spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt
and gave instructions about his bones.

By faith
Moses' parents hid him for three months
after he was born,
because they saw
he was no ordinary child,
and they were not afraid
of the king's edict.

By faith Moses,
when he had grown up,
refused to be known
as the son of Pharaoh's daughter.
He chose to be mistreated
along with the people of God
rather than to enjoy
the pleasures of sin for a short time.
He regarded disgrace
for the sake of Christ
as of greater value
than the treasures of Egypt,
because he was looking ahead to his reward.

By faith
he left Egypt,
not fearing the king's anger;
he persevered
because he saw him who is invisible.

By faith
he kept the Passover
and the sprinkling of blood,
so that the destroyer of the firstborn
would not touch the firstborn of Israel.

By faith
the people passed through the Red Sea
as on dry land;
but when the Egyptians tried to do so,
they were drowned.

By faith
the walls of Jericho fell,
after the people had marched around them
for seven days.

By faith
the prostitute Rahab,
because she welcomed the spies,
was not killed with those who were disobedient.

And what more shall I say?
I do not have time to tell about Gideon,
Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel
and the prophets,

who through faith conquered kingdoms,
administered justice,
and gained what was promised;
who shut the mouths of lions,
quenched the fury of the flames, a
nd escaped the edge of the sword;
whose weakness was turned to strength;
and who became powerful in battle
and routed foreign armies.
Women received back their dead,
raised to life again.
Others were tortured
and refused to be released,
so that they might gain
a better resurrection.

Some faced jeers and flogging,
while still others were chained
and put in prison.
They were stoned;
they were sawed in two;
they were put to death
by the sword.

They went about in sheepskins
and goatskins, destitute, persecuted
and mistreated--
the world was not worthy of them.
They wandered in deserts
and mountains,
and in caves
and holes in the ground.

These were all commended for their faith,
yet none of them received
what had been promised.
God had planned something better for us
so that only together with us
would they be made perfect.

- Hebrews Chapter 11

crucified at 5:02:00 PM
†<<<------- Phrey-DOMic~ ------->>>†
|