PILGRIMS AND STRANGERS

HEBREWS 11:1

A. "THESE ALL DIED IN FAITH, NOT HAVING RECEIVED THE PROMISES, BUT HAVING SEEN THEM AFAR OFF, AND WERE PERSUADED OF THEM AND EMBRACED THEM, AND CONFESSED THAT THEY WERE STRANGERS AND PILGRIMS ON EARTH"
  1. The eleventh chapter of Hebrews:
    1. Is known by Bible readers as the chapter on Faith - and indeed it is
    2. The word - faith - occurs as least twenty-six times covering the experiences of many men and women who demonstrated their faith in God and his precious promises
  2. Our text, this morning, is a part of the story of faith as dramatized by the saints:
    1. It defines faith as the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen - v. 1
    2. And declares that without faith it is impossible to please God - v. 6 B. THE EXPRESSIONS - PILGRIMS AND STRANGERS ARE THE BURDEN OF THIS MESSAGE
  3. Both expressions indicate:
    1. That this life is, at best, transitory continues only for a very short time
    2. Some of the writers of the Bible speak of this present life as
  4. "A tale that is told" - Ps. 90:9
  5. "A shadow" - Job 14:2
  6. "A weaver's shuttle" - Job 7:6
  7. "vapor that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away" - James 4:14
  8. It is in this light we must consider the strong expressions - stranger and pilgrims of our text:
    1. Said Jacob to Pharaoh, "The days of the years of my pilgrimage are an hundred and thirty years; few and evil have been the days of the years of my life" - Gen. 47:9
    2. The Psalmist writes about "the house of my pilgrimage" - Ps. 119:54
    3. Peter speaks of the believers as "Pilgrims and strangers" - I Pet. 2:11
  9. But the expression - 'pilgrims and strangers' have a much deeper significance:
    1. They reveal the faith of these pilgrims and strangers in God's promises of a better world to come
    2. Writes Peter, "We are looking for a new heaven and a new earth according to His promises" - 2 Pet. 3:13
    3. The writer of the book of Hebrews tells us that God's pilgrims "desire a better country" - Heb. 11:16
  10. The eye of faith comes into strong focus in our opening text:
    1. By it they broke through the barrier of time and human limitation and actually saw the realization of God's promises, "having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them and embraced them" - Heb. 11:13
    2. By it thy confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on earth C. THIS EVENT, THIS MORNING DEAR ONES IS A CONFIRMATION OF THE CORRECTNESS OF THE BIBLE CONCEPT THAT IN THIS PRESENT LIFE MAN IS, IN TRUTH, A PILGRIM AND STRANGER
  11. He is indeed a pilgrim on earth:
    1. He has no city abiding - Ps. 107:4
    2. This house that knew him yesterday, knows him no more - Job 7:10
    3. His loved ones that sojourned with him for a short time have only his memory to be comforted by
  12. But this dear ones, is the darker side of our opening text; there is a brighter side to the pilgrimage of God's children:
    1. God's precious promises of a new heaven and a new earth brighten the path of the pilgrims of God - Is. 65:17; 66:22; Rev. 21:1-3
    2. These promises are, in Christ Jesus, yea and amen - they are as real and dependable as God Himself - 2 Cor. 1:20; 2 Pet. 1:4
    3. For He that promised is faithful, He cannot lie - Heb. 10:23; Titus 1:2
  13. Finally, set your mind upon the wonderful and panoramic outlines of Bible forecasts:
    1. Daniel 2
    2. Daniel 7
    3. Matthew 24
    4. Revelation's twenty-two chapters - see how clearly divine love has mapped out the path to the eternal city
    5. Set your eyes of faith on these, pilgrim of God, as you enter the valley of the shadows of death


Design © John Bryant 2011