"– he persevered because he saw him who is invisible." (v. 27)

For Reading and Meditation:     Hebrews 11:17-28

What is it that prompts some people to take more interest in the principles of godliness than in God Himself? I think one reason could be that we are more comfortable dealing in the realm of the visible than the invisible. We prefer to work with things we can touch or handle and apply so that we feel an immediate impact rather than to launch out into the unseen and simply trust. I often saw people come up against this problem in the days when much of my time was spent in personal counselling. I would bring people to a place where they could accept that the roots of their problem lay in a deficient relationship with God. However, when a movement toward Him of simple basic trust was called for, terror would appear for a moment in their eyes and they would say: "Give me some steps I can take to deal with my problem, some principles I can follow that will act as a ladder on which I can climb out of this pit." We all find it easier to do than to be; we prefer a plan to follow rather than a Person to trust. What our carnal nature hates to be faced with is the challenge of throwing ourselves in utter dependency on a God who is invisible and intangible. Yet this is what a relationship with God entails. The thing that marks Moses out as outstanding in the chapter before us today is not his works but his faith. He persevered because he saw Him who is invisible. It is possible to see the invisible, but it is possible only to the eye of faith.

My Father and my God, help me recognize this terrible tendency in myself to be more comfortable with working than trusting. Let Your Word reach deep into my heart today. Teach me how to be. In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen.